| Nine hours. That’s
how long I sat on my cramped up seat on the trip to Sagada from Manila. With roads that
look like a smashed up quarry with no railings standing between car and the cliffs and an
early fog rolling in at just 2pm, I may never return again.
Yep, it’s the twilight zone and I have
just stepped back in time.
Sagada, located in the Cordillera Mountain
Region of the Philippines, promises a trip back in time where polytheistic and pagan
practices are the norm and rituals are still held to ensure luck and prosperity by the
Igorot tribe of the Mountain Province. Situated way up in the Mountain Province, Sagada
not only provides tourists a refreshing haven from the city’s hustle and bustle but
also an invitation to adventure and discovery.
The Igorots
The term "Igorot,"(coined from
the root word "golot" meaning mountain,) is the generic name given to describe
the six ethno-linguistic groups of the Northern Luzon Cordillera region. Specifically,
they are known as the Ibaloys, Ifugao, Kalinga, Apayao/Isneg, the Bontoc, and those in
Sagada, the Kankana-ey.
Tourists who have images of primitive
looking people in their heads will be surprised to see fair-skinned and rosy-cheeked
Kankana-ey who sometimes speak English better than Manila folk. This is due to the
influence of American missionaries who first opened Anglican mission centers followed by
the Japanese Occupation during the Second World War.
Despite church influences and the
conversion of some people into the Christian faith, pagan rituals for fertility, harvest,
marriage, and death are still practiced by the Kankana-ey.
Mummies and the Hanging Coffins
Sagada’s Hanging Coffins is the
chief draw for both local and foreign tourists alike. With ropes slung around coffins hewn
from hard wood trees, coffins containing the mummified dead are hauled up from the top of
the limestone cliffs surrounding the area before being settled onto a pre-designated spot
chosen by the family.
These coffins may be seen clearly from the
look-out point at Echo Valley or from any point on the town’s main street with the
help of good binoculars.
Lumiang is one of the major burial
caves that remain open to the public. Hundreds of coffins stacked against the cave’s
walls fill the cave with an atmosphere both spiritual yet unnerving.
The Sumaging Burial Cave hosts
formations of limestone, several of which have hanging coffins that have been there for
over two hundred years. How the Kankana-ey got those into seemingly impossible positions,
tourists can only theorize about.
Visit the Beautiful Philippine Islands today! A great vacation for the entire
family... |
