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It's a rugged but spectacular four-hour trip from Bontoc to Banaue along a winding road that leads up into the misty Cordilleras, across a mountaintop pass, then down precipitous mountainside. It may only be 300km north of Manila, but Banaue might as well be a world away, 1300m above sea level and far removed in spirit and topography from the beaches and palm trees of the south. This is the heart of rice terrace country. The rice terraces at Banaue are one of the great icons of the Philippines. They were hewn from the land 2000 years ago by Ifugao tribespeople using primitive tools, an achievement in engineering terms that ranks alongside the building of the pyramids. Called the "Stairway to Heaven" by the Ifugaos, the terraces would stretch 20,000km if laid out end to end. Not only are they an awesome sight, but also an object lesson in what is today known as "sustainability". These vast, layered paddies demonstrate that nature need not be destroyed to satisfy man's needs. The terraces were recently added to the United Nations' World Heritage List, a sign that they will not last forever if they are not protected. Part of the problem is that the walls that link the paddies are beginning to crumble and the lack of local Ifugao labour has resulted in a shortage of young people willing and able to help carry out repairs. The future of the terraces is closely tied to the future of the tribespeople themselves. Part of the problem, it must be said, is tourism. People who would otherwise have been working on the terraces are now making a much easier buck selling reproduction tribal artefacts or rare orchids from the surrounding forests. What's more, rice farming has little allure for the young tribespeople of the Cordilleras. They are tired of the subsistence livelihood that their parents eked out from the land, and are packing their bags for Manila. The resulting labour shortage means the terraces are producing a mere thirty-five percent of the area's rice needs when they should be producing a hundred percent. Banaue itself is a small town centred on a marketplace, where there are a few guesthouses and some souvenir shops. Two kilometres up the road from the marketplace is the main lookout point for the rice terraces. Ifugao in traditional costume will ask for a small fee if you want to take their photograph. A handful of souvenir stalls surrounding the lookout sell carved wooden bowls and woven blankets at bargain prices. Buses and jeepneys terminate at the marketplace near the town hall and close to the tourist information office (Mon-Sat 3-6pm), where you can get maps (P10) of the area for trekking . There are half-day treks to local Ifugao communities or longer treks through the rice terraces to isolated communities such as Batad . The tourist information office and most hotels will help you find a guide. There are no banks in Banaue, but most hotels change money, usually at a lower rate than banks. The post office has poste restante, but it's a ten-minute jeepney ride from the marketplace near the Banaue Hotel & Youth Hostel. You can also make telephone calls from the post office.
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