View Point - Banaue Rice Terraces, Philippines
We arrived at this small remote village in the Philippines called Banaue. And when I say "we", I mean my cousin that I just met for the very first time ever. Just so you know, this trip to the Philippines is my first time as an adult, and it's been many years since I've had communication with my family here. Oh one more thing, I'm also a filipino ha ha, just in case you didn't know =). I've been taking my cousin backpacking all throughout the Philippines because although he is from Manila, he hasn't seen a lot of his homeland, so I am happy to experience it with him.
-----> I WILL POST A VIDEO SOON - STAY POSTED! =) <-----
So after a 10 hour long bus ride from Manila to Banaue, we took a Tri-Motor Bike to Banaue Homestay, which was our base camp for the next few days. Our main focus was to see the Banaue Rice Terraces. The Philippines only has one "Wonder of the World" and it's the Rice Terraces of Banaue. With over 2,000 years of history, I was totally excited to put on my Inov8 212's to start trekking these ancient rice lands! Mind you that I barely had a chance to sleep on the bus to Banaue because it felt like an ice box, it was so darn cold! But that's another blog post =).
Ohayami Trans Bus - Overnight from Manila to Banaue
(It took about 10 hours from Manila to Banaue overnight)
Taking the Tri-Motor Bike to Banaue Homestay
As soon as we arrived at Banaue Homestay, my cousin and I were immediately greeted by Beatriz who was like the manager/rock star host, I mean this lady was on top of things! Anything we needed, and anything we asked, she accommodated us 110%, and you just don't see a lot of that these days. I mean she literally provided us with "white glove service", I could not say enough good things about her and my experience at Banaue Homestay, you just have to go there and experience it!
Banaue Homestay
See my name on the very far left =)
My cousin and I with Banaue Hosts
(Beatriz is the lady on the right)
Upon checking in, we met some backpackers and they were about to head out on this 7 hour, 10+ mile trek through the rice terraces, and they kindly invited us to join them... at that point, even though we didn't have a lot of sleep, without hesitation, I said heck yes! And within an hour of just checking in, we jumped on top of this "old beat up" SUV and we were off to explore the 2,000 year old rice terraces which included hidden villages, as well as a good handful of majestic waterfalls.
There were a plenty of treks from 3 hours to 14 hours depending on which trail you started with, and what time you began. On day one, we treked for 7 hours (10+ miles) starting from somewhere around the Pula area, and ended up at the village of Batad. The second day was was an easier 4 hour trek which my cousin and I shaved about an hour off, we were flying through the terraces.
During both treks we stopped at various spots to take breaks and took many photos. There were a lot of steep stairs which would probably be difficult for people who have bad knees. What I really enjoyed was going through the remote villages and seeing the cute little kids. About midway through the trip, we also stopped by Cambulo and had a chance to take a dip in the Cambulo River and eat lunch in the village.
Towards the end of our trek, it started to become pretty dark so we did not have a chance to check out the Tapiya Falls, but we'll hit it next time =). In my opinion, I highly recommend doing the longer treks with a guide because one can get easily lost going through the villages and rice terrace, it's like one gigantic maze!
Anyways, thanks for visiting my blog. My goal is to live life to the fullest, and help people along the way find their true potential. The world is a big place, and it awaits you. Find something that you are truly passionate about, make a good living by helping people around you, and live your life now.
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