Cirebon puts best face on for 'Keraton' festival<\/p>\n
The second Keraton (palace) Festival will be held in Cirebon,
\nWest Java, from July 1-7. The Jakarta Post's reporter K. Basrie
\ninterviewed officials and residents about preparations for the
\nevent during a recent trip to the ancient town.<\/p>\n
CIREBON, West Java (JP): This small and usually quiet town is
\nswarming with activity these days. Local officials and residents
\nhave been working hard to present Cirebon's best face to the
\nworld ahead of the week-long keraton festival.<\/p>\n
Intensive renovation and construction work is underway on the
\ntown's three palaces -- Kasepuhan, Kacirebonan and Kanoman, three
\npublic squares and the venue of the festival.<\/p>\n
The local authorities have beautified almost every inch of the
\ntown. Residents have painted their houses and shops, and cleaned
\nup the yards. Business associations, including operators of
\nhotels and restaurants, have spruced up their premises.<\/p>\n
Dancers from different troupes are going through their steps
\nto prepare for performances during the festival.<\/p>\n
Colorful flags, banners and placards advertising the so-called
\nFestival Keraton se-Nusantara II, or FKN II, adorn many main
\nstreets.<\/p>\n
Unfortunately, all of this has not been supported by promotion
\nnationally.<\/p>\n
Few are aware of the event outside of Cirebon. There are no
\npromotional postures and brochures one would expect to find in
\ndomestic airports.<\/p>\n
\"We have many times asked the central committee to bolster the
\npromotion of next month's festival, but we still receive reports
\nthat promotion in big cities like Jakarta is far below our
\nexpectations,\" says chairman of Cirebon's Association of Hotel
\nand Restaurant Owners (PHRI) Ahmad Husein.<\/p>\n
Head of Cirebon's tourism office and secretary of the
\norganizing committee Sri Kuncoro echoed his view.<\/p>\n
\"I've lodged similar inquiries and have yet to receive any
\ncomment,\" said Kuncoro.<\/p>\n
A Jakarta agency, appointed by the provincial committee, is
\nresponsible for promoting the event, Kuncoro said.<\/p>\n
Locals have not been disheartened by the lack of promotion.<\/p>\n
\"We've worked so hard in the past few months to make this
\nfestival a great success,\" Kuncoro said.<\/p>\n
Rare event<\/p>\n
The inaugural festival was held in Surakarta, also known as
\nSolo, in 1995.<\/p>\n
The festival may be dubbed a rare event as it brings together
\nscores of former rulers, princes and princesses along with
\nthousands of courtiers.<\/p>\n
Many priceless heirlooms will be on display. A total of 120
\nritual dances, normally performed only according to ritual
\nkeraton calendars, will be presented during the festival.<\/p>\n
On the tentative schedule for the festival, Vice President Try
\nSutrisno is scheduled open the festival in the square in front of
\nthe 468-year-old Kasepuhan palace at 9 a.m on July 1.<\/p>\n
Prior to the official opening, over 200 local dancers will
\npresent a momentous dance entitled Abyoring Dwaja Salaksa,
\ndepicting the role of palaces during and after the colonial era.<\/p>\n
Designed to help preserve the palaces and all their attributes
\nand traditions, the festival is expected to cost Rp 2.7 billion,
\nsaid Kuncoro. Of this amount, Rp 500 billion has been donated by
\nMinister of Tourism, Post and Telecommunications Joop Ave.<\/p>\n
The opening will be followed by a parade around town of
\nsoldiers from every participating palace.<\/p>\n
Kuncoro listed the four main events of the festival as a dance
\ncontest, ritual parade, costume exhibition and heirloom display.<\/p>\n
The first three events will take place at the Kasepuhan palace
\nand neighboring Kacirebonan palace. The heirloom display will be
\nheld at the meeting room of the 409-year-old Kanoman palace.<\/p>\n
All events are scheduled to be open to the public from 8 a.m.
