Kites soar in a special place inside their lovers' heart, says an old Indonesian proverb.
"Back in 1879, the French invented the box kite," Alexandre de Saint-Jouan, a kite enthusiast from Paris said on Sunday, as he smoothed the wings of his gigantic metallic yellow kite. "Around thirty years later, this invention became the model for the first airplane."
Alexandre was one of the participants in the Jakarta International Kite Festival, which was held at Ancol, North Jakarta, from Aug 8 to 9. The festival featured 120 participants from nine countries and 19 provinces around Indonesia.
It included a kite exhibition, an aerial photography competition, a kite painting contest for children, and a kite flying contest.
The philosophy behind Indonesia's history of kite flying runs deep, said Sari Madjid, the festival's chief organizer.
"Flying kites was traditionally carried out as a sign of thanks to gods, and was found in almost all provinces of Indonesia, especially in Bali," she said, "The higher the kites fly, the closer your prayers are to the gods above."
This year local artisans were eager to explore different shape and materials, she said.
"For instance, this year we have seen a lot of long-tailed kites, such as the dragon one up there," said Sari, pointing at an orange dragon-shaped kite gliding gracefully above.
Albert H.V Silitonga, a kite maker from East Java, was one participant who specialized in getting creative with shapes.
"I would rather experiment with shapes than compete for speed or strength," he said, referring to Indonesia's tradition of kite-fighting.
Albert's creations this year included a mammoth black bat and an imposing electric-green grasshopper, and were all made from parachute materials.
Indonesia was not alone in its kite-fighting traditions, said Muhammad Gauhar, a participant from India.
"In India, kite-fighting is very common," Gauhar said. "Children cover their kite strings with glass dust and try to cut each others' strings."
Due to its aggressive nature, Indian kites are never big, but Gauhar's kites carried an important message this year.
"These kites were decorated to resemble the flags of participating countries," Gauhar said, displaying simple squares made with pieces of paper sewn together, depicting the red and white of Indonesia's flag, the tricolored French flag, and so on.
"The message is unity," he said.
Solidarity among kite enthusiasts is universal, Sari said.
"It's natural for kite fliers to be friendly with each other in the field, even in competitions." (JP/dis)
