German tourists sue over Turkey vacation "ruined by Islamic prayer call"

[Steely Dan]

I'm lovin' this thread. Normally, a thread like this is like a red cape to a bull and the anti-Islam crowd would be out in droves, but there's less than usual of that here. I suspect it's because the "get-off-my-lawn" crowd are conflicted between their anti German feelings and their anti-Muslim feelings and may be having a deer in the headlights moment and are confused about what to post.

T

haha, could be. But I think there are also a lot of smart people on TV who have experience in Muslim countries (or just a well-functioning brain) who actually do understand that you shouldn't go on holiday to a country to fight its fundamental values and practices. You go there, check it out, form an opinion and learn. I do agree that this thread could have turned in a very different direction, though.

Indeed tourists should be prepared to wind their necks in and fit in with the local culture, the same should surely apply to immigrants else the Germans should apply for residence status and then start legal proceedings.

[Divers5]

Ignorant tourists. If they did their homework properly they would have known what to expect. In my experience of German tourists they expect to be treated as special people instead of the same as others. The old 'Germanic Superiority Complex' it seems.

I agree 100%............

[Torrens54]

Where in the Quran is it stated that the call to prayer must be broadcast over loudspeakers so often.

Well said! Now I hope the Germans go back to court and appeal the decision on that basis. If I were the Judge, they would WIN, WIN, WIN!!!

[Tchooptip]

All of you infidels better watcha you mouth! Muslim people very touchy sometimes. (sound of head dropping into basket.)

(sound of head dropping into basket.)

Too much

[daveAustin]

I am Buddhist but we learn to respect other religions

A shame it seems all one way. How'd you reckon a church would get on blaring out mass five times a day through loudspeakers in a Muslim area of say Pakistan or even southern Thailand?

The Germans are daft and a different kettle of fish to above scenario but, as I say, all one way [inserts rolling eyes moti].

[copa8]

Beats me why a German would travel to Turkey anyway... Surely there are more Turks in Germany than in Turkey.

They want to see what a future Germany would look like.

Just like the future of U.S. looks like Mexico.

[Guitar God]

I went to Marrakesh a few years ago and found it annoying as hell to have to listen to call to prayer over a PA for 15 minutes every morning at sunrise. I can understand them wanted be be reminded of the exact time of day to pray, but do they need to do it for 15 minutes? What's wrong with just saying

" It's 5:24, put on your robe and Adidas and get your ass to the mosque. That is all.

"?

[Scott]

Off-topic posts deleted along with replies.

[Frank James]

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Anyone that visits a Muslim country for a holiday or to live is a nutter, steer well clear of those countries

As for the decision what <deleted> Christian Churches ring their Bells 1 DAY A WEEK on Sunday Morning not 5 TIMES A DAY EVERY DAY

Serves themselves right for going to a Muslim country I say.

Ah, I had to laugh. Can't work out if this comment is a poor attempt at humour or you are just ignorant. Sadly the latter I suspect.

Glad I gave you a laugh but I think the word your looking for is INFORMED

I have read the Quaran (have you) and the whole book is about SUBMISSION (let me translate that for you) ISLAM when directly translated mean Submission and if you actually read the book and educated yourself on the reality of this ideology you would be enlightened and not ignorant as to what this religions sole goal is which is for every non muslim (they refer to us as infidels and khaffirs) to submit to Islam

You my friend keep laughing because you are the ignorant one in this matter.

DK...try to calm down, man, you'll bust a blood vessel in your head.

First, Turkey is one of the most beautiful, varied, historically rich, fascinating countries in the world. Islam as practised there is very moderate, and the people are generally well-educated and accepting of other cultures and viewpoints. Our next door neighbor, Malaysia, is nominally a Muslim country, but also very progressive, except for the iron grip that UNMO keeps on the politics. Anyway, to close your mind against visiting countries that have Muslim majorities is to miss out on seeing some really great things.

As for the call to prayer, I found that I looked forward to that, when it is twilight time. Not so much at dawn, but still, you learn to tune it out, like roosters in Thailand.

I wonder how the German press is treating this ridiculous story.

[Ulic]

The call to prayer the old fashion way is completely different from one using loud speakers.

