SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA — One of Australia’s biggest “Ramadan Nights” is taking place in the Lakemba Region, a region not far from Sydney, the capital of New South Wales. This activity contains a bazaar that is held for a whole month.
After filling out the study of tarawih and reading Al-Qur’an with the Australian Dompet Dhuafa congregation, Hamdani Ayyas, the Dai Ambassador of the Australian assignment, also visited the Ramadan Bazaar on Thursday (30/3/2023). This bazaar offers a variety of unique and typical foods sold by more than 50 vendors.
The vibrant celebration of food and culture occurs every night from dusk to 3 a.m. Ramadan Night is an annual event that often attracts many visitors. Lakemba is an area in Sydney famous as the center of the Muslim community. Every Ramadan Nights is held, Haldon Street is instantly transformed to be filled with food stalls and food trucks selling halal food and drinks.
“When I arrived at Lakemba, I was surprised to see the enthusiasm of the people who visited the Ramadan Bazaar, filled with choices of selling menus from various countries. Arabic, Indian and Turkish menus are quite dominating,” Hamdani said.
Highlights of the Ramadan Bazaar in Australia include shawarma (meat grilled for hours, usually tucked into pita bread with a few toppings), sahlab (a hot drink made from milk, cornstarch, sugar, rose water and cinnamon), and camel burgers.
According to Hamdani, Ramadan shiar through the halal culinary center is a special attraction for Sydney Muslims during Ramadan. The reason is the atmosphere there is the same as in Indonesia.
“Uniquely, this is in Sydney, a city in Australia that is predominantly Christian. Even the local government makes this Ramadan Bazaar an official tourist event that is automatically attended by the Muslim community and non-Muslims,” Hamdani added.
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As the center of Sydney’s largest Muslim area, Hamdani discovered a building called Awqaf Australia. The building consists of a mosque and a school. In fact, on the front is a board containing information about Islam.
“God willing, next time I will try to visit Awqaf Australia,” he told Dompet Dhuafa.
In addition to Awqaf Australia, at the location of the bazaar there are also three fairly large Islamic bookstores. They sell Mu’tabar books studied by Santri (students) and Kyai in Indonesia.
“Subhanallah, in that store I don’t feel like I’m in Sydney, Australia,” Hamdani said. (Dompet Dhuafa/Dai Ambassador Hamdani Ayyas/Anndini)