A little bit of Earth: Meditating in Banaue, Surviving Sagada, Passing through Baguio

January 24 - 28.

It felt like endless days of wanting to shoot my brains out. Have you ever been stuck trying to figure out a mathematical equation and end up with limitless possibilities and solutions that you try to further simplify? Picture that and a brain on over drive, thoughts after the other, scenes after the other. Days later, I derived at, “shoot my brains”, zombified.

Oh Liebniz, I don’t know how you theorized math and love in one, my mouth is dry and I’ve nothing but the word, “shit”. (and I don't cuss often, but the days before, it seemed only the vocabulary I knew)

January 12, I did not think twice and accepted Patty’s invite to go off the grid in the Mountain Province, perhaps going would shift the agonizing stimulation to a numbing almost-happy sensation. Hiking, trekking, climbing, and re-establishing my relationship with earth made one corner of my mouth twitch to a half smile. I’ve read somewhere that those who wander about are not always lost, only because they allow themselves outside the confines of familiarity to know the unfamiliar. Well, it was definitely time for me to get outside the walls I built, pull my hair back and feel the sun and mountain breeze. I did not take the lead, I silenced myself and “14^th wheeled” myself with Patty’s brother and friends, off we went to Banaue.

12 butt numbing and leg cramping hours later we arrived at the Ifugao or Banaue rice terraces, our driver popped open all the doors and windows and the dark almost morning frosty air bit me with venomous lips, for a few seconds I shivered and I knew I had to change from my slippers to wear my socks and shoes. The temperature was a big contrast to the usual 20++ degrees in Manila. I remember before leaving, I heard on the news that we were expecting hotter days, but you know with the weather, you can never really tell. That day the temperature dropped, where I stood, it was 8 degrees, the air whistled to us, and we scattered around to find the nearest restroom and hot drinks. 

A little shack filled with indigenous artifacts and trinkets greeted us, a little girl wearing a sweatshirt with curious and watchful eyes stared on. Our eyes got accustomed to the dark that was breaking into morning, and we found ourselves sifting through the many wondrous items in the shack- I think I fell for the head dress, I opted to leave it where it should be, in its home atop a crown of an Ifugao girls black lustrous hair. I couldn’t resist trying it on.

The morning broke, we found ourselves coffee, and we watched as daylight carefully and slowly unveiled  the green of the terraces, the blue of the sky. It took my breath away, the ancient engineering of the earth, hillside hand-built carvings by Ifugao and Austronesians.

It finally sank in me, we are no longer in the city, I am off the grid, it will be a short period of freedom.

We had not reached our final destination. Stretched my sort of long limbs and readied for another few hours cooped in the van with our backpacks. Outside the window you can see everything clearly with daylight guiding us up the swirly winding road, and a picturesque never-ending backdrop of mountains, pine trees, and limestones following us, surrounding us.

Sagada. The final point, a quaint little town with people who have and are fighting off commercialism to preserve nature and their roots. Somehow the big difference from Manila got me dizzy. I was momentarily paralyzed with disorientation. Our driver dropped us at George Inn, the guesthouse extension, it is not extravagant, has a fireplace, and offered warm beds plus the best part, a beautiful view. We all picked our rooms, I bunked with Patty and dropped my backpack and was ready to go out to explore and walk outside. It was a perfect combination of sunny and cold- we found ourselves with warm mountain tea and what you should not miss trying, the lemon pie. It would only be a few hours before we head off to Sumaguing cave and I knew we should have been resting, but I did not want to waste a few hours away, I was curious.

The warm tea must have done us good because Sumaguing Cave (5000 feet below sea level) is not for the faint-hearted. 245 steps going down to the cave’s opening and trekking down inside a slippery wet cave without slippers is not an easy feat. You will have had to have at least an understanding of how to get a feel of your feet strong and steady on the ground and to not worry about grabbing on to rocks to balance yourself, rocks that may either be freezing cold or with “guano”.  Our guide, Tudor, even once helped as a human ladder when we needed to climb down a tall steep edge. However, once inside you find yourself in a gallery of stalactites and stalagmites, rock formation stories were humorously told by the guides.

That night in bed, I couldn’t feel my legs.

The next morning, our quest was to trek 2 kilometers from the road (9000 steps) between Igorot communities of Aguid, Pide, and Fidelsan, descending in a valley full of terraces, to Bomod Ok falls. Again, if you think that this is just purely walking – think again. We faced slippery terrain, rocky and pebbled tracks, and high edged steep slopes to get to our majestic resting spot with the coldest of cold waters. It did not matter to those who were running out of breath because at each “resting stop” we got to suck in the cold mountain air and if we turned 360 degrees we would see nothing but the beauty of nature.

Our first stop, Fidelsan – this is a Dap-ay, oldest home/ hut. All the homes are made out of pine wood but now covered with GI sheets to prevent the moisture from creeping in. 

I know it would be very touristy to go to a museum, but the Ganduyan Museum is a must to stop by at. The caretaker and owner to this day hosts all the visits, most of the artifacts are part of her collection, the way she told of stories of stature in the tribe based on jewelry, clothing, and even furniture was fun and at the same time informative. The part I loved, she made us all sit down on the floor and scoot to each section of the museum and thanked us for sweeping and polishing her floor, what a bright woman! At the end of the tour, she made me want to hug her, I had to get a photo taken with her, she somehow touched my heart and inspired me.

The last trek was in Echo Valley to view the hanging coffins, a bizarre yet fascinating reminder of Igorot’s rich history. The trek seemingly dangerous and creepy was now very easy as my legs and aching feet had gotten use to long hours of clenching to the earth and stumbling here and there. According to Tudor, our guide, the elderly of the tribe get to be buried in hanging coffins along with the chair they sit in, hence some coffins with attached chairs.

Famished after all the toe crunching trek, hike, and climb... a must try when you are at Sagada, the local dish called, Pinikpikan. It looked all too foreign to me, but I tried it and it tasted really goodI It is stew made out of native chicken, although when I looked up Pinikpikan, the preparation of the chicken seems to obviously be against the PAW Act 1998. (By this time, I just couldn’t help but feel bad for not knowing beforehand)

Pasalubong: We stopped in Baguio City, and I got some Ube Jam from the Good Shepherd for my sister and to stock in my fridge. I don’t have much of a sweet tooth, but I’ll have to finish a jar before the 28^th of the month. Oh Ube is the Nutella for us pinoys, oh yeah! Hihi, ube is purple yam.Today, I put it on my pancakes, and most nights I lick it off a spoon. Heh, hmm… I may just finish it before then, you think?

The vacation ended, which I wish would not. Reality was seeping back in, the drone of the noise of the city, and the crowded malls, worst, I did not want to think.

"It is good to have an end to journey toward; but it is the journey that matters in the end." - Ernest Hemingway

Current Tuneage: Home Edward Sharpe (cover by Jorge & Alexa) 

I just love this video, the father daughter duo is just the sweetest, don't you think?