The Pinay Solo Backpacker

Sagada  is famous for  its natural beauty, its culture, & the warmth of its people – the Igorot in the Philippines.  It’s  a quiet town nestled in the Cordillera mountain ranges in North Luzon, Philippines.  The region’s  inhabitants – the Igorot people and the Igorot culture are composed of  six ethno-linguistic ethnic groups known as the Apayao/Isneg, Ifugao, Ibaloy, Kankana-ey, Kalinga, and the Bontoc.   In Igorot  dictionary,  Igorot  in the Philippines  comes from the root word, “golot” meaning “mountain”.  The Igorot culture , Igorot songs, Igorot dance , and the Igorot folktale  is  one of  the best reason many tourists visit Sagada and the rest of the Cordillera region.

Over the years as I frequently visited Benguet, my dream of  stepping  into this charming town  and better understand  the Igorot folktale and culture never left me.  March 2009, I finally embarked on a  solo trip to Sagada. There are three ways to commute by bus to Sagada Via Manila : Manila-Baguio City – Sagada route, Manila – Bontoc – Sagada route , and Manila- Banaue – Sagada route.  I decided to take the bus to  Sagada via Manila-Baguio-Sagada route, simply because I had a hard time looking for the Sagada bus in Banaue bus station in Manila.  I left  around 11 pm as I had to be at the Dangwa Bus Station , the Baguio bus station, to take the Sagada bus by 5am.

The Baguio travel to Sagada via Halsema Highway is one of the most beautiful routes in Luzon, the trip takes roughly 6-7 hours due to sharp bends & bumpy roads through the Cordillera Mountains.  It passes through La Trinidad, Tomay & Atok, Benguet the highest point in the Philippine highway system and overlooking amazing cabbage & vegetables terraces then all the way to Bontoc & then Sagada in the Cordilllera region

The Sagada bus stopped at a small quaint town perched on the Cordillera mountains – the Sagada town.  I quickly eyed the nearest guesthouse, the  Ganduyan Inn but  I read in the welcome sign that the Sagada tourist must register first at the tourism center.

So after taking a quick bathroom break at a public comfort room  near the Sagada Municipal Hall, I tried to register. “Where are you staying? “, asked the middle-aged man manning the Municipal Tourism Office.  “I don’t have any place to stay yet, “ I replied.  ” Come back when you find one, here’s the list of the tour  guide rates,” he instructed.

I walked back  to Ganduyan Inn which is just a few steps away from the municipal hall.  I am dead tired so I didn’t want to spend the rest of that day looking for a more comfortable guesthouse.   I just want to rest for a while because  I’m to excited to take my do-it-yourself  Sagada tour.

“Php300 shared bath”, said the young guesthouse staff  the Sagada hostel who then led me to a small cozy room.  There’s no fan or air-condition and I don’t need one anyway considering the cold climate in Sagada town.  The only problem is, there’s no hot shower!   Other  Sagada hotel in the area offers hot shower so you may wanna scout for   around first for other Sagada hostel, simply put,  avoid being a lazy ass like me.

After a quick nap, I left my room to start my Sagada tour.  It’s a good thing that I went inside the Ganduyan Souvenir Shop first before I headed to St. Mary church for my 1st stop because I found a Sagada map for sale at Php20.

Most of  Sagada tourist spots needs a Sagada tour guide, so I checked my Sagada map for some tourist  attractions I can tour by myself  so I can save on the tour guide fee.  ”You definitely need a guide  for the  Sagada cave exploration,” answered the local teen-age girl whom I asked along the way.   So after I registered at the Sagada tourism center,  I started walking.

Sagada tourists attractions that I explored:

St. Mary Church  and the Sagada Bell

the Echo Valley

the Sagada hanging coffins,

the Sagada rice terraces,

the Sumaguing Cave and the small Lumian Cave,

The Sagada Pottery,

 The Sagada Weaving,

The Ganduyan Museum,

& the Masferre photos, unfortunately it’s still closed when I got there early morning.

The Yogurt House ,

and the Lemon Pie House,

Due to a mishap at Sumaguing cave  & long walks though I wasn’t able to see the Sagada Big falls.  I can barely walk because my ankle was sprained & my muscles are too painful.  Now I know why the Sagada souvenir shirts have prints like ” I survived Sagada” or  “Sagada Survivor”.  Yes, I  did survive Sagada travel…but with a sprained leg.

A lot has been said about Sagada, the Igorot people and Igorot culture but nothing beats the feeling of actually being there.  Forget about those expensive Sagada tourist packages, travel Sagada at your own risk and experience the adventure in this ruggedly enchanting province.

On a more serious note, my  Sagada adventure wouldn’t be complete without the warmth of its people.  It’s unfortunate though that until now, the Igorots in the Philippines are still being discriminated even by their fellow Filipinos.  I hope more and more people would better understand and appreciate the Igorots and  the Igorot folklore.

For those whose heart has been captivated by Sagada, one can’t help but value the Igorot  people and Igorot culture.  I am not an Igorot by birth, and my knowledge about the Igorot folklore  is nothing compared to them and to those who have kept coming traveling back to Sagada, but I need not  travel over and over again to the Cordilleras, or be born and raised as an Igorot  to be able to learn to respect their culture.  It’s a pity how many of us brag how proud we are to be Pinoy yet we still look down on other Filipino ethnic groups.  One good way to understand the Igorot culture is to visit the Cordilleras and help promote responsible tourism in the Cordillera  region.

How to go to Sagada:

Take a Victory Liner or Baliwag Bus transit to Baguio.

Upon arriving at Baguio, you may take a cab to the Dangwa Bus Station. Locate the Lizardo Transit station – facing the station, it’s on the left side. From there you can buy your bus ticket to sagada. First bus leaves at 630AM. The last bus leaves at 1 PM. The trip take sroughly 6-7 hours.

 

*********************************************************************************************** About the Blogger : Gael is a Filipina solo adventurer, a dream chaser and a student of life.  Her (mis) adventures are documented in this blog. Follow her on Facebook and Twitter. For advertisement, partnerships and sponsorship, click here. or email me at thepinaysolobackpacker(at)yahoo(dot)com. **********************************************************************************************

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