Festival shows there's so much of interest in Borneo island

Evi Mariani, The Jakarta Post, Banjarmasin, South Kalimantan

An hour before Minister of Culture and Tourism Jero Wacik arrived at the open-air venue to open the biannual Borneo Festival, a group of musicians from Hulu Sungai Tengah regency, South Kalimantan, rehearsed the compositions in a casual manner and apparently exuberant mood.

Wearing casual attire instead of flashy uniforms -- some with a cigarette glued to their lips -- they did not pretend to be entertaining anybody. They were just enjoying themselves, instinctively moving their bodies and sometimes letting out a primal scream to the music.

Another group of musicians next door also played their own tunes, while a man in traditional Melayu attire danced with joy and humor, making others laugh and tease him.

Once the VIPs arrived, complete with escorting government officials, the spontaneity seemed somehow to dissipate.

A parade of traditional artist groups from all over Kalimantan opened the festival.

Surrounded by photographers and cameramen, who elbowed each other aside for the best positions, each group stopped before the seated officials, dancing and smiling.

The three-day 7th Borneo Festival, which began on Monday Nov. 21, was aimed at promoting the area's untapped tourist potential and drawing tourists -- both domestic and international -- to visit Kalimantan, which comprises four provincial administrations: West, Central, South and East Kalimantan.

The area is known largely for its wildlife; the forest and national parks, which usually have orangutan; and the Dayak people.

The festival, nonetheless, scored one notable success: It opened visitors' as well as locals' eyes to the fact that the Dayak and Melayu, the two largest indigenous ethnic groups in Kalimantan, have a wide variety of fascinating subcultures.

The night after the official opening, some groups of artists group showed the richness of their cultures. A group of multi- ethnic young people from Kapuas regency in West Kalimantan produced the best performance of the festival with their Mandau Dance.

It was a shame that only a few visitors were seen at Gedung Sultan Suriansyah, Banjarmasin to view the exhibition on the second day of the festival.

The stalls sold handicrafts rather than local food or beverages, even though Kalimantan has a variety of tasty local dishes like the famous soto banjar or lempok durian, or meals made from plentiful fish caught in the Barito, Kapuas and Mahakam rivers.