Sweet...SWEET...SWEET!!! Spicy... SPICY...SPICY!!! Oooops, Sorry!!! Got carried away for awhile there. Just wanna test if my shout will echo back at me. But in case you wanna know, yes, it did echo. In fact you are allowed to shout there at your hearts content. But hey, Echo Valley is a sacred ground. It is a burial site for the dead, so you better think twice of ever shouting again for you may get a different response. :)Kiddin aside, Sagada is famous for its Hanging Coffins and no trip to the place is complete without seeing them. One of the more popular site where you can see these hanging coffins is in Echo Valley.
Echo Valley is a short trek from the town proper and it is located just at the back of Saint Mary's Church. You will first pass by their modern cemetery where odd-shaped tombs, mostly painted white, are located. Just few minutes wall will lead you to the edge of the valley where you will have a decent view of the hanging coffins.
We descended down to have a closer look at the coffins on a tricky, wet trail and we literally found ourselves slipping on every corners (more on this next post). But then, a closer look at these hanging coffins is quite an experience that will make you wonder and marvel at this old age tradition of preserving the dead.
Here are my shots on the Echo Valley including the modern cemetery and the hanging coffins:
More of Sagada in my next posts.
I'll feature your post on Visit Sagada ha! :p
ReplyDeletebuti hinde napupuno ang cliff walls dyan. meron pa bang mga modern burials dyan?
ReplyDeleteThose are awesome!
ReplyDeleteYung hanging coffin pa rin... walang kupas... jijijijiji
ReplyDeleteanother great travelogue. galing ng shots! congrats sa blog awards! sayang dec. 6 pa dating ko. di ako makakasama sa photoshoot nyo.
ReplyDeletespectacular photos...the first photo is simply beautiful. i had an interesting time in that cemetery and Echo Valley. if you noticed, some old head stones didn't indicate the dates of birth and death, but the season he/she was born and died. i even asked some teenagers to translate the words for me but they said those were old words in their dialect. the hotel manager later told me the words in the head stones were seasons, like planting season, harvest, etc.
ReplyDeleteAng kulit .. parang mga baul lang na nakasabit. heheh..
ReplyDeletenice pictures. ang ganda ang Echo Valley
I am afraid of coffins for no reason lol so this place is not for me.
ReplyDeleteuhmmm... naisip ko lang.
ReplyDeletedi pala ako pwedeng mag-isang pumunta dito. :) uhhh... kakatakot.
pero the view is so awesome. i want to go there someday.
awesome post bro. speaking of echos responding differently, naalala ko tuloy si rene requiestas hehe
ReplyDeleteYikes, your post today sounds and looked scary especially the hanging coffins. I am getting goosebumps now. Not sure that is the kind of adventure I would like to try.
ReplyDeleteWow! This is amazing! The hanging coffins are so interesting! But scary and eerie too! Why are the coffins hanged like that? Don't they get damaged by nature?
ReplyDeletethose were the actual words you screamed at echo valley? hehe...good thing nobody shouted back if you wanted fries with your order. :P
ReplyDeletei hope the hanging coffins remain undisturbed for more tourists to see.
Wow that's just fascinating... and a tad eerie. I'm scrolling down to earlier posts too. You're such a fine photographer.
ReplyDeleteLS: Splendid post with some great info, your photos are really neat.
ReplyDeleteOh, yes, I do hear an echo. ;-)
ReplyDeleteI'm curious as to why the coffins are hanging there.
Gorgeous pictures as always!
ReplyDeleteI am curious as to why the coffins were hanging there. Is that some sort of ritual or something.
ReplyDeletewow, im loving the first photo! :) if i saw this post at midnight i might have gotten scared of the hanging coffins. hehe.
ReplyDeletei read you other posts too. ang taas na pala tlga ng sagada.
have a great day!
good morning guys and thanks for your comments.
ReplyDeleteit's my sister's bday and i am one of the designated cook so it is goin to be one busy day.
@ lateralus - sure benj. thanks again for the invite.
@ lantaw - bro from what i gather, there are still modern burials there but you really have to be rich and important for you to have your coffins hanged in the valley 'coz u need to sacrifice lots of pigs and chickens... and i mean a lot.
@ foongpc, EG and photocache - it is a tradition of almost two thousand years. i gather that the coffins are hanged because they believe that they are closer to heaven and also to protect the coffins from the forces of nature.
Great Sagada series. I can't forget getting muddied the first time I went to Echo Valley on my own guided by an LP Philippines map.
ReplyDeleteTo answer Photo Cache's query, the Igorots believe that the tradition of hanging the dead brings them closer to heaven besides protecting the bodies from floods/wild animals.
