The Great Mosque of Medan (Masjid Raya Al Mashun) was built from 1906 to 1909. In the beginning of its establishment, the mosque was a part of the Maimun palace complex -- both designed by Dutch architect Theodoor van Erpwho. Its architectural style combines Middle Eastern, Indian and Spanish elements.

The mosque has an octagonal shape and has wings to the south, east, north and west. The construction required the import of different building materials such as: marble from Italy, Germany and China and the stained glass from the chandelier imported from France. The mosque has five domes as a symbol of five prayer times and eight pillars to symbolize eight cardinal directions. The Great Mosque is the one of the largest and most beautiful mosques in Sumatra. It is used regularly by the Moslem community in Medan for daily prayers.

Our first visit in the city was to The Great Mosque where we were met by a local guide. As with other mosques, women must be dressed appropriately, with the legs and hair covered. Men wearing shorts must wear sarongs. As part of our tour we were issued the necessary clothes before entering the building. Bill avoided having to wear a skirt by attaching his zip off pant legs to his shorts but Sue-On donned the "hijab" to cover her hair and neck.

Next we were directed to a water trough where Muslims must wash before entering the mosque. Women are not allowed in during their menstraul periods and men and women have to enter separately and pray in different parts of the mosque. There were large speaker horns on the mosque which blared out a constant barrage of loud ritual prayers and chants.

We entered the mosque where hundreds of women were all facing Mecca and praying while in a prostrate position. Their heads, knees and hands were placed on the floor in the "sajdah" position. Muslims are expected to pray five times a day. The walls and ceilings were all very elaborately decorated. Our guide then led us out along a covered walkway to an area overlooking the cemetary with its many gravestones. He then gave a long talk explaining the history of the mosque and Muslim customs.

Our group posed for photos in front of the mosque and walked back to the "gate house" where we returned our costumes. Bill had some photos taken with the security guards. We then returned to the street to take the short walk to Maimoon Palace. The street was lined with elaborate billboards made of flower blossoms.