Mayoyao Times

Visiting Mayoyao for the First Time - Stairway to Heaven

November 07, 2017

THINKING of going to Sagada for a vacation during the long holidays after Christmas? Think again. The recent indie film “That Thing Called Tadhana” has made Sagada so popular that it has now become the in place for many urban dwellers to escape to during the holiday season. There are other alternatives like Banaue, Mount Pulag and Buscalan but they have also become popular destinations for organized tours to the highlands, so expect them to be crowded as well during the holidays.

So for those who plan to go to the Cordilleras but wish to avoid the crowd, one of the best places to go is the town of Mayoyao in Ifugao province. It rarely gets tourists even during the peak month of December. Those who are bold enough to go there are rewarded with one of the best clusters of rice terraces in the world. In fact, its rice terraces are one of the few included in the UNESCO World Heritage site together with other terraces in Ifugao like Batad and Bangaan.

Unlike before when the road are not paved with concrete, travelling to Mayoyao is much easier now and it is only 45 kilometers away from Banaue. There are buses that travel on a daily basis but if you bring with you your own car, you’ll be in no worry of any rocky and unpaved roads anymore.

What the town may lack in tourist facilities it makes up in its natural attractions. There are at least eight rice terraces that dominate the landscape of Mayoyao. There are several waterfalls, several mountain trails (with one that goes up to Mount Amuyao and connects to the town of Barlig in Mountain Province) and several unique stone structures. It is a backpacker’s dream come true. You go out exploring during the day and spend the nights blending with the locals.

How to get there
There is one bus that goes from Solano, Nueva Vizcaya via Banaue to Santiago, Isabela and another one from Santiago to Banaue, and both make a brief stop in Mayoyao. So for those who wish to catch either one of these buses, they have to get on an evening bus from Manila that goes either to Banaue or Santiago. The Mayoyao-bound bus in Santiago leaves in the morning, while the one from Solano passes through Banaue around noontime. Recently, there are several minivans (UV Express) plying the Santiago-Anfonso Lista-Aguinaldo-Mayoyao route. The trip takes three hours (fare P140) from Santiago to Mayoyao.

Those with own private vehicles can access Mayoyao either via Banaue or Anfonso Lista. From Manila, take the triple Xs (NLEX, SCTEX and TPLEX) and exit at Pura and continue until San Jose. From San Jose, continue drive to Maharlika Highway via Dalton Pass to Santa Fe, Bambang and then Solano. After Solano, the road forks at Bagabag: go straight to Banaue or turn right to Santiago. The road to Banaue passes Lagawe before finally entering Banaue. Drive straight to the town center and continue driving to Bangaan, then Ducligan before finally ascending to Mayoyao.

The backdoor entry via Santiago starts right after a few kilometers after the junction to Magat Dam. It is easy to miss. Turn left and drive through the irrigation road and cross the long-span bridge at Magat River. At the end of the bridge is the welcome arch of Ifugao. Continue driving to Alfonso Lista, then Aguinaldo, before finally reaching Mayoyao.

What to see, what to do

As soon as you arrive in Mayoyao, register at the tourism office and pay the P25 environmental fee. The office can also brief you on the many attractions around the town, and help you prepare your itinerary and get a reliable local guide.

The town’s main attraction is still its well-preserved rice terraces: Mayoyao Proper; Chumang; Chaya; Bongan; Balangbang; Banhar; Buninan; and Mapawoy. A guide can take the visitors on the trail that connects Bongan, Mayoyao Proper, Balangbang and Buninan. The trek down to the terraces allows visitors to get a closer view of the Mayoyao’s unique rice terraces built with stonewalls.

The visitors will also get a chance to see Mayoyao pyramidal houses. The first level where the four posts are located is where the daily chores like washing clothes or pounding rice are done, the second level is for sleeping and for cooking, and the uppermost level is for storing rice and other supplies.