Those coffins are extra-ordinary bordering on creepiness but I do love the nature where they hang. Lovely set of photos here.
ReplyDeleteThat's one thing I never thought I'd see. Amazing stuff Lawstude!
ReplyDeleteThose are amazing. Great shots!
ReplyDeleteI have never seen anything like those hanging coffins, never even knew you could do something like that. I love the light in your first picture of the post, but you have many wonderful shots on your blog!
ReplyDeletewow! what an amazing place! thank you for sharing!
ReplyDeleteHanging coffins? That is something I do not expect to see. Great shots although I could not get the sweet and spicy thing. ;-p
ReplyDeleteI have never seen anything like those hanging coffins...how interesting!!
ReplyDeleteHaha, I love your opening line. :D
ReplyDeleteI've always wanted to go to Sagada; layo lang kasi. Hehe.
i really find coffins (regardless if it's empty or not) to be scary, so I think that place wouldn't be in my itinerary if ever i have the time or budget to visit the country.
ReplyDeletegreat photos though!!!
How interesting! Your photos are great. I had never heard of hanging coffins, but this is really very eerie. I should like to know why those coffins are hanging thereband are there still bodies in them?
ReplyDeleteBTW my photos were from Australia and that's not where I live, but my daughter. I live in Holland so far away from the duststorm. Thanks for your visit.
ReplyDeleteEnjoyed several of your posts and photos. Had no idea such a place existed. Thanks for the tour
ReplyDeleteWow, such beautiful shots. When I started reading this post and you mentioned hanging coffins, I thought it would be a nature phenomenon - a type of tree that produced something that looked like a coffin. I was floored when I saw the actual coffins on the walls. I'm not so sure I would shout there though, I'm pretty superstitious!
ReplyDeleteI am awe struck by the beauty of your first two photos. You have a wonderful eye for photography and the world that surrounds you where ever you are...
ReplyDeleteI was amazed to see the hanging coffins. It was quite an ingenious idea, what ever the reason...
Kind regards, Pam
How very interesting. I know above-ground burials were/are common in New Orleans because of the high level of ground water, and this sounds like a similar practice. The spot is lovely in its own right, but even more so knowing it is a place of special significance to those who live nearby.
ReplyDeleteWow! These pictures are very interesting! I've never seen anything like it! Thanks for sharing =)
ReplyDeleteAmazing photos & blog! Thank you for visiting My Muskoka !
ReplyDeleteThe hanging coffins are something new for me, but I enjoyed your photos. The entire post is fascinating.
ReplyDeletewow, this place is a photographer's delight! I'm now wondering how these low tech folks managed to hang those coffins on the walls of a high mountain.
ReplyDeleteThat's quite a landscape. That must be something to see. This place suggests how important life is that people are so honored in death.
ReplyDeleteLawstude, amazing photos of a very interesting, beautiful, mysterious place! Thank you for sharing! :)
ReplyDeleteSome really beautiful and lovely shots !! Simply great post..Unseen Rajasthan
ReplyDeleteIn your picture... "Different Hues of Greens"... I can almost see a ghost !
ReplyDeleteSuperb images of those hanging coffins! Postcard perfect! Bravo !
I think you should change your blog to wordpress and show us your pictures in a bigger format... they are worth it !
ReplyDeleteisang historic place ng pinas ang lugar...sa picture makikita ang tradisyon minana pa sa mga ninuno.
ReplyDeleteSagada is one of the places I really would like to visit. Hope I could go there this coming summer.
ReplyDeletewow, your vivid photos were great!
ReplyDeletesagada's definoitely one of the must-see places...
the best and scariest part?
the hanging coffins! yikes! scary tlga! ^-^
btw, thnx for droppin by my blog...apprec8 it! ^-^
nyahaha
ReplyDeletenatawa ako sa echo joke mo
panalo
hehe
btw, kamusta kayo?
baha?
i hope you and your loved ones are safe and dry
wow fantastic!!! very awesome picture, i wish i can took that soon.. whoah!
ReplyDeleteFascinating. I'd never heard of these hanging coffins. What an interesting tradition.
ReplyDeleteHaha! I liked the humour through the intro. =) Sana makapunta ko dyan.
ReplyDeletedito pala ang sweet, spicy shout. lol. great adventure, memorable experience.
ReplyDeletesana you tried to shout. lawstude. tapos ang echo atty. tapos reply mo cpa.lol
Oh wow. Magnificent.
ReplyDeleteThe hanging coffins were featured in Lonely Planet as one of the places to see before one dies.
I can't die yet. I've yet to see the coffins.