INDONESIA: THE SACRED FOREST

Scorch was blinking fast. Her nose was all scrunched up and her mouth was wide open. She was trying hard to understand what the monkey was telling Felix.

The Gifted Four were at the Jalan Monkey Forest or the Sacred Monkey Forest Temple in Bali, Indonesia. It is a dense and vibrant jungle with monkeys dancing all around and humans praying at the temples in the vicinity.

Scorch poked Verum and whispered, “What? What are they saying?”

“Shh…” Verum put a finger on her lips and gestured Scorch to keep quiet, “Some important information, am sure!”

“All done!” Felix turned back to his friends and said, “Meet my new friend, Bali’s long-tailed macaques. I shall call him Macky!”

“What is the importance of this jungle?” Orak was now interested.

“Macky says that there are around 700 of them here. This is a unique wildlife reserve where we can watch Macky and his tribe live in their natural habitat.

They swing from one tree to another the whole day. They climb the tallest trees and they clean each other. They also eat delicious forest food and also do so many cheeky and entertaining antics,” Felix smiled.

“There are also temples here,” Scorch added.

“Yes! Macky tells me that three Hindu holy temples date back to the 14th Century! Shall we now explore the jungle?” Felix stretched his arm out, pointing at the way ahead. The other three nodded in excitement.