PART 1 OF 4

Some friends and I went to Sagada last April 4 to 6, taking advantage of the long weekend.

On our way up we were already mesmerized by the scenery. Little did we know there's a lot more in store for us.

One of our stop-overs. The next gasoline station is a loooooooong way from here.

sagada weaving

Established 1968, home of quality hand-woven products (as copied from their signage... hehe)

Thread of different colors are arranged like this in a loom.

A loom ("weaving machine") with partially finished product.

Naks, parang totoo.

Pet dogs of Sagada weavers. They were cute (for such huge dogs) and very friendly to visitors; I think they deserve a space here

sagada pottery
If I got the details right from Manang, a foreign missionary discovered the craft of Sagada potters, and shared his own to enhance their art. Sagada Pottery became a sort of school for those who want training in this field.

Welcome to thy humble abode.

Manang forms the clay into a cylinder, one of the steps in pottery. Whether it's a bowl or vase you have in mind as end product, you have to make a cylinder first.

Pottery that are still in the drying process.

A particularly intriguing piece, but I sure don't want this in my bedroom! (Baka biglang magsalita pag gabi... hehe)

The kiln (furnace) where pottery are baked so as to be stone-hard.

Some of the Pottery's finished products.

An Igorot house within the vicinity of Sagada Pottery.

NEXT: Sumaguing Cave

NOTE: Please send me a message if you can't see the pictures... thanks!

PART 2 OF 4

Spelunking (caving) can be considered as one of our biggest adventures in Sagada. There are two caves to be explored. In normal caving, you enter Sumaguing Cave and exit through the same route, but if you decide to be more daring, Cave Connection is for you. In Cave Connection the point of entry is Lumiang Cave, but you make your exit at Sumaguing Cave. I heard those who complete the task are given certificates, proof that indeed, they "connected".

At first I thought it wouldn't do not to cave-connect; wouldn't it seem bitin? But after I've been through the experience, all I can say is, for someone as lampa as I am, Sumaguing Cave is plenty


This inscription near the cave entrance reminds me of something I've been told a long time ago: "Take nothing but pictures, leave nothing but footprints." Later on the cave guides will tell us of unfortunate incidents where visitors take stalactites (a formation shaped like an icicle, hanging from the roof of the cave) as souvenirs, destroying the natural formation of the caves as a whole.


Skylight pours into the cave through holes such as this.


Cave guides prepare lanterns that will serve as our light while deep inside the cave.

Off we go!

There are three parts in this adventure. First, the descent where it's not so steep but frequent encounters with guano (bat poop) is needed to go down successfully. In your concentration you wouldn't really mind the smell, but since it's slimy you can't avoid getting an icky feeling. Just pretend it's mud

The second part is more on the rocky side. This is where the beauty begins because by then, rock formations become visible.

Our first rock formation: The Elephant. Can you see its trunk?

We go deeper into the cave. Notice that at this point the cave walls are smooth.

The water inside is clear... and ice-cold!

RATED R! At souvenir shops we noticed postcards naming Sumaguing Cave as "Porn Cave". I'll show you the rock formations and leave the rest to your imagination:

Prince

King

Queen... WHOA!


OK, so here's the "wholesome" batch of formations. Let's start with the Chocolate Cake... yum!

Dinosaur's Footprint

These formations are considered as a miniature of the Rice Terraces in Banawe.

There are other formations such as the King's Curtain, the Brown Bear, etc., but sadly we were unable to take pictures.

Now we go to the last part. We don't have much pictures because it's a bit tricky here. It's steeper, and we're surrounded by water.

Most of the time we needed to go through small openings such as this.

Shucks! Wah-poise!

Our group taking a rest before getting on our way back up.

The Sagada Cave Man Restaurant offering refreshments, souvenirs, and a bath (you don't want to go home smelling like poop, do you? ) after your grand caving experience.

NEXT: Kiltepan & Bomod-ok Falls trek

NOTE: If you can't see the pictures, please let me know. Thanks.

PART 3 OF 4

It's our second day in Sagada, which started by going to Kiltepan for sunrise viewing.

We were late, and the sun was already rising while we're still hiking to the top.

From where we're standing we can see fog covering the terraces below.

The sun's rays filter through the trees.

Can you tell who says cheese?

After breakfast, we proceeded to a different spot to begin our trek to Bomod-ok Falls.

Look, we're 385 kilometers away from Manila!

We had to give way to approaching vehicles because the roads are narrow.

The first part of the trek involves walking through stone paths which are actually walls of the rice terraces.

Rice terraces are not confined in Banawe; you can see several all over Mountain Province.

We lose the terraces and get grassland as we go further in the mountains.

