Traveler's Tales: 1

Yusuf Rassiwala

Yusuf Rassiwala today marked his return from the holy cities of Karbala and Najaf in Iraq by flagging off the first session of Traveler’s Tales – a new initiative wherein members would share their experiences/ impressions from a tour with the rest of the Club.
“We were a family of five in a group of 60 from India,” informed Yusuf R. “We left on March 12 and returned last Saturday, post-midnight. It was a pilgrimage-cum-pleasure trip to two of the holiest of holy places of our community. We did not visit Baghdad though, for security reasons. This was my second visit to Iraq after almost nine years.”
The purpose behind our interactive session was two-fold: one, to provide an emotive forum for those returning from a tour/ vacation who would be bubbling with information that they cannot

The family of five, outside a shrine. Yusuf Rassiwala's brother is second from left 

otherwise share; and two, to satiate the curiosity of those planning to or perhaps, not so fortunate to go on such a trip.
As Yusuf R pointed out, “I wish all those religious places in Iraq were not restricted to Muslims only. You could feel, at every step, the presence of the Almighty. The weather was divine, never so cool in March. I am a heart patient. But not for a moment did I feel any stress, even when I was to walk for miles on end on difficult terrain. It was nothing short of a miracle.”
Yusuf R had fond memories of the lavish spread laid out in hotels, though the staple (for locals) comprised khabooz (similar to our pao, but big), chicken, camel meat, fish and of course, dates. “The war has ruined their economy,” he observed. “There is so much of poverty there. Our rupee is equal to 16 Iraqi dinars. You find women of all ages everywhere.

Yusuf R addresses members of the Club on his return from Iraq

The war has claimed their men.”
In spite of the grim situation, there were moments from the trip Yusuf R will never forget: “For example, out of nowhere, a man came up asking to be photographed with me. Don’t forget, communication was

Holy offerings from Iraq for everybody. Banoo
Apa collects on behalf of those absent today

a problem because of the language barrier. But there was something angelic about that stranger I could connect with. And then, he wanted to be photographed with my elder brother!”
On another occasion, Yusuf R left his mobile behind at a shrine and had walked quite a distance before remembering to pick it up. He trudged back and by the time he could retrieve it, the rest of the group had drifted away beyond contact. He realised he was lost. “Somehow, I managed to find my way, asking people around and reconnected with the group.”
Yusuf R's narration of these incidents gave us a vivid mental picture of what he had been through. As Dilip Babani and then Bijoy Gupta remarked, he had taken us on a virtual journey of Karbala and Najaf in that brief, half-hour of interaction. He concluded by distributing pre-packed dates, raisins and other holy offerings from the pilgrimage.
Banoo Apa, who conducted the session, delivered a vote of thanks.

Lt Col Angad Singh (rtd):
It is educative to listen to a person who has gone abroad, especially on pilgrimage.

Karun Sharma:
WOW, this is an excellent initiative. Travel teaches us many things and tolerance is one such lesson. It was good to know that war is no good and we all must aim at becoming a peace loving society.