The 8th Wonder of the World...

---

When we last left the Philippines after a fantastic 3 weeks in February, we vowed we would be back soon, as there is just so much to see and the 21 day visa does not give enough time for everything. Less than 8 weeks later, we find ourselves back in this amazing country, excited to visit new places and experience new things. The rice terraces of Ifugao are claimed to be the 8th Wonder of the World, and as we hadn't visited them last time around, they were high on our list for this time around. First though, we had to get here...

It started with a short flight to Kuala Lumpur from Kuching, where we arrived close to midnight so chose to save some money and catch a few hours sleep at the airport, as our flight to Manila was early the next morning. Sleep was almost impossible, due to the noise, lights and uncomfortable chairs in the terminal, but we made up for it on the plane. We have to say, Malaysia Air, who both these flights were with, are pretty awesome - nice seats, good food, free drinks and luggage included in the price. Landing at Manila airport in the afternoon, we grabbed a taxi and hot footed it over to the Sampaloc bus station in order to reserve our seats on the bus going up to North Luzon at 9pm that night. Tickets in hand, we had over 7 hours to kill until the bus left, and the 'bus station' was more like a bus stop - literally two benches in a car park - so we went to the nearest mall, did some shopping, had a bite to eat and even had time for a film, 'Olympus has Fallen', which was quite good, if a little ironic given the circumstances going on between the USA and North Korea right now. The bus journey was fine, a litle cold but not too bad, we managed to get some sleep and we arrived in the town of Banaue at around 6am.

Banaue is the gateway to the rice terraces around Ifugao and probably not the most peaceful place due to all the tricycle drivers and tour guides pressing you to go on trips with them from the moment you step off the bus, but after we found a room, had some breakfast and a shower and caught a glimpse of the terraces from our guesthouse, we were ready to explore the area. We got talking to a guide at breakfast with a girl called Becci from the UK and Chris from Germany, and along with two Swiss girls, the 6 of us decided to take a tricycle up to the viewpoints followed by a guided walk through the rice fields at the bargain price of 170 Peso's each - less than £3. The trike stopped at 4 different points, each higher than the last and each giving a different view over the vast rice terraces, which we were very impressed with. They were very green, which we were pleased about, as we didn't realise that April -May is one of the best times to see them in all their glory as it is the cleaning and planting season, and they really were quite stunning. They seemed to go on for miles, each tier gracefully flowing down to the next, and from a distance they looked packed with green rice plants, but on closer inspection we could see that really each terrace wasn't as full as we thought. They were even quite flooded, but the reflection of the water only added to make them look more impressive, although the ones we saw in China at Yuanyung were probably more beautiful. One of the viewpoints is actually the picture that is on the 1000 Peso note which was cool to see.

Once we had finished with the tricycles, our guide led us into the terraces, through different fields and narrow paths, up and down steep steps and eventually right through small rice terraces. These terraces are made with clay, whilst others in the region are made with stone, and we saw many people working to rebuild the terrace walls with mud and water which must be such hard work. Like the people who plant the rice, this work is backbreaking as they are literally bent over for hours every single day - we saw many old ladies who were permanantly bent over in the town due to years of working in the rice fields. We walked through the rice fields for over 2 hours, stopping now and again to admire our surroundings and take photo's of the landscapes, before we had to attempt climbing up through mud and stones to reach another level which was quite hard. At one point when we were walking along a terrace, with water either side of us, Scott slipped and nearly ended up in it! But it was a really nice walk and we were glad to have a guide as we don't think we would have found the way ourselves. Back at the guesthouse, we had lunch and a much needed rest, followed by some games of cards and some rum that night, before going to bed at the crazy time of 8.45pm. Believe me, after 2 nights of sleeping on an airport chair followed by a bus seat and a few hours of trekking, we needed the early night and were so happy to sleep in a proper bed at last!

We had planned quite an ambitious trek the next day which would see us walk for about 6 hours through two villages before reaching the village of Batad, famous for even more spectacular rice terraces and tranquility, but we woke up to rain and fog so had to change our plans. Instead, we took a tricycle, along with Becci and the two Swiss girls, to Batad junction about 45 minutes away along a very potholed and bumpy road, getting splashed by the rain the whole way. At least I was inside the trike - poor Sscott had to ride on the back of the bike and got soaked! Batad Junction is at the bottom of a steep road winding up to Batad saddle, which is a further 1 hour trek downhill into Batad village proper, and whilst we wanted to go to the saddle and walk from there, the trikes can only go as far as the junction. We got off at the junction and then had a difficult 45 minute uphill trek in the rain and through mud to the saddle - no wonder trikes can't go up this 'road' though; it was only part paved, the rest just raw clay/mud, really steep, and due to the rain very slippery - we were sliding all over the place as we marched up and up for 3.5km, finally reaching the saddle. It stopped raining briefly but as we ascended down to the village via the 'shortcut' (since when is 415 steps a shortcut?!) it started up again and we were drenched by the time we got to the first guesthouse we saw so just decided to stay there and dry off a bit. Luckily, it was a nice place run by a lovely woman, served decent food and had rooms available at a good price, but what we liked the most were the unobstructed panoramic views from the restaurant over the rice terraces. Wow! If we thought Banaue was impressive, these were another level - they literally surrounded us from every possible angle, and looked so immaculate they didn't appear real at first. Within 10 minutes of arriving, the rain had stopped, the mist had cleared and the sun was out, and we had the perfect view. It's no surpise these are touted as the 8th wonder of the world - they are amazing and really a sight to behold. After a quick lunch we couldn't wait to go out and explore them, so started walking down steps, through little wooden huts/houses and along the rice terraces. Again like in Banaue they were quite flooded but they were even more green and we couldn't stop looking at them in awe.

