EDITORIAL - Kawasan makes Cebu proud

That the Kawasan Falls in the municipality of Badian in southwestern Cebu has been named one of the world’s most beautiful waterfalls by TravelandLeisure.com should make Cebuanos happy and proud.

To be listed alongside some of the world’s greatest and most beautiful waterfalls is cause enough already for pride. What the listing can do for the falls and for the whole of Cebu as well is more than enough reason to be happy.

The selection of Kawasan as among the best falls in the world is also a sort of validation for the recent move of Cebu Governor Gwen Garcia to recently close the falls to visits temporarily.

Garcia ordered the closure of the falls to visitors because of the indiscriminate construction of structures at the site by enterprising businessmen who only saw the opportunity to make money without regard for the protection and preservation of the fall’s natural beauty.

The tourist attraction has recently been reopened following the successful clearing operation ordered by the governor, and Kawasan is once more ready to take in visitors, only this time with greater significance following its listing in the TravelandLeisure.com website.

Kawasan is not as majestic and imposing as some of those in the same list. But it is precisely its less majestic and less imposing nature that gives Kawasan the perfectly subdued beauty that many harried visitors seek to enjoy.

For that is what Kawasan is, an attraction meant to be enjoyed. Other waterfalls can thrill and awe with their size and power, or mesmerize and stun with their complexity and beauty. But Kawasan is demure and quiet. Perfect for simply communing with nature.

From now on, with more people aware of its existence, Cebu can expect an increase in the number of visitors to the site. But just as the governor has done, the rest of us must choose to take advantage of this boon with responsibility and greater commitment.