Banaue and Batad (The Philippines, Part 2)

I arrived in Banaue from the overnight bus at about 6:30. The morning fog was still resting over the mountains and the dawn light was dim, but it still provided for an great view of the valley from the restaurant that the bus dropped us at.

There were two buses going from Manila to Banaue every night and each was filled with mostly locals and about 10-15 tourists. I was on the first to arrive at 6:30, and the other arrived about a half hour later. They dropped us at a hostel/restaurant where we got to get some breakfast and enjoy the view while we waited for the tours to begin.

As soon as the 2nd bus arrived, all the tourists were swarmed with the local guides offering to take them to the scenic spots of the area. The 3 typical things to do included hotsprings at a fancy resort two hours away, going to the high viewpoint of Banaue, and visiting the rice terraces and waterfall in Batad. I had already planned to go to Batad, so I joined 11 other foreigners in a jeepney to be guided to Batad. By the time we left at 8:30, the fog had already cleared a bit and the valley was bright and green.

Jeepneys are one of the 2 main forms of transit in the Philippines. They are refurbished American Army jeeps from WWII. Most have been elongated and fitted with two benches on the inside. They are primarily used for public transportation. In the cities, it costs 8 pesos (about 18 cents). You can look at the signs on the side of the car to see the route it takes, or just ask the driver if he's going to your destination. Then all you have to do is flag one down and hop in through the open back. If it's full on the inside, many people just hang off the back and sides or sit on the roof. To pay, you just pass your money up through the crowd of people and then the driver passes back your change.

The other mode of transportation is called a trike. It's just a passenger car attached to a motorcycle, and it's used more for private transport, like a taxi. You tell the driver where you want to go and then you haggle down your price.

So the group of 12 tourists and 2 guides took one jeepney to Batad. However, there isn't actually a road that goes all the way to Batad. First you take the jeepney down a winding, bumpy road to a place called "the Saddle". This is where the road ends at the top of the mountain. They are in the process of building a road from there to Batad, but it is still in its beginnings and won't be finished for several years.

Therefore, the only way to reach Batad is the same way the locals have been doing for 2000 years since they started living here, by foot. From the top of the mountain at the saddle, you take a muddy, narrow path across the mountain and then down into the valley of Batad. It takes about an hour.

The views along the way are spectacular, and you get a sense of the elevation from the clouds hanging not far over your head. As we walked, we got little glimpses of rice terraces located further out from the village. We took tons of pictures upon seeing it, thinking they were incredible, but little did we know the real view was yet to be seen.

About halfway into our trek, we reached the sign marking the descent into the valley of Batad. From here we still couldn't see the actual village, but it made everyone think we were getting close even though we were only halfway there.

Finally, after and hour of slipping down the steep, muddy hill with my giant backpack on, I stepped around the bend to see the marvelous view of Batad. In the center of the valley was the main part of the little village built around the church. The rest of the houses were located up and scattered across the side of the mountain I was viewing it from.

As we descended into the village, the first thing you pass is the elementary school located at the top. It is the only school in Batad. For middle and high school, the children travel back to the much larger town of Banaue. It was recess when we arrived, and many of the children stopped to look and wave at the tourists as we walked by.

Most of the foreigners take the jeepney in, hike to see the terraces and waterfall and then take the jeepney back before sunset to stay overnight in Banaue. Only a few (there were 5 of us this time) choose to stay in Batad. I chose to sleep at Ramon's Homestay. It was an adorable residence and I got my own locked room to stay in. I got to eat a ton of local food and talk to the natives all evening and night. They were very eager to answer all our questions about the rice farming process and their heritage, as well as telling us about the political happenings in the rest of the country. I was very surprised how knowledgeable they were about the rest of their country when they live in such a secluded area that only gets electricity a few hours a night.

