If there was one consistent feeling I've had this whole trip, it would be anxiety. haha. not the best opening statement for an adventure blog I know.. but you'll understand why later on. and mind you, it's not necessarily a bad thing. :)
for starters, we had to make sure we were at the Cable Tours Bus Station in E.Rod by 7:30 pm. kaso it was the same night the QCC Party sponsored by HR and it was scheduled to start at 5:30 pm pa. so I had to make sure I left not later than 6:30 pm and rush from Traders Hotel to E. Rodriguez, Q.C.! considering it was a Friday and long weekend pa, it was a bit tight .
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| reminder from Katie |
I think I have never been more tense in my entire life. the bus trips had specific schedules kasi and missing that would mean I would have to wait until the next day or take a bus to Baguio and find a ride from there going to Sagada. sa desperation ko, I opted to get a service taxi worth Php 500 just to make sure I get there on time. sinabihan ko pa si manong na dadagdagan ko makaabot lang ako ng 7:30 pm.
alas, traffic was really bad that time. so I ended up getting there just before 8 pm. good thing, it was nowhere close to leaving, late as I was and apparently they haven't started boarding yet. just the same, binigyan ko na rin ng a little extra si manong for his efforts.
while Katie shared specific instuctions in her FB reminder, medyo nahirapan ako to figure out where to go down. from the landmarks specified kasi there was no visible sign that there was a bus station anywhere in the area.
as I was unsure where to go, I waited for Jeff, Katie and Chai outside Burger King which was on the same side of the road as Trinity University. when they arrived, we walked towards a narrow path sa side ng school. and it turns out sa looban pa pala ang bus station
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| Cable Tours' "bus station" |
yes, yan na ang bus station. kahit it seemed more of a parking lot than an actual station, it had a comfort room naman and a sari-sari store.
speaking of comfort room, actually had a funny/awkward experience. there was a floating "pupu" sa toilet that will not flush. nakakahiya lang when it was my turn to go outside and the person next to me would think it was mine. apparently, even those who went in at least a good hour before me had trouble flushing it down. haha. unsinkable piece of shit.
btw, the MNL group was down to 4. so that's me, Jeff, Katie and Chai. originally we were supposed to be 8 from MNL. kaso they all had other plans or what not, so it was just us and another friend of Katie's who lives in Baguio and who we'll just meet up with in Sagada
test of friendship daw itong trip na to. haha. which got me thinking: Jeff had hesitations in going and only persuaded Chai to go. so kung nagkataon e it would have just been me and Katie! haha
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| waiting for boarding |
anyway, it took at least a good 30 mins pa before we started boarding. gave us time to buy burgers and fries for dinner.
finally time for boarding. our ticket was bought before hand (thanks to Katie dahil tickets are hard to come by if you plan on buying it on the same day as your planned departure). a ticket for a one way trip costs Php 750 (Manila - Sagada)
good thing we were early na rin pala. when we got in some passengers were complaining that others were in their seats. mukhang they were issued the same bus seat numbers. some ended up in the middle seats tuloy. golly. 12 hours in the middle seat! can't imagine.
at least we were finally settled in.
considering it was night time we had nothing to do but sleep. so nothing memorable for the next few hours.
we had a stopover though in one gas station which probably had the most bonggang CR fixtures ever
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| o dba? fountains and statues |
the rest of the trip went by like a blur since we spent most of the time sleeping and we would just wake up from time to time
the bus was terribly chilly though. halata naman sa aming balabal all over. I really underestimated the weather/temperature and came to trip a bit unready for the extremely cold temperature. I only had a light jacket with me and forgot to bring Jeff's jacket, so we had to compensate for it thru layers of clothing. and mind you, this was only the bus we're talking about. not sure yet how much colder it will be in Sagada.
at around 5 am before reaching Bontoc, we had our first view of the rice terraces
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| blurry shot from inside the bus |
we had another stopover before reaching Bontoc, and that's where I came to know that bags of chips tend to get puffy in these areas because of the high altitude. haha. nakakahiya that I only found out about it now.
the only food we had with us from Manila were chips so we bought some kakanin, pansit, and lumpia, which served as our breakfast na
still a long way to go pa pala from this point
good thing the road to Sagada was paved with amazing landscapes; so we entertained ourselves by taking photos!
