Toronto Muslim Imad Marikh was disappointed after visiting Mecca, the Holy City for Muslims.

Mr Marikh apparently expected more transformations in his life after he had visited the Holy City. He said that he had hoped to establish a more intense connection with Allah after carrying out the 6,500 mile journey. He said that he had failed to experience any 'cathartic' enlightenment on religious front, The Onion reported.

Mr Marikh, on the other hand, was happy that he could participate in such an Islamic tradition. Visiting Mecca is considered to be one of the most sacred aspects in a life of a practising Muslim. However, he did expect it to be a "bigger deal" than it actually turned out to be. He used to hear the visiting Mecca would bring about a complete change in him as a person. He was also told that it would take him closer to Allah. Ironically, no such thing happened to him as he termed the journey a "let down".

Mr Marikh blames it on his high expectations as well as he said that his expectations in relation to the Mecca trip were significantly high. He said that he had expected to have gained a deeper perspective about the world even though he did not consider him to one of the best travellers. Mr Marikh, on the contrary, felt pretty much the same as he did before taking on the journey. The only moving thing about the journey could be the presence of millions of worshippers, he said.

One of the ancient rituals called 'ṭawāf' involved walking the Kaaba anti-clockwise for 7 times. The ritual too did not turn out to be a 'life-altering' one for him. He was also apprehensive if he was following the procedure correctly as, during the Sa'i (when pilgrims cross back and forth between the al-Marwah and the al-Safa Mountains), he felt that he was only "going through the motions".

Mr Marikh said that visiting Mecca was no greater than visiting the local mosque or reading the Qur'an at home. He, nevertheless, called the journey as his greatest experience in life when he was greeted by his family.