As it was sunny we decided to hike to the waterfall which we had heard was a fairly easy 45 minute walk. Well after an hour of steep, huge, endless steps, both up and down, we were all pretty tired and dreading the journey back to the guesthouse. However the waterfall itself was better than we thought and due to the rain that morning it seemed its power had increased as the water flow was very strong and could be heard before you saw it. Scott and Beccy decided to have a dip but it was too cold for me so I stayed back with the Swiss girls while they bravely went in. We were down there for a good while but had to start the trek back up soon enough, and it was every bit as tough as we expected. Plenty of rest stops were called for, especially after the last hundred or so steps when our legs were about to give up on us, but a choco-muncho bar helped us power on (we had never tried one of these before but are now hooked, they are so yummy and only 15 Peso's/less than 25p). Once the steps were over the rest of the walk back was quite nice, cutting through the tiny village which consisted of a dozen or so local huts and a lot of chickens and dogs. They definately outnumber the people here, so it is as rural as you can get! When we finally got back to the guesthouse some SMB's were in order as well as a nice shower. That evening we all had some dinner and played cards until the outrageous time of 8pm when our bodies just gave up on us and we had to go to bed. We wanted to read for a while in our room but there were so many little flies and bugs around the light we had to turn it off. Saying that, I think within 2 minutes of the light going out we were fast asleep...

Our phones had run out of battery the day before (in Banaue and Batad you have to pay to charge them) so we had no alarm set but were confident we would wake up in time to catch the early public jeepney back to Banaue from the saddle. When the cockrels started cock-a-doodle-do-ing and the sun came up, we presumed it was around 6.30am so got up, got ready and headed down at what we thought was about 7am for some breakfast and coffee, but to our surprise (and Scott's annoyance) it was just 6am! It didn't matter as we had time to admire the views again whilst slowly having breakfast before we started the hike back up to the saddle. Typically it was boiling hot and sunny the whole way up, which only made it harder, and as if the first 30 minutes of uphill walking wasn't bad enough, the 415 steps at the end almost killed us! It was pretty tough going and there were times when I especially didn't think I would make it in time for the jeepney as my legs were feeling the burn, but the presence of a little dog from our guesthouse the whole way up spurred me on - we rewareded him with some ritz crackers at the end which he was thankful for. We made it with plenty of time to spare for the jeepney, which tackled the muddy 'road' very well although went a bit too near the edge of the cliff for my liking at times, and were back in Banaue by 10am.

Even though the last couple of days have been a bit more strenuous that we thought, they have been excellent and the views of the rice terraces we were afforded, especially in Batad, were incredible. We always wanted to head up to this part of the country as we thought we would love it and we have so far. It's good to be back in the Philippines!

S&V's Travel Info & Tips:

General Info: Approx 62 Peso's to £1.

Transportation: We flew with Malaysia Air from KL - Manila. A taxi from the airport to Sampaloc bus terminal cost us 300 Peso's - go downstairs and get a white taxi instead of to the yellow taxi stand as they are cheaper here. The bus from Manila to Banaue cost 450 Peso's pp and leaves at 9pm and 10pm daily - get your tickets as early in the day as you can as they sell out by the afternoon. A tricycle for 2 people to the viewpoints in Banaue cost's 100 Peso's one way - as there were 6 of us we got transport there and a guide for just 170 Peso's pp (guide was 600 Peso's). From Banaue to Batad we took tricycles to the junction for 350 Peso's per trike - we later found out there is a public jeepney that goes in the morning and afternoon. The public Jeepney goes back to Banaue from Batad saddle at around 9am and costs 150 Peso's pp.

Food: In Banaue food at Green View Lodge was quite good with mains costing around 130 Peso's - breakfast opposite at Las Vegas was better and cheaper. In Batad, you have to eat where you stay really, and food at Hillside was just ok but quite pricey - 180 Peso's for a main, although when you think how difficult it is to get supplies to the village it's fair enough.

Accomodation: Green View Lodge in Banaue was good, 500 Peso's for a double room with shared bathroom (cold shower). In Batad the views from Hillside were unbeatable although the accomodation was more basic. A double room cost us 500 Peso's but we had a hot shower at least.

Other observations:

x) Guides seem pushy at first when you get to Banaue but they are a wealth of information about the surrounding areas and things to see and do. Prices are negiotiable but still fair. Ask them for transport times to nearby villages as they can change.

xx) We saw a lot of men with red mouths and we found out this is down to the beetle nuts they chew as a tabacco substitute - nice!

---

Comments

[D MJ Binkley]

This is lovely
Wish we had seen this part of the Philippines. Ah, maybe next time.

[GRACIELA]

I WAS THERE
I REALLY RECOMMEND THE RICE TERRACES. IT´S AN AMAZING PLACE AND VERY NICE PEOPLE.