P

ut on some comfortable shoes and get ready for a few hundred meters of exhaust-free air, as the upcoming Kemang Festival will once more ban cars from parts of the neighborhood's notoriously congested streets.

"The festival will take sections of street, starting at the McDonald's, closed for two days," South Jakarta Mayor Sahrul Effendi told The Jakarta Post on Thursday.

The festival, a yearly event since 2006, will kick off Saturday, he added, meaning the roads will be blocked on Aug. 1 and 2.

Around a kilometer of Kemang streets, one section starting on Jl. Bangka Raya and stretching to Kemang Utara, and another starting at McDonald's and ending at Amigos Restaurant, will be dedicated for stalls, stages and pedestrians.

"This festival is also known as the door-bolting festival," Sahrul said, underlining the necessity to free the streets from cars to make way for the festivity.

Up until Friday afternoon, drivers will still be able to down the affected roads, but only down the middle lane, because tents for the festival's stalls are already mushrooming on either side of the road.

The traffic during the two days of the festival will be diverted to Jl. Kemang Selatan and Jl. Prapanca.

The Kemang Festival, routinely held by the Betawi Communication Forum (Forkabi), is known for its constant nods to Betawi culture.

"This year will also see many Betawi elements surfacing, such as the exhibition of the traditional rituals of seeking a girl's hand in marriage," Sahrul said.

Traditional foods, crafts and performing arts will color the ceremony.

The organizers have also invited popular bands to draw in the younger crowd.

Last year's Kemang festival made an environmentally friendly gesture with the theme "Hijau Kemangku" or "My Green Kemang".