#  >  > Travellers Tales in Thailand and Asia >  >  > Philippine Forum >  >  Philippino Cordillera up hill 07

## forreachingme

Well, not much to do with some chaps from Ajarn, this thread is more like my annual trip report to this village...

Nananduang is perched high up hill in the Philippino Cordillera some 450 km north of Manila...

The life there is much stayed on goods exchange and the higways are quite different as you will discover following the story if you wish so...

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## forreachingme

I took my daughter and there we go to meet Uncle Piling, who is actualy, busy away from the village, cooking his tobacco...



He decided to offer me a few chickens and the ride back to the village, so the goods were tigth to the cart...

In the first picture you can make out that they use teak wood and sagat wood to cook the tobacco, i do not really know if selling the wood only could be may be more profitable, will see this later on...

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## forreachingme

i decided so to take some of the woods for further investigation...

All set, there we leave on the buffalo way...

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## forreachingme

Full speed back home...



That's now a 2 lane way....

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## forreachingme

Yes, those high ways are quite busy, this being normal mode of transportation there...



After a 10 minutes ride, we hit the city center, where traffic is really getting intense...

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## forreachingme

Teackwood and sagat being everywhere, i decided to make a new bench for the kitchen...



The back legs first will be cut out...



and some other parts...



Few wood pieces condemned to be used as cooking energy, was saved on the way and is now part of that bench we will see later on again...

It is my hollydays so, enough work, let's go to the beach for a day now...

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## forreachingme

So we booked, Jojo's 12 seater jeepney for the 1 hour ride down hill to the beach, here we wait for Jojo to come, he was allowed to bring his wife and kids along... We where some 25 - 30 people waiting for the ride...

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## William

great stuff mate!

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## forreachingme

Finally jojo turns up, but the Jeepcedes, is filled with a 20 pax allready !

They are coming from some 15 kms away and they heard that i sponsored a beach day, and the family can join, well i was not knowing that i had so many uncles...



well, this being the Phils, a 12 seater turns out to be a 30 or so as well...



let's load and see... After few tougths i offered to pay for another trip, because 50 people or more was quite a bit to much, specially if you know that any normal car refuses to go up or down there, so crazy the road alone is...

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## forreachingme

The first trip looked like that...



The way down looks like this, and much worse also, as here the pavement is made...



Half way nearly covered, here it is also very down hill...

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## forreachingme

The first trip reached safely Nalbo beach...



Crystal clear waters, wonderfull white sand...

but they do not really care about the to many plastic bags on the beach front, out of that, great place, the water must be around 28 celcius...



The kids enjoy the beach front, the boats in the back ground are Barkas...

But where are the parents ??

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## stroller

Great thread!

No doubt the 'Americano' forreachingme was expected to shoulder all expenses including lunch for all and booze for the many 'uncles'.

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## Aquaman

excellent!!

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## forreachingme

> Great thread!
> 
> No doubt the 'Americano' forreachingme was expected to shoulder all expenses including lunch for all and booze for the many 'uncles'.


 
Well, once a year... This people mostly leave without the use of money !

Up in the vilage, one will grow a pig for another, and once grown the meat is shared 50 / 50,   

2 goats are equal to one pig, and so on...

Bloody hell, so many pics to come and the thread just crashed, may be 6 pics to load again...

Anyway since it looks like some enjoy, let's go ahead ...

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## forreachingme

Yep, the parents hide in the beach huts...

This one rents for a day @ 300 Peso

The karaoke is 5 peso a song or 500 Peso a day....



pinoys love to karaoke ( my wallet knows it now ! )



This lady traveled from California to there, for this special day they had...

batch meeting thsy called it, meeting again 15 years after high school or so...

they were pretty drunk in that hut....

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## forreachingme

Finally it is 4 o clock, time to load the first trip on the jeepney...



Let's go, bye bye Nalbo beach...



The way we are loaded is quite standard for over there...

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## hillbilly

An excellent thread and some stunning photos. 
Great job forreaching me! :Smile:

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## Aquaman

> The way we are loaded is quite standard for over there...


Drunk or the capacity of the truck?

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## forreachingme

the way back was difficult, the first trip was kind of more lucky then the second, tose had to sleep in Santa Maria...The first trip, myself included had to walk the last 4 km up hill as rain started to fall...

the muddy road was slippery like ice, bare feet was the only way to go, the jeepney was parked after few slidings....

