Kites fly high with fans young and old

By I. Christianto

JAKARTA (JP): The wind blew hard and people cheered, watching their kites fly high in the air on that afternoon in Kemayoran, Central Jakarta. Many kite devotees, young and old, flocked to this area, formerly the capital's airport, to fly this lightweight air-borne device.

Kemayoran is just one place in the greater Jakarta area where people gather to fly their kites. Pay attention to the sky over the areas of Sunter, Bintaro, Pondok Indah, Pondok Gede, Kebayoran, Bekasi, Cikupa or along the ring roads and toll roads. The kites are there.

Many urban people may choose kites for recreation and sport amidst the expansive proliferation of video games. Kites are an unseasonable activity. Children as well as adults fly kites, a traditional game for recreation, fun or sport.

People in Samprok village in Cikupa, Tangerang, for instance, recently held a kite contest. Hundreds of local people joined the contest, with a cow as the first prize.

Kites with elaborate designs and various shapes, colors and sizes colored the sky that morning in Samprok. The winner was the one who could control a stunt kite to follow the direction of the wind.

People there said kites are a traditional pastime, regardless of the speed of the wind, people stay to fly their kites.

Indonesia is one of several nations to host an annual international kite festival. The event, involving hundreds of local and overseas participants, is intended to nurture Indonesia's kite-flying tradition and allow kite lovers to meet.

Some may wonder why people are fond of kites, which require operators to stay out under the scorching sun and brave strong winds, darkening and drying out their skin. Those who ask this should try to fly a kite for a while, or just watch the kites in the sky,. They will soon feel that there is so much in a kite that cannot be described in words, and you might gain a new perception of kites.

Nanda, a 37-year-old entrepreneur who flies kites for some three hours a day, said that it is difficult to say why people are fond of flying kites. "Just ask people fond of fishing why they go fishing."

Kite lover John, 40, said the paper flying object had been his hobby since childhood.

"Now I spend less time flying kites, but I enjoy it more as modern kites are now as colorful and as amusing as other sports."

"I still have the memory that some parents, during my childhood, considered kites to be dirty and dangerous because many kids chased after their kites in the street and on roofs," he said.

According to James Dananjaya, professor of anthropology and specialist in folklore at the University of Indonesia, flying kites is a kind game.

"People, children and adults, like to play games, including flying kites, to intensify human experience in ways that are relatively safe while providing entertainment and excitement. This is not about being childish, but childlike."

Dananjaya explained that flying kites offered other experiences, getting closer to nature and bringing up nostalgic moments.

Endang Widjanarko, a self-confessed kite addict, plays the game for recreation and sport.

"I like open-air activities but I truly fell in love with kites about five years ago," she said.

Flying kites in fact has given her a chance to get income. "Now I have a workshop to produce and sell kites of my own creation," she said.

Endang, 49, is an executive of the Association of Kites in Indonesia. She won an award for most creative kite at a kite festival held in China three years ago. As a member of an Indonesian delegation, she won four different awards in various international kite festivals.

She said the kites she produced could be divided into three major groups: kites of fantasy or creation; traditional kites and kites for sport.

"The major reason for people to fly kites may vary. Some will agree that kites are for killing time. This relates with the history of traditional kites that farmers flew to keep birds away from the fields or during harvest time," she said.

Flying kites can also relieve stress.

"Believe it or not, we feel relief when seeing the splendid blue sky," she said. She joked that kite lovers also had younger faces with less wrinkles because they always looked up.

Kites are traditionally made of natural materials including dried tuber leaves and rattan frames. The string used to tie the leaves together is made from finely cut bamboo. The kite's yarn is made from pineapple fiber, which has been peeled carefully and dried.

Endang, who teaches a kite class at the Jakarta International School, the British School and the German School, said that modern kites now used much better materials, some of which are imported. Prices range from thousands of rupiah up to hundreds of thousands of rupiah.

Kites, however, are the long-term enemies of airplanes and electricity.

A couple of years ago the Jakarta authorities attempted to ban the flying of kites near airports. They said kites flown in the Greater Jakarta area threatened planes and helicopters, because apparently some kites fly above tolerable limits.

State electricity company PLN has repeatedly said that kites are among the worst power disrupters in the country.

"There should be more open-air spaces in the center of a city, then people could fly kites freely and cause no damage or danger," Endang said.

Unfortunately, such spaces are becoming more and more limited, as the forest of high-rise buildings and sprawl of housing areas expand.