If you’re planning to get a traditional tattoo, then Buscalan Village in Kalinga Province is the place to go.
These kinds of indelible marks are something that is earned by warriors back in the day by killing or winning victories for their respective tribes, also, it signifies respect and status in the community and has spiritual connotations.
But as of today, it is still something earned by people, not by killing, but by braving the long and daring road to reach this village shrouded in mist of the cordillera highlands.
Head-hunting back in the days is a thing in Kalinga, but has now been banned amidst being in the blood culture of the Butbut Kalinga Tribe.A Tattoo depicting the Sun, while being applied at the back below the nape
Up until the present time, there is still a common misconception that it is still part of Apayao, thus Kalinga-Apayao, but due to the partitioning done by the government in the year 1995, they are split into two separate provinces.
One of the many the rice terraces of Kalinga.
An enigma to travelers and locals alike, there is always a peculiar surprise waiting for the brave of heart who sets foot at some of the relatively undiscovered places in the province. .
Kalinga, is a mountainous province located north of Luzon, it is also part of the Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR). Its capital is Tabuk and borders Mountain Province to the south, Abra to the west, Isabela to the east, Cagayan to the northeast, and Apayao to the north.
How To Get There:
There are two options to choose from to reach Buscalan:
Option #1 via Tabuk City, Kalinga
As of writing, Victory Liner has direct trips daily to Tabuk City, Kalinga. Their Terminal is at Kamias, Cubao, Quezon City. Make sure to arrive earlier to secure your reservation as it can’t be done online. This trip passes by the North Luzon Expressway (NLEX) along the provinces of Bulacan to Nueva Ecija, Nueva Vizcaya and Isabela, the trip takes an average of 10-12 hours with a stop-over in Aritao, Nueva Vizcaya before arriving in Bulanao, Tabuk City. (Fare: 730php, Regular Aircon) Manila to Tabuk trips usually departs by 7:00pm daily, you can check their bus schedules HERE.
If you miss the direct trip to Tabuk, you can opt to take the Tuguegarao bound buses then drop off at the intersection of Gamu in Isabela then ask for the jeeps that are bound for Tabuk City in Kalinga. (Trip takes more than an hour and fare starts at 70php, last trip at 4:00pm)
Alight at Bulanao and ask the locals for the terminals of Bus and Jeeps that are bound for Bontoc, Mountain Province, it is across St. William’s Cathedral. Jeepney fare going to Turning Point in Tinglayan starts at 150php, and trip takes an average of 2-3 hours.
Drop-off at Turning Point, this is a road on the right side that has a signage that leads to the Buscalan Tattoo Village. Contact your guides prior to your arrival so that they can arrange for a habal-habal ride as the ascent on the concrete road leading to the jump-off is still a couple of kilometers away.
One of the many the rice terraces of Buscalan, Kalinga.
Option #2 via Bontoc, Mountain Province
There are no direct bus trips from Manila to Bontoc , but during the first half of 2016, CODA Bus Lines came into the scene offering direct trips from Manila to Sagad via Bontoc, Mountain Province. Manila to Sagada trips usually departs by 9:00pm daily, you can check their bus schedules HERE.
Upon arrival in Bontoc, Mountain Province ask the locals for the terminal
If you miss the direct trip to Bontoc, there are still options:
Via Baguio City: Take any Baguio bound bus in Manila such as Victory Liner in Cubao and in Pasay, fare starts at 445php and trip takes an average of 4-5hrs, this passes by the North Luzon Expresway (NLEX) to Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway (SCTEX) to Tarlac-Pangasinan-La Union Expressway (TPLEX) before the winding ascent to Baguio via the Marcos Highway. Upon arrival, take a cab going to the slaughter house, and catch the Rising Sun Bus en route for Bontoc. Trip from Baguio to Bontoc takes an average of six hours and fare starts at 250php.
Via Banaue: Ohayami Trans has daily trips to Banaue, Ifugao and they usally leave by 9:00 and 10:00 in the evening. Their terminal is at Fajardo St., Lacson Avenue in Sampaloc, Manila. Check their bus schedules HERE. (Trip takes an average of 10 hours, fare starts at 450php). Upon arrival at Banaue, transfer to Bontoc bound jeeps at the public market that is beneath the bus terminal and tourism office. Travel time from Banaue to Bontoc takes an average of 1.5 hours and fare starts at 150php.
