Easter in Durban

Salaams to everyone. It has been very rewarding to see new people posting onto the blog. Please ask everyone you know to post as the blog is only as good or as interesting as the last blog...

Alhumdulillah Muhammad is going very well. He has changed our lives in so many ways, both big and small. Presumably all those of you who already have children know what I am talking about. The others will find out soon insha allah...

Insha-allah I have started private practice in Durban now and, with Allah's help, I plan to stop travelling to Pietermaritzburg soon. Please make dua that Allah makes it easy for me.

Aslam

Joberg Autumn

Salaams to all,

It is great to read the website these days and hear from all the cousins. I look forward to logging onto the internet just to read the new entries onthe Bhorat web site.

Spoke to Ashraf yesterday. Nice to hear from him. Hang in there, less than 20 months to go...

Nice to hear from Naeem Sader. Keep us updated about the Saders. Yunus, it was most interesting reading about your Haj experience and may your Haj beaccepted, insha-allah.

Back from Mauritius which was fantastic. The beaches over there are out of this world. The country itself is like a little India and with not much else to do over there. Back home and winter is aproaching slowly. Naseemwill miss out on the lovely crisp mornings and electic blankets...

Salaams to all
Asad

Assalaamu-Alaikum

My sincere apologies to Qasim and Naeem. I've been having trouble with my e-mail accounts and managed to sort out the problems. Besides, I did reply to your e-mails Naeem but for some reason you were not receiving them. Qasim, I will sms / e-mail my contact details to you --- don't feel comfortable putting contact no's on the site, I know u have and are a very brave guy. I guess at MTN, we always dealt with queries from customers complaining about nasty rude sms's from anon people etc. Glad to read that Yunus had a great trip, may Allah accept his Hajj insha allah! Don't we all want to be travel agents like Farhana and Zahedah? Hope Zahedah has a good trip and post some pics of Europe and her travels. Haven't heard from Farhana in a while.........I'm sure she's keeping busy at American Express. As'ad, hope you still plan to visit us sometime this year. Have a lovely trip to Mauritius and yes, I do remember my trip to Mauritius. If you have the time, try to get over to Reunion as it's a beautiful island. You might need to get the visa from SA before you leave................when do u leave? (if u haven't already left). I wrote an exam yesterday and should get the results in two weeks. Still have two more to go. Zubi foi or should I say mummy arrived on March 08th after spending a few days in Kuala Lampur. The kids are having a ball of a time. If all goes well, they will be here for 3 months. At this moment, both Ebrahim and Suleman are working up North at different mine sites though. Ebrahim is due back next Sunday and Suleman on the 07th of April. We were meant to move into our house early this month but there seems to be more delays with the building contractors who are finishing off Ebrahims house. He should move out of my house in two to three weeks. I simply cannot believe how fast time has gone...........we moved out of our flat since June last year and have been living out of suit cases ever since (9 months now). Our household contents will arrive on the 19th of March. Whats the latest with the family reunion? Sumayya, give us some details even though we will not be there. I spoke to Ayesha in Canada a couple of weeks ago and told her about this website. I hope they post a message or two so we can get some news on Canada. She mentioned that Sarah Kala will be leaving SA on March 21st to spend a few months in Canada. Nazeer, how is Shakera doing in Dubai. Please fwd her e-mail address. Hope your studies are going well, better work hard at it otherwise we will have another brilliant electrician in the family!

Keep in touch,

Ashraf

mariebiscuit and all

sorry for the delayed response, but just as life is slow in Stanger, so are the telephone lines!!!

Sorry Yunus but Daddy with his broad smile and rheumatoid limp remembers you constantly asking for Mariebiscuit when you were much younger!!

spoke to Ebrahim Shaikjee a few days ago, he is well, also got a nice surprise when Naeem Sader phoned. Aslam is right, I think it is about time to settle down, but inStanger?! no chance!!

salaamz>>

Naseem (AKA Sunny Boy)

Posting email addresses and contact numbers on Blogger

Salaams all,

I dont know if it is a good idea to post email addresses on the blog as spammers trawl the net looking for email addresses to use. What do others think? Maybe we can circulate a list via email for people to add their address and contact details onto. I could start it and see how many we get onto it...

Aslam

Y'ello

Salaams everyone,

Hope you are all well. Family is well on my side and Witbank is great, not that any of you will know ‘COS YOU NEVER VISIT !!! Joking.. Ashraf, haven’t heard from you in a while. You lost in the Outbacks ??? The guys from M&E gave regards.

Great to see Naeem Sader blogging. Its been too long since we’ve met. Naeem, whats your e-mail address and cell number ?

Is there a place , maybe, where we can all update our contact info like email addresses and cell numbers ?

Farid Asmal

083 212 9991

REUNION

ASSALAMU-ALAIKUM TO ALL OF YOU....

Have been checking with the family, lots of people seem to have plans for the easter weekend....Zaynab's reasons also valid.... the 1st of May is a possibility, but Zaaheda will not be available... a postposement seems logical...what suggestions do we have from others?????? (Ashraf, this question is not directed at you)

some news from the home front...mummy and daddy have left for Australia (04 March), spending 3 days in Malaysia and InshaAllah flying to Perth on the 9th...

Saders...

