Back to Mecca: Pilgrims crowd into the mosque for the final rituals

I'm exhausted - completely shattered.

It's day five of Hajj and it feels as if I have been here a month.

In the weeks leading up to the pilgrimage, I spent my free time preparing myself mentally and spiritually for its rites and rituals.

What I hadn't anticipated was the physical stamina these past few days would require.

Since Monday pilgrims have travelled from Mecca to Mina, Mina to Arafat, Arafat to Muzdalifa, Muzdalifa to Mina, Mina to Mecca and then back to Mina.

With about three million people trying to do the same thing at the same time, journeys which should take only 30 minutes by car can take up to 12 hours.

But it's not just the travel, stifling heat, eye-stinging dust, choking exhaust fumes and ever-present crush of people making each day harder than the last.

It's the rituals. There are many and they are not easy.

After declaring the intention to perform the Hajj at the Great Mosque in Mecca, day two took us to the mount of Arafat, where we stood praying in the full glare of the hot sun for hours - a reminder of the Day of Judgement.

After sunset, we walked to Muzdalifa, to spend the night outdoors, sleeping rough.

Day three was spent on the road to Mina, ending in a long walk deep into a valley to the site of the Jamarat.

This pilgrimage isn't just a spiritual journey it's one that requires strength, patience and courage. It's tested me to my core and has taught me nothing is possible with out my faith What is the Hajj?

After throwing stones at pillars representing the Devil, the men shaved their heads and women cut off a lock of hair.

But there is no time to rest, as we then headed back to Mecca to perform Tawaf, walking around the Kaaba seven times, and Saai, jogging between the hills Safa and Marwa, also seven times.

Both rituals took hours, required lots of walking and jogging - leaving me exhausted, with sore, bruised feet.

But there were extraordinary times.

At Arafat, standing in that immense crowd in the heat of the midday Saudi sun was an incredibly unifying experience.

I stood beside people of all races, cultures and classes - all Muslims praying before God.

In Muzdalifa, where pilgrims spend the night outside in the open, that hardship made me realise what a pampered life I lead.

The stoning of the Jamarat, which takes seconds to perform, but hours of waiting and walking, is deeply emotional and draining.

Pilgrims cast their sins away with every toss of a stone.

The Tawaf in the Great Mosque in Mecca that completes the Hajj is so crowded you hardly have an inch of space to yourself.

The only way to get through the endless circuits was for me to ask God to give me the strength to do so.

I don't think I would have made it were it not for my commitment to Allah and what I see as His commitment to me. I finished the Tawaf, barely.

It's easy for me to whinge about how knackered I am, how little sleep I've had over the past few days and how much more pleasant Hajj would be if you could get a decent iced cappuccino.

The reality is, there's no place on earth I'd rather have been, no other thing I'd rather have been doing.

This pilgrimage isn't just a spiritual journey - it's one that requires strength, patience and courage.

I'm sad it's soon coming to an end. It's tested me to my core and has taught me nothing is possible without my faith.