" This one?" " No, behind you, on your right." "No, the orange one behind you." " This one?" " That's the one." "Come on down." "Watch out, damn it!" "You'll scratch it." "Hold it higher!" "I hope it holds out." "I worked out the distance..." "over 6,000 miles both ways." "It won't be a picnic." "If it goes okay..." "inshallah..." "I'll give up drinking for some serious praying." "Ow!" "What the hell are you doing?" "!" "Wake up!" "You busted my finger." "Just fix it and spare me your life story." "What was that?" "Nothing." "Forget it." "Go on!" "Watch how you talk to me!" "I can't hold it all day." "Okay, you can let go now." " Where you going?" " To an appointment." "Leave your bike there and wait." "You'll leave when I say so." "Get me a rear-view mirror." "I'm not your slave." "Papa said it was just for the door." " Oh, yeah?" " Yeah." "I'll teach you!" "What's going on?" "Where were you?" "Your father's been looking for you." "What does he want now?" "He wants to talk to you." "I'll bring you your supper." "Go on." "I went to see your brother today at the police station." "Who, Khalid?" "He was drunk." "He ran a red light and didn't stop." "He lost his license." "I'm old now." "I don't know how to drive, and I can't wait another year." "I've thought it over." "You'll drive me to Mecca." "I've already applied for your visa for Saudi Arabia." "We leave Sunday." "You have four days to get ready." "Why the hell would I go there?" "Can't he fly, like everyone else?" "I'm warning you," "I can't just get up and leave." "I have my final exams." "I already failed once." "This is my last chance." "Here." "I'm lending it to you." "Bring me back a few pictures." "Take good care of the car." "And don't forget to check the oil regularly." "Be careful when you're in first gear." "The gearbox's screwed up." "Is that all?" "Otherwise it runs like clockwork." "It can drive around the world." "I know this car by heart." "Anything else?" "Be careful, little brother." "God bless you." "I have no advice to give you." "You're the eldest." "Watch over your brothers and your mother." "May God protect you." "Let's go." "Why are you driving so fast?" "Those who hurry are already dead." "Keep it up at this speed, and the car won't last long." "You may be young, but it isn't." "Dad." "Dad." "Where are the passports?" " I don't understand." " For customs." "Why didn't you wake me?" "The passports!" "I have to pray." "Now?" "Park over there." "Hold on." "We're at customs." "So what?" "It's no place to pray." "Do you believe in God?" "Everything okay?" "I have some minor family problems." "Nothing serious." "Let the school know I'll be absent for a while." "I'll explain some other time." "I can't talk now." "I'm hanging up." "Stop here and get some rest." "It's okay." "I'm not tired." "We're stopping." "You need some sleep." "We can stop in Milan." "Stop, I said." "Your eyes are red." "Stop!" "You hear me?" "Don't worry." "I know what I'm doing." "We'll be in Milan within an hour." "Trust me." "Go on and sleep." "You almost got us killed!" "You're stubborn, but I'm the one who decides here." "Why couldn't we stop in Milan?" "I may never get to see it." "What would you do in Milan?" "I don't know... take pictures, see the sights, discover the city." "You think we're tourists?" "That we're going to stop in every city?" "I hope we're stopping in Venice, at least?" "It's on the way." "For an hour." "Just for an hour." "What are you waiting for?" "This road isn't on the map." "We backtrack to Zagreb and take the freeway to Belgrade." "I warned you about backroads." " This is the right way." " How do you know?" "You can't even read." "Look, Dad." "We're here and we have to get to Belgrade." "If we backtrack to Zagreb, we can get on the freeway to Belgrade." "Understand?" "Hello?" "Okay." "We'll do as you want." "Which way?" "Right or left?" "We'll spend the night here." "Have you seen my cell phone?" " What?" " My phone." "It's miles back, in a garbage can." "What?" "!" "You were here but your mind was elsewhere." "We still don't know where we're going." "That's why you weren't listening." "Slow down." "We'll ask for directions." "Excuse me." "How do I get to Belgrade?" "What's she doing?" "Beograd?" "Where... direction?" "Where are you going?" "What do we do?" "We take her with us." "Go on." " Dokumenti?" " Dokumenti." " Registration?" " Dokumenti." " Passport." " Passport." "Passport." "Don't understand." " Francuz?" " Francuz." "We're