Badan Kebajikan Penuntut Brunei Darussalam di Kaherah: Q&A: Reminiscing Rehlah Moments

The mustagideen and mustagidaat 2012/2013 in a group photo at Panorama

The mustagideen and mustagidaat inside
the citadel

Q: Who came up with the idea of having rehlah? Who organized and planned this activity?

A: Actually, this programme was organized every year by BKPBDK for 'mustagid' and 'mustagidah'. It aims on introducing historical and scenic places in Egypt as well as to acknowledge them history of the visited places. This year, Ustaz Awangku Muhd Nur Hafizan bin Pengiran Hj Hassan had been appointed as chairman of this activity along with Ustazah Hajah Nurnadiah binti Hj Mohd Ismail as vice-chairman.

Q: What preparations did you guys do before leaving on rehlah?

A: Before leaving on rehlah, we were given some briefing on what should and should not be brought. We were also told to be aware with our own safety especially during touring in the Pyramids at Giza. That day, on 10th October 2012, I woke up before the sun arose. Along with my four other friends, we prepared foods to be brought during rehlah. Just before 6 o’clock, all of us went down waiting for the bus to pick us up.

Some mustagid with fellow seniors

Q: Tell me in details about the places that you had visited.

A: Our first destination that day was Maqam Anwar Sadat. Anwar Sadat was a former president of Egypt. This monument was built in remembrance of President Anwar Sadat. We stayed there for about 15 minutes before continuing our journey to Qal’ah Salahudin Al-Ayubi (Citadel of Salahuddin Al-Ayubi).

It took around 40 minutes to reach this place. This Qal’ah or citadel is named after Salahuddin Al-Ayubi, an Islamic hero who had defended Egypt from foreign attacks. An old and huge building mesmerized me. With height of 10 meter and thickness of 3 meter, it made us fascinated with the fact that this Qal’ah was built over 800 years ago. You can find trees designed clearly with the word Allah.

There you can find amazing views that cannot be seen in any other places. In there also, there is a well believed to be where Prophet Yusuf alaihi salam was left by his siblings. Besides that, the committee members had provided us with fun games and activities. We spent two hours over there and it was still not enough to wander around!

Our third destination was Imam asy-Syafi’e Mosque. Imam asy-Syafi’e was one of the four kibir imams in Islam. We performed our zuhr prayer here and after that we continued our journey to the most famous place in Egypt; the Pyramids! When we arrived at the Pyramids, the sun was strikingly hot. There, we were told to stick together. The Pyramids are considered as one of the Seven Wonders of the World. Until now, lots of architects and civil engineers wondered how did the men manage to build the pyramids in lacking of technology and great tools. The three famous pyramids at Giza are Kufu, Kufra and Munkara.

Munkara is the smallest pyramid there. After touring around the pyramids, we set off to Panorama, a place where you could see the three pyramids. We stopped a moment at the Sphinx before performing our Asr prayer.

After performing Asr prayer, we set off to Nile River at Zamalek. Upon arrival, we were served with a beautiful view from the Nile. Eating our early-dinner accompanied by the sunset, while the felucca cruising around the Nile River, was one of the best moments. The cruise took about 30 minutes before we set our foot to the nearby hotel to perform Maghrib prayer. Just after performing our prayer, we continued our journey to the final destination in Maadi. Shopping time! The City Center shopping complex here is a bit smaller than in Nasr City, yet it was full with people. We stayed here for almost two hours before heading home.

Q: What did you feel after spending a day touring a bit of Egypt?

A: Tiring, yet it was a super duper awesome day. It’s not only the visits that are counted, but the 'ilm and knowledge that was served during our visits is counted as priceless. Thank you to our seniors who had been organizing this activity very well and for fully taking care of us during rehlah time.