Are my filipino muslim guests hiding something or are they just shy?

Are my filipino muslim guests hiding something or are they just shy?

I currently have two young guests staying in our detached self contained unit. Since they arrived at 6pm on Saturday they have not left the building or even opened the curtains or windows during the day. That's 2 and a half days so far of being inside in the dark. At night I noticed that they have the lights on all through the night. I can't understand why they won't open the curtains or let in fresh air or go out to enjoy their holiday here. One of my house rules is to open the windows because the small unit can accumulate a lot of condensation on the windows leading to mold very quickly. It's making me paranoid that they're hiding something or doing something illegal. But maybe they're just shy or simply enjoying walking around naked? Even then, it doesn't add up. Can someone tell me if this is normal behaviour for a young filipino muslim couple? I assume she's muslim because she wears a head scarf. I thought maybe she wants privacy to not wear the scarf while inside. Is that a thing?

The young woman who made the booking over a month ago sent me a message to make the booking which read "seeing the sights" but they're clearly not doing that. On Monday I sent her a message to ask how everything was going and carefully enquired about why they hadn't emerged or opened the curtains. She replied saying they were both trying to finish their writing and they're fine. Today I knocked on the door to see for myself what they might be up to. The young man answered and said he was really enjoying their stay. I asked if they had been sleeping through the day and why the curtains were always closed. He replied it was to cover... I repeated the word "cover?" to imply I wanted more of an explanation and he simply said "yes, cover". He seem confident but coy - not nervous or hiding anything. The woman didn't come to the door at all.

I didn't notice or smell anything suspicious but seriously, it's confusing the heck out me. Should I be concerned? They check out tomorrow morning at 11am.

I googled the young woman's name (I don't know his name) and found out she a student of chemical engineering at a University located 2hrs from here.

25 Replies 25
Tomi5
Level 4
Asheville, NC

@Kirsten59  I've noticed from my facebook feed that some of my muslim friends are observing a religious holiday. Maybe do a google search?

Thanks for this. You're right there is a holiday on that involves fasting starting the 2nd September so I guess their stay was probably related to this.

Paige73
Level 6
Lansdowne, PA

Kirsten,

I think I see the problem with your concerns. When he said "cover", he meant her modesty. Hence the coyness. I cover (headscarf, clothing or drapes, we use the same word), and in order to not have to be wrapped up like a burrito when inside, I keep my drapes shut! Hope the neighbors don't think I'm hiding anything. The rest was probably just a young couple really into each other. Hope you didn't leave them a bad review! I can see how is might seem weird, but airbnb is all about experiencing the unfamiliar. It's actually kind of sweet. If they were newly married and having lots of sex, she was probably embarrassed by your presence. 

Also, by the date of your post I think it was Ramadan. We don't eat, drink or have sex till after sundown. So they had a lot to get in before sunrise. Pun intended!

Huma0
Level 10
London, United Kingdom

@Paige73

 

That's very informative and sounds pretty logicial. I would not have figured all that out had I had the same experience and I come from a muslim background!

Inna22
Level 10
Chicago, IL

The original post was from 2017. However, why would you even mention someone’s level of English in a review? 

Paige73
Level 6
Lansdowne, PA

@Huma0

Just guessing. They could have totally been up to something shady in there. Who knows with our darling little guests. But it's kind of up to us westernized muslims to act as "explainers of weird looking **bleep**" when it comes to our immigrant and foreign brothers and sisters. Haha!

Some harsh truth (trigger warning):

I am VERY late on this...but wow! What business is it of yours whether a person keeps their curtains closed or not? And for you to go out of your way to disturb them by knocking on the door was completely unnecessary. If they weren’t playing loud music or being disruptive, it is none of your business what people do. What you consider strange behavior may be perfectly normal for others. And when he said “covered,” he clearly meant his wife is covered and that’s why they have the curtains closed. They gave you money to stay in a place you rented. You have no right to disrupt their stay if they aren't breaking any rules. And your suspicions are a result of your racism or close minded ways. If they were a white couple, I’m sure you would have given them their space and assumed nothing suspicious. But because they’re Muslim and “foreign,” you decided it was reason enough to disrupt their peace. Check your racism/prejudice and educate yourself a bit too. I realize this reply is harsh, but it’s important that you understand how you’re coming off by behaving that way, and the fact that you would post about it. And your review of them...really?! You sound creepy. And what does it matter how their English was? Do you do that for every guest you have, regardless of where they’re from?  Im sure you don’t. I mean, do you see how you’re coming off? Do you see how racist you sound? I mean it’s been a few years since that post, and if you do get this reply, I hope you’ve taken some time to reflect on how badly you’ve  behaved. I hope you’ve learned a few things and hopefully changed your biases. None of what you did or thought was okay. None of it!

@Fatma34  It is totally unfair to accuse this host of racism just because she asked for insight as to whether there would be a reason in Muslim traditions for them to keep the curtains closed all day for 2 days.

 

She said that she asks guests to open the windows to ventilate the house and they weren't doing that. What you may not realize is that hosts have had guests who were doing drugs in their home, smoking in a non-smoking listing, snuck in a dog, and all kinds of other nefarious activity. You have no basis on which to assume that she would not have been suspicious if the guests weren't Muslim.

 

Most onsite hosts would wonder what was going on if guests didn't emerge from their place for 2 days and the curtains stayed closed regardless of the guests' race, religion or anything else. Personally, I would be concerned that they might be ill. 

 

However, knocking on the door after she had seen and spoken to the guests was unnecessary and an invasion of privacy, I would agree. But I see that as simply a nosy host, which she comes across as. There are some hosts like that, unfortunately, who want to micromanage every aspect of a guest's stay and have a ton of rules. 

 

Believe me, I understand issues of discrimination, and hosts with racist or other similar prejudices certainly shouldn't be hosting on Airbnb. But it's presumptuous to say this host wouldn't have been suspicious had the guests not been Muslim. Nothing she wrote would bear that out. 

 

 

 

 

 

I understand what you’re saying. However, I can only go off what the host wrote in their post, which to me sounds like the actions and thoughts of someone with serious biases. The host was very focused on them being Muslim and foreign, they went as far as to include the guests’ ability to speak English in the review of them. I’m a Muslim, Black woman; if anyone can pick up on even the most subtle racism, it’s me. I appreciate your input and your thoughts, but I stand by what I wrote. 

My friend Andrzej's girlfriend was a Muslim from Pakistan, her name was Nada. She was taken by her brothers from Great Britain back to Pakistan and stoned there. The same her brothers first threatened my friend with beating him and castrate him. After a few months my brother disappeared forever. May good God bless them forever.

Louise1073
Level 6
San Diego, CA

Wow. Thinking your guests behavior is “suspicious” just because they are Muslim and behave in a slightly weird but harmless way, is the textbook definition of racist. This post is old but to anyone reading this and thinks OP’s way of expressing their concern were reasonable, please check your prejudice…