[opalred]

what if every religion and belevers in somthing started yelling into loudspeakers everyday every town and village maybe govt would stop it

cheers

[cloghead]

I read this and had to laugh.

One thing that I find interesting is that most mosques use recordings these days. Like any other recordings, some are better than others. Only one of the mosques has what I would call a good recording. And, of course, there is the little matter of starting time. Each of the three mosques must have a clock that is just a bit off from the other two. The first mosque starts and then 10 or 15 seconds later the second starts and finally the third one chimes in a few seconds later. It makes for an interesting cacophony. Luckily, it only lasts a few minutes and the place would not be the same without it.

David

About 20 years ago (in another life) I was working in Brunei when some not-so-devout-Muslim colleagues snuck into the local mosque

(Kuala Belait) and substituted the morning prayer call recording for a cassette tape of Rod Stewart's "Do Ya Think I'm Sexy"

Needless to say, the mosque wallah was NOT impressed and let our company know his displeasure.

Maybe the locals appreciated the change in programming that morning because the 'offenders' were never reprimanded--let alone fired and deported...

[chuckd]

what if every religion and belevers in somthing started yelling into loudspeakers everyday every town and village maybe govt would stop it

cheers

You have obviously never lived or visited the Middle East.

If you had, you would realize every Mosque has a loud speaker system and broadcasts the call to prayer five times daily, 365 days per year. I spent my last three years in Riyadh where they have hundreds of mosques. A vertible cacophony of sound erupts when it is prayer time.

Stores are required to close and customers are told to leave the premises. I have walked off leaving nearly full shopping carts in the aisle of super markets when the call sounds.

I have had food wrapped to go in rare instances. Normally the restaurants won't take eat-in orders too close to the scheduled prayer call, though.

This happens every day in Saudi Arabia and you either adapt or leave. I spent nearly 30 years there so I guess I adapted.

[simon43]

Have the same thing here in my area of Bangkok, very loud wailing throughout the day and night . . .

Such a bitch living next door to Bar Bar Club, isn't it??

[surfinglife]

Well...the Germans....enough said

[Sandman77]

Read a lot of reports where people complain nearly everything and make free holiday elsewhere!

It's very bad for travel operators can loose all there money!

[Chonburiram]

No one knows how the all-inclusive vacation was advertised, maybe something like "quiet, relaxing holidays at the shores of the tranquil Aegean sea in our remote resort"...

But then, complaining "Germans" and "Islamic" in one headline is just too tempting.

[art vandelay]

i find the call to prayer reassuring

[7by7]

I am Buddhist but we learn to respect other religions

A shame it seems all one way. How'd you reckon a church would get on blaring out mass five times a day through loudspeakers in a Muslim area of say Pakistan or even southern Thailand?

The Germans are daft and a different kettle of fish to above scenario but, as I say, all one way [inserts rolling eyes moti].

This was not a mosque broadcasting the call to prayer in a Christian country, Turkey is a Muslim country!

The mosque just down the road from me in the UK doesn't broadcast the call to prayer and I do not know of any mosque in the UK which does; Mosque denies call to prayer plan.

(The mosque's treasurer, Masood Ahmed, said) "We have a very good relationship with our neighbours, and if any application was to be put in place, then we would have consulted our neighbours first before we went ahead."

He said currently the mosque, in Manzil Way, Cowley, used short-wave radio transmitters to broadcast its call-to-prayer, which was a system that worked well.

Churches are a different matter!

Bell ringing practice two evenings a week, bells ringing several times for weddings most Saturdays; again for services on Sundays and other holy days.

As the UK is a Christian country with Christian traditions, I accept this. I wonder if these German tourists would have done?

[GentlemanJim]

I quite like the call to prayer - as long as the guy has a good in tune voice. Where I once stayed for a while with a group, the call for prayer was just a recording that came on, on time via a loudspeaker. It was very screechy, so it was fixed with one pin a pair of snips and a black marker pen. Push the pin through the loudspeaker cable running up the side of the building or post, this shorts out the wires inside. Trim the edge smooth with the cable with the snips and colour the end of the pin with the black marker. It took weeks and weeks to get the loudspeaker going again . This also works a treat in stopping the loud speaker in your Thai village from playing music all day long and broadcasting any propaganda such as red radio (it would do our expat friends in the North a favour to do this as it would prevent the current brainwashing that is evident in some TV members).

