The journey to Banaue

Another early start today with the alarm at 5.45. It didn’t help that I had also slept poorly so although we’d allowed plenty of time for breakfast, I only had a coffee and some fruit.

We checked out and met our guide, Jezzy, in the hotel lobby. We were surprised to learn that she was to travel with us to Banaue and be our guide for the week, as we’d assumed we’d be met there by a local guide.

The drive to the airport went quite smoothly despite the notorious Manila traffic, as most people were going in the opposite direction at this time of day. We dropped off our bags and went through security, but our gate wasn’t yet announced so we sat for a while in the general area, on very hard seats! I bought some water and started to feel more human.

Jezzy had come prepared with a bag of snacks in case we hadn’t had breakfast. As I’d eaten so little, I was grateful to accept some calabaza chips which were very tasty. Our flight was delayed by about half an hour, so we sat for quite a while before our gate was announced. There were buses taking us to the plane and an unusual but clever ramp arrangement to reach the door.

Once seated there was another short delay but eventually we were off. The flying time to Cauayan was less than an hour so no sooner were we up than it seemed we were coming down. The airport was small and simple, so we soon had our luggage and were on our way to meet our driver for this part of our tour, Edwin. There was rain in the air, but it felt so much fresher than Manila, though still quite hot.

Jezzy proposed an early lunch while still in the city and asked if we were happy to eat Filipino food, which of course we were. She took us to a favourite local restaurant with a lush garden and individual wooden shelters.

She ordered far too much food but it was all tasty. There was rice of course (no meal here is complete without it), a traditional bone marrow soup known as bulalo, grilled chicken with a sweetish barbeque glaze and a mixed vegetable dish.

By the time we’d finished it was raining heavily. Edwin brought the car as close to the door as possible but we still got wet! Then we set out on the drive to Banaue. Jezzy told us it was about 140 kilometres, but it took around five hours due to the road conditions (lots of roadworks and in the mountains some landslides). I took some photos from the car, but she and Edwin were also helpful in stopping from time to time for photos. A woman turning the rice she was drying beside the road. A view from a bridge and another from the terrace of a café enterprisingly charging 5 pesos per person. And the arched sign announcing that we'd arrived in Banaue. Here's a random selection of photos taken on the journey, as I'm not sure of the exact locations.

Jezzy had warned us that hotel was quite simple, which I already knew, and in fact we were pleasantly surprised by the plain but welcoming lobby and our also plain but large room with great views of the mountains. There was hot water in the shower, albeit not in the washbasin, and for a rural area the WiFi was impressively fast.

Restaurant and lobby area (with Edwin by the window)

Our stay at the Tam An Inn included dinner. We had delicious traditional soup, Tinola, to start with, strongly flavoured with ginger, which Jezzy told us she had made herself. It was piping hot too, perfect for the chilly evening. A pity that couldn’t have been said of the main course dishes, served buffet style and barely warm. The vegetables were however nicely cooked, and even if the fish batter was a little thick and dull, the sauce offered as an accompaniment was great. I also enjoyed the fresh mango served as dessert.

When we went to bed the rain was so heavy and noisy I needed ear-plugs to be able to sleep. We wondered what tomorrow would bring ...