When you are already in Bontoc, look for the Mountain Province State Polytechnic College (MPSPC) opposite the overpass is where the Bus and Jeeps bound for Tabuk waits for passengers. Travel time to Turning point takes an hour and fare starts at 100php. (Quick Tip: Try toploading, it will be twice as epic!)
Drop-off at Turning Point, this is a road on the left side that has a signage that leads to the Buscalan Tattoo Village. Contact your guides prior to your arrival so that they can arrange for a habal-habal ride as the ascent on the concrete road leading to the jump-off is still a couple of kilometers away.
Upon arrival at the jump-off point, the village is still quite far and the hike takes almost an hour to reach by foot, you guide will arrange for your accommodation upon your arrival.
Products from the lowlands are brought up to the village through the use of this cable car
Where To Stay:
There are numerous homestays to choose from, and they are not your typical hotel rooms or dormitories but houses of locals that they vacated for a while to accommodate their guests. Your guide will arrange this for you, usual rates starts at 250php/pax/night and comes with unlimited Kalinga Coffee and Rice.
Our host in Kalinga who prepared one of the best Kalinga Coffee I ever had.
Tattoo Guide:
What is the difference between the traditional hand tap tattoo compared to the modern one?
Modern methods uses machines with fine needles to apply the ink on your skin, usually pain is tolerable and won’t cause much bleeding. Traditional Pambabatok uses Grapefruit (Pomelo/Suha) or orange thorns to prick your skin with liquid charcoal used as ink. This thorn is placed in a bamboo or wooden stick and is tapped into your skin repeatedly until it sinks into the punctures made.
Bloodshed.
Is it safe?
Since the boom of tourist arrival in Buscalan in the year 2010, after several documentaries and features, I can’t seem to find any news or articles leading to a tattoo infection that they got from Buscalan. The artists uses wet wipes to wipe off excess ink and blood from the skin, you can bring your own if you want to.
The Thorn used will be given to you after the session or you may request to have it from the Mambabatok. Then coconut oil will be applied to the tattoo to keep moisture out of it. You can buy a vial of it from the locals for as low as 25Php per bottle.
If still not convinced you can apply topical antibiotics after consulting a doctor to make sure it won’t get infected.
Apo Whang-Od while applying her signature three dots on the author.
How will I get a tattoo? Can I choose the tattoo artist?
Again, the village follows the first come first served basis,the long travel and hike to get here does not entitle you to get in line first. Yes, you can choose the artist, the more famous they are (Grace and Ilyang) the longer the line will be.
Your guide will queue you with the artist that you want. Usually lines are long so you have to be patient but it is also the perfect time to mingle and observe the practices of the locals.
Will I get to choose the design?
YES. Usually, you can also let the artist decide on what kind of design suits you, just like Apo Whang-od back in the days who chooses the design and the person that she only wants to put a tattoo on. There are wooden boards around for the particular designs and you can mix and match it according to your wants.
The usual tattoo designs to choose from.
How much will the tattoo cost me?
Apo Whang-od’s three dot signature costs 100php, it is also customary to not ask the artist how much the tattoo costs, they will determine it after they have already done it. But to give you an overview, it depends on the size, intricacy of the tattoo and the time it took to finish.
Small designs like the arrowhead, Fern, Scorpion usually starts at 300php, medium designs like the Prayer, Mountains, Sun, Moon, Traveller and Compass starts at 500php, while other intricate designs like the Serpent Eagle, Centipede and snake starts at 700php.
Some designs may even reach 1000php-3000php. So prepare your pockets accordingly and plan your design well, but it is much better if you will stick to the usual designs by Apo Whang-od and not interchange them.
Will it hurt?
“Parang kagat lang yan ng langgam” (It’s like being bitten by an ant) locals will tell you, yes it will hurt and it depends on what part of your body you will have your tattoo, the closer to the bone, the more it will hurt.
First taps doesn’t really hurt, but once they apply the second ink on the now punctured skin, intermittent streaks of pain will follow.
Apo Whang-od, due to old age, taps harder than her two apprentices Grace and Elyang, but the nieces pay close attention to details.
She had serpent scales applied around her forearm so that explains the reaction.
How long will it take?
Signature of Apo takes around 5 minutes then you can have your phot with her afterwards. Again, the time it takes to finish a tattoo depends on the size and where it will be applied, the arrowheads on my arm took around 20 minutes to finish, while the compass, traveler, sun and moon tattoos took less than an hour to finish.
