Sagada: Kiltepan - What Happened?

I wrote a short one about Sadaga's Kiltepan sunrise here.

The first time I went to Sagada was back in the early 2000's and have been going back almost every year. Despite that, I never really went to experience Kiltepan until 2012 and I must say it was magical. 

We went with our good friends, Karen & Xy and we had a grand time taking photos and just taking in all the beauty of the sunrise over the mountains and the sea of clouds. There was only one other small group there with us. The other group left early and we also told our jeepney driver to go ahead because we plan to just walk back to town. Para kaming nasa kawalan, yung tipong matatakot ka kahit may araw na kasi walang ibang tao at feeling mo bigla nalang may werewolves na tatalon galing sa mga pine trees.

The following year (2013), we went back with my BIL, SIL and their friends. 

The view is still amazing although there is already a small crowd. 

Then a few days ago I saw some pictures taken in Kiltepan... and I was shocked. 

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Andaming tao, Bes! Nakakaloka! I haven't been to Sagada since I had my son.  Honestly, I really don't know what happened. So I did some reading up and stumbled upon blogs/articles also taking about this. There must be a correlation on the sudden influx of visitors to Kiltepan and the fame of the movie That Thing Called Tadhana. The movie was released in 2014. It's actually nice that movies and local soaps are promoting different places of the country because tourism helps create employment and income for the community. It also encourages the local tourism, you know, 'wag maging dayuhan sa sariling bayan. See as much of the Philippines as you can. But there must be some sort of regulation in place and environmental protection should also not be taken for granted.

You can't really blame people for wanting to visit Kiltepan, pictures just can't do justice on how beautiful and serene the experience is, well, at least for us.  I'm wondering how the experience is now that you have to elbow yourself into the crowd so you can get a good spot or a good shot of the view. 

I hope the LGU is doing (or has done) something about it. Regulating the number of visitors and proper waste disposal. And I hope fellow travelers stay responsible enough, too. I hope Kiltepan is still as beautiful and as raw as we've seen it a few years ago. Because, sayang naman. I've seen one of the most beautiful sunrises here, next to the one I've experienced at Mt. Pulag. 

The Saigon Experience

I don't have my travel notebook with me right now so I won't be able to write about the details of the trip but I haven't blogged about the Vietnam trip so I'm going to share some pictures and some of the things I can remember.  It has been 2 years.



I don't have problems sleeping at airports while waiting for a flight.

Since it was only a 6-day trip I only have my North Face backpack with me, I used to be a champion of travelling light like that.  I'm re-learning that skill now as through the years I have accumulated several additions to my "travel essentials".   



Of course, the classic picture-taking at the airport.

 If I can remember it correctly, Vietnam is an hour behind Philippine's +8 GMT time.  We arrived late in the evening at Tan Son Nhat Airport in HCMC which I still prefer to call Saigon, it just sounds nicer for me.  Good thing we already pre-arranged a coaster to pick us up at the airport and bring us to our hotel.  HCMC looked like Manila in the dark except that they have a lot of streets lined up with huge trees even larger than the trees lined up around UPD's Sunken Garden.




Dong Song Xanh's facade.


Although the hotel is located near Pham Ngu Lao -  HCMC's backpacker's district, it was pretty difficult to find Dong Song Xanh because it was tucked into one of HCMC's tiny alley's.  We had to go around for a bit to find it because it was not familiar even for our driver.



Dong Song Xanh's lobby.


Dong Song Xanh looked like a typical 4-storey house (or was it 5?).  We got a room for I think just around $3/night.  Super tipid to think that it accomodated all 9 of us. We opted to get just one room since we just needed to have a place for us to rest a bit and freshen up since we were heading for Siem Reap early the next day.  The lady at the front desk didn't seem so happy that we woke her up that late, she was grumpy and not friendly at all.  She hushed us a lot of times and refused to let out bigger baggages up to our rooms since it would create noise.  We put up with her attitude since we were all tired and were all eager to shower.



Despite the modern-ness of HCMC, you still see a lot of locals wearing the traditional cone-shaped hats.