Three kilometres westward from Poblacion is the jump-off point to Tenogtog waterfalls. Tenogtog is just one of the half a dozen waterfalls around Mayoyao. Its jump-off point is the same as the one leading to Mount Amuyao.

Located in Balambang is the unusual Lumagig stone. It is a big boulder held by a smaller stone and is sitting precariously atop a rock that looks as if it would roll down from its base. The locals believe that the big stone was placed there by the spirit of their ancestors.

Another attraction is the Apfo’or or Burial stone on top of a hill. These centuries old igloo-like stone mausoleums contain the bodies of the town’s ancient warriors.

Where to stay, what to eat
Lodging in Mayoyao is very limited. Most visitors usually stay at Milcah Lodge. Milcah is owned by a charming old lady named Ruth Domingo (0935-2087698). Lodging at Milcah is P250 per person per day.

Another place to stay is at Pfalay Ta-o’ Inn also in Poblacion. It is a four-bedroom house with hot shower.

Big groups can also stay at Mayoyao Hostel. It is located about one kilometer from the poblacion. It has several rooms, a large parking space and affords a nice view of the five terraces.

Finding a place to eat in Mayoyao is not easy but there are few restaurants now and the public market is operational where you can find hotdogs, burgers and other things.

But the best way to eat in Mayoyao is to inform either the owner of the lodging house where you are staying to cook something for you for lunch or dinner. Here you will be treated to local home-cooked meals like cured meats and fresh vegetables. This is the best part of your stay in Mayayao: these home-cooked meals make you feel not like a stranger but a part of the family of these gentle but shy people whose culture and traditions have survived for many centuries.

Originally posted at Manila Times

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Events

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Ifugao power projects draw support, flak from residents

December 28, 2014

(originally posted: inquirere.net)—A 350-megawatt hydroelectric project awarded to SN Aboitiz Power Group (SNAP), covering the Alimit and Ibulao rivers in Ifugao province, will need to secure the free, prior and informed consent (FPIC) of 80 villages, according to Ifugao Gov. Denis Habawel.

Habawel said the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP) had started the FPIC process for the project in the towns of Lagawe, Mayoyao and Aguinaldo.

“The FPIC process may take until 2016, considering the number of villages that will be consulted,” he said.

In a text message, Rhoda Santos, SNAP corporate communication manager, confirmed that the villages were being consulted. “We are strictly following the FPIC process required by the indigenous peoples and that the process is ongoing,” she said.

Hydropower complex

The Department of Energy (DOE) awarded the project to SNAP in July. The DOE signed a renewable energy service contract (RESC) for an integrated hydropower complex to be composed of three facilities: the 100-MW Alimit plant, the 240-MW pumped storage facility and the 10-MW Olilicon plant.

The facilities are covered by a 25-year contract beginning on July 24, 2014 and may be renewed for another 25 years.

The facilities will be developed by a subsidiary, SNAP-Ifugao.

In a statement, SNAP said the integrated Ifugao power system was its first major project under the company’s Greenfield development program, which would expand the firm’s renewable energy portfolio by investing in potential small and large hydro projects in northern Luzon.

Difficulties

Another Ifugao power project in Tinoc town is facing difficulties from residents. A group of Tinoc residents in November asked the NCIP to stop a hydro project awarded to Quadriver Power Corp. after they withdrew their support for a memorandum of agreement (MOA) they signed with the firm in 2012 and another agreement in 2013, which included residents of another village.

Residents of barangays Eheb and Tokukan in Tinoc expressed their withdrawal from the agreement in a petition claiming that the FPIC process, which Quadriver Power undertook, was flawed.

“We were deceived. The contents of the MOA were not clear to us and we were rushed into signing it,” said Teofilo Wenhay, head of Eheb. Kimberlie Quitasol, Inquirer Northern Luzon

Events

The Igkhumtad Ad Majawjaw Celebration

May 12, 2014

MAYOYAO, IFUGAO, (May 12 : Edited) - With the theme “Preservation of Mayoyao as a Heritage Site through the Enhancement of its Culture and Local Resources”, this municipality celebrated its annual cultural festival called “Igkhumtad Ad Majawjaw” last April 25-27.

