From the magnificent mosque in Cologne to the Ottoman heritage in Berlin and the contemplative lakes of Bavaria... Routes where you can eat halal food and travel peacefully with your family.
If you are in or near the NRW (North Rhine-Westphalia) region, Cologne is a great weekend route for you. Start your trip with the DITIB Cologne Central Mosque, one of the most modern and impressive Islamic works in Europe. Performing the noon or afternoon prayer as a family in this enormous temple, which refreshes your inside with its transparent and embracing architecture, gives one a great pride and peace in the heart of Europe. After the prayer, turn your route to Keupstraße, Cologne's famous 'Little Istanbul'. Here, there are completely halal slaughtered doner kebab shops, kebab restaurants, and dessert shops where you can eat a steaming künefe that match the restaurants in Turkey. You can end this beautiful day with a walk along the Rhine River with your family.
Germany's capital Berlin is almost an open-air museum for families looking for Islamic culture and history. The Berlin Şehitlik Mosque, located in the Tempelhof area, is built with Classical Ottoman architecture, and you feel like you are in Istanbul the moment you enter. The historical Ottoman cemetery in its garden is a unique opportunity to tell your children about the traces of our ancestors in Europe. After your mosque visit, you can go to the Museum Island (Museumsinsel) and visit the Museum of Islamic Art (Museum für Islamische Kunst) inside the Pergamon Museum. Carpets, Quran manuscripts, and Andalusian artifacts from centuries ago are dazzling. For food, hundreds of halal-certified Turkish and Arab restaurants in the Kreuzberg or Neukölln areas await you.
If you want to get away from the city crowd and contemplate the tremendous natural wonders created by Allah, you should turn your route to Southern Germany, the Bavarian Alps. Lake Eibsee, located at the foot of Germany's highest peak Zugspitze, is a complete source of peace with its turquoise water that does not make you miss the Maldives and the pine forests surrounding it. In order not to worry 'Is the meat we eat halal?', you can take the meatballs, sandwiches, and your tea in the thermos you prepared from home and have a wonderful family picnic by the lake. Setting sail on the water with a small boat you will rent on the lake, listening to the silence accompanied by bird sounds, and being grateful in the face of the splendor of those enormous mountains will purify your soul from all the stress of city life.
When we want to go out as a family after a busy work week in Germany, the first questions that come to mind are: 'Is there a clean place where we can pray?' and 'Can we find halal food?' Here are 3 special routes where you will leave these worries behind.
Living abroad does not mean being far from our own culture and spirituality. No matter where you live in Germany; it is in your hands to find peace in the courtyard of a grand mosque with your family, eat your halal meal in a tradesmen restaurant, or contemplate the beauties created by Allah by a magnificent lake. These routes are wonderful opportunities for you to teach your children not only the country they live in but also their own identity by living it. Do not forget to check out accommodation options suitable for your Islamic sensitivities on HalalWorld.com while making your holiday plans. We wish you fruitful and joyful weekends with your family!
