Palangkaraya, the capital city of Central Kalimantan, will be holding the Isen Mulang Cultural Festival 2018. This annual festival will be showcasing diverse culture from various ethnicities in the province. It will take place on May 2nd to 6th 2018, in conjunction with the celebration of the city’s anniversary.
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As always, the festival will feature a wide range of art and cultural performances, games, and competitions, as well as the Central Kalimantan Tourism Beauty Pageant.
In the local language, "Isen Mulang" means "never retreat", which is the motto of Palangkaraya that illustrates the courage of its people. The festival itself is held annually to promote the province’s unique and diverse culture and to inspire youth and local artists to continuously preserve a cultural legacy for the next generations.
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The grand opening will take place at Bundaran Besar or The Grand Field of Palangkaraya, followed by the major highlight of the festival, the cultural carnival. The carnival will be featuring thousands of participants from all cities and regencies in the province. It will start from the governor's office, pass the Isen Mulang Palace, along with major streets of the city, before returning to Bundaran Besar. In the carnival, the streets of Palangkaraya will be filled with traditional dances of the ethnic Dayaknese wearing their colorful traditional costumes and accessories, as well as many other attractions.
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Also highlighting a festival are a number of competitions including photography competition, Jukung traditional boat competition, traditional culinary festival, and traditional dances and songs competitions. There will also be unique traditional games and competitions, such as Lawang Sakepeng (martial art), Meneweng Manetek and Manyila Kayu (lumber chopping), Karungut (folk song), Balogo (traditional children game), Habayang (spinning top), Mangenta (traditional cooking), Besei Kambe (tug of war on a boat), and plenty more. One of the most exciting events is the Sepak Sawut which is a football match using a flaming ball.
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Central Kalimantan, which is dominated by the indigenous Dayak tribes, is known as the lung of the world due to its vast and fertile tropical rainforest. The northern mountain chain, the Schwaner Range, is home to some of the most pristine forests in the entire island of Kalimantan. Its capital, Palangkaraya is the natural starting point to explore the region, having numerous daily flights to and from Java as well as other parts of the archipelago.
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