The three-day occasion was an opportunity for the people to display their unique cultural and traditional practices thru the different ethnic games, dances, songs and other activities.

According to Mayor Ronie Lumayna, preserving the good custom and traditions is a lesson for the young generation to appreciate, learn and cherish and challenges them to learn and understand that their history is the basic stepping stone towards the attainment of their dreams and aspirations for a more enhanced and developed modern Mayoyao.

Vice Mayor Jimmy Padchanan Jr. also added that this festival reminds all about the importance of cultural heritage not only for identity but also for tourism development and this festivity indicates another momentous event of the Mayoyao people inspired by a common interest and collective efforts to preserve their cultural heritage and meet the challenges of community development.

The festival featured native dances, ethnic games competition such as “manglon” or wood splitting, “olot” or rice pounding, “a-awwit” or native wrestling, “hanggor” or arm wrestling, “khubpfu” or foot wrestling, ennajatan” or climbing the pole, “akkad” or stilt walking, “linnet” or tug-of-war.

There were also ground demonstrations on creative dances, agro-industrial fair activities, woodcarving, rice-wine making, broom making, innovative cooking contest, contest on the display of recycled waste products and processed organic feeds/fertilizers and pesticides.(JDP/DBC-PIA CAR, Ifugao)

THE FESTIVAL HISTORY

On May 23, 1925 Gov. Gen. Leonard Wood signed executive order 27 creating the municipal district of Mayoyao effective on June 1, 1925.
Mayoyao is one of Ifugao’s 11 municipalities and has an almost 16,000 population scattered among its 27 barangays.

Every April 25 – 27, the municipality comes alive with its Igkhumtad ad Majawjaw in which locals actively participate, and which even residents from other Ifugao municipalities attend. According to municipal planning and development officer Florence Ponchilan, the festival name was changed into Tikhaw ad Majawjaw a few years ago but because the word “tikhaw” is associated with headhunting, Mayoyao officials decided to change back the name into Igkhumtad.

WHAT IT USED TO BE

The Ifugaos and Cordillerans as a whole continued to steadfastly observe their age-old traditions as the Spanish tried, but failed, to fully impose Christianity in the northern highlands.

Phunphuni is known as the deity of agriculture in Mayoyao. This deity was believed to control the growth and harvest of palay and other crops, and played a major role in the rice culture cycle.

Mayoyao’s rice agriculture calendar started with the pangngah or seedtime sowing sacrifice. Religious sacrifices of chickens and pigs were done to ensure full growth of the palay seedlings.

Drinking rice wine was also part of pangngah. Groups of men and young boys went from house to house and as they drank, they started singing the ergwad—which told of their ancestors’ exploits in deer hunting and human head taking.

Simultaneously done with the ergwad was mon ah-hujan wherein speakers outwit each other in an argument while boys listen purposely to learn more about their customs and traditions.

Next was the orpi sacrifice done after the transplanting of rice seedlings. There were additional rites and animal sacrifices performed by wealthy families in this sacrifice. Rituals and prayers were also much longer than those in the pangngah. Part of the Orpi ceremony was taking a sacrificed chicken to a designated rice paddy where a shaman performed rituals.

The lopeng religious rite with chicken sacrifice was next, done when the palay blooms are almost ripe. This involves driving away rice birds, rats, and other pests from the palay to ensure a bountiful harvest. A strict observance of a rest and prohibition day or ngilin was a must—no one was allowed to work on the rice fields or the kaingin.

The harvest season or pfoto came next wherein usual animal sacrifices of chicken or pigs were performed by every family.

In every barrio, a family starts a harvest called chupag while a shaman performs an animal sacrifice before men, women, and boys go to the fields to harvest. The following day is considered a holy day or ngilin. Harvest goes in full swing the next day.