WEDDING SEASON, WTF every evening, they had a wedding, girls will seat around the dancing floor and people are called to dance for a fee...

A dance is 50 to 2000 peso, this to sponsor the couple... People from few villages around are called in, and turn by turn, this village is invited to choose a girl for the dance ( and pay the fee ! 0)...



Here the mayor came in the Barangay ( village ) ...

In this wedding they were placed in front of a decorative anel and it was written "wedlock" in the other barangay at the other wedding it was written "wed luck" 

Anyway 3 weddings i had to intend and i escaped 3 others, pffuuu, let's go on some more interesting stuff again...

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## forreachingme

> Originally Posted by forreachingme
> 
> The way we are loaded is quite standard for over there...
> 
> 
> Drunk or the capacity of the truck?


Both options can be ticked...

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## Aquaman

Nice!

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## forreachingme

Now a view of our hill house...

In front the old toilets, then the big kitchen and the 2 storey building for sleeping area...

it is not yet finished, neither walls are rendered, but slowly we will arrange all of this...

To build up there, the cost is double then to build down near the sea side, a brick up there is 9 peso and down it is only 4 peso... so it goes for cement and all what has to be carried up...



Just down in front of the house, we have some rice fields...



This people actually rent the place and pay 1 sack of rice for every 3 they get...

I think it is similar in many parts in Thailand...

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## forreachingme

We decided to go and see the Nara (Teackwood ) and the Sagat hills Lolo Riggy owns, so there we go, here towards Ring Ring Hut...



I still do not know what is SAGAT tree or wood, but it is a beautifull tropical hardwood, while studying a tree and leaves, i returned to the group and found them in some shade...

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## forreachingme

This are 2 SAGAT trees, this is in Illocano language, nothern filippino...

Next i'll post a leave of it...



The wood looks very similar fribrous as teack is beautifull and just great to carve....

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## forreachingme

Uncle joseph, then climbs the coco tree as we start to be thirsty...



Ring Ring Hut in the background and the coco tree with Joseph...

This people climb any tree with such ease, stunning, be it a 5 years old or the 55 years old grand mother, just up they go...




Balluog, the nephew enjoys the coco...

For a spoon they just cut a thin layer of the shell and there he had a nice spoon to eat the coco's inside...

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## forreachingme

We carried on with our trecking, i was invited in a Lumboy tree to eat the black fruits sweet and looking like cherries...

Then i found the niece perched up i another fruit tree, something big like apricots, quite good if ripe orange but they like it bitter and green...



Chinchin, the niece was not alone long in this tree...

Once the other kids saw her the quikly joined the picking...

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## forreachingme

Those are the Sagat hills of Riggy, if i like the wood i can have it he told me...

Not really interested in turning this to a desert i will study the possible project, but i still do not know what is Sagat wood...

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## forreachingme

View of the hills toward Mapanit village...

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## forreachingme

On the way back we found one Avocado tree, the fruits were rippe and just delicious...

Wild pineaplles were also picked but not yet rippe...

Near the house a goat has been selected ...






Here her previous house...



This Caldeng not came form the house live stock and i purchased it for 2 k Peso, by some people in need of paying something back down there in the civilisation...

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## forreachingme

Kids were happy playing with the swing







or just hanging around the other uncles car...






The swing in the house... tired after the trecking...

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## forreachingme

Well the bench was near completion (forgot to shoot it once finished !)



Here the side columns on Sagat wood... the bed is in teack...



Time for the caldeng to be slaughtered...

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## forreachingme

The butcher hangs the balls before to start burning the goat over the fire to clean the hairs off...



Well, they do not hang for long !




the in law saw that and immediately told me about this premium choice parts to be cooked asap...



work goes on quite fast...

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## forreachingme

No comment....



In the kitchen, there is no more piece bigger then 3 cm...

Even the head they choped, the skin is a good part as well they told me...




My food choice was this ! I input some garlic in it and BBQ...

The premium balls were not of interest to me, the intestine, heart and other such delicacy was for the cook-butchers...

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## forreachingme

The heart and intestine was for their apetizers...



The rest of the meat was in this big pot...

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## forreachingme

Bye bye, Nanangduan, hope to see you next year again...



Cheers

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## Wally Dorian Raffles

Thanks for sharing! Fantastic journey!

I've heard the can buy a house and land near the beach for US$5000 in phillies.

Is this true? Can the _farang_ do this?

