Ban-ang, J.

HUMSS 12 – B LOYALTY

Travelogue in Sagada, Mountain Province

September 21 , 2019, after a cup of coffee at the Masferré Inn, we headed off on a small path behind
Sagada’s main road. There we found small villages among beautiful rice terraces and lush trees. It was
interesting to see traditional structures mixed in with the newer buildings, most notably, the traditional
fire pits where meetings were held with the town elders.

Later that day, we were off to the caves. Lumiang and Sumaguing Caves are must-sees in Sagada.
Dating back 500 years, the Lumiang Cave represents old Igorot (indigenous people of this area) burial
traditions. There are about 200 coffins in the cave, many of which are stacked one on top of the other.
The dark corners of the cave house the remains of the oldest Igorot ancestors.
The Sumaguing cave, on the other hand, is famous for the rock formations within. Known as the ‘big
cave’, Sumaguing has the largest chamber among the Sagada caves. Inside you can find various rock
formations with nicknames such as the ‘King’s Curtain’, ‘Shark’s Head’, and ‘Chocolate Cake’, which give
you an idea of what they look like. Descending into the cave is not an easy task, and visitors are
encouraged to do so with bare feet for increased traction.

Having gotten our asses kicked by Sumaguing cave the previous day, we decided not to do much the
next day. We did go out to get some food and see the St. Mary’s Church, but most of the day was spent
watching the National Geographic Channel. Yes, it was a bit pathetic watching cable TV in the middle of
a Nat Geo-worthy destination, but we needed to recover.

After 2 days in paradise, it was time to head back to La Trinidad. I will never forget the sights, sounds,
and experiences of this trip and it feels good to finally get this out of my head, off my hard drive,
and written down after so long.  
Ban- Ang, J. HUMSS 12 – B LOYALTY

Travelogue in La Union

August 24, 2019. I got so excited because the last time I was here was 7 years ago. It was beautiful and
cool! It’s so cold that time and I was scared to swim. But I was happy because I had learned how to swim
with my cousins.

At the time of 11 : 53. We Gathered and we eat a lot of foods.

Our next stop SAN GABRIEL, LA UNION

San Gabriel is a barrio within La Union. It is where my father’s grew up and were we used to go home
every year. I love this place because it’s peaceful, beautiful, free from noise pollution and the people
here live a simple life. Sometimes, I get pissed off with all the chaos in the City that’s why when I’m here,
I forget about all the problems. Because you can’t bring them in here. Before, there’s no network signal
unlike now. Back then when I’m here I could actually tell myself this” ahhh.. “Finally, I’m out of reach. No
phone calls, no unwanted text messages, and no internet and there’s no way they could contact me
about school stuff” but now the barrio has developed a bit.

This is what you will see once you are inside the barrio. This is Farmville in real life. If you want to live a
simple life, Be a farmer. I guess you’ll have fewer problems. But first, you have to be contented in being
farmer.

And so that ends our trip to La Union. I’m hoping to come back in summer with my other friends. I had
so much fun. I wish I could travel more. It relieves me from all the stress.