Banaue Rice Terraces: Our Tourism Could Totally Rock & A Lot of Hours in the Car

Last May 24-27, J and I took a road trip with his family to Pangasinan-Banaue-Sagada-Baguio, as a last hurrah for our dear nephew Peter, who was heading back to the US the following week.  We were trying to think of something worthwhile for Peter to do/see, but that wouldn't require us having to take a lot of time off from work (i.e. air travel involved) - maybe for his next visit, we can finally go to Donsol! *wink wink*

Our 14? 16? hour drive...I lost count. The road was paved, to be fair!

Fresh from our Bali trip, where we visited the Tegalalang Rice Terraces, I was quite excited to finally see our very own Banaue Rice Terraces, the previous 8th Wonder of the World (sad about that word "previous" in there!) and see how it compares.  I was so blown away by the majestic beauty of our rice terraces, I tell you.  Standing there, looking over the terraces carved into the mountains, I thought how amazing it is that these were built largely by hand!

Absolutely breathtaking!

Peter taking photos

Locals still plant rice and vegetables to this day

So green and lush!

My father-in-law was upset though that the local government doesn't seem to be taking steps to preserve the beauty of this tourist attraction, what with shanties and other eyesores popping up everywhere and blocking the awe-inspiring view.  Clearly, the Philippines has a lot of natural wonders that can obviously compete with other world-class destinations.  What seems to be lacking is a disciplined way we sustain these, as though we fail to recognize the benefits that responsible tourism can bring to our communities.

Pretty green scenery, before I myself get upset

After we had our fill of taking photos of the beautiful terraces, we hopped back into the car and braced ourselves for more hours on the road.  But not before we had lunch at a roadside eatery called Banaue Heritage Cafe and Restaurant...where we had probably the most expensive Argentina corned beef known to man!

Red rice, chicken curry, sisig, and corned beef = Php 1,500++!!!

Anyway, with relatively full tummies and maybe a bit of head-shaking, we went on our still merry way.  On to Sagada!

FOG AHEAD. BETTER STAY AWAKE.

More beautiful terrace views

Eep, landslide!

Look at that rock! Iskeripiepicache!

Finally, at about 3:47 pm (almost 16 hours of driving! I finally counted now), with a little trouble finding our hotel inn, we reached Sagada!

Masferre

The restaurant is what you see first when you enter

To the rooms (our "villa" is the door to the left of the No Smoking sign)
- essentially an attic with 3 separate rooms

All sorts of fruit wine in the souvenir shop

Jams, coffee, tea, and munchies

Up next, our Cave Connection Adventure!