Sunday, November 16, 2014

Sagada

Sagada is a fifth class municipality in the province of Mountain Province.  It is located 275 kilometres (171 mi) north of Manila (taking at least 12 to 15 hours by bus), 140 kilometres (87 mi) from Baguio, and it is adjacent to Bontoc, the provincial capital. 




How to get to Sagada?
Get a way going to Baguio City.  When in Baguio hire a cab going to GL Liner.  The first GL Liner leaves at 6:15am.  The trip usually takes 6 hours. If you are in Banaue, Ifugao and plans to take a side trip to Sagada, it is another 3 hours bus ride from the latter.




Arriving at Mountain Province
There are a lot of accommodations in Sagada with cooking facilities already. Some rooms have private bathrooms and the one that has shared bathrooms has a rate of Php 200 to 250/person. For more information about accommodations, click here.



Sagada has a great deal of places for people looking to do different activities. The accredited Sagada guide associations (SEGA and SAGGAS) have been actively pushing to adding more sites to the current set of tourist attractions. All guides and tours are to be arranged through accredited tour guide associations (SEGA’s is inside the Municipal Hall; SAGGAS is near Yogurt House). Costs are standard and are published so you’re definitely getting a fair deal.

I was not allowed to enter the cave because I was four months pregnant with my third child.  The adventurer mom got so disappointed but I know they just wanted to be sure of my safety.  I just waited outside.  Sigh!




Sumaguing cave- Sumaguing Cave has the largest chamber of all connecting caves in town (there are more than 60 known caves underneath Sagada). One needs to trek down a slippery trail from its mouth to see the magnificent formations of stalactites and stalagmites that took thousands of years to shape. These formations were carefully sculpted by nature itself to form contours that were given fancy names such as king and queen’s curtains, giant fudge, pregnant woman, Mickey Mouse, alligator, dancing hall and rice terraces.







 



This is my first blog that I can't explain fully how it feels to be inside Sumaguing Cave because I was not able to experience it.  But I guess these pictures can already tell a story how my friends managed to rope, climbed up and down, slide and get over through huge rocks and formations.  They came in dry and came out really wet.  We will return to Sagada once my youngest kid can be allowed to enter the cave.  I am very sure that it would be very thrilling to enter the cave connections.




with our guide


Lumiang Cave is the first cave you have to enter when you do the cave connection.  It connects the nearby Sumaguing Cave.  It is only here where the guide allowed me to go. I was so eager to get in here because I was not able to enter Sumaguing Cave.  If I was in a normal condition,  hiking both caves will be fulfilling for me.  Cave connection lasts for at least 3 hours.  I guess I just need to get back here when I'm not pregnant, hehe! Of course =)

The cave houses more than a hundred coffins and been here buried for about 500 years.  The corpses are placed in a fetal position when they die because our ancestors believed that we should leave this world the way we enter it. 






Curfew - Sagada has observed a 9:00pm curfew for decades. It was first implemented when there was some armed conflict during the Marcos era. When the conflict ended, the community decided to keep the curfew in place as a way of controlling public drunkenness – a problem in many other towns. Sagada is a farming community and most people are up before dawn to go to the fields, so closing down at 9:00pm makes a lot of sense. The stores close, the restaurants stop serving food and the streets become quiet. People can do whatever they like within the walls of their homes and most restaurants will remain open until you leave and not pressure you to do so. There is no problem about being out after 9:00 or past midnight. It is just very quiet. "Curfew" can conjure up all sorts of images and often tourists are troubled by it. 



Sagada terraces

with hubby and bff Rowie

During this time, I was four months pregnant with my third child.... Yeah! I know... I shouldn't traveled this far and this rough.  But I was just so thankful that nothing happened to my baby.  Though there was already a spotting going home from Sagada to Baguio, I still insisted on going home from Baguio to Manila. I can already feel that I am about to experience miscarriage. My tummy is aching so hard that I can feel the baby is about to come out. Thank You for that another chance and I'm just so happy that she was safe after that 12 hours ride.

the house with a tree or a tree with a house


Places of interest:
Sagada has many natural wonders. Backpackers and tourists can enjoy the waters of Bokong and Bomod-ok Falls. Other places that can be visited are:

  • Sumaguing and Lumiang Caves
  • Bomod-ok and Bokong Falls
  • Rice terraces
  • Echo Valley
  • Kiltepan Tower
  • Underground River
  • Lake Danum
  • Hanging Coffins
  • Pongas Falls
  • Mount Ampacao
  • Marlboro Mountain
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