Experience life on a traditional rice farm in Bontoc, Philippines

Details

• 

  Description

  My name is Jessie, I was born and raised in Bontoc, Mountain Province, in the northern Philippines. Bontoc is the capital of Mountain Province. Before moving to America, I worked as a tourist guide up north, my tours usually starts in Bontoc, Sagada, Banaue, and Buscalan. Before Buscalan got very popular from the world known tattoo artist I was one of the first tourist guide who brought tourist in the village bringing package tours from all over the Europe and America. It was the time when there was no electricity and all traditional houses.
  
  Growing up in the village of Bontoc that is surrounded with rice terraces in both side of the chico river. At a young age I started working in the rice fields with my parents who are both farmers. I learned to build stoned walled rice terraces, plowing the rice fields with carabao, preparing rice seedlings, transplanting rice seedlings and harvesting the rice. This became one of my specialties in explaining to my guest when I became a tourist guide which I started it in my own hometown before extending to other parts of mountain province, Ifugao and Kalinga. Besides the rice Terraces I also specialized in explaining the Bontoc culture and its tradition which I grew up doing it and participating in all cultural activities which my entire family practice. My grandfather once was the chief of the village before passing away which I'm always so proud to show his photograph at the Bontoc museum to my guest. whenever I have a free time in Bontoc during my visit I always volunteer myself at the Bontoc museum to explain everything to the guest on what they see inside and outside the museum.
  Every winter, I return home to Bontoc. From middle of December through the beginning of March, I spend approximately three months in my farm and continue maintaining the rice fields that I owned. by the time being that I'm not there my family and my local friends form the village are doing it. all the rice that we harvest is mostly for personal used and sometimes we donate some of it during special occasions like traditional weddings and sacrifices that happens in the village.
  
  One of the reasons I would love to welcome international volunteers to this project is to give them the opportunity to experience the traditional way of farming without heavy machinery involve mostly done by hand in preparing the rice fields, planting rice seedlings, maintaining the rice fields after plantation and harvesting the rice by hand.
  
  Besides just the rice field preparations, we also do our culture and traditions in the "Ato" as the whole community practice that nobody is allowed to go to the rice fields as we call it a rest day or "Tengaw" in our dialect. This is the day when the elders butcher a pig or a chicken honoring our traditional god Called Lumawig hoping for all the farmers to have good rice harvest.
  My goal about this project is pretty much the same as when I was a tourist guide back then. for the volunteers to experience traditional rice farming, learn about Bontoc culture and its tradition and become part of the Bontoc community for a short time and leave Bontoc with not just a photograph but to have a deeper understanding how rice was grown in Bontoc and understating Bontoc culture.

• 

  Types of help and learning opportunities

  Charity Work

  Art Projects

  Language practice

  Help with Eco Projects

  Teaching

  Light gardening

  Creative DIY projects

  Creating/ Cooking family meals

  Help around the house

  Hospitality/Tourism

  Help with Computers/ Internet
• 

  Interests

  

  Culture

  

  Farming

  

  Charity work

  

  Plant care

  

  Gardening

  

  Cooking & food

  

  Adventure sports

  

  Mountain

  

  Hiking
• 

  UN sustainability goals this host is trying to achieve

  ...

  ...

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  What's this?
• 

  Cultural exchange and learning opportunities

  Learning and understanding the stages of farming rice in Bontoc and its rice terraces.
  Learn and have a deeper understanding of the Bontoc culture and its traditions.
  Learning how Bontoc farmers working together in harvesting the rice as they alternate helping each other's rice fields especially during rice planting and harvesting.

• 

  Help

  It would be nice to have someone to share the farming experience with, everyone is welcome the main goal is to share our own skills and cultural differences.

• 

  Languages

  Languages spoken
  English: Fluent
  Tagalog: Fluent

  This host offers a language exchange
  Most people in Bontoc speak English, although many of the older farmers speak very little English and primarily speak the Bontoc dialect. I think that it would actually be a wonderful experience for the volunteers to learn some of the local language and also share some of their own language with the locals. It could make for some really interesting conversations while working together on the farm learning from one another, sharing stories, and exchanging languages and culture along the way. I experience in the past with some of my guest that the locals get so excited when my guest show them the photo of the winter season in their country that the local wish they also have winter in Bontoc which they don't exactly understand what winter brings.
• 

  Accommodation

  I have a house where volunteers can stay, with bathrooms and showers available.
  I will provide food for the volunteers, and we usually prepare the meals together. Many times, we cook with our local friends and family and enjoy making traditional dishes together.
  For vegetarian volunteers, food will not be an issue. My family in America is vegetarian, except for me, and I’m actually the one who does most of the cooking for my family, so I’m very comfortable preparing vegetarian meals.
  
  If you have any dietary restrictions, allergies, or special food requirements, please feel free to send me a message and let me know. I’m happy to work with you to make sure you have food that you can enjoy.

• 

  What else ...

  What volunteers can do on their days off will visit the malegcong rice terraces, visit Apo Wang-od the traditional tatoo artist in Buscalan, visit Sagada caves and its hanging coffins. Visit Banaue rice terraces. Since Bontoc is the capital of Mountain Province transportation are very accessible.
  I will be more than happy to walk with the volunteers around Bontoc and its villages to show them all the "Ato" that exist in the Bontoc village where rituals happen for the community and the farmers. Also, a hike to the Malegcong rice terraces which is nearby Bontoc. As a tour guide, I love sharing everything that I know about my culture for those who wants to learn and understand.
  
  I can bring the guest to the Bontoc Museum where theirs a minimal entrance fee for the guest, but I go in for free and help explain everything what's inside the museum which covers Bontoc tribe, Kalinga Tribe, Ifugao tribe and Kankan-ey tribe.
  
  After the day in the evening I usually like to bring my guest to visit with the local families in the village after the farmers come home from the rice fields so they can see the extra chores that villagers do after working in the fields like feeding their animals which is mostly pigs and chickens that are grown for sacrifices purposes before preparing their own foods for dinner most of the times locals like to invite guest to join and share their simple dinner and like have some exchange conversations together.
  
  if there's any more you want to know about Bontoc and its culture feel free to send me a message I would be more than happy to share what I know.

• 

  A little more information

  • 

    Internet access

  • 

    Limited internet access

  • 

    We have pets

  • 

    We are smokers

  • 

    Can host families

• 

  How many Workawayers can stay?

  More than two

Website Safety