[Mella]

Fasting means to stop eating and drinking from dawn to sunset. Dawn is the time which is about one hour before the sunrise while sunset is the time of "evening call to prayer". Sahur is the early morning or pre-fast meal eaten before the sun rises.

Ramazan Davulcusu (Ramadan drummers) wake up people by walking around the neighborhoods with a big double-headed drum. They beat out variety of rhythms and sometimes may also sing a mani, a rhyming couplet.

The drummers may surprise the newcomers. However, they try to keep alive an old tradition from the times alarm clocks were non-existent. Just before Bayram and certainly during Bayram the drummer of your district will knock on your door for a tip.

They walk by our house every morning at 04:00am and wake me up. The drumming is so loud, it sets off loads of car alarms. (as you can hear in the video ) When I first heard it, I didn't know what was going on and it freaked me out but now I've just gotten used to it.

Last night, as usual, the Drummer woke me up - so I snuck onto the balcony and recorded him, and here's the video.

(Sorry about the poor quality/darkness - I took the video with my mobile phone) Turn up your speakers...

[**claire**]

LOL ..i've got no speakers at work, but can see the car's lights flashing rom the alarms.

I can imagine what you said the first time you heard that mella

[Anniebubble]

Brilliant

[aesynoid]

Hahaha Great job Carmella

[Mella]

Originally Posted by **claire**

I can imagine what you said the first time you heard that mella

I actually quite like it, it's so different and something you'd never see in England.

2 nights ago we were sitting on the balcony and the drummers from this area (they have patches - it's all very ghetto LOL) came round asking for money. There must have been about 8 of them in this gang all going to different doors in the street and one gypsy lady ordering them around.

She saw us on the balcony, came over and started shouting at us in Turkish to give her money. I would have given them money to STOP beating on drums, not to keep playing them.

[Hephaestion]

At 4.am!!!!! Drummer/Asbo boy must be the most hated person in the "HOOD"!!

Wow!!! The noise was very clear - even though it was recorded on a mobile.

Thanx Mella!!

[tracie]

thanks for that Mella

dont know what would have been more annoying the drummer or all them car alarms going off

[Mella]

I know Trace, both are enough to drive a saint insane.

Well now that Ramadan is over, the streets of Izmir are drumless! thank god.

[Angel]

Carmella:

They walk by our house every morning at 04:00am and wake me up. The drumming is so loud, it sets off loads of car alarms. (as you can hear in the video ) When I first heard it, I didn't know what was going on and it freaked me out but now I've just gotten used to it.

It's HILARIOUS how he sets off a few car alarms along his way.

[kibris]

The answer to the drumming is-stay in the bar till 5am!!lolThe first time i heard the drumming it freaked me out a little untill it was explained to me. Another brilliant sight is when the cingene(gypsys)pour down the street in their costumes-very colourfull!!!kibris