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osmalicBack from Banaue. On one hand, it was kind of disappointing because we arrived only to learn that the excavation was closing--they couldn't open another trench until the harvest season ends next week. On the other hand, I did manage to dig through one trench, and it feels like the three days we were there we only shopped. A friend of mine was trying to get me to go to Baguio, but we had no more money and too many papers to write.
I usually don't post excavation pictures, but since I technically didn't excavate and because Banaue is beautiful, I just had to upload some. Here's a picture of the "traditional" house of the Ifugao tribe. The one on the left still has a cogon roof that they have to change every 2 years, and the one on the right already has the tin roof. Yet the architecture is the same--the ladder leads to the inside of the house--where the family unit lives, eats and hang their rice harvest; the flooring under the house being maintained for farm animals and for rituals.
Right under the house is a small space for the ancestors' bones. These are wrapped in the death shroud and placed there for protection. It's a secondary burial.
The first day, we asked around for H. Otley Beyer's old house and grave. Beyer was an American, and the first person who ever did recorded archaeology in the Philippines, way back in the early 1900's. Although many of his works are now outdated, you have the respect the guy. His house burned down around 20 to 30 years ago (he had already passed on by then), and all that's left is the furnace and the foundations--which the locals have turned into a fish pond. Don't you love ingenuity? :)
Beyer was treated with the rituals of the local people's burial practices, so he was given his own house where his bones are located. His family's bones are also with his bones. Notice the cross on the door and the Christian sayings despite the indigenous practice. Also, the torn Philippine flag, which was placed there as a sign of honor but is now forgotten. (The girl reaching out to read the signs is my friend and colleague.)
Upon seeing the grave, my professor turned to me and asked, "So, if we cut the grave into half, do you think we'll get the Elder Wand?"
It made me burst out laughing. He had just recently read Deathly Hallows, but kept on asking me about the previous books because he mentioned he had no intention of reading the previous parts.
Right after that, we went to Batad; it's around an hour from the place we were staying and had many terraces that the team head is trying to map. We tried to go to the falls near it, but just couldn't. We were tired and I was sore, tired, hungry, hot, itchy, smelly...name it. I haven't hiked since April, and that time it was mostly in caves with gradually sloping terrain. Because the terrain in Batad are now shaped by the terraces, I was always afraid I would lose my footing. Not to mention I'm deathly afraid of heights, so I was concentrating hard not to let my knees shake so much so I wouldn't fall. Two hours before we left, I was going on four-wheel drive: on my hands and knees and climbing to the top, utterly mortified and embarrassed. God.
The next day, we excavated nearby. I don't have pictures of that--the team head has the pictures. But later on, we had to go through a hanging bridge aound 50 meters long--and above a deep ravine with a rocky river underneath. In the photo, the girl with the bag is another friend and colleague; the other girl is a local. Did I mention I hate heights? And just for comparison, there's another picture I took later from higher ground, while it was raining. The one in the circle is the hanging bridge. Please tell me I'm not an idiot for being scared. GUH.
Then we went to buy presents for our families and friends--and also for ourselves. We talked a bit with Mang Jose, a local woodcarver who does beautiful idols (locally called "Bulol") and from whom I bought one of his works: a carved sungka board with the shape of a lizard (in Indonesian, it's called congklak). I was being sentimental when I bought it. Our old sungka board when I was a child was thrown away because we ran out of cowry shells. Anyway, that's one of Mang Jose's works behind him.
And in a restaurant we went to...an acknowledgment to Final Fantasy VII! (because I'm so easily amused)
Oh, shush it. :)
And thus, after much hiking, climbing, and shopping, our holiday in Banaue ended.
***
People might have already seen this, but![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
_lore has a post with a link to an article: "Missing from 'Harry Potter' -- a real moral struggle, which practically explained everything I felt about Deathly Hallows. I've seen many meta essays and discussions about it, mostly about Snape, but I haven't read most of them yet. I'll make time to do so, but I'm glad the fans are still going strong on the Snape!love. There have been more DH-compliant fics popping out as well, and I have to hurry and catch up. I've only seen one that focused on Hermione's parents, but I'm expecting there'll be more interpretations. I hope so anyway, because I want that part of the book to be remembered.
On that note, I will not be making spoiler cuts for DH starting August 9.
***
I just read one of the hottest and best-est Nick/Greg ever. Byrispacooper, read Submission Games. It's inspired by Eric Szmanda in a miniskirt in Marilyn Manson's video (S)aint. Oh, what the heck, read all her Nick/Greg fics. They're perfect!
I usually don't post excavation pictures, but since I technically didn't excavate and because Banaue is beautiful, I just had to upload some. Here's a picture of the "traditional" house of the Ifugao tribe. The one on the left still has a cogon roof that they have to change every 2 years, and the one on the right already has the tin roof. Yet the architecture is the same--the ladder leads to the inside of the house--where the family unit lives, eats and hang their rice harvest; the flooring under the house being maintained for farm animals and for rituals.
