Daydreamer, the problem here is that you should be more specific with your protest. When you say Islam is responsible for this not only are you making a factual mistake but you also target billions of believers who have nothing to do with the policies of the country you are talking about. That´s why I suggested you should read about Islam before coming to these generalistic conclusions. Islam is not limited to Saudi Arabia or the like.

You can find funnier laws in the US States. It is just a matter of selective attention.

Here is a pick: Illinois

Despite its sheer complexity, human society is not very different from an ant colony as far as the basic structure is concerned. Some of us have to breathe coal sand in gloomy mine galleries thereby getting the cancer at an early age while some others must beg for money in the streets. Women of bad fate sell their bodies. Despite all those laws and legislations we are not better than ants when it comes to settling the structural problems of our colonies. Instead, we learn to live with the shortcomings and seek solutions that could improve things rather than whining over the things that can not change no matter how hard we try.

I have chosen to be a non-believer, I live in a Muslim country and most of my friends and relatives are Muslims. I reckon there are hings to be gained from being a part of a religious community. First of all, religion acts like a bond, it keeps nations together. If it weren´t for Christianity, there would probably be no Greece, Serbia, Croatia or Poland today. History tells us, it is easier for people of the same religion  to unite and protect themselves. It creates a kind of synergy needed for common people to set higher targets and to align themselves to a course of development which brings forth power and prosperity in the end.

A couple of days ago, I found a documentry on Youtube featuring a trial conducted by a team from a Japanese TV company back in the 70´s.. They wanted to test the assumptions proposed by scientists regarding the techniques employed by ancient Egyptians when they build those collosal pyramids. The team uses high tech equipment, heavy machinery and the service of scientist and their advanced calculations to replicate the construction of a pyramid in a much much smaller scale. After months of work, they give up. Summarizing the whole campaign the team leader makes thisstatement: We have failed. The main reason of our failure was not technical. I now understand that those people must really have been very ardent believers. Their belief was so strong that they could build this masterpiece often creating the tools and equipment even more precise and mightier than the ones we used thousands of years later.

If a man and a woman think they must live by the rules of Islam and if they have no objections whatsoever about the things they would lose in the personal freedoms department, that would perfectly OK for me. They have my respect. I obviously don´t think like them but I respect their choices just like I respect lesbians, gays, etc. In my opinion, these are all choices and reasons and motivations may not appear valid to everyone but we must try to understand these people anyhow. Bashing a Muslim is no different from bashing a gay person. These days the latter is considered an offense - just another double standard...

Sometimes, being an ordiary person gives one a lot of freedom with the things he/she wants to say, his/her preferences and the stuff like that. Reading the things she wrote and doing a bit of reading between the lines, I conclude, Daydreamer doesn´t like Islam as an entity and that she considers the whole religion and the Muslim community as a threat to the Western ideals. She bashes a faith which should largely depend on personal choice by using her personal freedom. I have a right to wish that this remains as the desire of an ordinary person and not that of the European politicians who in my opinion must find a way to solve this aloof xenophobia.

I know this point has been presented to the public in a provocative tone for years. For example, while I was wondering why the CNN were not making any manipulative news on Turkey for a long while, a new salvo of them has newly arrived and strangely this coincided with the worsening relations with Israel. Now the entire world will remember the ugly face of Turkey because documentaries and special news coverages will come one after another. This is proof that our beloved Europe is still a raw ideal populated by people who are not very different from Arabs in the way they react to things. Retaliative thinking is still so much in fashion. Only few intellectuals considers religions for what they are, a personal choice meant for seeking and finding internal peace.

I like Jesus Christ. I believe he was a decent person. A prophet? No, in my opinion, he was just an idealistic person who wanted to introduce a new order in a world of liars and betrayers. The same people still live today, thanks to Islam and the Christian faith there are a great deal of people who could convert themselves into more peaceful, helpful and compassionate beings. Sister Teresa was one such person in the Christian World, Yunus Emre or Rumi were two others from the other camp. They inspired millions of people to be better individuals. For me, the religions of these persons are not important at all. I consider the result, and they have my respect for being what they are.

