Why we Travel by Pico Lyer

"We travel, initially, to lose ourselves; and we travel, next, to find ourselves.

We travel to open our hearts and eyes and learn more about the world than our newspapers will accommodate.

We travel to bring what little we can, in our ignorance and knowledge, to those parts of the globe whose riches are differently dispersed.

And we travel, in essence, to become young fools again -- to slow time down and get taken in, and fall in love once more."

We "need sometimes to escape into open solitudes, into aimlessness, into the moral holiday of running some pure hazard, in order to sharpen the edge of life, to taste hardship, and to be compelled to work desperately for a moment at no matter what."

I like that stress on work, since never more than on the road are we shown how proportional our blessings are to the difficulty that precedes them; and I like the stress on a holiday that's "moral" since we fall into our ethical habits as easily as into our beds at night.

Few of us ever forget the connection between "travel" and "travail," and I know that I travel in large part in search of hardship -- both my own, which I want to feel, and others', which I need to see. Travel in that sense guides us toward a better balance of wisdom and compassion -- of seeing the world clearly, and yet feeling it truly. For seeing without feeling can obviously be uncaring; while feeling without seeing can be blind"

(by: Pico Lyer on Why we Travel, March 18, 2000)

Friday, January 4, 2008

Baguio-Sagada-Baguio

Lizardo Bus is located at the Dangwa Bus Station behind Center Mall - or just ask for the taxi driver to bring you to Dangwa Bus Station. When you reach the station, inquire where the Lizardo Buses park. If you are too early you can have your coffee at the nearby restaurants such as the Good Taste Restaurant, the Mangs Restaurant, or the other one.

The buses departs daily from 6:00 am to 1:00 pm from Baguio to Sagada, every hour. Towards Baguio: the buses departs from 6:00 am to 1:00 p.m. every hour except 12:00 noon.

Travel Time is 6hours to 8 hours depending on the traffic and road conditions
Road is Halsema High-way; Fare: P220/person
Environmental Fee per person = P10 (to be paid at the municipal hall)
Sagada Environemental Guides Rates = from P200 to P350 per guide depending on the number of people and the destination

Fare: P220