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| 3 guys, #galingupis; me, paeng, and mike at the Banaue Rice Terraces view deck |
Banaue Rice Terraces
It’s amazing
that the in-between world of sleeping and consciously (I think) keeping oneself
upright sitting on a van running on speeds of who knows how fast, turning left
and right as it overtakes or worse on a winding mountainous road, still counted
as rest.
The chartered van which carried a tour group of 14, including me, left Quezon City around 9 p.m. on a Friday night, and for 9 hours we headed north on the eastern road towards Sagada, Mountain Province.
The chartered van which carried a tour group of 14, including me, left Quezon City around 9 p.m. on a Friday night, and for 9 hours we headed north on the eastern road towards Sagada, Mountain Province.
We reached our
first stop Banaue, Ifugao and its famous rice terraces around 6 a.m. Baguio, the other popular stopover lies in the
west of Sagada, was to be the way home.
My sleep wasn’t perfect but it did the job. Honestly, I was more thankful that nothing hurt with my neck bent and one ass cheek (uneven seat cushions) was higher than the other all throughout the trip.
My sleep wasn’t perfect but it did the job. Honestly, I was more thankful that nothing hurt with my neck bent and one ass cheek (uneven seat cushions) was higher than the other all throughout the trip.
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| Me and Mike at the Welcome Arch, lined with souvenir shops left and right |
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| When in Rome, I often go for the I which means igme |
We took pictures
at the entrance arch of the Banaue which has nearby 3D sign like so many
tourist areas – I love name of tourist
spot or tourist area. Why people love to take pictures in front of a
name escapes me, but when in Rome I did what the Romans do.
The place to eat
with view deck was about 10 minutes away. Just to keep things simple, my
friends and I ordered our choices of silog meals. After eating, we then
proceeded to the view deck to take pictures.
The silogs set us back between 130 pesos to about 190 pesos each which is understandable; strike while the iron is hot as they say.
The silogs set us back between 130 pesos to about 190 pesos each which is understandable; strike while the iron is hot as they say.
I am iffy on the
fee of 10 pesos collected for view deck and there was another 10 pesos for the
restroom. Thankfully the restroom was on another structure; otherwise the
typical tourist restroom fee – for cleaning and maintenance – would hit me all
wrong. So yeah what ticked me off was more the view deck entrance fee.
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| We rode with open windows to welcome to morning in Banaue |
Bomod-ok Falls
The first on our itinerary was Bomod-ok
Falls. We were advised to wear shorts in order to walk more comfortably
although for some, like my friend, already had swimming in mind. I thought of
keeping my pants but relented to shorts thinking there maybe something to being
comfortable. We arrived in Sagada before lunch.
Our van was parked in some kind of an open field, fenced; not sure what it was made for but it had a small building at one end where people changed clothes, bought souvenirs, and ate. A local jeep, which is the rule in Sagada now, would take us to the launch point into the falls; two guides, both females would walk with us all the way.
Our van was parked in some kind of an open field, fenced; not sure what it was made for but it had a small building at one end where people changed clothes, bought souvenirs, and ate. A local jeep, which is the rule in Sagada now, would take us to the launch point into the falls; two guides, both females would walk with us all the way.
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| In accordance to local rules, we left our van for a local jeep. That building at the back of the van was were we ate and changed clothes |
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| You can ride inside or topside |
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| Our guides doing a pre-departure brief |
Bring extra clothes if you want to swim, at
least a t-shirt, and the means to carry wet clothes as well. It was a long way
down and an agonizing way up, that I think most of the tour group, who swam, had
dried up when we got back on top.
I wore my hoodie all the way because I was wary of the cold but it was noon, the hike was taxing, so in the end I somewhat regretted keeping it on.
I wore my hoodie all the way because I was wary of the cold but it was noon, the hike was taxing, so in the end I somewhat regretted keeping it on.
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| Yes he wore his swim shorts |
Thankfully it was a cloudy day and had it
not been I would have been sweating a waterfall of my own. Ambient temperature
is naturally cool in Sagada as long as you don’t get direct sunlight.
The path to Bomod-ok was not a traditional mountain
trail that leads to a falls. It is still a mountain obviously, but like many neighbouring
areas the locals have adapted the mountain into terraces. Sagada has terraces where
you could walk in was how our guides proudly described our trip.
