Unlike my other peregrinations of which I was accompanied by either my friends in school or relatives, I went to Sagada with my mom's officemates this time. So, I'm not really part of the plan but I was invited by my mother to tag along (for one reason that I'm supposed to be her 'yaya' - :P) and I took it as an opportunity to see places I have never set my eyes on.
I am really out of words to what happened to us in Sagada. So here are the pictures ...
A group picture with the entrance to the cave behind us. The entrance itself looks like a habitat of a hideous monster or something :\
A bunch of coffins behind us in the picture. The tour guide said that there used to be hundreds of them way back but an earthquake struck and the coffins fell inside the cave and some cracked open (After hearing this, pictures of people locked up in dungeons with skulls and human bones covering the floor suddenly popped out of my head). You may also have noticed that some of the coffins are small, if you think they're babies, well, you are mistaken. According to the guides, the cadavers were placed inside the coffins in fetal position but I dont quite remember the reason why. On our way to the cave, we passed by some coffins made out of natural tree woods hanging in enormous calcium stones. The origin of this says that suspending the coffins would bring them closer to heaven aided by the forces of nature. This ancient practice is still being done by minority groups and the last coffin hanged was in year 2010.
... I did not dare touch any of those coffins.
The thing that worried me the most while inside the cave wasn't the fact that there are bats inside, that I can fall into a pit of abyss with one wrong step, break my bones, slip and get stuck inside forever...what worried me was the fact that my mom was with us ...'spelunking' - rappelling, entering small holes I never imagined she could pass through and climbing what seemed like a 90 degree slippery wall without any gear or protection. I dont know how many times I've prayed to God everytime she enters a hole or when I see her struggling. Seriously, this spelunking was no joke...the only thing you can hold on to and trust your life with is you faith - nothing more.
So, here's the thing; When you enter the cave make sure that you're confident and full hearted because once you're in you cannot go back and the only way out is some 3-4 hours of wild and nerve racking adventure.
The tour guide made me step on his right thigh to help me go down that humongous rock!
Just imagine how dark it would be without the latterns and it was so cold down there that I could literally see my breath come out of my mouth,
I have to say, the tour guides deserve a huge amount of credit for this journey. The guy in the yellow shirt carried all of us, one by one, on his back so that we could enter the hole. Thank you so much! If you're planning to explore the caves please do not forget to say even a simple thank you to the tour guides who'll accompany you because the things they do can take their lives away with a blink of an eye, so be grateful at least :)
With mom! :D I wonder what sort of things bothered her the entire time.
Post conference. Everyone was asking "why are we doing this?", "why are we here in the first place?" and "bakit ba natin pinapahirapan ang sarili natin?!"
I was holding a sarong because mom said I might need some extra layer of clothing inside the cave, so no...that sarong is not a fashion statement :))
With my future boss' - thank you for this trip! :D
Most people were amazed with the stalagmite and stalactite formations but those didn't really catch my eye. I remember during first year highschool when we went to Biak na Bato and I saw the most spectacular and out of this world stalagmite - glistening like a huge rock of diamond in the middle of the dark. I saw nothing like that in the caves. But the stories behind the formations in the Lumiang cave was really something worth listening ;)
There was one point inside the cave where we had to immerse ourselves in chest deep water to cross to the other side and the ice cold water felt like I was being bitten by ants. I thought I was going to suffer from frostbite. Hmm, at least I got a little taste of how it feels to die like Jack in Titanic. Fun, nonetheless,
Yey, finally out after 4 hours! WE SURVIVED!
Conquering Sagada felt like I could conquer anything in the world. Everyone should really go and try this adrenaline kicking adventure but make sure you're fit enough to enter. This turned out to be an adventure of a lifetime, I guess. Until now I still cannot fathom how I was able to survive the caves... that was quite a feat! Despite the risks and "I'm gonna pass through that?! are-you-kidding-me?" I absolutely and certainly enjoyed the experience - very redefining actually: I went home as a stronger spirit! The feeling is unexplainable and the only way I can tell you how is if you go to Sagada and experience the caves for yourself!
Tips for spelunking:
1. Wear slippers because there are parts in the cave when you have to remove your footwear. Actually, I gave my slippers to the tour guide and walked on my bare feet the whole time.
2. Bring only yourself and a camera. Don't hesitate to bring your SLR because the tour guides can hold them and protect them from any damage.
3. Stretch before entering because muscle ache tends to be more painful after without some pre-exercise of some kind.
4. Trust the ropes and trust your tour guides :)
5. Do not hurry while exploring the cave. It's okay to move slow as long as you know you're not going to fall off or slip.
6. No need for a flashlight. The tour guides' lamps will suffice.
7. You'll also find your hand gloves very useful.
8. Wear anything you're most comfortable with just make sure you can extend both your legs and hands to its maximum with your clothes. Wear leggings if you don't want any scratches on your precious legs :)
9. Oh.. and bring water. Don't worry, you can give them it the tour guides and just ask for it when you get thirsty along the way.
10. Pray before entering that exit the cave alive :) I'm not scaring you or anything. It's just that you really have to pray.
My mom asked me if i would dare do this again and I was quite puzzled with that question. It's not an easy yes but I guess I will... but not for the next couple of years :P
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