[geriatrickid]

Entertaining thread. Nice to see it involved two nationalities who have a knack for getting along.

I was relieved that no one had to organize a solidarity flotilla for the Germans.

I wonder though, is there more to the story? Yes, there is a caveat emptor part where the tourists should have done some homework, but was there some negligence on the part of the travel agent in not warning the tourists that there would be some noise? I doubt most first time tourists understand the call to prayers and are most likely surprised to discover it. I don't think it was an unreasonable claim, if the tourists were not warned, much as one is warned if there is construction occurring at a hotel or if a pool is out of use.

[boomerangutang]

In my northern Thai village, there's a Buddhist song played loudly - 15 minutes before each of the two times the national anthem plays. Yet the head monk plays only 1 Buddhist song, and it's played on a tape loop, over and over, for many months (even years!). If you want someone to hate a song, any song, play it loud on a tape loop daily for months.

Muslim high pitched shouting in a microphone, in my neighborhood, would also annoy the crap out of me. I'm a musician, so am particularly sensitive to sound. It's also why I love some types of music, and don't like Thai pop songs, all of which are smarmy, as if written and sung by 5 year old children on qualudes.

The Muslim shouting I hear, when I go to a Muslim restaurant next to a mosque in my town, is as high pitched and loud as the man can make it. They must have an insecure God, if He needs to hear his name praised all the time. Would Allah feel shunted if he didn't hear his name praised through loudspeakers? Or perhaps it's the belief system followers who need to be reminded 5 times/day. Do they have short-term memory problems? I like gravity and air, but I don't need to shout through a loudspeaker 5 times a day; Gravity is Great! Air is Great! ....for gravity and air to keep happening.

Edited April 28, 2014 by boomerangutang

[boomerangutang]

Entertaining thread. Nice to see it involved two nationalities who have a knack for getting along.

I was relieved that no one had to organize a solidarity flotilla for the Germans.

I wonder though, is there more to the story? Yes, there is a caveat emptor part where the tourists should have done some homework, but was there some negligence on the part of the travel agent in not warning the tourists that there would be some noise? I doubt most first time tourists understand the call to prayers and are most likely surprised to discover it. I don't think it was an unreasonable claim, if the tourists were not warned, much as one is warned if there is construction occurring at a hotel or if a pool is out of use.

Good points. Tour agents never mention any downside to any package they're selling. Similar to Thailand, whose agents only point to photoshopped photos of ideal scenarios in places like Phuket, and could never mentionjetski extortions or taxi rip-offs. 'Caveat Emptor' or 'Ante iter Google' (Google before traveling).

[hanno]

I am a Birkenstock-wearing, pool-lounge-hogging Kraut myself but this constant need to sue drives me crazy. There are some Germans that will walk around the hotel looking for things they can get excited about. I have been working in the hotel industry for 30 years and had Germans anting to sue from "crocodiles" in the room (Geckos), to the place being too hot (Cambodia), and there being a low tide (Vietnam).

The problem is that many Germans have legal insurance so suing comes with little risk to them. Luckily, the courts have regained their common sense in recent years.....

[Sandman77]

Another Lawer from another district, can make a diffrent lawsuit decision in the same case!

That's the German style to got mass attention in public media!

When it comes to high court, often it happens that the ruling law by the high cort looks diffrent!

Lawyers in germany want makes money with everything,the eu is unable to make clear rules!

Another court could say in same case

Everyone enter a Muslim country , must accept , that a prayer prays in the morning!

The travel agency has the possibility

To make a formal objection in the verdict at higher court, and hopefully do!

[GentlemanJim]

I am a Birkenstock-wearing, pool-lounge-hogging Kraut myself but this constant need to sue drives me crazy. There are some Germans that will walk around the hotel looking for things they can get excited about. I have been working in the hotel industry for 30 years and had Germans anting to sue from "crocodiles" in the room (Geckos), to the place being too hot (Cambodia), and there being a low tide (Vietnam).

The problem is that many Germans have legal insurance so suing comes with little risk to them. Luckily, the courts have regained their common sense in recent years.....

You made me laugh and really brightened up my day. You sound like the kind of guy it would be fun to have a pint with. Thanks for cheering me up.