Banaue

After two days in Manila we decided to head up to Banaue. Our bus left at 10pm and was supposed to arrive between 6-7am the next day. However a massive traffic jam had us halted for hours and we finally rolled in at 3pm! Worse is that it was an old Korean intercity bus that I know for a fact makes the rounds between Andong and Daegu (around 1.5 hours) and is designed accordingly. Anyway it was a story.

However it was well worth it as when we made it to the hotel, the Native Village Inn up in the mountains, we were treated to absolutely stunning views of the rice terraces.

You can read all about them here.

This is among the most amazing places that I have ever been and the fact that it is relatively inaccessible, usually requiring a driver and often a guide, makes it quite remote and thus not a touristy as other parts of the Philippines.

We did two days of intense hiking (though the heat and humidity made it worse than it actually was I think) but saw some amazing scenery. We also managed a dip in a hot spring and swim in a cool river next to a huge waterfall. I can't say enough about it so here is a few pics: