Moving on from Ifugao, we headed to another small town located 90 km away from the peaceful town of Banaue. The journey was accompanied by long winding mountain passes, and rains from the typhoon. The impact of typhoon was so significant here as landslides happened almost everywhere along the way to Sagada, with rockfalls and collapsed roads everywhere to be seen.
Before reaching Sagada, we arrived at a small town called Bontoc, the adjacent town to Sagada. Approaching the town, paddy could be clearly seen as the rice terrace was higher than the road, and it was just right next to us. We could reach the paddy by just putting our hand out from the car window.
Upon reaching Bontoc, soon we found out that our way was blocked due to the parade organized by the locals, the Lang-ay Festival. The municipality of Bontoc celebrates Lang-ay festival annually, and we were so lucky to attend this.
The locals from different ethnic backgrounds performed their street dancing with their traditional tribal costumes, focusing on their tribal cultures as well as thanksgiving on the paddy harvest.
I wonder if these elder folks dance on the street as well. We missed this part as we departed by using the alternative road heading to Sagada.
Another few kilometers of mountain passes before reaching Sagada, we faced another road block which the bulldozer working on the mudslide.
Finally, we arrived Sagada, the home of the hanging coffins, one of the few in the world. Sagada is a very small town, with only a few streets and limited choices of food and lodging. We had our quick lunch and started to look for the hanging coffins.
It is not necessary for visitors to hire a guide to view the hanging coffins, however you may look for the guided tour if you really need it. For the visitors without guide, look for the St. Mary's Episcopal Church and start walking from there. You can visit the church as well while being here.
Passing by the church, you will come to a modern cemetery. Walk through the modem cemetery and you will reach the Echo Valley. Try shouting towards the valley and you will get your echo from here. Not far from the Echo Valley, you can already see the hanging coffins across the hill.
Hanging coffins, are coffins hung on the cliffs. There are only a few places we can find hanging coffins in the world, and Philippines is one of them, apart from China and Indonesia. The practice of hanging coffins in Sagada was done in the earlier years before the Christianity came in. This practice protects the deceased from natural disasters, animals, and also based on the native's belief, this will allow easier passage for the deceased to heaven. The locals claim that this practice have been around for more than 2000 years.
The trail towards the hanging coffin was too dangerous due to the typhoon during our visit. Visitors may walk down the trail to view the hanging coffins up close.
After leaving Sagada, we headed back to Makati, marking the end of our mountain provinces journey. On the way back, we stopped by San Jose for lodging and visited this church the next morning before we continue our journey back to Makati.
Visiting the mountain provinces during the typhoon was not really ideal, but still I appreciated the experiences of being there, witnessing the landscape and practices being passed down to the next generations from thousands years back.
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