The terraces of Mountain Province in the Philippines, located at a mountain range called the Cordillera, have inspired visitors since the turn of the century. Before this the terraces were little known outside the country, because the European colonists never subdued the natives who built them.

     Visitors from America first wrote about these magnificent works. The anthropoligist Ray Barton said these edifices were a "modification by man of the earth's surface on a scale unparalleled elsewhere...a massive modification beside which the Suez and Panama Canals are...insignificant."

     An early handbook on the Philippines published by the U.S. government wrote, "There is nothing comparable to them in the world. The pyramid of Cheops, or the tallest "skycraper" in New York, would appear insignificant beside these clear-cut, Herculean achievements..."

     But perhaps the best praises for the terraces were made by famed American travel writer Frank Carpenter, who wrote while marveling in the Cordillera: "If you live in New York or Boston we are separated by 10,000 miles of travel, to say nothing of centuries of civilization. Lofty building reared on steel ribs tower above you, spirit-driven motors whir past, elevated and electric cars clatter by, and beneath you subway trains roar as they go burrowing under the earth. What triumphs of civilized man's skill surround you! As for me, I am in the wilds of the Philippines in the capital of a land of so-called savages. And yet all about me are works of engineering, the like which you in the States cannot show. In the valley of the Nile I have studied the marvelous achievements of the ancient farmers. I have travelled in the footsteps of the Incas of Peru, whose subjects carried up earth on their backs and make irregated farms high on the slopes of the Andes, but my wildest imagination has never conceived the possibility of the rice terraces..."

     Basically the terraces can be divided into three main areas: Banaue, Bontoc, and Batad, or the "Three Bs" if you may. Although primarily used to grow rice, taro, cabbage, flowers and many other crops are also grown. Much of this produce is sent for sale in Manila. The people who work these terraces are as interesting as the structures themselves. Banaue, the most famous site, is located in the land of the Ifugaos while Bontoc and Batad are farmed by Igorots. Sometimes the natives can still be seen clad in loincloths or even "G-strings," but this is usually confined to the cultural shows.

     It is often difficult to connect the engineering feat that built the terraces with these simple folks, who seem to be from another age. But carve out the terraces they did , and according to some expert they started the work about 3,000 years ago.

     Seeing the terraces first-hand, one is struck with disbelief; it is almost incomprehensible that man alone, even with the help of modern technology, could accomplish such a breathtaking and awe-inspiring feat. The terraces of Banaue alone if connected end to end would extend halfway around the world. And if you add the ones in Bontoc and Batad, they would stretch around the entire planet. Their combined length is about 17 times that of the Great Wall of China and 473 times the length of the Panma Canal!

     All these terraces have a retaining wall around them, which are made either of stone or clay. Stone walls up to 50 feet high have been measured, while clay walls sometimes reach as high as a hundred feet. The terraces are usually made by filling the walls with vegetable loam, ash, and soil, but many have been carved right out of the solid rock. Endless miles of canals were hewn through sandstone and volcanic rock in order to fill the terraces and for subsequent irrigation. Wooden pipes are used to 'shoot' water up sheer cliffs to the top of the hills and mountains, where they will fill the highest terraces. Once filled, the water spills over a miniature waterfall to the next lowest terrace until the whole mountain or hillside is thus irrigated. The sound caused at irrigation time by thousands of mini-waterfalls is described as deafening.

     Although these processes may seem rather simple to some, they actually involve complex engineering, and even a small mistake on work of such grand scale could result in disaster. The area of land irrigated in Banaue alone, is equal to 3000 160-acre flooded rice fields. Each terrace is, in fact, a miniature lake contained by a wall sometimes 10 stories in height, and all built on steep rugged mountains ascending to over 5,000 feet above sea level. Many mountains are encircled from top to bottom in this way, and when the fields are flooded, enormous force is contained on these hillsides.

     Yet, viewing these terraces after the green rice seedlings have sprouted, one thinks of a giant emerald staircase to the heavens. And it is surprising that theorist have not credited them to some superhuman race from beyond.

     Those who plan to visit this "Eighth Wonder of the World" should give themselves a day for each of the three major terraced areas.

     Banaue is often claimed as the most spectacular, but this is by no means unanimous and many believe that either Bontoc or Batad are the greater marvels. All points are usually reached from the scenic mountain city of Baguio, which is about four hours drive from Manila.

     From Baguio take the Halsema Highway to the first rest stop in Mt. Data (about four hours) and break the trip in the Mt. Data Lodge.

     A better idea is to continue the trip for about another hour to Bontoc. The accommodations at Bontoc are not as comfortable as those in Mt. Data, but the scenery provided by the stone wall terraces rate among the most inspiring. Also, sidetrips to the burial caves and mummies of Sagada, which is about one hour away, can be arranged from here.

     From Bontoc the ride to Banaue is about two hours, and the whole trip is filled with the most spectacular scenery. The terraces of Banaue are mostly of the clay variety, although there are about 7,000 kilometers of stone wall terraces. Banaue is the most extensive area of the three, covering an area of about 100 square miles. An anthropologist who visited here in the early days was astonished as he walked along the footpaths in Banaue "which led through chasm after chasm into which rice terraces had wormed their way like the roots of some colossal plant."

     From Banaue the trip to Batad is accomplished partly by wheel and partly by foot. Only the healthy should undertake this journey, but if you feel reasonably fit, it is well worth the effort. The stone wall terraces of Batad, are the steepest of the three, like the ones at Bontoc they were constructed by the gold-mining Igorots.

     At Banaue, accommodation are excellent at Banaue Hotel, a youth hostel, and some smaller hotels. The return trip to Manila can be made through Bababag, avoiding the rough mountain driving. The traveler should realize that a trip to the terraces requires some patience and endurance, but it is not half the rigor that some claim. Nevertheless, the incovenience can be reduced by flying via Philippine Airlines to Baguio from Manila. Helicopter flights from Baguio to Banaue are also possible. A trip to the terraces of the Philippines will certainly bring rich rewards capable of lasting a lifetime.

The author is Paul Kekai Manansala