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| nice timing, Chai; haha ba't naman ako nakasimangot dito |
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| yes, parang nasa NY lang si Jeff |
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| alien messages? haha |
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| didn't know where this was leading to exactly, but any welcome sign is good |
and finally, Sagada!
our bus stopped in front of the hospital. we waited a bit trying to figure out if it was time to go down na since the bus driver/conductor wasn't prompting us to go. since some of the passengers went down na, we followed suit and figured it was officially the start of our Sagada trip!
p.s. by this time we found out that Katie's friend from Baguio won't be able to join us na rin--so from 9 to 5 and now down to 4. haha. test of friendship nga talaga.
now where to go?
apparently all tourists had to register upon arrival in Sagada. so we looked for the municipal hall for the registration
we paid Php 35 each for the registration. the municipal hall had a tourist information center, so those interested in availing of tour packages can ask here too
good thing Katie had a planned itinerary this whole time and have coordinated with a guide na prior to us arriving
below is an excerpt from the itinerary/trip spreadsheet created by Katie:
this also serves like a sort of overview na rin of our Sagada weekend :)
post-registration--off to search for George Guesthouse
I honestly did not read up much on Sagada and relied on stories from friends/colleagues who have previously been to Sagada so I really had no expectations coming into this trip especially in terms of lodging
finally George Guest House - our home for the next 2 days
since we were originally 9, we rented a room which would fit 9 pax. we were given the penthouse (yes, penthouse) which had 4 beds and spacious enough for 9. but since 4 na lang kami, we ended up having a bed each! not bad. plus it only costs 1,500/night! not bad at all.
definitely a far cry from an earlier trip to Zambales also with Jeff's GW friends :)
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| yes... penthouse.... |
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| it must get really chilly here. we each got 2 blankets |
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| syempre he just had to wear the blanket origami. haha |
we actually had 2 options: explore Sumaguing cave (2 hours) and do the Cave Connection (4 hours) syempre since nandito na rin na kami, we decided to continue on with the longer trek
since we arrived in Sagada around 10:30 am na, we arranged to meet with the guide at 1 pm. so we had enough time to settle in, rest, freshen up, change clothes and have lunch
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| view from our room |
we had a number of options available for our first lunch in Sagada, but since the place was known for its Pinikpikan and since it was particularly close to George GH, the group decided to eat here na
some photos on the Pinikpikan Haus we went to:
the Pinikpikan Haus sure had a lot of interesting trinkets and it could have well been a museum na rin because of some cultural artifacts they had
Pinikpikan is quite popular pala in this region. it is essentially a chicken dish similar to nilagang baka. what's unique (and may be even unlawful) about it is how it is actually prepared.
borrowing the words from a Wikipedia entry on Pinikpikan: It is prepared by beating a live chicken with a stick prior to cooking. The beating bruises the chicken's flesh, bringing blood to its surface, which is said to improve the flavour after cooking
we actually saw this for ourselves when we explored the back portion of the restaurant
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| Pini-pikpik na mga manok |
since I knew I was gonna end up eating a chicken which was treated similarly, I could not bear to watch them longer or take a closer look
the girls each ordered the Pinikpikan meal while Jeff opted to get a Chicken Curry meal since we could share dishes naman
finally lunch is served!
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| Pinikpikan meal |
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| Chicken Curry |
the Curry was steady naman. nothing out of the ordinary.
my experience of the Pinikpikan meal was something else though. It took a while for me to appreciate the dish. the first few bites were a struggle because for one, I did not think the red rice was a good match for the dish. It was the first time ever that I've had that kind of rice and from the taste, I felt it will only be appropriate for dry/fried dishes. also, the meat was quite bitter and tasted like burnt paper. yun pala, I was eating pieces of grilled beef mixed into the soup and have not had any of the chicken just yet!
finally, having had the chicken, while the cooking/flavouring process may come off as a bit gruesome, I now understand why they go thru the lengths of having to "pikpik" the chickens.
with now full tummies, it's time to explore!
we went to the SAGGAS center where we're meeting our guide
we went to the SAGGAS center where we're meeting our guide
I would have to say this has got to be one of the most organized tour guide groups I've encountered. and they actually have a functional website. so if you're planning to go to Sagada, it would be worthwhile to check their website out: http://www.saggas.net/
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| hoping we would not need to use any of these |
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| we're ready! |
our assigned tour guide was Kuya Daryl, who reminds me a lot of Jeff's friend from Bike Plus. anyway, we just had to walk pala to get to the caves and it was actually just along the same road where George GH is.
limestone rock formations are seen almost everywhere
we had a quick stopover in a viewing deck
which in fact turned out to be the viewing deck for the hanging coffins
too bad we didn't get to bring the the zoom lens for Jeff's camera, but here's an attempt to get a closer look
I was actually expecting to see them more up close and I hoped we'd have time to do that the following day
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| group photo with a view (?) of the hanging coffins |
Kuya Daryl suggested we buy food/water since it would take us about 4-5 hours rin for the spelunking
we also met with another tour guide - Kuya Denver. apparently each group needed to have 2 guides as an SOP.
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| with our guide, Daryl |
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| Jeff carefully observes. haha |
after about 10 mins, again we were off! now closer to the caves
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| where's Jobie? |
Daryl motioned for us to stop across a ravine and showed us another set of coffins, this time located way down the valley
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| they seem to have coffins lying around everywhere |
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| Lumiang cave marker |
this also signifies the start of Katie's plight. haha.
the trek down was fairly easy. I'm not sure if I can say the same for the rest of our trip.
