men during ceremonies and rituals. These masks are used to hide the faces of dancers and the notion of the ancestral spirits will enter the dancer. After the ritual is complete, it is thought that the ancestor's spirit is rebirthed as a tamate spirit. Although the masks are no longer used, the aesthetics and representations of the ancestral world continue to embody the kastoms of ni-vanuatus. Clothing Women particularly had a unique perspective of differentiating traditional customs to colonial ideas. Island dresses represented a national connection to Vanuatu however many Ni-Vanuatu women consciously choose to shift their options to modern clothing as their attitudes towards convenience, aesthetics and gender equality are considered. Although modern clothing is preferred on most occasions, the respect for kastom in island dresses are incorporated into special events such as festivals, ceremonies and church gatherings. Pandanus grass skirts are worn by women and men wore penis wrappers and bark belts. Barkcloths were also a staple of Ni-Vanuatu clothing and sleeping mats. Different styles and variations of draping the barkcloths indicated the different status of the individual. Men would wear the barkcloth around their waist or drape it between their thighs and women would wear it around their waist and drape it behind their back where European stories of "tailed women" would originate. Young tree bark was the choice of creating these barkcloths as they didn't break so easily and would generally take three to four days to make. The sheets of bark would be soaked with water and women would beat layers of barks together whilst singing a special song. The layers of bark would alternately be soaked, beaten and dried until it was deemed ready. Generally Ni-Vanuatu women would create barkcloth for the community. Penis sleeves worn by men are called yelau and they would hang down at various lengths depending on the man's status. In particular cases, some chiefs would have penis sleeves that hung down to their ankles. Music and Dance Musical instruments and traditional dances played a big role in the practicing rituals of indigenous Ni-Vanuatu. Dances were coordinated with specific anti-clockwise directions of circling dances to represent the notions of male "hardness" during ceremonies and clockwise directions were only accepted to a certain age for males. Musical instruments were created with organic material such as wood, bones, leafs, rocks, vegetables and fruits. Bamboo flutes were carved in a fashion that would