Visiting A Chocolate Festival in Jembrana

I could feel the excitement in the air in this amphitheater on an early evening. The city regent announced its transformation into the "Chocolate City." Everybody clapped their hands as a replica of a huge cacao pod entered (carried by a group of people) the stage just beside where the regent stood.

This was the chocolate city festival conducted in a little city in western Bali.

The city, called Jembrana, boasts a vast area of chocolate farms. It has become a producer of chocolate for both local consumption and export. This national-scale festival was the inauguration of Jembrana City as The Chocolate City.

My son, my wife, and I happened to be at this festival, attending the inauguration. My son was particularly excited about sampling a lot of chocolate. In exhibition booths outside the amphitheater, local farmers and entrepreneurs showcase samples of chocolate with different flavors. They also introduce the process of making chocolate from cacao beans to the finished product, chocolate bars of different brands.

Some of the chocolate brands are called Cobana and Coklat Pak Ngah. Cobana stands for coklat bahagia Jembrana or Jembrana's happy chocolate. Coklat Pak Ngah come from the word Pak Ngah which is the name of the regent of Jembrana

My son, my wife, and I really enjoyed visiting the booths because of the free chocolate tasting. However, there was something else that attracted my son's attention: the Indonesian armies had a booth to display weaponry and military vehicles. The presence of the army was likely for extra security since it was a national-scale event.

My son had the opportunity to hold a rifle for a photo and take more photos in front of one of the military vehicles. I could see from his face that he was very excited.

This event, a chocolate festival, took place on February 3, 2024. It was held at an amphitheater located in the Jagatnatha Botanical Garden in Jembrana, Bali.