Our first glimpse of Bomod-ok Falls.

Here's a much closer look.

Tourists and locals alike enjoy bathing in the cool, clear water from the falls.

Local kids eating ice cream while watching a foreign couple rub sunblock on each other... parang nanonood lang ng sine! These kids offer body massage for P20.00

NEXT: ST MARY'S CHURCH & DOWNTOWN

NOTE: Please send me a message if you can't view the pictures. Thanks!

PART 4 OF 4

For our last day, we visited St Mary's Church. Have I told you that most of Sagadians are Anglicans? Here, there are more Anglican Churches than Catholic. Missionary work was led by Rev John Staunton Jr and through his vision, Sagada started its journey to modernization.

Below are views of the church building:

You can't miss the solemn quality inside the church

The kaleidoscope-like stained glass at the altar is mesmerizing.

Outside the church, we can find the Centennial Wheel marking 100 years of Anglican missionary work in Sagada.

Of course, a photo opp at the church bell

eating out

Filipino breakfast served at Masferre. Comes with delicious hot choco!

For dessert, you might want something from the Lemon Pie House! (You can't miss the building - it's painted lemon yellow)

At the Rock Inn & Cafe, we get to have lunch, and visit the Orange Orchard (No pics; oranges are not in season. They come out December to January)

Who said you can only have candle-lit meal at night?

souvenirs

Heavy-duty walking stick for trekking?

The most common souvenir are shirts.

Got this from Masferre. This design is exclusive to them.

Own a Masferre! CP# 0918-3416-164 (Grabe na 'to, dapat may free na ako...)
Masferre souvenirs are not limited to shirts, accessories and food items, they also specialize in photography. Sayang I wasn't able to get their set of postcards: black and white photos of Igorots in their native costume depicting everyday life. My advice is, bring all your pocket money with you (I left mine in our lodging so ayun, my funds were insufficient in my time of need. Hindi na kami nakabalik sa souvenir house na ito.)

Hope you enjoyed Sagada

Many thanks to Janice and Shaula; most of the pics here are from their cams.

Habang papuntang Sagada, lagi naming naririnig sa radyo ng aming van ang salitang Mommy. "Mommy nasa'n ka na?" "Hindi ko marinig si Mommy." "Mommy, mommy, mommy, mommyyyyyyyy...!!" Minsan, sumasagot sya. Akala ko, turista lang na pinagkakatuwaan ng mga driver, kaya di ko masyadong pinapansin. Pero nalaman kong isang pambihirang tao pala itong si Mommy.

53 years old na si Mommy. At isa sya sa siyam na drivers na kasama namin sa lakad na ito.

"Buti pinayagan syang makasama sa ganito," komento namin sa aming tour coordinator. Sanay palang magmaneho ng malalayong distansya si Mommy, kaya walang problema sa kanya ang mahahabang lakbaying tulad nito. "Saka gustong-gusto nya yung ginagawa nya," sabi ng tour coordinator.

Bihira at nakakainggit ang ganun, yung makahanap ng trabahong gustong-gusto mo, na kahit gaano katagal o kadalas mo sya gawin, hindi mo mararamdamang kailangan mong mag-effort, kasi nga, ikaw mismo ang may gustong palawigin ito.

Sinabi ko na bang may 30 alagang aso si Mommy...?

#1 Kung kayo'y USTudent na nag-take ng Spanish o Rizal Course, may tsansang naging guro ninyo si Sir Ramon Roda. Naging estudyante nya ako pero itong kwentong ito'y sa taga-ibang course ko naman nakuha. Nakilala at hinangaan ni Sir ang isang babae. Nung mga panahong iyon, dumadalaw ang lalaki sa bahay ng babae kapag nanliligaw. Kaya ito namang si Sir, hiningi ang address ng girl. Pagkatapos ng matagal-tagal ding pamimilit, nakuha nya ang pinapangarap na impormasyon. Tuwang-tuwa sya at excited na pumunta sa nasabing lugar. At namangha sya sa nakita!

ISANG BAKANTENG LOTE.

In fairness, napangasawa naman ni Sir yung girl. Kaya happy ending di ba


#2 Elementary pa lang ako nung nag-board sa amin ang mga pinsan kong nasa college naman. Bukod sa kanila, may iba pa kaming boarders. Crush ng pinsan kong si Kuya Nelson yung isa naming boarder. Minsan nagkausap yung pinsan ko at yung kuya ng girl, na crush naman yung pinsan kong babae na sa amin din nakatira. Boys will be boys: nagkasundo ang dalawa. Gagamitin ang kanya-kanyang koneksyon sa bawat babae para mailakad yung isa.