When harvest is almost over, the most solemn celebration in Mayoyao’s rice calendar called tungngaw is observed. It is a one-day ngilinpracticed mostly in eastern and central Mayoyao. All man-made noise are avoided from dawn to six in the afternoon.

During tungngaw, people flock to the rivers to bathe. This day is also for young boys to train for adulthood and to learn about their customs and traditions. A shaman teaches the boys about religious rituals such as the chanting of the phartong which is part of the rice ritual.

A civilization rooted in the terraces

“Ifugaos were moving mountains long before they knew they could,” a municipal account of the Igkhumtad stated.
The creation of the terraces is an epic wonder in itself. But nowadays the inexplicable thing is how numerous descendants of a proud people that succeeded in
resisting foreign conquest are nearly oblivious of the threat to their culture.

Until the 29th, the beating of the gongs will be heard in Mayoyao’s centro, they say these gongs are sounded for “receiving blessings of confidence from ancestors, regaining faith in ourselves.” Locals will participate in the activities set for the festival—observed with the goal of keeping the Mayoyao traditions alive—but after the fiesta, what then?

The same sentiment has been said over and over. Eventually the hardworking and knowledgeable elders will be the only ones left toiling in the fields as most of
the youth are too influenced by the modern world.

This may be good for their personal growth, but dreadful for Ifugao’s fading cultural practices as a whole. For when there is no indigenous culture to safeguard anymore—and this is a question for every one of us—who are we letting ourselves become?

Efforts in preserving the rice terraces by well-meaning groups and individuals may hopefully pave the way for a more concerted attempt at reversing the destruction of these glorious living monuments of Filipino ingenuity.

SAVING A CULTURE

“These rituals of planting and harvest are not observed that much anymore,” Pinalgan said, adding that this is the greatest threat to the rice terraces.

Indigenous know-ledge (IK) holder Gloria Likiyan agrees, “The biggest threat aside from nature (erosion) is that indigenous knowledge is endangered, younger ones are looking for other jobs.”

Because rice planting and production is not deemed a viable livelihood in Ifugao as of now, residents look for other jobs in Quirino, Isabela, or Baguio, and then just return on harvest season.

Likiyan said that they are hoping to someday build a School of Living Traditions (SLT) in Mayoyao where songs and dances and the rice culture will be taught to children. The IK holders will get the kids to participate in the rice cycle activities so that they will know more about their history and their roles in safeguarding it for the future.

“Maybe if they learn it, they will do it,” she said.

Tourist guide Leandro Elahe said that they are only awaiting the availability of an area where they can do sit-ins and teach children about Mayoyao culture—a sort of SLT for the meantime. He added that restoration of rice terraces walls are also in progress.

Ifugao representative Solomon Chungalao, who is a Mayoyao native, said that eco-tourism or responsible tourism, and acculturation by visitors may help in preserving the fading rice culture.

“Modern times have set in, but still we have to preserve the basis of this culture,” he said.

He is now knee-deep in having primary irrigation channels to support the old irrigation canals built especially from Mayoyao’s Barangay Chaya to adjacent town Aguinaldo.

He also envisions new rice terraces to be built towards Isabela.

The Pochon Group, a youth organization formed in 2005 and a member of the Save the Ifugao Terraces Movement, arranges eco-tours in Mayoyao with the ultimate aim of saving its rice culture. They also engage in trainings to provide the less-fortunate opportunities for employment. One of Pochon Group’s tours is the Pfoto ad Majawjaw wherein lowlanders are encouraged to participate in Mayoyao local’s rice harvest rituals and practices.

Main references

“Mayoyao cultural and political history” by Rev. Matias Angiwan Sr.
see more at http://news.pia.gov.ph/article/view/151399359865/ifugao-town-celebrates-igkhumtad-ad-majawjaw-2014
http://baguiomidlandcourier.com.ph/anniv09_article.asp?mode=anniv09/supplements/kat.txt

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Visiting Mayoyao for the First Time - Stairway to Heaven

Community has never been dormant for OFW Cordillerans in Singapore

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