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How should I take care of the Tattoo?
Before the tattoo session, please do take a bath as it is recommended to have your skin clean prior to it, and it is also customary to keep it dry for a day before taking a bath again.
Apply coconut oil to the tattoo regularly and keep it dry at all times, just like nursing a wound it is important that it is clean and dry to avoid infections that may start underneath the layer.
After several days you will start to notice that the skin will start to peel and it will ’cause a rather annoying kind of itch, but please refrain from scratching it as it is already healing.
My Tattoo during the first seven days, applying coconut oil daily to prevent moisture.
Travel Tips:
The best time to visit Buscalan is during the dry months and most specially during May where the village holds several festivities for the bounty of their harvest and other celebrations. Monsoon months may ’cause the trail leading to the village to be muddy and hard to traverse, moreover, rock slides and land slides poses a serious threat to the Tabuk-Bontoc Highway.
Please also do visit the village during weekdays where there are less tourist visiting the place, and do avoid going during weekends to lessen the impact and congestion to the local community. We visited on a Friday and there are only a couple of tourist lining up for a tattoo with the Mambabatoks.
Getting a guide is mandatory as per local tourism ordinances, they are pegged at 1000php per day for a group of 5 people, they will not just guide you around the village but they also act as your interpreter as most of the locals speak in their local Butbut Kalinga tongue, even Apo Whang-od herself only speak with the local tongue but also has knowledge in Ilocano and hardly speaks Tagalog.
There are no eateries or restaurants in the village, but you can buy from the market before going there, buy canned goods at the local store, or ask your guides if they can cook for you, don’t worry about the rice and coffee since it is included in your home stay payment.
Prepare for quite a short hike, after almost 15-16 hours of land travel, you still have to hike up to their village from the jump-off point, this takes around 30 minutes to an hour.
Bring candies or goodies for the local kids, since these kids are accustomed to seeing tourists, they often ask for candies and even money, so just share food with them.
There is electricity in the village so you can charge up your gadgets, but expect it to be down during bad weather conditions.
Signal is very weak in the village, so inform your families and friends before going up in there.
Practice Leave No Trace (LNT) Policies bring your trash down and never take anything from the village, take only photos and memories.
New friends in higher places.
Things To See in Kalinga:
Extend Your Trip:
Itinerary and Expenses: 2D/1N Buscalan Trip
Day 0
2300 Cubao meet-up, depart for Kalinga Province via Nueva Vizcaya-Ifugao Highway
Day 01
0800 Arrival at Banaue, breakfast at Drop Zone Restaurant
0900 Sidetrip at Banaue Rice Terraces
1000 Depart for Bontoc, Mountain Province
1200 Arrival at Bontoc, CR Break
1400 Arrival at Turning Point, Tinglayan, Kalinga
1430 Start trek going to the village
1455 Arrival at Buscalan Village, settle down at homestay, tidy up
1600 Tattoo session with Apo Whang-od (100php, 3-dot signature)
1800 Back at homestay
1900 Dinner
1930 Homestay tattoo session with local Mambabatoks (200php, Arrowhead Tattoo)
2015 End of session
2100 Attend wedding feast
2230 Lights off
Day 02
0600 Wake up, explore village
0900 Breakfast
1000 Trek to rice terraces
1100 Homestay, pack-up
1300 Descend back to jump-off
1345 Travel back to Bontoc, Mountain Province
1530 Bontoc Town Proper, late lunch
1630 Depart for Manila via Baguio Road
1800 Bauko, Mountain Province, snack
2300 Sison, Pangasinan, late dinner
Day 03
0300 Back to Manila
Expenses: 2600php for Transportation, Food, Tattoo, Guides and Fees (Organized Event)
Safe Budget: 3000php and still depends on the Tattoo that you’ll be getting
Disclaimer: This is based on the actual trip that I have done, all information stated above is up to date as of writing. There are more options to choose from and please feel free to message me for any concerns and suggestions that comes up as you browse this series.
Big thanks to Team Lakbay Ahon for arranging and organizing this two-day transit and to Ms. Ghie Maldeguia for turning this team of strangers into friends afterwards. #TeamDalandan
Kalinga, is a mountainous province located north of Luzon, it is also part of the Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR). Its capital is Tabuk and borders Mountain Province to the south, Abra to the west, Isabela to the east, Cagayan to the northeast, and Apayao to the north.
