""A Journey to Mecca and London offers a rich and engaging text-personal, emotional, revelatory of one womans relationships, judgments of people and places, as well as her religious devotionalism." - Barbara Metcalf, author of Husain Ahmad Madani: The Jihad for Islam and Indias Freedom "Majchrowicz locates Begum Sarbulands place in context of Indian Muslim womens history and contextualized her in the light of the Muslim Woman Question, women travelers of Muslim India, and travel narratives written by women, and in doing so, he has made a significant contribution to the ongoing field of research on women and religion in context of social mobility and intellectual acceptability in a religiously restricted framework." - Fayeza Hasanat, author of Nawab Faizunnesas Rupjalal: Translation and Commentary Descended from Mughal nobility, Akhtar al-Nisa Begum Nawab Sarbuland Jang (1876-1957) grew up in Hyderabad in southern India, where she lived a quiet, private, and privileged life at the heart of the states royal court. At age of twenty she married Nawab Muhammad Hamidullah Khan Sarbuland Jang (1864-1935), a prominent lawyer and the scion of a leading Muslim reformist movement. In 1909, the wealthy couple embarked on a four-month journey through the Middle East and Europe. They performed the hajj in Mecca and met the caliph in Istanbul. In London they sat for tea with the future king and queen of Britain. Eager for a well-rounded range of life experiences, they also used public baths, slept in tents, and rode the occasional camel.

This book provides the first full English translation of Begum Sarbulands travel diary from this journey, of which only two extant copies in their original publication remain. Originally intended for circulation among friends and family and later published in Urdu, her informal entries reveal the everyday practices of an Indian woman of her time, but also detail her impressions and reactions as she discovered the world alongside her husband. As Begum Sarbuland encountered other women and Muslims during her travels, those encounters in turn shaped her reassessment of her own identity as a Muslim woman, and her observations hold continued significance for those who confront critical questions about gender, Islam, and identity. Majchrowicz has thoroughly annotated his translation and paired it with rich appendices, including a biographical sketch of Begum Sarbuland and excerpts from Hamidullah Khans concurrent (and better-known) travel accounts. Engagingly written and substantiated with years of original research and archival work, A Journey to Mecca and London restores the nearly forgotten narrative of one of Indias first Muslim women travel writers to its rightful place in Indian and Islamic history"--.