The Amazement at the Top: Exploring the Beauty of Curug Cilember

The Amazement at the Top: Exploring the Beauty of Curug Cilember

By: Ajeng Ratna Sari

The bridge close to curug tujuh

The view of curug tujuh

The sun was bright when it guided my way to see the green of nature. As I walked closer, I smelt the beautiful fragrance of the natural treasure. The songs of the birds created the curiosity to find more inside. I followed the path wondering how the scene of nature would be. I got closer, and then I found a wonderful waterfall. My heart had desire to feel the freshness. The touch of the water seized my mind. I was lost in the purity of the water: It was so cold and clear. My journey did not finish there. There were the others waiting for my arrival to give their unforgettable moments.

That is the description that I have when I remember Curug Cilember, the beautiful waterfalls. Curug Cilember is located in Cilember village, Cisarua, West Java. It is not too far from Jakarta that is why I chose this place to spend my holiday with my family. It took 3 hours from Jakarta to Curug Cilember. At the gate it was written “Curug 7 Cilember” and I still wondered the views of the waterfalls and why the name is Curug 7 Cilember. The first impression I had was the track to the waterfalls was really green.

There were many kinds of tree surrounding the track to the waterfalls. I could smell the natural fragrance of the leaves. It was really refreshing. Besides the green trees, I also felt amused of the weather of the place because it was cool. Finally I could escape from the hot weather of Jakarta that is what I thought in my mind. Curug Cilember has 7 levels of waterfall, starting from the lowest one, curug tujuh, and ended at the highest one, curug satu. I am actually an acrophobia, but my curiosity to see the waterfalls was bigger than my fear that is why I chose to keep hiking the track to see curug satu.

After a few minutes hiking, I found there were many people soaking their feet in the water of a pond. I wondered about what they were doing; then there was a man pointing out to the pond and offered me a fish spa for only 5000 rupiah. It was cool to know that there is also a fish spa around the track to the waterfalls. After that, I kept hiking the track, hearing the sounds of birds. It was peaceful. It is so different with the atmosphere of Jakarta which only has the sound of factories’ machines and vehicles. Not far from the fish spa, I saw a place whose shape like a dome. I was curious about the place then I came closer to the place and found that it was a place of butterfly conservation. That building can be entered by paying the entrance ticket for 6000 rupiah. It is not expensive compared to the experience you can get. You can take selfie with many kinds of butterfly. It is really fun.

Unfortunately, I could not stay in the butterfly conservation building for long time because there were many things up there waited for me. I hiked the track to reach the seventh waterfall; the track was quite hard to pass. It took much of my energy. The sound of the waterfall was already heard from about 50 meters. I felt so enthusiastic. I fastened my step. Finally I reached the seventh waterfall. It was really beautiful. There were two streams of water falling from the top. I then directly put off my shoes and came into the pool under the waterfall. The water was cold and clear. I stepped carefully because sometimes there were rocks that might make me fall. I played in the water for a while. I touched the freshness of the water. Suddenly, there was a thing came to my mind. This nature is so amazing. This depicts the power of God: He created a wonderful natural view. I sat on a rock for a while, enjoying the view around. I saw many trees and I heard the sound of the waterfall. That all made me felt relaxed. Suddenly, I heard a weird voice. It was not the voice of birds. I looked around and found that it was the voice of monkeys. There were monkeys climbed from tree to tree. The appearance of the monkeys added more the beauty of the place.

My journey had not ended yet. I still continued it to the first waterfall. The higher the waterfall the more scared I was. The track to the first waterfall was so scary and steep. I tried not to look down. I was so curious to know the view at the top. All the sceneries from sixth to the first waterfall were wonderful. It was full of trees, full of monkeys, and don’t be surprised if you can also find pigs there because I found a pig passing in front of me during this journey.

Finally I reached the first waterfall. It was so beautiful and higher than the seventh waterfall. The water dropped in fast speed. The voice was heard so clear. I enjoyed the landscape for some time. I saw the blue sky became the background of the dancing birds. Besides the birds, the trees were also dancing in breeze. After some time I touched the water of the waterfall by my hands. I took the water and poured over my face. I felt the softness of every drop of the water. The freshness asked me to dip my whole body in but it was already late, then I tracked down. Tracking down was easier than hiking, so you don’t need to worry to be tired and the views around you also will remove your tiresome.

It is not about how brave you are to reach the highest waterfall but it is about how curious you are to see the astonishment of Curug Cilember.