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| Terraces you could walk through |
What’s hard about walking down is that I don’t trust the traction of my old sandals as if the drizzle didn’t make it hard enough. Can that stone provide good footing? Is that next step slippery wet? The trail has been cemented up to the falls but there are points where you really think about your steps.
Walking sticks were provided for, and unlike my Pinatubo trip where I avoid one, here I actually made full use of it. When it doubt I walked down, almost sideways, like a crab.
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| Can you imagine walking here without cemented trail? |
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| Me, still in deep concentration. You can never tell with rocks. |
The sticks felt more useful going down when
I was using it like a third leg, than up, when I had to carry it more often. Plus
going up is harder because, first we were hungry, and second, all leg power was
used making sure I didn’t slide straight down. I could feel my lungs burn in
each step up.
Our lunch was a master stroke. I don’t
recall we were ever offered boodle fight when we arrived in Sagada so I think it
was common practice to offer – or aggressively suggest – it to tourists. Bomod-ok
maybe took 2 hours to finish including the short swim. The banana leaves were
already on the table when we arrived.
The 14 just had to agree who will take the boodle
fight good for 7; and lo and behold, the tour’s 3 groups were all represented
eating a shared meal, enjoying the perfect icebreaker. We had time to dress and
the restaurant time to set up the boodle, once a head count was agreed.
Had 7 been an impossible number then it would be just banana leaves on the table and all of us will be eating à la carte. If you think about it the schedule and the timing, few people, maybe those who have visited Sagada before, could have refused the plentiful looking boodle.
Had 7 been an impossible number then it would be just banana leaves on the table and all of us will be eating à la carte. If you think about it the schedule and the timing, few people, maybe those who have visited Sagada before, could have refused the plentiful looking boodle.
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| Lunch and Icebreaker. Joiner tours should always try boodle fights in my opinion. |
The 7 of us shared 150 pesos each for the boodle which had unlimited rice (which worked well with tired bodies), unlimited fruit juice (I recall it was lemonade), mussels, chicken, Pork BBQ, and fish.
Our boodle fight breakdown was: 3 were from a company that makes cans for many brands of canned goods (sorry named escaped me), me and my 2 friends were from the same high school, and the lone Japanese (part Filipina) lady.
Although we were never to share a meal
again the good vibe was to last the whole trip. Case in point there was always
a call for a group picture, despite me or my friends who were of the lesser
number (the canning company group was 10 people) often made sure not to photo bomb;
we were asked to enter the frame again.
Marlboro Hills
A different friend who had recently been to
Sagada talked about his tour organizer not advising him that the sunrise tour involved
a lot of walking. I thought he was talking still of Kiltepan but because of too
much tourists, vehicles were no longer allowed access.
In our the tour organizer did advise us, I
think because knowing that there will be more walking is an added incentive to
wake up early. Only then I learned Kiltepan was closed. Also a big plus to our
tour guy who did the wake up by knocking in each of our doors personally just
to keep to schedule. A local jeep and two male guides were waiting for us by
then.
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| 4 a.m., 2 guides and a jeep will take us to the launch point for Marlboro Hills |
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| Lining up for Marlboro |
The plan was to leave the Inn at around 4
am and walk for about an hour. My mind playing with the numbers. On flat
surface I can potentially reach 5 km in 1 hour; I’m sure they can’t mean the
same with mountain roads, although, shorter distance and still take 1 hour is
not good news in itself.
The 1 hour computation was accurate but I
don’t think they considered the seasons when they scheduled such trips. When we
did reach the summit ambient light was almost like daytime even though, from
what I can make out, the sun hadn’t breached the horizon yet.
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| I feel that I arrived late and yet it is beautiful. The ideal would be to see the reds, oranges, before the white hot risen sun |
Perhaps they kept to the same wake-up time
back when vehicles can actually bring tourists to the viewing point itself –
which then was Kiltepan. 3:30 a.m. (time to leave the inn/hotel) would have
been better for this June trip. I feel that for the best experience you should
be on top of the hill before there’s even a hint of red in the horizon.
Watching the slow creep of red until it turns to white allows you to see the outlines of the mountains, without the competing glare of direct sunlight, and a slow reveal of the valley below.
