June/July, 1998
No. 035/VI/98
cover story
After The Boom
What future is there for
Bali's modern theatre
scene?
Warung Society
Bali has its own history of
communal philosophising
and coffee-drinking
Renaissance
Twenty years of Bali's
Festival of the Arts
beyond
bali
Photographs from
Kuang Amo
regular
features
Dangerous
Times
Orchestrating a
cremation in Ubud
Home Grown
A preview of
the Quicksilver Pro
Adventure
Getting over a fear
of diving
Health and Beauty
Foreign aid for
optic
health
Books
The Painted Alphabet
reviewed
Food
Two boutique hotels,
two top chefs
Fiction
'Our Moon'
by Mas Ruscitadewi
advertising index for
Bali Echo web site
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Water
with a voice, white water. This is how the people of Sumbawa call two of their most
spectacular falls: Ai Beling and Ai Putih. The voice of the Ai Beling can be heard from as
far as five kilometres away, and the water of Ai Putih turns as white as milk as it falls
from on high.
Both falls, located by the hamlet of Kuang Amo, in the subdistrict of Moyo Hulu, Sumbawa, are set snug in the Ropang mountain range within a dense jungle. Here, wild chickens crow to the sound of the rushing falls, wild deer skip about, wild boar roam, and an orchestra of bird songs serenade the flow of the Brang Rea River.
Ai
Beling are Sumbawa’s biggest falls. They include seven falls in all, covering an area
of around two hectares. Designated official tourist destination by the Sumbawa Regional
Tourist office since 1994, Ai Beling can be reached by public minibus from Sumbawa Besar,
the capital of Sumbawa. This three-hour journey winds through some of the island’s
densest jungle.
Ai Putih falls,
however, remain ‘virginal' - yet to become an official tourist destination. They can
be reached by foot from Dusun Kuang Amo via a muddy track that meanders through 7
kilkometres of jungle before reaching the falls.
The
pristine condition of both falls can be attributed to the beliefs of the community of
Dusun Kuang Amo, about five kilometres from Ai Beling falls. Here the tau Samawa people,
recognised internationally as one of the world’s ever-dimishhing indigenous tribes,
hold steadfastly to the teachings of their forebears. Their belief in the sacredness of
the forest is integral to their culture, and is explained sanro (shaman) Zainuddin, a
Kuang Amo elder, as follows: "To us, trees are like people. They have a soul."
Above:
1. Kuang Amo girl.
2. Ai Putih Falls.
3. Ai Beling Falls.
4. These ponies carry goods between the village of Kuang Amo and Ai Beling.
Photos and text by Ari Basuki.
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