I learned a lot about the Ifugao people that live and work the rice terraces during my stay and did even more follow up research when I got back to Korea. Batad it the more famous of the many rice terrace villages in the region because their terraces are built at higher altitudes and on a steeper slope. Their culture values tradition, kinship and family ties. Not many people that grow up in Ifugao choose to leave, and so everyone I met told me they were descendants of the first generations to ever live and work here. Their technique in building the mud and stone walled rice terraces and advanced techniques in irrigation to bring water down from the forests at the top of the mountain is very advanced and sophisticated, but virtually unchanged from the techniques they used 2000 years ago. 

After dropping my bag in my new room at the homestay, and changing into a much need pair of shorts, I continued with half my tour group and one guide the rest of the way in to the valley on our way to the waterfall. We realized at this point how beneficial the guide was, because even though you can see your destination across the valley, it is confusing to navigate through the complex maze of rice terrace walls.

As the morning grew later, the day grew hotter and brighter. Though primarily green, the vibrant colors of the valley contrasted beautifully against the blue sky.

The further we descended into the valley, the greener everything became as we were viewing the rice from a different angle. The walls were narrow to walk on and you had to be careful with each step to be sure you wouldn't slip into the muddy water full of rice plants and ruin the hard work of its farmer.

The steep descent into the valley did not seem strenuous at first, but as we started tho climb back up the other side to reach the waterfall, we were dying for a dip in the cool water of the river. It took about an hour and 15 minutes to reach the waterfall from the top of the valley on the other side. To get there you had to go tot he bottom of the valley, cut across, go back up the mountain on the opposite side, then go back down to the riverbed. Here you walked upriver for a few minutes until you reached the waterfall. We got to swim in the freezing water for a while before we decided to head back to the homestay.

Of the 5 tourists sleeping in the valley, 2 had gone to the waterfall with me. The guide had left us to return with the group going back to Banaue and so we were left to navigate the rice terrace walls back to our rooms on our own. It was a fun little adventure, but we were tired and drenched in sweat from the combination of the scorching hot day and all the exertion from the immense amounts of climbing being done. Our hunger and fatigue was pushed to the back of our minds however, as we were still in awe of the incredible views of the valley at the most gorgeous time of day.

When we returned to the homestay, I got my first taste of the locally grown food. I got some pork chopsuey with garlic rice. Nearly everything I ate was grown or raised right in the valley of Batad (as anything else has to be carried in on the back of a person). The taste was incredible! You could taste the difference in the locally grown rice, and it was so cheap. I only spent 100 pesos (about $2.25) for lunch.

After a long nap and a curry dinner, I talked with the other two foreigners and some natives for a while. As there is only spontaneous electricity in Batad, the days always end with the sun and so we all went to bed shortly after dark. The next morning started early (also with the sun). I was woken up, not by the light, but by the chorus of roosters, fighting dogs, and squealing pigs living in the valley.

For breakfast, I was given a fried egg, fried chicken, and plain rice with some tea. It also tasted amazing, and I wondered which one of the chickens I had seen running around the day before ended up on my plate that morning as I sipped my tea and enjoyed the incredible view.

After relaxing for a little while longer, it was time to start the long trek back out of the valley and to the saddle to hitch a ride with a trike heading back to Banaue. The hike out took an hour, and then it took an hour to drive the twisting roads through the mountains.

When we got to Banaue, we walked around a while and then found someplace to get lunch. The streets are filled with all sorts of vendors selling the many types of rice grown on the mountain.

After eating, we went to the Banaue Museum at the Banaue View Inn and got to learn a lot more about and see historical collections of things from the cultures of Ifugao. Next we decided to go to the Banaue view point. On the way, we say some boys playing basketball on a hoop made completely out of wood. Basketball is the favorite sport of the Philippines, and it's very common to see hoops and courts in the most unexpected or obscure places.

Banaue's view point is about a 20 min drive, or an hour walk up the road from the town. It has an incredible of the main rice terraces of Banaue and is also the same view as the image of the rice terraces that is on the back of the 1,000 pesos bill.

We paid for a trike to get up to the viewpoint because our muscles were tired from all the trekking over the two days, but we decided to walk to town on the way back. There we got dinner and then hopped on another overnight bus back to Manila.