Watching the slow creep of red until it turns to white allows you to see the outlines of the mountains, without the competing glare of direct sunlight, and a slow reveal of the valley below.
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| See where the slope disappears and somewhere goes up again, that's a second summit. There's people now at full light. |
The catch is that it rained the night before and Marlboro has no cemented path so I was worried in some portions about sliding or sinking, depending on the type of mud.
At the summit or viewing area, Marlboro has
its own beauty compared to Kiltepan. Our tour organizer was more a
traditionalist liking Kiltepan’s eye level to the sunrise, Marlboro looks like
it’s higher than the horizon which is farther away. I can see his point.
But unlike Kiltepan, Marlboro has a view of the valley all around – think Kiltepan’s 180 degree view to Marlboro’s maybe 300 degrees. Granted there’s not much to see or the valley below is too far, just seeing the beautiful mountain range was spectacular.
But unlike Kiltepan, Marlboro has a view of the valley all around – think Kiltepan’s 180 degree view to Marlboro’s maybe 300 degrees. Granted there’s not much to see or the valley below is too far, just seeing the beautiful mountain range was spectacular.
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| The aforementioned second summit at back right. Back left, also a valley is facing away from the sun |
Here’s a tip which, if you want to risk it, follow with care. I talked about reaching the summit before any kind of light (which I failed). There’s a second summit which can be tricky to reach in the dark because once you reach to the end of the first, there’s a manageable but odd slope to climb down in relative darkness, from there is a safe and wide enough ridge in between where you can just walk up to the second summit.
If you do manage to get there, the view of
the rising sun is unhampered by fellow tourists. By 5 a.m., at the first summit
it was already difficult to get open angles to the sun. Everyone was standing,
mobile phones at the ready for the sunrise; although with the light present
you’d wonder if it hasn’t already.
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| for good or bad they sell food on top. I didn't look but nothing fried as far as managed to glance. |
I think we were on top for almost 2
hours. The itinerary would have us eat
right there at the summit which had stalls. I didn’t bother to look around for food;
my heart was set on something fried. Just from short glances around the stalls
a variety of instant noodle soups are available, including sopas and lugaw.
Kiltepan circa 2013
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| Red light slowly reveals the white |
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| Maybe the tour organizer was right about Kiltepan's angle being better. And then there's a hit or miss in sunrise trips when there can be too much clouds. |
Pictures taken with my trip with the Filipino Freethinkers
Hanging Coffins
Seeing that the
entrance leading to the Hanging Coffins had a booth and a gate was the big sign
that Sagada has changed.
Years ago, 2
other previous occasions in Sagada, I visited the site, as an afterthought to
be honest, because it was just at the back of the Episcopal town church, St.
Mary the Virgin, a major area of town. What’s
a nice place to tour…too far…no time…fine Echo Valley it’s just there. The
coffins are in the valley – like a two for one. Now I can’t do that anymore.
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| Booth says present receipt. We were waiting for the rest who are lined up for restroom break, just behind the booth. |
Also tourists
are no longer allowed to shout in Echo Valley. Our tour organizer asked the old
lady manning the booth why shouting was disallowed, she answered that shouting
will only be part of burial rites. The two guides, both male, that we had going
up Marlboro was still with us down to the Hanging Coffins. They echoed the same
rule on the noise.
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| First time I ever heard any background on local burial practices |
Looking on the bright side, for the first time ever in 3 visits, I now have a little bit of history about the practice of hanging a coffin out on the side of a mountain. The guides also included a legend that Sagada was underwater long ago, which may be true because of the presence of limestone but I would have to read up on that.
Today the trail
to the Hanging Coffins is cemented with handlebars, so at least it is obvious
that money is going somewhere useful. I have been to places that have collected
huge fees and yet tourists can’t feel the money being used anywhere. The
unnatural look of the area with cemented trail is a debate for some other time.
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| You couldn't lean on anything back in the day to rest |
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| Coffins were fenced for protection |
A plus on the
side of cement was that during my visit there was a senior citizen on the trail
doing the tour – a lady with a gang of contemporaries I assume, including
able-bodied men who could be guides or relatives, and the key point is that she
walks with a cane. The trip would have been inadvisable pre-handlebars.
I don’t know if it was her first time but I can only sense an overall good vibe despite having experienced and knowing the difficulty of going up and down. For her at least it was an inclusive experience and she’s squeezing every joy out of it.
