THE overcast skies added to the gloom enshrouding Bogor. Changing-season winds and drops of rain the size of fingers took turns in beating Mukarims body, so cold that they caused his teeth to chatter. Under the rain, his motorcycle suddenly stopped. A second later, a row of bamboo fell right in front of him.

Mukarim all but died of fright. The bamboo at the side of the Botanical Garden almost killed him. I wouldnt have had time to flee, he told Te