still 70 miles from Belgrade." "We have to hurry if we're to make it by dark." "Not her again!" "What's she doing here?" "She won't budge." "No no no..." "Fucking..." "Get out." "Look at me!" "Get out." "Out, I tell you!" "Leave her alone!" "You!" "Where are you going?" ""Delichi"?" "Get in." "Delichi must be a town on our way." "We'll take her there." "I thought we weren't tourists." "Delichi?" "Delichi?" "Nobody knows Delichi." "We'll have lunch here." "I told you there's no Delichi." "The old woman's talking nonsense." "It's weird, a woman in the middle of nowhere, with no bags or anything." "Isn't it?" "She gives me the creeps." "We have to get rid of her." "I got her a room." "Here." "I'll meet you at the car." "Go ahead." "Dad!" " Give me the keys." " Take it easy." "She got the message." "May God help her." "That felt nice." "Hello?" "Hello?" "There's a sign over there." "No." "No." " Change?" " Change?" " Euro." " Euro?" "Wait." "Excuse me, do you speak English?" "Change?" "Wait in the car." "I'll check out and get our passports." "Did you use the hotel phone?" "No no." "The window." "Excuse me, sir?" " Bonjour." " Bonjour." "Do you speak French?" " Da." " The way to Sofia, please?" " Sofia?" " Sofia." "Do you speak English?" "Over the mountains?" " What's he saying?" " I have no idea." "Then what are you waiting for?" "Okay, thanks." "Thank you." "Thank you." "It think it's over the mountains." "But I'm not sure." "What's on your mind?" " I wanted to ask you something." " What?" "Why didn't you fly to Mecca?" "It's a lot simpler." "When the waters of the ocean rise to the heavens, they lose their bitterness to become pure again." "What?" "The ocean waters evaporate as they rise to the clouds." "And as they evaporate, they become fresh." "That's why it's better to go on your pilgrimage on foot than on horseback;" "and better on horseback than by car;" "and better by car than by boat;" "and better by boat than by plane." "When I was a child, my father..." "God rest his soul..." "set out on a mule." "I'll never forget that day." "He was a courageous man." "Every day," "I'd climb to the top of a hill from where I could see the horizon." "I wanted to be the first to see him come home." "I would stay up there until nightfall." "Sometimes, I would even fall asleep up there, until your grandmother came looking for me." "Not sleeping?" "How am I supposed to sleep?" "It's below zero!" "We can't continue in this weather." "It's too cold." " Try to sleep." " I can't!" "Tomorrow, God willing, we'll sleep in an hotel." "Dad." "We're snowed in." "Dad!" "Dad!" "We're in Bulgaria." "We're snowed in." "Wake up." "Come on!" "Come on!" "Dad!" "What do we do?" "Dad?" "Dad, it's me, Reda." "Can you hear me?" "It's Reda." "Are you okay?" "Where is the car?" "Don't worry." "It's parked on the other side of Sofia, near the station." "We came here by taxi." "Go back to the car." "Look in the glove compartment." "I left my prayer book there." "Bring it, please." "Reda." "Reda, wake up." "Dad?" "What are you doing up?" "Let's go." "We still have a long way to go." "Hurry up." "Mine... passport, and my father." "What?" "French car?" "Paper?" "All right, yes." "What?" "Do you speak English?" "I don't understand." "I don't understand anything he says." "What's keeping him?" "I'll be right back." "Excuse me." "What's going on?" "I'm with my..." "do you speak English?" "What's happened?" "Please, mister." "Your... your friend take the passport and..." "Please, listen to me." "I am with my father to go to the "Mecque"..." "Mecca." ""Arabie Saoudite"... with my father, in the blue car." "And..." " you understand when I speak?" " Passport." "No passport." "Your friend take the passport!" "He's asking where you're going." " You speak French?" " Yes." "I keep trying to explain" "I'm taking my father to Mecca for his pilgrimage." "Your father can go but your passport has a problem." "But it's valid for four years!" "Read it!" "Four years!" "I suggest you keep your voice down, or you won't have a chance." "They don't like that." "I'm with my father." "Am I supposed to leave him alone?" "Wait in your car." "I'll see what I can do." "You're in luck." "It's all settled." "Go ahead, but drive slowly." "That's it." "Welcome to Turkey." "Straight ahead." "Keep going." "Straight ahead." "Don't be afraid." "Drive faster." "Faster, or they'll all start crossing the street." "We're almost there." "Turn left." " Here?" " Yep." "I'm very honored