Mecca: A fascinating place in Saudi Arabia to explore

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Mecca is not an average tourist destination, but it is a fascinating place to explore and visit. Mecca is famous because it is where Islam's founder, the prophet Muhammad, was born.

Mecca sits in a narrow valley of western Saudi Arabia, where millions of pilgrims from around the world gather during the annual Hajj.

Hajj, referring to the Muslim pilgrimage to Mecca, is the largest gathering of Muslims in the world every year. According to the Hajj regulations, every Muslim in good health and economic condition must perform the Hajj at least once in their lifetime.

Muslim pilgrims perform Tawaf al- Ifada after Arafat day during the annual hajj pilgrimage at the grand Mosque in the holy city of Mecca , Saudi Arabia, August 21, 2018. /VCG Photo

An aerial view shows the Clock Tower and the Grand Mosque in Saudi Arabia's holy Muslim city of Mecca on September 13, 2016. /VCG Photo

Muslims pray at the Grand mosque ahead of the annual Haj pilgrimage in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, August 28, 2017. /VCG Photo

For more than 1,000 years, with the increasing development of transportation, the number of Muslims going to Hajj has been increasing year by year.

Every year in the 12th month of the Islamic calendar, millions of Muslims gather in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, for the annual Hajj. During the Hajj, they gather around the holy city of Mecca to pray, eat and study together.

Known as the "religious capital" after the establishment of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in 1932, mecca is now run by descendants of Muhammad. It is home to medieval religious buildings and palaces, as well as narrow streets lined with quaint shops, and some of the clothing and customs of its inhabitants are reminiscent of the time of Muhammad.

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