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## corvettelover

great shots and interesting thanks for sharing

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## William

> Thanks for sharing! Fantastic journey!
> 
> I've heard the can buy a house and land near the beach for US$5000 in phillies.
> 
> Is this true? Can the _farang_ do this?


Wally, the last time I checked for a client, which was about 12 months ago, the PIs had very similar foreign ownership restrictions (with regard to land) that LoS has.  In fact, they may be a little more restrictive as "non-residents" (filipina) are also restricted on what they can buy.

But please consult a lawyer if you are interested in purchasing land

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## forreachingme

> Thanks for sharing! Fantastic journey!
> 
> I've heard the can buy a house and land near the beach for US$5000 in phillies.
> 
> Is this true? Can the _farang_ do this?


 
Dear oh dear, yes you can buy a shag for 5k Usd... But then to have a certain quality will be relying on your lown luck...

As told earlier one brick will be 4 Peso on beach level, as higher you go as more it will cost you...

There are plenty of people desparate about getting some cash where it could be possible deal for something decent...

Regarding the law for owning, i do not have much of a clue for the moment ! I invest every peso in the house on the name of the wify... I am trying to be a filipino but they say you cannot for the time being, let's see later on once i will decide to establish myself over there and invest for good and well...

This country over there has plenty of volcano eruptions, lahar thingies, and typhons, so for sure some places are available for 5 k Usd or less...

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## El Gibbon

There is a web forum run by an expat about living in the Philippines where questions of land and living are well presented. They have a forum newsletter that you recieve daily on various subjects.

When I was considering living there I found tons of info on COL, visas, land, cities etc.

"Moving to the Philippines ~ Living, Retire, Travel to the Philippines"

E. G.

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## String Cheese

Just excellent photos and wonderful commentary. Thanks for posting.

No diamonds this time?

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## Bobk_nyc

Wonderful stuff. I am hoping to visit Phils for a few weeks or a month, late this year, or early next.  I am really interested in soem real world experence.  Thanks

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## forreachingme

> Just excellent photos and wonderful commentary. Thanks for posting.
> 
> No diamonds this time?


 
unfortunately no diamonds, but plenty of Quartz... :Smile: 



I'm looking to find some alternatives for them as tobacco is  to common and not very profitable... Rubber tree plantation could be one option, but study is ongoing...


They just found some Gold treasure few villages away, left overs from Marco or World war 2, people always talk about those gold treasures in the Phils, and for once they really found some lingots...( just before elections, is it a concidence ??)

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## Wayne Kerr

Elections today ... heard things have been a little violent over the past few days. Everything okay in your part of town?

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## forreachingme

I was there last week, traveling through the country you have to cross check points made up by the elecom or some thing like that, a commission for the elections...

We traveled by the Partas bus, wich is a company owned by Chavit a guy running for election, few days earlier such a bus was embushed and few people got gunned down...

A village nearby where we are, one big politician was shot down, well he wanted to open investigation for some 15 milion pesos or so planned for irrigation projects but the money somehow disappeared... (the money not reappeared, but they found plenty of gold lingots nearby, ...)


Out of this, it was great to stay away from CNN and the TV for 10 days, nothing much happend, just a nearby buffalo head on head collision, but it was just avoided on time...

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## GracelessFawn

I've made plans to visit remote places in the Philippines and write about the different ethinic minorities/tribes still existing.  These people do not pay taxes, still practice slash and burn farming methods, live in tress, and are naked for the most part.  I believe no book has ever been written about the different tribes and their lifestyles.  It will be very fascinating to do that.  Anyway, that will have to wait.  I'm still busy living a life of misery in BKK and I'm not done partying yet.  LOL

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## forreachingme

^ thanks for your advice of th other white sandy beaches... i know of those, but unfortunatley no more time to do all of this, we make our yearly trip to the family up there, and it is allready nice...

Regarding the naked people, they are called MANGYAN ( may be some tribes only )

Some mangyan tribes  can be found as near as Mindoro Island, the first island south of Luzon, main big island...

If time permits, i will try enjoy the island of Phills again in some years... The north can show very nice sceneryes to ! 

But any travel over there is a real adventure...

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## stefalive

great report,
I hope I can go to visit phils this year

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## ossierob

Great post....sigh I do miss the Phils

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## Bangyai

> Dear oh dear, yes you can buy a shag for 5k Usd... But then to have a certain quality will be relying on your lown luck...
> 
> ...


Seems a bit expensive for a shag , but apart from that great pictures and an enjoyable read.

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