Salaams Naeem, it has been long to here from you! Glad to all are well, I did SMS Shuaib on the birth if his baby boy. Where are you working? Are you also planning to move to the UK and leave Liverpool United for Blackburn??? Just kidding, my cell number is 0845142435 and home is 475 9774... across the new Clearwater Mall. Give me a call.... where are you staying? Give me your numbers too, unlike Ashraf ( I am still waiting forthe contact details there?)

Nice to read from Yunus about his jurney, may his and his wifes Hajj be accepted. Ameen. Where is Secunda again?? It must really have been agreat trip, hard to imagine that many people in one place at the same time.

Salaams to all

Qasim

Hello there...

Assalaamu-alaikum

This is Naeem Sader (Fathima Kalas son) trying to get in touch with some long lost family. It's okay. You guys can take a few moments to try and refresh your memory. Got it? Good. How is everybody?? From what i see on the blog, you all seem fine. Alhumdulillah, thats good news. I haven't seen so many of yous for so long that I'm not sure what to say/write!

Let me just give you some news. Mum is back from England finally. She got back 2 weeks ago. Ebrahim, Shuaib and Qasim are all doing well. Ebrahim now has a son as well as a daughter. His daughter, Aamera, is around 3 years old and Hasan, his baby, boy is just a little over 3 months old. As for Shuaib, he is the proud father of a baby boy named Usha. Both the new additions are coping well and are growing very quickly.

As for myself and Muhammed, we are both very well. Muhammed is presently completing his final year at RAU and I am working for a quantity surveying company in Jhb.

Thats all i have time for now. I hope to keep in contact regularly from now on. Thanks a whole lot to Ashraf Chohan for not replying to any e-mails. You really are a star. Qasim, if you are reading this then he's a LAUNCHPAD!! I'm sure you remember that.

Anyway, please remember us in your duaas as you are all remembered in mine.
Salaams to all.

Naeem

Salaams from Secunda

Asalaamu alaikum,

It’s good to read that I have been the discussion point of many mails. So Naseem, we are still awaiting your explanation on the “Marie biscuit” issue. Alhumdulillah, Hajj was an amazing experience despite the initial delays. We were away for almost 5 weeks. Medina was beautiful. The prophet’s (SAW) mosque was a sight on it’s own, in terms of the size, architecture, the lighting on the inside and outside, the massive retractable umbrellas, sliding domes, etc. It was simply stunning. It was cold during the early mornings and the evenings. Shopping was also an experience. The locals immediately recognize you as a South African and address you as follow : Welcome, Welcome, Discount, Discount !

We did most of our shopping here. But you have to also be on guard for what they call Number 2’s. Perfumes were very cheap and I was interested in Cool Water by Davidoff. The guy shows you the item. Upon closer inspection you realize that the item is called Cold Water ! The packaging and writing is exactly the same as the original. Then he takes out another bottle. This one is Deep Water ! As if you have seen it all, he produces another one, Clear Water !!!

We spent 8 days in Medina.

Mecca was also good. Here we spent just almost 4 weeks. The first sight of the Holy Kabaah was breath taking. It was a very emotional experience. By the time we arrived in Mecca, the city was quite full. But alhumduliallah, we managed to achieve whatever we wanted to do. Both in Medina and Mecca, you get all the familiar eating places such as KFC, Pizza Hut, Burger King(American) and many other brands. The pricing is cheap.

The 5 days of Hajj was also something to take back. Especially the flood on the last day. We were about 100m from the bridge where you stone the Jamaraats. It just started to rain, rather pour ! Without any drizzle or anything, it just started bucketing! And it wasn’t normal rain – the rain was coming down with a vengeance. The nearby shelters were already filled with people and the only other option was running into the tunnels ( which is used by those performing the walking hajj ). But that seemed a bit dangerous as everyone was running into it and if someone had to trip and fall, that’s it. So we stood in blistering rain for almost 40mins. We were soaked – our clothes, back packs, kitaabs, money, everything. Whilst we stood there, we could not even look one another face to face because of the force the rain was coming down with. You just have to look down and make sure the person is still next to you. Peoples bags, packets, etc were just floating past you. Finally when the rain subsided, the bridge was empty and we managed to stone the jamaraats and move on the Mecca.

It was only whilst walking back to Mecca did we realize the damage caused. The tunnels, the were almost half full ! Water levels were above our knees in certain areas ! There are no drainage facilities. People were abandoning their cars and walking as the water was as high as the bonnets and the cars wouldn’t move. That 3km walk back to the hotel took forever to reach. But that was a once in a lifetime experience. Apparently, that was the worst flood in 20+ years.

We also visited Jeddah for the day. Got to see the mosque in the sea! In Jeddah, the locals are also familiar in Afrikaans. The one shop keeper called us by saying, “Kom Binne. Ek gee groot afslag.” That was just too much.

There are so many stories to tell but it will take too long. Insha-allah when we meet we can talk about the rest.

All in all, the experience was truly amazing and fulfilling ! Insha-allah we will all get a chance to visit these places at least once. We remembered all of your’ll in our duas and still continue to do so.

It’s good to be home but a part of you still longs for you to return one day.

Anyway, pass our salaams to all and we will speak soon.

Yunus & Zakeeya