Nanghingi ang kuya ko ng picture ng crush nya. Sige, sige, sabi ng kuya ng girl. Bigay ko mamayang gabi.

Sa takdang oras nag-abang sya sa tapat ng kwarto ng magkapatid. May kumaluskos at masayang-masaya sya nang makitang may lumalabas sa siwang ng pinto ng kwarto. Eto na yata ang pinapangarap nyang picture! Mapagmamasdan na nya ang crush nya gabi-gabi bago matulog!

Sabik syang lumapit sa pintuan ng magkapatid. Nalaglag ang isang bond paper mula sa siwang. Picture nga ng girl.

NAKA-PHOTOCOPY.

Umaga na ay tulala pa rin ang pinsan ko


#3 Nung bata pa ang tatay ko (10 years old), mahilig silang mag-camping ng mga barkada nya. Puro kakahuyan at talahiban pa ang lugar na ngayon ay kilala natin bilang Mandaluyong City. Sa estima nya, ito ang kinatatayuan ng SM Megamall na dati ay seminaryo ng pari.

Kasalukuyang naghahanda na ang magkakaibigan ng makakain. Swerte ngayon, nakapagbaon sila ng de-lata. Luto na ang sinaing; ulam naman ang kanilang inasikaso. Isinalang nila ang de-latang ulam sa apoy at bumalik sa pagkukwentuhan. Biglang nakarinig sila ng malakas na pagsabog! Takot na takot ang magkakaibigan...

UMULAN NG SARDINAS.

Hindi pala nabuksan ang de-lata nang inilagay sa apoy kaya ito sumabog

Ngayong out na ang Mas Nakakalurkei Album ng Tambalang Balasubas at Balahura, panahon na rin upang maisiwalat ang kwento ni Celia.

December 30, 2007. SM Manila. Naka-setup na ang stage para sa mall show nina Nicolehyala at Christsuper. Hatak si Coronel na nagtatakip ng mukha (baka kasi may makakilala sa kanya ), pumila ako sa isang counter upang bumili ng first album ng Tambalan. Meron akong free calendar-poster at iba pang giveaways mula sa kanilang sponsors. Habang wala pa ang Tambalan, nag-emcee muna ang isa pang DJ ng Love Radio na si Rey Porter.

Maya-maya pa dumagundong na ang kabosesan ng Tambalan mula sa likod ng stage, at nagsimula ang kanilang dance number. Nagkaroon din ng interview portion at games kung saan nag-participate ang audience. Finally, ang autograph signing.

Isa ako sa unang nakapila kaya hindi ko na nakita kung gaano karami ang mga taong nasa likuran ko. Sa aking harapan ay mayroong dalawang babaeng hindi magkamayaw kung paano ang gagawin. Hawak ang kanilang kopya ng album sa isang kamay, inaayos naman ng kabilang kamay ang kanilang camera. Isa sa mga organizers ang lumapit at nagpamigay ng blankong scratch papers at nagpahiram ng pen - doon mo pala isusulat ang pangalan mo para batiin ka nila sa radyo pag-resume ng kanilang programa kina-Lunesan. Gabay din nila ito sa pagsulat ng iyong pangalan sa autograph signing. Nabasa ko ang nakasulat sa papel na hawak nung babae: Celia of Sta Mesa.

Medyo natagalan yung dalawang babae kasi bukod sa pagpapapirma ng album, maraming beses din silang nagpakuha ng picture.

Sa wakas, ako na.

Hindi ko alam kung matatawa ako o ano nung nasa harapan ko na ang Tambalan. First time! Nakangiti sila at naramdaman ko talaga ang sincerity nila nang magpasalamat sa pagbili ng album. Para tuloy puputok na rin ang puso ko sa kasiyahan dahil napaka-down to earth nila. "Chat, thank you talaga ha!" sabi ni Nicole habang inaabot ang kopya ko para pirmahan. Beso naman ang isinalubong ni Christsuper ( ). May messages sila sa album cover, pati yung flaps sa loob, at yung mismong CD.

Pagtingin ko sa CD, ako'y nabigla!

Nicolehyala 's Celia

Asar-talo ako kay Coronel dahil hindi na ako si Chat of Sampaloc! Ako na si... Celia of Sta Mesa!

Si Celia... parati na lang si Celia! Si Celia na walang malay!

At least yung sa cover, love you chat! So hindi na 'ko magseselos...

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Hi Nicole and Chris! Peace out! Bumili na ako ng second album pero hindi ko pa napapakinggan. Pati yung Love Knows No Boundaries na album. Syempre, panibagong entry yun pag napakinggan ko na

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Related entry: HEY TAMBALAN NA!