The first month the money dwindled so fast on little things like a pacifier and a surprise fee from the bank that I nearly ran out two weeks in.

FORBES: My Luxurious Life on Welfare

Adil and his wife, Umm Zainab (who is along for the trip as Adil's temper pacifier and ad-hoc sound girl) -- would head for Makkah, as they were doing the Hajj themselves as pilgrims and wanted to perform their "umrah" in the city before the crowds got in.

CNN: Preparing to cover The Hajj

Qat, the mildly euphoria-inducing leaf that most Yemeni men while away their afternoons chewing, is one powerful pacifier.

ECONOMIST: Yemen