"You should visit the cemetery at sunset" said Mr. Bang, the owner of Rock Inn. "We do things a little differently here". Pris and I were in Sagada for the Nov.1 All Souls Day holiday and so having no real agenda for the day, we decided to go.
It turns out that in Sagada, instead of lighting candles, the locals light small bonfires at the graves of their departed. Two explanations were given, the first was a practical one - candles would just get blown out by the high winds in Sagada but the second one was more romantic - the hotter your bonfire, the more intense your remembrance of the dead. In any case, it sounded interesting.
We get there before sunset and a few bonfires were already lit. One of the locals informs us that the service at the Anglican church was not yet over and we might just want to walk in the woods before the main event happens. We take her advice and hike over to a hill that overlooks the cemetery and walk around. By the time we get back the sun had just set and this scene straight out of Dante's Inferno greeted us as we crested the hill.
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2 comments:
Love the cemetery shot.. It's so haunting... wooooooo!
What you can't see in the picture is the smoke. I ventured in from the safety of the hill I was on and was literally in tears within minutes. You're right though, super haunting.
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