Sagada Finally

So then, like what I’ve said from my Banaue Experience, we headed to Sagada early morning. It’s 4am and we already getting ready to catch up 5am bus going to Benguet pero 7am na wala paring ung bus. A van driver offered us getting to Sagada at 2k. Hmmnn, so go na kami maka alis lang. Before that, we checked Kenji at his place (The Japanese solo traveler) if he has plans going Sagada and he decided to come with us. So 5 of us rented the van straight to Sagada.

The view while we are on our way is breathtaking. Wala na ako nasabi kung hindi Wow. For first timers, now I realized bakit ang daming pumupunta ng Sagada. Ang linis, ang sarap ng hangin, ang ganda. Basta. It’s so green and artistic. Parang artwork lahat ng pananim. Pati damo may flowers. It’s really a place that you can be proud of.

Town of Benguet. Hindi na kami nakababa dito so hanggang tanaw nalang, we are almost there.

First glimpse of Sagada.

Parang Sims lang, really a small community. Then I remember the map I saw from the net. Ganung ganun siya, the place is quiet and serene. We stayed at George annex kasi full na ung sa main. Kenji was able to find a place to stay in George annex. Afterwards, we headed immediately to SAGGAS to coordinate the tour. Kenji decided to take his rest.

We eat first and then get ready to start the tour. We met Kehvin our tour guide and Raffy,the doggie tour guide. Kehvin told us that Raffy really get along with the tourists. Sumasama daw talaga siya. And maybe because he felt that we really like him the first time we saw him sumama si Raffy sa Echo valley tour namin. Raffy seems very popular, sayang hindi naming na meet yung owner niya.

Leftmost is Kehvin, our tour guide in Sagada. He was able to share Sagada's cultures and practices. And a good photographer.

On our way to Echo Valley, we saw the Church bell and the Church of St. Mary the Virgin, a vibrant Episcopal parish. We were able to attend mass and wonder why it’s a bit strange, after researching back home, that’s the time we realized the meaning of “Episcopal”. It has similar approach but a lot different in Catholic Church in some aspects. Di kasi nag babasa. Hehe!

The piece of wood act as a candle.

Raffy was making sure we are on the right track. Medyo out of focus ako that day kasi I want Raffy to go back, anlayo kaya so feeling ko nag eeffort lang siya. Haha! Going back, It's Echo valley because you'll hear echos when you shout. Sarap sumigaw ng sumigaw kaso I felt disturbing the quietness of the place.

Finally at the Hanging Coffin, it’s weird to see but then after Kehvin discussed the reason why it was there and how it was brought there by the locals, I was amazed. Kehvin told that elders believe that it would be easier for the souls to get to heaven being hanged on these rocks so it would be near, than buried down.

Tired, not yet. After Echo valley Tour we headed to give Cave Connection a shot. Another must try in Sagada. We get ready and headed to Lumiang Burial Cave, Kehvin brought another tour guide to assist us then our spelunking adventure begins.

To be visible on my next post. :)

Unexpected Banaue Experience

Here’s our plan, going to Sagada by taking Manila-Banaue-Bontoc Route, considering that it’s my first time to fully take in charge of the planning. Who would like to mess up our trip, even the bad weather will not stop us. So we met early to avoid rush hour. Missing the only scheduled trip for the day will be a big disappointment. We found ourselves an hour early at Florida Bus terminal; no rush, no hassle and just getting ready for the adventure ahead. Lahat kami excited, lalo na ako!

The purpose of taking Banaue route was to experience it even for just a bit. Keri na kahit view lang during travel. While on bus we were hooked up in traffic. We are about 2-3 hours left nalang to Banaue sabay totally engine off na sa tagal, ouch! Buti nalang may comfort room yung bus. I’m praying na it will not take long pero it took 3 hours. As per the driver, it’s because of the landslides and the broken bridge kaya naging halos 1 way nlng.

Finally at Banaue, it’s almost 12noon and if pipilitin namin abutan ung scheduled trip going Bontoc pa puntang Sagada, we will be able to make it pero hapon na. It will be too expensive naman to rent a vehicle going there. I guess we are stucked up. I'm quite worried for not being able to complete our itinerary. A tour guide who assisted us offered to do a quick tour in Banaue and helped us to find a place to stay.

Ang daming foreigners and solo travelers sa bus and here are some na kasabay naming mag tour.

Sarap ng local rice nila. It has a sweet taste that I can’t explain. We ate at Halfway Lounge and then we settled the tour Mark (the tour guide) offered.

Top load kami to get a better view.

You need a steady hand not to get out of balance. Rough road, bangin sa gilid, maputik, may mga part na half nalang ung daan kasi may mga bato at soil from the erosion.

Ifugao’s are known for being so creative and it obviously shows that they still preserve the richness of their culture. The terraces are all manmade, and change colors depending on the season. They also put fingerlings of Tilapia in every slope, which serves as the guardian of the rice field, Tilapia eat insects and snails and others that are not good for the crops. A shallow hole in the middle was placed so in summer, the fishes will not die once the water dries up.

Galing ni Mark mag tour. Hands up ako on how he present Banaue to the tourist and how proud he is. He knows how to speak well including different languages. Sabi nya kaka tour na din nya kaya he learned basic French, Italian, Spanish and more. Astig diba.

Different tribes still exist, I guess there’s no more head hunters but native cultures still remains such as burying a family member near the house and will dig up the bones after several days. First born son will inherit everything from the family except the house which is for the youngest son. Your head will be cut off hurting a girl physically. They also speak good English too. As per Mark, they will be punish in school for speaking other languagse. EOP din cla. :p

Some wood crafts made in Ifugao

Kaye and Jerick on Hapao Rice Terraces. Tuloy lang kahit umuulan, sobrang lamig na lamig na ako nito. :p

To identify the owner of the crop, they put plant marks like this. The plant will serve as the boundary kung kanino na ung tanim.

More of the Ifugao cultures

The tour is so bitin, but we enjoyed hearing different stories from Mark and other tourist. Kasama ata sa package yun. We stayed at People’s Lounge after the tour. Todo kain kami after the walk pero yung mga kasama naming nag juice at beer lang. Haha! Aga ko nakatulog after, we packed early morning to go to Sagada. Btw, we also met Kenji during the trip. He’s a Japanese guy who travels solo. He joined us going to Sagada as it was part of his plan too. The rest of the travelers including the cute couple from Holland stayed in Banaue to continue Batad tour. As per them, they hear great stories about Philippines which are the reason why they are here.

We had missed some of the spots but we’ll definitely go back and visit again. I’ve learned a lot and nasulit din ang Banaue. It may not be part of the plan but an unexpected tour can be remarkable.

Next stop: Sagada Finally...