When my fascination with India began piquing my curiosity during my college years, I'd come across the name of Rabindranath Tagore, who, like his contemporary, our very own Jose Rizal, was born in the same year in 1861, and together, they also shared the distinction of being a writer, poet, and social reformer.

While my personal library, which contains more than a hundred books, half of which are still unread, only has one Rabindranath Tagore title: The Postmaster, a collection of short stories published in 1891, I remained interested in his life. Therefore, upon discovering the transformation of his family's ancestral home in Kolkata into a museum, I suggested to my friend Aileen that we ought to visit it.

After a cab ride, during which the driver informed us that the museum was "somewhere here, just ask around," upon dropping us off, we found ourselves walking for nearly an hour in search of the museum. It turns out that Rabindranath Tagore's birthplace isn't your normal residence. It covers 35,000 square meters and has housed Rabindra Bharati University since 1962.

Also known as the Jorasanko Thakur Bari (taken from two attached “sanko” or bridges and the Bengali translation for "House of the Thakurs," with Thakur being the anglicized version of "Tagore"), the residence was first built in 1784 on property provided by a wealthy member of the Sett family to Prince Dwarkanath Tagore, Rabindranath's great-grandfather.

Built in between two bridges, the Jorasanko Thakur Bari, also known as the House of the Tagore, became an integral part of Bengali culture and society. Rabindranath Tagore's family developed close associations not only with the city's business circle but also with the intellectuals of the era.

The palatial red brick mansion was where renowned thinker, writer, and Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore was born, took up early education, and also where he breathed his last. In between his extensive travels across the globe—again, much like our own Jose Rizal—Tagore would always come back here.

He brought home with him countless mementos, letters, and artworks that now make up the collection of the Rabindra Bharati museum, established in his honor following the founding of the Rabindra Bharati University in 1961—the birth centenary of Tagore.

The Rabindra Bharati Museum's collections include 2,071 books, 770 journals, 16 artworks, 27 sculptures, and 208 personal mementos. The West Bengal government acquired forty of Tagore's original paintings and notebooks from his family and has since displayed it all at the museum.

The museum not only showcases anything about Rabindranath Tagore, but it also has galleries dedicated to leading figures in Bengali Renaissance art as well as works encompassing Western art. My favorite, of course, is the gallery that shows Rabindranath's extensive travels abroad, showing rare photographs and travel journals to countries such as China, Italy, Mexico, Japan, the United States, the UK, Sri Lanka, Iraq, and more.

The museum's ban on photography turned out to be a blessing because it allowed me to concentrate entirely on the exhibits, reading the captions on the photographs and descriptions of the items. Walking out of Jorasanko Thakurbari had me contemplating the many similarities between Tagore and Rizal. Both of their writings have impacted their respective countries in terms of history, literature, and identity.

Walking thousands of steps in the midst of a sunny afternoon would be taxing under normal city conditions. Well, up in the highlands of Ifugao and in the middle of Mayoyao's rice terraces, this kind of undertaking looks like something out of a well-shot film.

The scenic paddy fields under a bright blue sky make for an idyllic setting, and as we made our way to pockets of small communities, we passed by many fascinating characters such as farmers sowing crops, village mothers weaving a Ginallit, an Ifugao stripped wrap-around skirt, and residents tending to other farm animals.

In between being awestruck by Mayoyao's rice terraces, which is one of five clusters in the Cordillera region inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site alongside Batad, Bangaan, Hungduan, and Nagacadan, I immediately discovered that Mayoyao is more than just its iconic rice terraces. Over the next five days of exploring this part of Ifugao, we would discover the rich culture, beautiful nature spots, witness performances of traditional arts, learn about its history, and even taste some local delicacies, all of which shape the unique character of Mayoyao and its residents.

Mayoyao's rice terraces are so huge that they are divided into clusters, stretching to more than half of the municipality. These are Chaya, Chumang, Bongan, Magulon, and Banhal, the ones we explored by foot.

