— or commonly known as Mangrove Forest PIK, provides a fresh scenery of Mangrove trees, natural landscape, and even fresher air amid the thick pollution of Jakarta city.
Everyone who knows me know that I'm not a fan of going-out on Sunday since I prefer staying at home, catching some Zs, and just playing all day long with my son (a.k.a my cat, Obong) but last Sunday is different. I got my cousin — oldest daughter of my mom's younger brother — visiting from Samosir, North Sumatera. We both have some kind of closer relationship, compared to other cousins in Sumatera, since few years ago she used to live with us here in Jakarta. So when she visited again and asked to bring her somewhere nice in the city, I thought; why not?
Turns out she got this one place she'd heard from a friend that supposedly have nice scenery for some worthy postings. It is a mangrove forest, located in North Jakarta — or exclusively known; PIK (Pantai Indah Kapuk).
I've never been there before, so it's gonna be an experience even from a Jakartan like me. I went there with this cousin of mine and one other cousin who also live in the city. The three of us order a service car from Grab, that charged us IDR 39k from where I live/pick-up location; Kalideres, West Jakarta to drop location in Pantai Indah Kapuk, North Jakarta.
The entry ticket was IDR 30k / person. Actually, I was told that the fee was IDR 25k, but I'm assuming that on Sunday the rate was higher. The moment we approached the gate keeper, some kind of guard who checked our stuff and things informed us that bringing professional camera, digital like DSLR ones, or even tablet inside are prohibited. Using them to take pictures are off-limit and would be given a fine of 1 million rupiah. Mobile phone's cameras are okay though.
The place was packed especially with young couples, seeking a peaceful afternoon for their date. There were also many millennials, teenage girls and their friends, posing for selfies and instagramable pictures to upload at every pretty spot available. As for us, we took a time to inspect the map provided for visitors. We made sure we went around the place thoroughly and nothing was missed.
The one unique thing I noticed in this place is the wooden houses that also served as camps. They are triangles and short. It was built to look like tents but because they are wooden, they looked antique, and funny. Like roofs stuck on the ground.
There were many pretty spots to take pictures in. One of them was Jembatan Besar.
Oh boy, we — *cough* the cousin I mentioned, *cough* — took so many pictures here. Lols.
Green scenery in Jakarta is getting increasingly rarer to find, so this place is pretty recommended for those who love nature. The road in between row and row of mangrove trees were made from pieces of bamboo. Hardly anything made from concrete.
There's also a lodge above the lake. I assumed it was used for outdoor retreat from companies, organizations outing, pramuka, or any kind of events here. We saw many name plates from companies, groups, organizations put on the smaller mangroves to mark that they were the one who plant them there, complete with messages and date of plant. I guess an outdoor retreat in which you also get to learn about mangroves or any other kind of plants for go-green movement sounds awesome. Hopefully the company I worked in held one someday.
The row of cabins made the scenery even prettier. It enhanced the natural view and is no doubt, visitors favorite spot for taking pictures.
My favorite spot was the forest. The path made from bamboos, the cover from the leaves the trees provided, the swamp, I love them!
So now after everything being described, I say my Sunday was pretty awesome! (Even though given no special occasion I still would prefer to spend it napping at home, haha.)
On to the next pretty places!
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