So we left the hotel early so we can at least roam around Pham Ngu Lao before we leave for Siem Reap.  Pham Ngu Lao seems to be more alive at night than in the mornings.  It was like visiting Malate on a Sunday morning where the bars are just closing up and the the loud music, the smoke and the alcohol from the previous night left a faint hint hanging in the air. 




Pho with beef and fresh mint which was too strong for my taste buds.



I was sooooo tempted to put this inside my backpack. LOL!


Before going to Mai Linh's office for our Siem Reap tickets, we had to meet our college friend, Brian, who is now residing as a designer in HCMC.  He helped us arrange this trip.  He brought us to yet another alley to have breakfast of pho.  There were several  vendors scattered around the area, similar to our pares vendors, they cook their soups and noodles right in their mobile kitchens.  We went to one who even had tables set up in one of the tiny spaces between two buildings. The kind where if you are not careful enough, someone's airconditioner's drips will merge right into your soup. The pho was good, my friends enjoyed it a lot but I wasn't able to finish my bowl since the mint was too strong for my tastebuds.



This is my kind of breakfast food - banh mi.


I found something that I love though, I think they call it banh mi.  This is the Vietnamese version of the French baguette sandwich. They have all sorts of cold cuts and spreads to choose from including the very familiar Laughing Cow cheese spread.  I bought one for myself and took it with me as baon for the long drive to Siem Reap.



Discussing our plan of attack. ;)



I have never seen a city with this many motorbikes!

Seriously.  



How could someone like me who is so scared of crossing the street survive in a city like HCMC.

 

Before boarding our bus for Siem Reap, a group picture with Baray who looks like a local in his motorbike.

It takes a lot of motorbikes to intimidate me because I grew up around some since my father was a motorcross rider.  I was freakin' dumstrucked with the number of motorbikes in this city.

Comparing to Cambodia, it was more difficult to navigate Vietnam as a backpacker not only because of the traffic but also because of the language.  There seems to be more English-speaking people in Cambodia.  Even around Pham Ngu Lao it was difficult to ask for directions since most of the locals speak only very little English.  I also prefer Cambodia's more laid back feel compared to HCMC's hustle and bustle.  


Our Vietnam experience was fun but definitely bitin since it was more of just a stopover.  I am looking forward to going back to Vietnam, maybe explore the more laid-back northern region and experience Ha Long Bay. 

Soon.

A Kiss For Luck

Let me start with a vow - I will definitely go back to Siem Reap, Cambodia.

Here are the highlights of the trip: 

* Golden Mango Inn - if you are visiting Siem Reap, stay here.  Aside from being clean, spacious and affordable, what sold me to this hotel is the warm & very personal accommodation of Sony and his staff. They truly mean what they said in their website -"People come here as guests and leave as friends." It was actually painful to leave.

* Kim Soryar & Miss Alan (a woman of the world) - the best guides! Providing us a comfy van, making sure that we have cold towels & water, and sharing anecdotes. I can't imagine the trip without them. Kim even booked us the best seats for an Apsara dance.

* Angkor Thom, particularly the Bayon Temple (my favorite) - simply magnificent. Only $20 for a whole day tour of the complex. I tell you though, one day is not enough.

* The photo ops - we cannot have enough! Good thing that we have our official photographer, Albert. 

* The cheap thrills - tuktuk ride, souvenirs at the Night Market, the good food, the young hawkers at the temples (with their haunting chants - "one dollar...")

Tidbits:

* I highly suggest going for the Mekong Express Limousine Bus ($23) than MaiLinh Express ($16) if you're crossing from HCMC to Siem Reap.  We had a very bad experience with MaiLinh. When we reached the Vietnamese Immigration at Mocbai, we waited for almost 2 hours for our passports to get through. The MaiLinh personnel who was suppose to assist us just stood there while the other people from the other bus/tour companies sort of "haggled" their way so their group can cross the border. They also speak very little English so it was extremely difficult to communicate with them and know what's going on.  I will gladly pay for the extra $7 for MELB - they serve good pastries, are on time, took care of us at the immigration, and they have a "stewardess" on board who goes chattering giving you updates on your location & trivia about the places you pass by.

- to be continued...