For the pilgrims in Saudi Arabia, their spiritually and physically taxing journey is under way, having reached the tent-city of Mina. But the hardest parts of Hajj still lie ahead.
Mina, we have arrived! Hitting the road out of Mecca just before dawn was the plan, but organising a group big enough to fill a bus is not always the most efficient process, and we left several hours later than anticipated.
Despite an estimated 2.5 million people performing Hajj, we encountered rather light road traffic on the way.
Saudi Arabia has recently banned travelling to Mina by car, in an effort to prevent excessive road congestion. So for the Hujjaj (pilgrims), they must either get here by foot, or fill a group bus.
Eight kilometres, and less than an hour later, we were greeted by the sight of the sprawling tent city of Mina. Row upon row of white tents, punctuated by pockets of white-clad pilgrims.
Most Hajj pilgrims will have arrived in the country via Jeddah, and at least visited Mecca, but Mina (number 2 on the below map) is when and where it all kicks off. Its a steep, uphill climb from here, figuratively speaking.
Pilgrims will spend this day completing their five daily prayers in Mina, before heading to Arafat on Thursday morning.
If you're not quite up to speed on how Hajj works, brush up on the details with the explainer - The rites of Hajj.You can also follow the journey in real time via our Hajj tracking map, updated via GPS coordinates.
A lot of time and effort has been put into preparing for this day - both by Saudi authorities and by those who've journeyed to Saudi for Hajj.
Mobily, Saudi's second telecommunications company, has pledged to provide free Wi-Fi at the sacred site of Mina, Arafat and Muzdalifah; likey to be welcome news for those relying on their iPhones for Hajj guidance.
To safeguard against fears of an H1N1 outbreak, 20,000 health workers have been deployed, 1.5 million swine flu vaccines purchased for the country's residents, and 600,000 face masks handed out in Mecca (no one gave me one).
To make sure no serious disruptions - violent or otherwise - occur during the pilgrimage, Saudi is also deploying some 100,000 security and emergency response personnel.
In Mecca the night before, you could feel the anxiety and anticipation hanging thick in the air. Throngs out on the streets doing some last minute shopping, or making final prayers.
Al-Rajhi Bank, across from the Grand Mosque, was doing swift sales of sacrifice coupons - pre-purchased vouchers to have government-organised butchers slaughter animals in their name on Eid day, as part of the Hajj rituals.
The cost of the coupons this year, as set by The Saudi Project for Utilization of Hajj Meat, is 430 Saudi riyals ($115), broken down into 334 riyals for the average price of a sheep, 88 riyal for slaughtering services and distribution, and 8 riyals for transportation and distribution.
But the demands of the Hajj are not just physical or financial.
One Hajji (pilgrim) I spoke with, said that for him, getting to Mecca was the easy part. And he wasn't worried at all about getting swine flu (he got the vaccine in Australia).
"If it's going to happen, [there's] nothing you can do about it. Besides, you're [already] in the best place."
Majid Kanj's main concern is, however, being able to maintain patience throughout the journey - a battle we are quickly losing to these Mina flies.
