A Momentous Journey

Another momentous adventure

Last week our school had group observation. We visited several places. The one that can hardly be forgotten is the visit to Baduy. It was beyond words. Speechless…they are too many words till I don’t know where to begin.
Okay, … how about our first landing. To get to Cicakal Buleud where the outer Baduy lives you have to go to a small town named Ciboleger. The trip to Ciboleger is like riding a rollercoaster. The road is winding and steep. If you are not an expert driver, hehehehe just beware. Some kids could not stand the shaking so, they vomited. Once you arrived in Ciboleger, it means you are ready with the long and energy taking walking because the road you are about to face are so unbelievable for us who used to living in city. It is full with ups and downs. Here I showed you the route which we took. It surely made my cheeks red and my body got soaking wet.

If you see my outfit and bag, you’ll smile. It was unmatched for the trip. Well, about the outfit, I actually wore pants for such adventure but my T-shirt is too short, so I had to cover it with a blouse. About the bag, I tried to separate my belongings. I put my money and cell phone there, so I could keep them with me all the times. And my camera was also put in separate pouch. It is all for the purpose of the safety ^__^;

The walking started at about 12 PM so you can imagine how hot it was. It took us about 2 hours to get to the village. And if you are too overwhelmed by your belongings like rucksack and sort of, no need to worry. There are some porters from Ciboleger who are willing to bring them for you. You only have to pay 10.000 rupiah for their help. Next thing you know, you can walk easily without some burden on your back. Well, I did hire one of them on the way home from Baduy. ^__^;
Finally we arrived in the village but we had to cross the bridge. Hehehe…there’s something about the bridge. It was made of Bamboos arranged elaborately by the Natives. Since it was made of Bamboos so it shakes easily—Nur was the victim, she cried because Mama and Zahra shook the bridge. Instead of walking, she stopped, squatted and cried leaving me halt behind T___T. Under that highest bridge is a rocky river. So, just in case you are not careful, you have to be ready with the rocks okay? And if you are afraid of height—like my friend Ratna who finally decided to crawl instead of walk ^0^—it’s going to be a problem for you. Well, make sure you are not afraid of height or don’t look down or…find another way that is crossing the river. Oh, the village is called Cicakal Buleud because it is surrounded by the river so the shape is round. Seeing the river is like heaven on earth. The water is crystal clear. Here’s a glance of the bridge and the river.

Now you are going to be welcomed by the houses made of bamboos. Everything here is so natural. The people use rocks from the river to cover the soil so it won’t be muddy. The houses have the same shapes. Here there’s no electricity, so when the dusk comes it’s very dark and quite. The people don’t talk a lot and loudly. The different of inner Baduy and outer is in the rules. The outer Baduy still allows camera, video camera and radio. But the inner Baduy doesn’t allow any pictures taking or recording, so they are always remain uncovered by the outsider. Also the outfit distinguishes between outer Baduy and inner. The outer wears black and dark blue mostly while the inner wears white only. About the staying, the outer will let the guests to stay more than one day but not with the inner. They only let you stay for one night only then you have to go out from their village. The outer can take vehicle while the inner is not allowed. They have to walk to get to and back from the city. Some said once you are inside the inner Baduy you have to be ready with quietness. It’s much quieter than the outer. Here are some pictures of the houses and huts for restoring dried paddy.

Now about lavatory, hmm it’s a bit problem for me. I am not used to taking bathe in open space. Moreover, you have to mingle with the males. So, the school asked the permission from the head of the village there to let us build simple lavatory. The males were placed at the other side so, no picking is allowed. I wish I could bathe there. I really wanted it so badly, but I saw some male outsiders came and go, so I restrain my desire to bathe there, just sat on the rocks and dipped my legs into the river. I provided you with the pictures here.
The elder called Pulung took us to see the Lahang—the liquid from the palm tree as the main material for making palm sugar—and tasted it. It’s as sweet as the palm sugar itself. And he showed us the mold for the palm sugar and the taking of lahang. Take a look at the pictures below. Woman is not allowed to climb onto the palm tree. Iis, my friend, was about to take a picture while climbing on to the bamboo stair attached to the tree, canceled her plan when we heard the Puun said, “It seems inappropriate for woman to climb to take lahang.” It’s very simple but it hit the target. They never directly use the word NO for anything instead they use elaborate word to say that it is forbidden. Want to see the pictures?

Our staying wasn’t that long. We arrived around 3 in the afternoon and started doing the observation. Enjoying the view in the morning for a few hours then left the village at around 8 A.M. on the next day. Some kids and teachers were quite curious about the Inner Baduy. I, on the other hand, not only curious by the inner Baduy but also the Baduy people in Cicakal Girang who are Muslims. They are so various, yet they can get along quite well. The Baduy are neither Muslim nor Hinduism. Their religion is Sunda Wiwitan. They believe in Adam as the first prophet and Muhammad as the last one but they don’t do the prayer like us. But their attitude is very Islamic. They treat nature wisely. They live in harmony with the nature.

If Andre Hirata was astounded by the beauty of Edensor in Sheffield, I was and still am astounded by the beauty and virginity of the nature of Baduy. I found one of my earthly heavens. I found an interesting fact about the people. You won’t see fat people there. That’s due to the healthy food and walking. They walk a lot. Remind me of my grandma and grandpa who also live in a village on the mountain hill. They are fit all the time due to the simplicity of food and lots of walking. If you come there, you feel like living in different dimension. They keep us wonder and curious. Well, at least for me. I was wondering if we make a trade. One person from each society, ours and Baduy, lives in opposite place for a week or two—one representative from us lives in Baduy and one representative from Baduy lives in our place—what will the result be? Who’s going to face the difficulty in doing the adjustment? Hmm…I would love to find out that. I still don’t feel satisfy. I still want to see the inner Baduy. It will be in my agenda. ^^;