Right under the house is a small space for the ancestors' bones. These are wrapped in the death shroud and placed there for protection. It's a secondary burial.
The first day, we asked around for H. Otley Beyer's old house and grave. Beyer was an American, and the first person who ever did recorded archaeology in the Philippines, way back in the early 1900's. Although many of his works are now outdated, you have the respect the guy. His house burned down around 20 to 30 years ago (he had already passed on by then), and all that's left is the furnace and the foundations--which the locals have turned into a fish pond. Don't you love ingenuity? :)
Beyer was treated with the rituals of the local people's burial practices, so he was given his own house where his bones are located. His family's bones are also with his bones. Notice the cross on the door and the Christian sayings despite the indigenous practice. Also, the torn Philippine flag, which was placed there as a sign of honor but is now forgotten. (The girl reaching out to read the signs is my friend and colleague.)
Upon seeing the grave, my professor turned to me and asked, "So, if we cut the grave into half, do you think we'll get the Elder Wand?"
It made me burst out laughing. He had just recently read Deathly Hallows, but kept on asking me about the previous books because he mentioned he had no intention of reading the previous parts.
Right after that, we went to Batad; it's around an hour from the place we were staying and had many terraces that the team head is trying to map. We tried to go to the falls near it, but just couldn't. We were tired and I was sore, tired, hungry, hot, itchy, smelly...name it. I haven't hiked since April, and that time it was mostly in caves with gradually sloping terrain. Because the terrain in Batad are now shaped by the terraces, I was always afraid I would lose my footing. Not to mention I'm deathly afraid of heights, so I was concentrating hard not to let my knees shake so much so I wouldn't fall. Two hours before we left, I was going on four-wheel drive: on my hands and knees and climbing to the top, utterly mortified and embarrassed. God.
The next day, we excavated nearby. I don't have pictures of that--the team head has the pictures. But later on, we had to go through a hanging bridge aound 50 meters long--and above a deep ravine with a rocky river underneath. In the photo, the girl with the bag is another friend and colleague; the other girl is a local. Did I mention I hate heights? And just for comparison, there's another picture I took later from higher ground, while it was raining. The one in the circle is the hanging bridge. Please tell me I'm not an idiot for being scared. GUH.
Then we went to buy presents for our families and friends--and also for ourselves. We talked a bit with Mang Jose, a local woodcarver who does beautiful idols (locally called "Bulol") and from whom I bought one of his works: a carved sungka board with the shape of a lizard (in Indonesian, it's called congklak). I was being sentimental when I bought it. Our old sungka board when I was a child was thrown away because we ran out of cowry shells. Anyway, that's one of Mang Jose's works behind him.
And in a restaurant we went to...an acknowledgment to Final Fantasy VII! (because I'm so easily amused)
Oh, shush it. :)
And thus, after much hiking, climbing, and shopping, our holiday in Banaue ended.
***
People might have already seen this, but
_lore has a post with a link to an article: "Missing from 'Harry Potter' -- a real moral struggle, which practically explained everything I felt about Deathly Hallows. I've seen many meta essays and discussions about it, mostly about Snape, but I haven't read most of them yet. I'll make time to do so, but I'm glad the fans are still going strong on the Snape!love. There have been more DH-compliant fics popping out as well, and I have to hurry and catch up. I've only seen one that focused on Hermione's parents, but I'm expecting there'll be more interpretations. I hope so anyway, because I want that part of the book to be remembered.On that note, I will not be making spoiler cuts for DH starting August 9.
***
I just read one of the hottest and best-est Nick/Greg ever. By
rispacooper, read Submission Games. It's inspired by Eric Szmanda in a miniskirt in Marilyn Manson's video (S)aint. Oh, what the heck, read all her Nick/Greg fics. They're perfect!
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
(no subject)
Date: 2007-07-31 11:25 am (UTC)As for HP and DH, I still maintain that HP = no EQ. Totally flat characterization. The reason why younger set got hooked on the series is because of the adventure (but I've read more gripping and entertaining ones)...and as for the older set, it's because of Snape and not Harry. *wink*
(no subject)
Date: 2007-07-31 04:27 pm (UTC)And yeah, I remember reading HP for the first time and remembering how unimpressed I was with Harry--but doing a "WOW" when it came to Snape. Each book just got better with him, even DH, okay. Because YEAH SNAPE. The problem with the series is that the original fans also grew up and expected more. And some things JKR probably isn't ready to dish out yet, with her experience as a writer. I'm not saying she hasn't done good, what I know is that she could have done better. /ends rant
(no subject)
Date: 2007-08-01 01:56 pm (UTC)