Manila was dumped by more than a month’s rain in August, finding it a bit difficult to go around. The unusual habagat (southwest winds) rains caused major floods in the Metro but that didn’t dampen our eagerness to travel. Once abated, a window opened to travel to Kalinga, a province I have longed wanted to visit, not only to see the famous mambabatok Fang-Od (Whang-od), but the curiosity to see the land of the head-hunters.
Kalinga
So off we go to the road to Tinglayan from Tabuk and spent a night in Sleeping Beauty Inn. The next day, we made the hike to Buscalan to meet Fang-Od and stayed at their village. Going back to Tinglayan the next day was an arduous journey across villages in a 6-hour hike across the mountains.
Mind Museum
August was also filled with some domestic duties as our family was helping our cousins to adapt a couple of young girls from our relatives who were left after their mom passed away. After more than 2 years of taking care of papers and all, it was a celebration when the International Adaptation Board gave them a go signal. My last trip with my nieces was at the Mind Museum. I wasn’t able to write about the museum visit yet but I’m glad they are living a better life now in Guam.
Ferdz Decena is an award-winning travel photographer, writer and blogger. His works has found print in publications such as Singapore Airlines’s Silver Kris, Philippine Airlines’ Mabuhay, Cebu Pacific’s Smile and Seair InFlight. He has also lent his expertise to various organizations like the Oceana Philippines, Lopez Group Foundation, Save the Children and World Vision, contributing quality images for their marketing materials.
