Sulukule

Today we come to join the celebration of Hiderellez in Sulukule and it is such a nice event that has attracted people's attention to this special area from all over the world. It has gathered artists, architects, musicians, journalists and tourists together with community members to influence their future. It not only has created a chance for the Sulukule to show its amazing culture to the outside world, but also has given the positive impression to others of their optimistic, independence, creativity and contribution. Although due to the unpleasant weather, it has ended earlier than it supposed to be and the performance of famous star has been canceled, I'd like to say it is very successful as the community has taken over the leading role and give us such a wonderful self-organized show.

When we arrived, we found some artists are making graffiti on the destroyed buildings as the symbol to show their attitudes towards the eviction. They claim that there is no one should be defined as monster as the concept given to the Roma people. At the same time, they are worried about with demolishing the houses and relocation, the whole livelihood of Sulukule will also been wiped off.

At the beginning, the Band is playing nice music with some guys dancing, at this stage, it is a well organized show and everyone is amazing at the performance. However, it seems the volunteer has more influence on the events than the local people. They have high technical stereo, light and other facilities which not that match the character of the community. Anyway, under the pressure of eviction, it can be a cherish time for the community to relax and enjoy.

Soon after that it begins to rain. Although at first the rain has not quenched the people's exciting, when it becomes heavier and heavier, it stops the performance and people are leaving gradually. Everyone has the hope that it would keep on going after the rain, so we just use the arch of the city wall and the empty houses for a shelter. It is interesting that no matter how much the building has been damaged, as far as it has the roof, it still can be used as the space for certain activity.