I don’t know if it was her first time but I can only sense an overall good vibe despite having experienced and knowing the difficulty of going up and down. For her at least it was an inclusive experience and she’s squeezing every joy out of it.
What I miss now that
the Hanging Coffins tour has me, in effect, guarded is the area which reserved
for the Adventure Tour (I think) in catalog of things to do.
Back in my
second visit I left the Hanging Coffins area, not back up but somewhere further
down that leads to a stream, I think even to some kind of cave, until we all
got out back to town which way pass Sagada Weaving. Church to Sagada Weaving is
a fair walk using the main roads. I liked this trail because it’s a valley
(translation flat and not uphill) and I had water run through my feet.
Our tour
organizer confirmed this trail and he says it is included in their 3 day
package. Bye bye to freebies and easy trails.
Trail out of Hanging Coffins circa 2013, today's Adventure trail (not sure)
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| See the house, we were just skimming the edges of town. I think that down there is a cave. |
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| Cool streams |
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| Boulders notwithstanding its not as hard as it looks. Trail is relatively flat granted some maneuvering required. |
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| Beautiful rocks |
Pictures taken with the Filipino Freethinkers
Hidden Hill Inn
Hidden Hill has the honor of being the best
room I’ve ever had in Sagada. Room 3 was a corner room facing hills; it had 2
beds good enough to share, 2 sets of racks with clothes hangers, a table, two
monoblock chairs. The best feature is that we had our own bathroom. There’s
also a balcony with clothesline including pins to make sure any of your
underwear doesn’t fly off into the wind.
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| Best room I've ever had in Sagada which is to say good room and own bathroom. |
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| The second building of Hidden Hill |
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| Texting on the Balcony |
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| My room would be middle floor, back, left corner |
If the room had any short coming it is the
water pressure. The shower head had a heater but besides the pressure, it seemed
like it was spitting water all over but straight down.
Just be aware that the Inn is at the center
of town so hillside means there are inns or houses that are similarly situated.
Nearest to the Inn, which has the high ground, was a house and its yard. I had
been on a top floor of a hotel rooms before in the town area but this room was
just perfect.
The only negative is that hill on the name is with reason; the
living space is not on the roadside but atop an actual hill. Uneven steps can
be more stressful than seeing a long flight of even ones. Climbing up and down
Hidden Hill can be a deterrent to go to town or an incentive to enjoy the town
in one fell swoop.
Northern Blossoms is more a farm than a garden. The point being is that a farm is built for optimum use of space, not to highlight any single or a collective group of flowers' beauty. With flowers in rows, properly labeled with scientific names, it can feel meh if that's the perspective taken.
However, if you managed to zone yourself out on a single bud, or a set, a row, just enough to blank out the farm; the flowers are beautiful. I managed to zone out over cabbage rose, my mind in a peculiar place between salads and having a token for a date. Being a cabbage there's the inevitable question to the guides if it can be eaten, to which they would answer yes, but they don't recommend it.
Highest Point and Northern Blossoms
On that western road to Baguio, heading home, we passed by first the Highest Point in the Philippine Highway - which I googled as of this writing and found out it was dethroned. Regardless, when we arrived there isn't much to see because of the fog.
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| You can see the farm |
Northern Blossoms is more a farm than a garden. The point being is that a farm is built for optimum use of space, not to highlight any single or a collective group of flowers' beauty. With flowers in rows, properly labeled with scientific names, it can feel meh if that's the perspective taken.
However, if you managed to zone yourself out on a single bud, or a set, a row, just enough to blank out the farm; the flowers are beautiful. I managed to zone out over cabbage rose, my mind in a peculiar place between salads and having a token for a date. Being a cabbage there's the inevitable question to the guides if it can be eaten, to which they would answer yes, but they don't recommend it.
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| Or you can see the individual beauty |
Tour Packages and Sagada Fees
The tour
organizer performed great not that there is any deviation possible with a set
itinerary. Pickup and drop off point in Quezon City was perfect for me. I love
the hotel, climbing from the roadside notwithstanding. My friends, the 3 of us,
passed on the Sumaguing Cave tour which was to happen just minutes after
checking in the hotel. Our tour guy returned our share meant for that tour.
