Malou and I together with our friends Ptr.Charlie, Grace, John, Jucil, and Chocho spent most of the holy week holiday at Sagada which is near the provincial capital of Bontoc … it’s a 6 hours bus ride starting from the Dangwa bus station in Baguio over the narrow mountain tracks traversing the Cordilleras … so it twas a 12 hours ride all-in-all from Manila and the snake-road goin to Baguio is nothing compared goin to Sagada, hahaha … when you arrived in Sagada you will be in awe of God’s creation as the sight is really breath taking on how vast and beautiful the place is … anyway, we all stayed at kuya Jes and everyday we take a bath at below 20C with no heated water, *bbbrrr .. hahaha … twas quite an adventure that I haven’t have for a very long time now and a life time to experience not only the place but really living in Sagada.

me and Malou on our last day at Sagada

sun rise on the fields

quite funny coz the hottest month in Sagada starts from March and ends in May but we’re all freakin freezin still, hahaha … when we arrived we just ate dinner and head-out for bed as we need all the rest we could coz in the morning we’ll head out spelunking the Sumaging cave.

On our last day at Sagada we ate their traditional dish, Pinikpikan and Etag which was been prepared by kuya Jes Mom and Dad … Pinikpikan, by which our group called it battered-chicken dish, hahaha … the preparation could be considered by most as cruelty but for the Igorot its ritual … actually there are a lot of misconception about the preparation but actually the truth is that while the chicken is still alive it is being beaten to death by a wooden stick in the head and wings only, slash the throat (which is normal) then thrown in the fire … after that they remove the feathers and cooked it to what most Pinoy could consider the taste as tinolang-manok (chicken broth) … Etag on the other hand is a salted-smoked pork meat which is their way of preserving the meat for the coming cold months.

Pinikpikan with Etag

a chicken skin cooked somewhat like a sisig, hehe

kuya Jes Mom and Dad

Anyway, posting the 1st batch of the pix and more to come tomorrow and the next day … hope you guys like it and I would really recommend Sagada for the adventurous individuals and doesn’t mind the 12hrs trip, hehehe … and do not ever chicken-out spelunking the Sumaging cave, hahaha

at the roof of the jeepney

waiting for our ride to Sagada

Malou and Grace

beautiful chinita, wahehehe

my best-bud, Ptr.Cha

Micah, kuya Jes daughter

Micah and Grace

and lastly, me and Micah hahaha