If you take your time and want to learn about the teachings of a faith system that is so allergetic to you, I suggest that you read its philosophy. Maybe you will realize this world is not meant for Europeans to live and prosper only. We need every culture and life style that exists in this world not just their wealth, money, freedom or resources.

Considering the speed with which he renders the lyrics, you will need a very efficient translator.

Ceza was born in Uskudar in Istanbul. There is quite a strong street culture in his quarters. Not like Bronx or Harlem culturally, no racism or the stuff but there is a bond among deprived people who stand very close to crime and offense. Whether it be gangster RAP or arabesque their music reflects similar elements. Ceza´s makes protest music. He does not plunge into politics all that much. Instead, he seems to be concerned with people who can do him harm, life styles, personalities etc. 

I guess you are replying without reading one another´s post. Ogrenci doesn´t suggest division as an alternative. He/She emphasized the importance of being able to live together.

There are minorities in any country. The best bet would be respecting the cultural uniqueness and cultural differences of those minorities. We denied the existence of Kurds for years when it was so obvious. Our bright thinkers came up with the idea of labeling them as mountain Turks though it was so obvious that they were not Turks. Books were written to justify the thesis that Kurds were mountain Turks. For many years, nationalist professors taught students these theses. This  bigotry is more specific to the Balkan nations than it is for the Middle East. The patriarchal, chauvinistic past of the Balkans produce these funny theories by distorting historical facts. It is like a disease and it is a costly one.

As long as the matter is Cyprus you are right but you can find plenty of other examples to such conflicts. For example, the US has satanized Cuba and denies establishing relationship with this country officially. Meanwhile, this tiny nation has impoverished, due to improportionate embargos that has continued for decades. The lion got angry with the mouse who wanted to be free and his anger is still going strong. Remember Vietnam, Afghanistan and the reasons why superpowers got there. Was it worth it?

The railroad infrastructure in Turkey is pretty old. The present network has been essentially the same since the Ottoman Sultan Abdulhamid II who constructed the main hub through the end of the 19th century. The two main railroad stations were built by Germans.

There is a new fast train line between Ankara and Istanbul and it will soon be extended to reach Istanbul. Travel speed is 250kmh.

Regular train travel is cheap but sluggish. For decades, governments in Turkey considered railroad development mainly a communist type development scheme and focused on building motorways instead.

Barba, your question would possibly apply to almost all conflict zones in the world.

Nevertheless, many such incidents can be characterized by the presence of a long state of tension between rival groups which gradually turns into a kind of slow motion war. Atrocities culminating over years give way to a large scale war and then hell breaks loose. We are humans not angels. We are both good and bad. Sometimes, anger and greed turn ordinary people into blood thirsty butchers. In the background of any war there is sin. We are all paying for the sins our ancestors committed in warfare. (Some of us reap the harvest of them.)

A quick search on the internet reveals terrorist activity is still going strong in Hakkari and the venue is invariably the mountains of Hakkari. Traveling to those mountains on bicycle would be asking for trouble. It is dangerous to say the least. You might fall victim to a sniper or a stray bullet.

I understand everyone is entitled to traveling to any part of the world but that would sometimes be impossible in practice. I would suggest Cappadocia or Nemrut as two excellent alternatives. In Cappadocia you could trace the roots of the first Christians who fled from torture and oppression. You could visit the ancient underground dwellings that extend for kilometers through 7-9 stories of galleries carved through soft stone. Nemrut happens to be the cradle of the Kommogene civilization and the giant king head sculptures remained from them. They say Nemrut is one of the best places to watch the sunrise or the sunset. Incidentally, Seytansofrasi in Ayvalik is another excellent place for sunset watchers.

Good luck.