Page:Life in Java Volume 1.djvu/121

Rh our evening drives that we saw most of Surabaya and its environs, going each day in some new direction, till we had exhausted all the sights of the place.

Surabaya is surrounded by the river Kedirie, which takes its rise from a marshy lake in the interior of the province of Kedirie. When about three or four miles from the town, the river divides into two branches—one flowing northward, known as the Kali Mas, or Gold River; and the other to the south, the Permeang, the name, I believe, of some mythical goddess. By day and night these rivers present a very animated scene, but particularly at night, when the boats, with which they are crowded, rough-looking things in broad daylight, have the lanterns, with which the mast and stern are hung, brilliantly lighted; whilst the bamboo, which grows near the water, is covered with myriads of fire-flies, looking like dark ostrich plumes studded with gems.