Hiking to the village of Banhal reminded me of the Open Air Museum in Kiangan, also in Ifugao. Similar elements, such as traditional dwellings and other aspects of Ifugao culture, can be witnessed during the hike. After a kilometer of brisk walking, we stopped by and observed a brief session on loom weaving and handicrafts with members of the Mayoyao Women's Organization. A short distance away, we paused our hike once again to mingle with the owners of a small farmhouse and shared with them servings of sweet potatoes, banana cue, and brewed coffee while sitting on the lawn and taking in the breathtaking view of the surrounding Banhal rice terraces.

On the fourth day, we would embark on another rice terrace trek in a different town. This time, we were escorted by Leandro Elahe, a local tour guide who could easily pass as a historian. We began our walk in Bongan at the same location where a UNESCO marker stands. Along the journey, we stopped at a few abodes to meet villagers who demonstrated customary rice pounding and rice terrace farming practices.

The first waterfalls we visited only requires half an hour of hiking as the jump-off trail is reachable by vehicles. Tenogtog Falls, as it’s called, takes its name from a native word for "chopped" or "sliced." It is said that during the olden days, following an arduous hunt, hunters would assemble near these multi-tiered waterfalls to distribute the rewards of their kill.

Despite the frigid water, I surrendered to the urge of taking a dip on the crystal-clear stream as a form of therapeutic relief for my body after the lengthy land travel to Ifugao and the afternoon trek the day before. The following day, we visited another waterfall, the A'pfaw Mahencha Falls.

The hundreds of steps leading down to the waterfalls from the picturesque viewpoint now called Khohang Garden and back, can be taxing in a mountain environment where air becomes thinner.

Nevertheless, the sight of A’pfaw waterfalls will immediately put you in a state of deep contemplation, where you can let yourself be embraced by the breathtaking beauty of nature. While others in our group jumped and splashed about in the chilly waters, I opted to relax and stare at the waterfalls this time.

Outside of our rice terraces and waterfalls exploration, we also went to a number of historical and cultural sites around Mayoyao, accompanied not only by the local tourism staff but also by the town's cultural bearer and historian, Bobby Bongayon, and in one instance at the Mt. Nagchajan Historical Site, the town mayor himself, Jimmy Padchanan Jr. They both delighted us with anecdotes about the rich history and intriguing customs of Mayoyao.

At Khohang Garden, Bobby Bongayon led a storytelling session where he narrated a few legends handed down from their ancestors as well as having us listen to a Hudhud chant performed by a young lady, Jhomaica Panangon, a member of Mayoyao's Tourism Office.

Stories chanted by the Ifugao people as far back as the seventh century make up the Hudhud, an art form recognized by UNESCO as part of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. There are hundreds of chants that cover topics such as history, customary law, religious beliefs of the ancestors, and epic tales of warriors.

Usually sang or recited in the old days by an elderly person who holds a prominent role in the community, either as a historian or preacher, to complete a comprehensive recitation of the Hudhod may take several days.

In Mt. Nagchajan, we visited the place where the last band of Japanese soldiers made their last stand during World War II. Amidst the breathtaking scenery, we were joined by Mayor Padchanan Jr. as he further shared with us more about their local customs and culture. Following a sumptuous lunch, the locals serenaded us with folk songs and treated us to an amusing presentation of ceremonial and courtship dances, in which some of us even took part in.

In the process of being both visually amazed and intellectually stimulated, our journey to Mayoyao evolved into much more than a simple sightseeing tour. On any given day, most of the people we met in Mayoyao would be going on with their daily lives. But when visited by guest travelers, they easily open up to share their proud history, culture, and traditions.

In a nation like ours, where many ethnic treasures are sometimes overlooked in favor of picture-perfect attractions, this is how I envision traveling. Instead of just popping in and out, taking pictures, and then going away, an immersive experience like what he experienced in Mayoyao should be replicated everywhere. By including locals in tourism activities, we provide them with a voice and a platform to preserve and pass on their unique intangible heritage.

Because of that, our trip to Mayoyao, Ifugao became one for the books.