to meet pilgrims like you." "People don't understand anything today." "They only respect money." "They're not even afraid of God anymore." " You work for customs?" " No." "I was seeing off my cousin." "He lives in Germany." "I lived in France myself." "We're fellow countrymen, in a way." "Turn right." "At this corner." "It's right here." " It's the brown house." "See it?" " Yes." "You can stop here." "This is where I live." "Thanks so much." "Let me invite you in for tea." "I'd be honored." "We still have a long way to go." "Without me, you'd still be at the border." "I won't say how much it cost me." "Five minutes." "You go." "I'll wait in the car." "You're taking a wonderful journey." "I'd like to make my pilgrimage too, but I can't afford it this year, like every year." "He asked if he could come along." "He wants to make his pilgrimage too." "He'll come in handy as an interpreter." "Thanks so much, Hadj." "God bless you." "My wife is so glad." "I haven't much money but I'll chip in what I can." "I'll guide you out of here, then we'll head for Istanbul." "Go straight for now." "My name's Mustapha." "One day it's a democracy, the next a dictatorship." "Here, power brings you money, and money brings you more power." "That's why nothing ever changes." "It's called the Blue Mosque because of its blue tiles." "It's huge!" "It's the second mosque after Mecca." "There are six minarets here and seven in Mecca." "See there, near your father?" "There's a piece of the Black Stone of Mecca." "Or so they say." " Beautiful, isn't it?" " It's impressive." "And that's not all." "Istanbul is the city of 1,000 mosques." " Really?" " We'll go see the Kapaliçarsi, the big covered market, then we'll have a nice hammam." "We'll have a ball." "You'll love this city." "What now?" "I'm getting hungry." "If you like, we can sleep here in Istanbul and leave tomorrow." "I know a nice cheap hotel, run by my wife's uncle." "That way, we can see the city." "Good idea." "What do you think?" " We have no time." " What do you mean, no time?" "Didn't you say that those who hurry are already dead?" "Your father's right." "It's a long road." "Come on." "It's this way." " What's that?" " That's the Aya Sofia." "Saint Sophie." ""Sofia" is Greek for wisdom." "Another gorgeous mosque." "I mixed in the sugar with the coffee, like we do it here." "Don't drink it to the bottom." "That's the coffee grounds." "You have a girlfriend?" "What's her name?" "Lisa." "Her name's Lisa." " She's not a Muslim?" " No." "Is she a good girl?" "What does she do?" "We go to the same high school." "I was with a Frenchwoman too." "We had two children." "We lived in Lille, in northern France." "You know Lille?" "I've heard of it." "I lived there for over 30 years." "She had a job." "I was unemployed." "I looked after the kids." "Then last summer I came to Turkey on vacation, and I got married." "I never went back to France." "How about your children?" "Thank God, they're fine." "What are you doing?" "I'm not sleepy." "It must be his coffee." "Then let's get going." "You believed his story about being married in France?" "You weren't asleep?" "I don't know what he's after, but don't believe what he says." "What will you have?" "Tea, coffee, beer?" "Beer?" " What, you don't drink alcohol?" " That's not it, but..." "You have a lot to learn about religion." "Let me tell you a story." "Someone asked a sufi who drank wine if alcohol was forbidden by Islam." "The sufi answered," ""It depends on the greatness of your soul."" "He said, "Pour a glass of wine into a basin of water, and the water will change colors." "But pour this same glass of wine into the sea, the sea's color remains unchanged." You understand?" "Go on, drink your beer." "Þerefe!" "Þerefe!" "Shh!" "Quiet." "He's sleeping." "Wake up!" "Get up!" " Get up, I tell you!" " Take it easy!" "My head hurts." "What is it?" " Where's Mustapha?" " How should I know?" "He stole our money!" "What?" "Where were you last night?" "You stink of alcohol." "You may know how to read and write, but you know nothing about life!" "Mustapha!" "He's outside, Dad!" "It happened during the night." "I was asleep and my son was drunk." "Last night, he took him out drinking in a café." "And where was your money?" "I hid it in a pair of socks." "I didn't trust the man." "You have any proof?" "If I'm lying or accusing someone unfairly, then what good is my pilgrimage?" "Of course, but for the moment, he claims he's innocent." "There's no