Culture clash

Hotel removes booze and porn as Saudis arrive

Saudi Arabia arrived in Germany on Saturday becoming the fifth World Cup team to settle into their training base with just under two weeks to go until the tournament begins with the opening match on June 9.

The three-times Asian champions went from Frankfurt airport to the Hotel Dolce, north of Germany's financial capital in Bad Nauheim, which has been especially prepared for their arrival.

The hotel has removed alcohol from the minibars, blocked adult entertainment and other free-TV channels showing naked women and taken down tasteful nude photos in the fitness area.

Consumption of alcohol is forbidden in Islam and is a grave offence in Saudi Arabia, a country that enforces strict Islamic laws that also prohibit what it regards as pornography.

The article's juxtaposition between the 'tasteful nude photos in the fitness area' and 'prohibit what it regards as pornography' cracks me up.

What kindof a hotel has nude photos anywhere, let alone the fitness area? And you can call it tasteful, but nude photos are pretty universally regarded as pornography, whether you're a Muslim or not.

It's even funnier when paired with this article, Chile players sent home after women found in rooms:

Two key members of Chile's national squad have been sent home from a European tour after women were discovered in their hotel rooms, an official said on Friday.

The official said midfielder Mark Gonzalez and striker Reinaldo Navia had been ordered to fly home from Ireland after Chile beat the home team 1-0 on Wednesday.

Chile, who failed to qualify for the World Cup, are playing a series of friendlies in Europe to prepare for a regional Cup in 2007 in the Americas and for qualifying matches for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.

'There was a disciplinary problem with our players...they had women in their room, so together with (coach) Nelson (Acosta), the head of the delegation and I decided to send them home,' Reinaldo Sanchez, president of Chile's national professional soccer association, told Cooperativa radio station.

Navia played for the Mexican teams America and Monterrey and Gonzalez belongs to Liverpool although he is currently on loan to Spain's Real Sociedad.

The coach discovered the women in the players' rooms in the early hours of Friday morning.