Kissing Festival to entertain visitors

DENPASAR (indo.com): Travelers to Bali will witness another unique and unprecedented event in the Island of Gods when a kissing festival is held in Southern part of Denpasar, Sesetan Village.

The kissing festival will be held on Monday, March 22, 2004, one day after Balinese Hindus celebrate the Nyepi Day.

Locally called Med - Medan, the festival allows teenagers of different sex to kiss each other in the public.

Every year, or a day after Nyepi, teenagers gathered in groups, each consists of girls and another group consists of boys. The groups of boys and girls will first pray in Banjar temple before starting to do the kissing by turn. During the festival, the main road in front of the Banjar (society hall) is closed.

Bleganjur instrument played by local musicians accompanies the two groups lining up in ellipse form and when the Bleganjur beats are faster and faster, the two groups come closer and closer until suddenly, the first person in every group kiss each other. Then, several appointed persons, who act as referees, pour water to them before they separate.

According to banjar community members, this annual event is meant to protect the village from unexpected thing. Badra, a banjar's figure, said that once, for one reason or another, locals did not hold the kissing festival and consequently, they were startled with two big pigs engaged in a fierce fighting. "Nobody could stop the fighting and the pigs were badly injured," he said.

Since then, he said, the kissing festival is held annually and has never been ignored. The festival is now becoming increasingly popular not only among Balinese but also travelers because the event delights them.

The kissing festival has lured many visitors to join the festival but, unfortunately, participants are confined to original villagers from Banjar Kaja Sesetan.