proof." "We're almost out of gas." "We have to do something." "Stop at the next gas station." "Don't get too excited." "This was for the way back." "I don't know how we're going to manage." " How much?" " A full tank." "How far is it to Damascus?" "About 90 miles." "As-salaam alaykum." "God bless you, my son." "God give you long life." "God bless you, Hadj." "May God spare your soul." "I'm all alone with my children." "My husband is dead." "Thank you, Hadj." " May God guide you on your journey." " What are you doing?" "!" "We're living on egg sandwiches and you're giving our money away!" "Sorry." "You can finish the trip alone." "To hell with your pilgrimage!" "Give me my passport." "My passport, I said!" "I've been thinking." "We'll sell the car in Damascus." "You can take a plane home." "I can manage on my own from here." "I don't need you anymore." "You're free now." "Bread alone isn't nutritious." "We'll buy eggs at the next town." " More eggs?" " It's the cheapest thing here." "I need strength." "I need meat." "How do you manage?" "Bring the camera." "You shouldn't have said yes." "It won't last two days in this heat." " You should've asked for money." " You're the one who wanted meat." "Shut up!" " Behave yourself!" " Watch the road!" "Do something before I lose my mind!" "Stop here." "Untie it and turn its head towards Mecca." "Easy." "Don't look at me!" "Catch him!" "Fuck!" "Looks like we're getting close." "I'm going to pray." "Okay." "So the French consulate gave you money just like that, without questions?" "That's new." "The important thing is they gave us back what Mustapha stole, right?" "Yes, but there's something I don't understand." "There's nothing to understand, and you never understand anything anyway." "Can't you see we're not on the same wavelength?" "Damn it!" "Look at me." "You're gorgeous!" "Dad!" "Dad!" "Dad, listen to me, please!" "I'm sorry." "I'm sorry, Dad." "I don't know what got into me." "I was confused." "Dad, listen to me." "Please!" "I'm asking you to forgive me." "I said I'm sorry." "Listen to me, Dad." "Fuck!" "Don't they practice forgiveness in your religion?" "Dad?" "Dad." "Dad." "Dad!" "Dad!" "Help me, Dad!" "Dad!" "I have to stop." "Got a problem?" "No, we just stopped for a minute." "It's nothing." "Follow me." "What did he want?" "Follow him." " This is Mounir." "He comes from Egypt." " Murhaba." "The two brothers there are from Syria." "That group is from Sudan." "Many of them came with their families." "They come from Lebanon." "The others come from Turkey." "I'm Ahmad." "I come from Cairo." "Hey..." " Reda." " Reda." "How old are you?" "He doesn't understand you." "I've lived in France for years." "My son Reda was born there." "He only understands Moroccan Arabic." "He brought me here." "He drove me." "So you drove across Europe?" "We came from France via Italy," "Slovenia," "Croatia," "Yugoslavia," "Bulgaria, Turkey." "Then we crossed the Arab countries, Syria, Jordan, and here we are in Saudi Arabia." "What a trip!" "How many miles is that?" "About 3,000 miles." "That's courageous!" "Have you seen the water can?" "Under the seat." "But it's empty." "Why does it mean so much to you to go there?" "What's so special about Mecca?" "We come all this way and it's only now that you get interested?" "Mecca is the main holy place for Muslims." "People come from all over the world." "It's the heritage of Abraham..." "God's peace be upon him." "The Hadj is important." "It's the fifth pillar of Islam." "All Muslims who can afford to go must do it before they die, to purify their soul." "We all have to die one day." "We're only guests on this earth." "My one fear was that I would die before doing my duty." "And without you, I never could have managed." "God bless you." "I learned a lot on this trip." "So did I." "I'm going to pray." "There are too many people!" "We have to find a spot." "We'll be here for eight days." "I don't know how we'll find a spot here." "Welcome to Mecca." "We saved a spot for you." "Thank you." "Thank you." "As-salaam alaykum." "As-salaam alaykum." "I'll leave you here." "See you tonight." "See you tonight." "Excuse me." "Excuse me." "Excuse me." "Out of the way!" "Excuse me." "I'm looking for my father." "Excuse me!" "Let me through!" "Excuse me!" "I'm looking for my father!" "Let me through." "Let go off me!" "I'm looking for my father." "Let go off me!" "I'm looking for my father!" "What is this?" " As-salaam alaykum." " Wa alaykum as-salaam."