magnificentSAGADA

summertime.. i have always loved this time of the year. it is the time that marks another adventure with via yang. since we love the Philippines so much, we want to make sure that we reach our dream destinations mula batanes hanggang jolo.. and for this summer special, we have the taraNAsaSAGADAtour..

we decided to have things arranged by availing of a tour package courtesy of gafaTOURS (check out their site for great deals and adventure).  we believe that it will make things a lot better for us, worry and stress free. we were aboard two nissan urvan escapades. we were set to leave manila around 9 pm. together with us in the car were two sets of girls. one is set to travel for the purpose of soul searching, while the other set was to have a good break. because of too much excitement, i realized i failed to bring any pants. that only meant i'll be wearing shorts (in a freezing place) during the entire tour. good luck Mya. :)

sagada is located in the mountains of northern philippines.  being mountainous in terms of location calls for roads that are passable but may be rough as well.  travel time almost took us eleven hours because of the many stop overs we had to make (someone from our group would throw up every kilometer). i must admit that i got pissed off by this. later though i started to pity her after realizing that her intestines may come out as well if the difficulty further continues.. oopps, sorry girl. :)

because of the delay, we were not able to make it to see the sunrise.  good thing though that the morning was foggy and that only meant no signs of the sun during that morning. yes yes, heaven was on our side. :) we had our first breakfast at this very cute house cum restaurant called salt and pepper..  we had fried rice, longganisa, scrambled egg and hot chocolate.  i also had with me my ibus straight from naga courtesy of Fine China.

we had to freshen up quick for our first stop for the tour, Ganduyan Museum.  the museum was actually put up and run by a native igorot woman.  the museum exhibits the rich culture of igorots . the fluency in english when she spoke of their culture was truly amazing. i loved the woven clothes best, very intricate designs created by amazing Filipino hands.

a tour couldn't go without a church visit, St. Mary's Episcopal Church.  sagada is considered to be the town in the Philippines that is predominantly protestant. the church, just like the villagers, communicated the warmth and simplicity of the life in sagada.

following the outside of the church is the way towards the echo valley which also leads the way to the famous hanging coffins. i had the chance to meet two local boys who joined me in this picture, abril and james.  any nature lover would not second hand this trail because of the trees, flowers, and cold-soothing breeze.  at the far end of the trail is the view of the hanging coffins.  locals believe that the closer you are to the sky, the nearer you are to the heavens.  it is also said the only pure igorots are allowed to avail of this.

Lumiang Burial Cave houses coffins during the old times.  our tour guide mentioned that only pure igorots were allowed to be buried there. single women and women who died because of giving birth were buried in a different cave. old beliefs hold that these women are considered unworthy for not being able to live up with their purpose of being women. i saw myself pouting as i heard our guide mentioned these words. so, am i not worthy huh?.. :)

interconnecting with the lumiang cave is the Sumaguing Cave. tourists have the option to go for cave connection or spelunking. the red flag is up so i decided to go for the latter. good thing that the rest of the group chose it too. the spelunking experience was undeniable great.  it is (thus far) the most amazing cave i have ever seen.  the size itself was enough to mesmerize me.  i even heard myself saying the word amazing several times.  one is advised to bring with him/her rubber gloves because of the bat poopoos.. syempre, wala ako nun. so i had bat poo all over my hand all throughout the tour.  haha.. (very me).. good hand and foot grips would really mean extra help in this experience.  my entire body ached but rejoiced when i saw the light outside the cave. (now i realized why souvenir shirts in sagada spoke of survival experience).. 

a tiring day should merit a hearty dinner.  we were served with sinigang na baboy. yummy to the bones. :) i had to freshen up fast because the cold temperature and my swelling body were pulling me to sleep. i guess i was really too borlog that even the snoring going on around me put me to lullaby land (hehe, peace trip buddies).

i was too cold to take my bath in the morning.  not even a shower with a heater was enough to bring me to take a bath.  haha.. we hurried up to make it to Kiltepan viewpoint for sunrise viewing.  the morning was freezing cold but all these disappeared when i saw the majestic sun dancing with the cotton-candy-like clouds. it was like im-on-the-top-of-the-world feeling. the view was more than fascinating, my deep sighs were grateful sighs for God's immense gifts.  hai.. :)

we had our breakfast, daing na bangus, banana and hot chocolate.  we got ready for the hike to Bomod-ok falls. the hike to the falls took about 2.5km. the trail allowed us to trek the rice terraces.  AHHHHHHMazing grace.. the heat of the sun was on its peak, but i can let go of that difficulty so easily because of the wonders i was witnessing.  our tour guide, kuya jeffrey, shared that the paths were done through bayanihan of the locals.  once again, the character of Filipinos on working together heightened my spirit.

the Bomod-ok falls was a beauty in itself, but i must say that Malabsay and Itbog falls of my native CamSur still top my list. 

we had packed lunch (mixed vegetable and pork with lemon sauce) by the falls. most of my companions went for a dip in the water. it was also a good start for chit-chats with new friends. :)

the way back was extra challenge for me.  the 

uphill trek was kinda killing my left knee so making it to the top was like reaching the finish line from an 80km foot race.  hahaha..

by the way, most of the houses in sagada are made of galva steel.  our guide mentioned that back then, cement was not yet too popular that is why they made use of steel instead.  

we dropped off  at  sagada weaving. unfortunately, (being a sunday) the weavers were on day off. we then spent the rest of the afternoon through sourvenir hunting.

we made sure to visit the famous lemon pie house. to make sure we get to taste the pies , we each had a different pie ordered (lemon, blueberry, and egg).  good thinking huh? well, after getting a taste of all the pies, i realized that they are best eaten together. a little bit of everything created balance in the taste of the palette. hindi ako matakaw, marunong lang mag appreciate ng food..  

for dinner we had sinampalukang manok.  2 of my trip buddies and i ordered and shared together a banana yogurt with roasted granola at the famous yogurt house.  i am not a fan of yogurts (except nestle fruit yogurt - melon flavor), but i  was the one who finished it up.  if you are not a yogurt fan, make sure you will have someone to share your order with.

for our last night, we had a simple graduation-rite as sagada survivors.  i am really proud of myself for surviving this trip.  we also culminated the tour with a simple jamming session prepared by the other group. their combined personalities made the night and the entire trip really fun. i found them to be a bunch of individuals who are testaments to living life to the fullest; sweet souls who know how to have fun and finds it cool to look out for each other and free spirits who are willing to embrace the adventures of life.  watching them goof around reminded me of adnu's hundred-acre-woods. 

early monday morning temperature was absolutely cold.  but i tried to savor the sweetness of the cold air as we were about to leave the town.  i let go of deep sighs thinking that i will be ending the day faced with busy roads, honking vehicles, and starless nights again. (i can only sigh)..

one last look at heavenlySAGADA while having our stop over to have breakfast on the road to Baguio.. 

leaving mt. province (but the picture says otherwise.. toinks).. 

i can't let the trip end without having a picture with our safe keepers (kuya jon, kuya ferdie, and kuya ed).



ending my sagadaADVENTURE brought me to whisper my gratitude to God for the wonders He has given us.  i can live my life just witnessing all these creations. lucky Me. :)

excerpt from my bucketLIST..

207. storrytelling with kids

208. be really happy

209.join a poetry reading

210. sagada adventure trip

211. ice skate like  an ice princess

sagada is a trip of a lifetime. i survived Sagada. and i am proud to be Pinoy.  go wowPilipinas. 
view more pics of MyangLigaw on the road http://plixi.com/p/92996471.

for great,affordable and fun adventures.. check out http://www.gafatours.com/index.html.

 041411wednesday