What I don’t
like is how the tour price was advertised, which is to say the Sagada fees
weren’t included in the ad. Fees was about 1500. The Hidden Hills accommodation
was an add-on divided between me and my 2 friends: 500 pesos. The ad said 2000
pesos.
A rough Google search of Sagada tour packages showed other companies and organizers with ads at roughly the same amount at 2000 pesos. The ads are an industry practice.
A rough Google search of Sagada tour packages showed other companies and organizers with ads at roughly the same amount at 2000 pesos. The ads are an industry practice.
Full disclosure, I was not the primary
go-between – my friend was – so the time lines are fuzzy. As I recall once the
ad broke the ice, so to speak, the organizer gave the full account which I
didn’t read or understand in its entirety. The ad locked me into complacency.
Using the term tour organizer is me still
feeling iffy about the ad at the same time has appreciated how me and my
friends were treated, until ultimately admitting I did enjoy my time. I don't want to condemn and I also don't want to recommend.
Had I not learned that the new Sagada has fees for every site it seems, I would have been sore up to the end. The added price was not a lie albeit that the presentation never highlighted it.
Had I not learned that the new Sagada has fees for every site it seems, I would have been sore up to the end. The added price was not a lie albeit that the presentation never highlighted it.
To be fair to the organizer I can’t imagine
how I would go about the same trip cheaper especially if I visited the same
sites. Hidden Hill even had a catalogue of the tour sites and skimming through
those pages it looks like a site visit is good for 8-10 people, a guide, in
many cases a vehicle. I doubt it can be haggled if it has been setup by the
local government unit or agreed by the local association.
A tour group may be the best way to go
about it – at least 10 people guaranteed, chartered van, chance of new friends.
The question is if you went to Sagada on a more personal level which means less
than 10 people, then budget per person would increase. Would there be a listing
somewhere, for example, Bomod-ok today, group of 7 waiting for 3 more?
BIG LESSON here is to always look for
possible hidden charges, in our case it was a matter of understanding the terms
inclusions and exclusions – Sagada’s fees were under exclusions.
Your Own Schedule
The tour was from Friday night to Sunday
night. We went to Bomod-ok with whatever sleep each person had on the road
north. The cave was scheduled Saturday afternoon. Marlboro had us wake up 3
a.m. which had us control the alcohol intake as much as we can only hours
before. Hanging Coffins, shortly thereafter the long trip to Baguio. I arrived
at home in Quezon City about 11:30 p.m., Sunday.
I mentioned above that my friends and I
backed out of the Sumaging Cave tour. Of all my 3 visits to Sagada I have never
tried going deep into a cave, you would think I would have tried it this time. But
coming from Bomod-ok with its late lunch would have the cave tour somewhere
over 3 p.m.
I was tired and something about doing a
cave tour close to evening didn’t sit well with me. If the cave was the first
thing I did after breakfast I would have done it; I want to go in there not
feeling depleted.
That’s the only thing I dislike about
arranged tours, schedules have to be followed. I barely if at all remember a
time when I just chilled and just enjoyed the cool air, even though my room had
a balcony to do just that. And considering Sunday morning’s wakeup time I was
even clocking my alcohol intake the night before.
It’s a walking town, Sagada keeps emphasizing that to control outside cars prevent traffic and keep fumes at minimum, and I much as I love walking I can do only so much in one day. That maybe is the best move, one trip per day.
It’s a walking town, Sagada keeps emphasizing that to control outside cars prevent traffic and keep fumes at minimum, and I much as I love walking I can do only so much in one day. That maybe is the best move, one trip per day.
Is it expensive? Is it good or bad for Sagada?
The fees and its strict implementation are
an added expense, that’s true. After a local movie, That Thing Called Tadhana, increased
the town’s exposure and road improvement in the concreting of the main road
into Sagada, tourism shot to the roof. Traffic
and trash was the inevitable result. People are saying save Sagada with good reason. So the locals had to make a move to
control the crowd and save their town.
If the fees become a deterrent that’s still
a win for the environment. If job is the concern then locals will do the
adjustment. What’s good or bad for Sagada ultimately rests in those who will
bear the brunt of it.
Personally, now that I’ve scratched most of
my itch for Sagada except for the cave, all I want is a place to retreat from
the heat.
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| Enjoying coffee in Sagada Greenhill circa 2013 |
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