\nto 10:30 p.m. everyday during the week.<\/p>\n
West Java traditional performing arts will be on show at the
\nKejaksaan Square and Kabumen Square every evening during the
\nfestival.<\/p>\n
A huge traditional dance involving 225 people is scheduled to
\ntake place on the evenings of the first and second days of the
\nfestival at an open-air cultural stage in front of the 294-year-
\nold Sunyaragi cave and park. The dance, entitled Kumandange Azan
\nPitu, celebrates diversity and unification and is choreographed
\nby Subrata, Indonesia's director general of press and graphic
\naffairs, who is a Cirebonese.<\/p>\n
A meeting forum for the palace rulers, officials from national
\ntourist board and the committee will be held on the second day at
\nthe Kasepuhan palace.<\/p>\n
A fair offering a variety of gifts from participating palaces
\nwill run everyday at the Kejaksaan Square and the committee also
\nplans a photo competition.<\/p>\n
The closing ceremony will be held in the Kasepuhan palace in
\nthe evening.<\/p>\n
Participants<\/p>\n
Kuncoro said 24 of the 44 palaces in Indonesia had confirmed
\ntheir participation.<\/p>\n
\"We're still awaiting confirmation from other palaces, as well
\nas those from foreign countries like Malaysia and Singapore,\"
\nKuncoro added.<\/p>\n
He estimated 32 palaces will participate in the festival.
\nAccording to tentative registration data (see table), the 24
\ncontingents alone already number 3,117 people.<\/p>\n
\"This town will be packed with kings, queens and all their
\nroyal families, courtiers, guards and dancers,\" said Kuncoro.<\/p>\n
Ahmad Husein said hotel operators in the town have agreed not
\nto provide discounts during the festival.<\/p>\n
Hotel operators in Cirebon usually consider themselves lucky
\nif they reach 40 percent occupancy rate despite offering sizable
\ndiscounts. He said several hotels and motels in Cirebon were full
\nwith group and tourist reservations, particularly for the first
\nfew days of the event.<\/p>\n
PHRI data shows that most of the tourists are from South
\nKorea, the Netherlands and United States.<\/p>\n
\"It's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for us here to see our
\nrooms full,\" said Rondiati, general manager of the three-star
\nHotel Prima.<\/p>\n
The highest rated hotels in Cirebon are three star. Husein
\nsaid the number of Cirebon hotel rooms, excluding motels, is
\nabout 1,500.<\/p>\n
\"It is really impossible for all the rooms available to
\naccommodate the visitors later, even though there are still many
\nrooms as of today,\" he said.<\/p>\n
\"We therefore are encouraging residents to temporarily rent
\nout rooms in their homes at an amicable rate to either
\nparticipants or tourists during the week.\"<\/p>\n
Although none of the residents interviewed said they knew
\nabout the proposal, they were enthusiastic.<\/p>\n
\"We never heard about the idea but we'll support it at
\nwhatever cost,\" said an elderly resident living near the Kanoman
\ntraditional market.<\/p>\n
Getting to Cirebon is no problem as the town, which straddles
\nthe border between west and central Java, is served .<\/p>\n
From Jakarta, it takes three hours by train with fares ranging
\nfrom Rp 23,000 (executive class) to Rp 12,000 (economy). There
\nare three services daily to and from Cirebon.<\/p>\n
Bus service is available 24 hours per day from Jakarta at Rp
\n6,000 per person per trip. The journey takes about six hours.<\/p>\n
Cirebon is a small town and the festival venues can be reached
\nin minutes by taxi, public transportation vehicles or becak
\n(three-wheel pedicab).<\/p>\n
The city is of historical interest . Its name is believed to
\nbe derived from cai (air or water in Sundanese) and rebon
\n(prawns) as the city is famous for its fishing industry.<\/p>\n
Seafood lovers will rejoice at the array of catch from this
\npoint on the north coast of Java. Fast food restaurants, such as
\nof Kentucky Fried Chicken, McDonald's, Dunkin' Donuts and
\nWendy's, have set up business here. The city is also famed for
\nits traditional cuisine, including Nasi Jamblang, Nasi Lengko,
\nSate Kalong and Tahu Kejrot.<\/p>\n
Cirebon also has its own unique batik design. The swirling,
\ncircular motifs are distinct from the more staid patterns of
\nCentral Java. There is no better site to buy these textiles than
\nhere in their place of origin.<\/p>",
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