Story of Bali, Indonesia

This jungle doubtless contains the largest flower in the world, the Rafflesia that grows from a groundling vine a bloom eighteen inches across, and stinks to high heaven.

Twenty-five miles out of Medan we stop where, at Sibolangit, a jungle botanical garden has been created by the simple expedient of clearing a couple of paths into jungle that would otherwise be too thick to enter. Walking along these paths you can see how luxuriant is the growth, how thick are the liana vines that loop splendid trees like the buttressed turi-turi (the Sumatran oak), and how vivid is the betel palms upper section., where the green trunk turns vermilion. This is truly tropical jungle such as one sees in Borneo but not in Bali.

THE RAGA DANCE. Raga is the name of a ball made of rattan. In fact, this dance looks more like acrobatics, because the youths dancing the raga continuously make acrobatic movements. The raga moves from the left foot to the right for a long time without touching the ground. It is only after a considerable time that the raga moves to the foot of another youth who also plays with it in the same. way as the first person, and so it goes on.

THE LENGGO DANCE. Lenggo means moving the body to left and to the right. This gay dance is danced by several men and is accompanied by rebanas (tambourines). It is held at parties to create a gay atmosphere.
The road climbs out of the lowland rice fields that arc ploughed with water-buffaloes here. not oxen. The people have much the" same Malay-cast features you see in Java. But here the sarongs they wear arc not batik-printed cotton but woven.School is out at the village of Petjeren. Unused to tourists, the children stop their play to gather round me and gape. Point a camera and the little girls scamper off squealing. Boys stand their ground. a mixture of smiles and dourness. But there is something here more cameraworthy.AKKARENA CANGGOLONG-GOLONG DANCE. Akkarena means dancing. The dance is danced by several men each of whom carries a shield and a wooden sword. It is a war-dance and is accompanied by rebanas.

THE MAPPUKA' DANCE. The word mappukd comes from the word puka' meaning a net for catching fish, and the dance is a fishermen's dance. It is usually danced by six men who imitate the movements of fishermen catching fish at sea.

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