A search for Palmyra Palm and Pandanus Grass weavers in East Bali
After buying a beautiful woven Pandanus grass bag in the village of Bona in central Bali Emily went in search of the people who weave them. She had no luck finding any weavers in central Bali so widened her search to East Bali after a friend working on the Empower Project, an initiative working to help teenage girls stay in education, suggested she accompany her on her next visit to Desa Ban, a remote region on the slopes of Gunung Agung, the huge and active volcano that forms the core of the eastern part of the island. Emily’s husband and son joined the trip and with the help of some very enthusiastic school girls they were taken a tour of the village in search of weavers. Sadly in spite of finding plenty of bamboo basket weavers, including many of the school girls who were helping with the search, no palm leaf or Pandanus grass weavers were found. However in a conversation over coffee before the long drive home, Gede their teacher mentioned that he thought his mother knew a Lontar Palm weaver in a nearby village and he promised to look her up. Watch this space !