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| viewing deck |
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| down we go.. |
finally reaching the entrance to the cave
where there were actually more coffins!
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| Lumiang Burial Cave |
a closer look
a coffin containing a lizard/gecko which to those in Sagada symbolizes fertility and longevity. I also read in another blog that coffins containing this symbol means the owner of the coffin is one of the elders/an esteemed leader
finally time to head further down for the Cave Connection spelunking!
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| one final look outside before the descent |
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| the oil lamps, finally on.. |
when I mentioned at the start that this whole trip made me feel anxious, it was amplified even more inside the caves
much of the "moves" we had to do really made my heart pound and made me question if I could actually pull it off
kind of like this photo below of Katie going down this hole.
when it was my turn I was so worried about not making the right step and falling down. it was good our guides gave clear and specific instructions about where to step and all. sa totoo lang I think I struggled a bit because I was trying to think too much about how I needed to get it done.
sabi nga ni Jeff don't think, just do it! syempre that to me was not acceptable. but writing up this blog, actually made me realize na, oo nga, I just had to follow their lead and at times rely on their strong knees and shoulders. haha.
we survived! haha. una palang yun.
in this next hole we had go down using a rope naman
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| hindi halatang pagod |
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| taking a breather muna hehe |
and yes it just keeps on becoming more challenging and we learned when it was best to leap or sit and slide down to get to where we needed to go
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| haha, ano ito condescending looks? |
going further down the caves
and encountering other fellow spelunkers
finally on relatively flat grounds
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| walnut in PvZ? hehe |
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| seemingly a bonfire |
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| potholes on the ground |
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| spelunking antagonist: slippery rocks |
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| in between and thru the rocks we go |
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| on top of a frog rock |
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| amazing rock formations |
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| it's a cave party! |
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| various groups of spelunkers come together |
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| funny shot: Jeff and Chai pose with all smiles while Katie struggles to get across haha. |
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| i forget the exact name of the rock; but I think they call it the queen; with reference to the female part looking formation on the left; Jeff anong kinakapa mo dyan? ;p |
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| by a wading pool |
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| turtle-looking rock formation |
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| kung kanina may Queen eto naman daw yung King :p |
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| Chocolate Marble cupcake, anyone? |
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| rapelling |
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| a natural work of art |
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| one final rest before ascending |
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| have never been more relieved to see the outside world again |
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| the Sagada group on the opposite mouth of the cave |
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| hindi pa pala tapos ang kalbaryo :p |
and finally we were out on the other end of the cave by a little past 6 pm. this actually looked like a better starting point with the welcome markers and all. this was at least a good 2 kms more from the Lumiang cave marker where we started.
we headed back towards the hotel and said goodbye to our guides. we also talked about plans for the following day and Kuya Daryl suggested for us to be up as early as 3 am so we can see the sunrise. our Lumiang/Sumaguing/Cave Connection spelunking adventure cost Php 400/head. not bad for 5 hours!
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| Chai with the cute kid |
since we passed by it on our way to the caves and having heard other tourists specifically ask for directions on where to find it, we got intrigued and decided to have dinner at the Lemon Pie House
this place must really be well known since it was packed all the way to the back of the room. good thing there was one available table enough for the 4 of us
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| dirty hands |
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| Lemon Pie House menu - full of chicken dishes |
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| planning for the ride back home |
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| waiting for our food |
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| native designed lighting |
it took quite a while for our orders to be served. medyo naging irate na rin yung ibang customers since some of our orders got mixed up. things got a bit interesting though when the 'manager' came out and started berating her staff in front of everyone. she even shouted at some customers. tsk tsk. buti everyone else laughed off the situation na lang and just made a joke out of the manager.
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| red spicy chicken and chicken adobo |
we also ordered a slice of their lemon pie, kaso they ran out of it na as well as all their other desserts. seems they were really known for their sweets.
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| a mini-table and mini-chairs at the front part of Lemon House |
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| bye killer manager! |
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| Strawberry Cafe |
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| looked like a normal house from outside |
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| we ordered Chocolate cake which had strawberries on top |
we also bought a bottle of Emperador Brandy to help with the cold. I ended up just having 2 shots of it as I couldn't take the taste and felt too tired to stay up pa. and since we had to be up by 3 am, tama na rin to finally take a much deserved rest.
of course that was not until we all had taken our showers considering the dirt and mud on our bodies/clothing. since we did a lot of sliding down, it was not a surprise our undies came out muddy to the point that I wasn't sure if I can manage to get it out of the cloth.
this is just Part 1 of our trip. watch out for Part 2 of our Sagada Weekend which I hope to finish soon!
credits to Wikipedia, Monette Hermosa, The Poor Traveller for some details on Lumiang cave/Cave Connection
