Lake Sebu
The T'Boli Highlands, Where T'Nalak Cloth Is Woven To Patterns That Come To The Weavers In Dreams And Are Never Written Down · Lake Sebu, South Cotabato
LAKE SEBU IS A GROUP OF HIGHLAND LAKES IN SOUTH COTABATO AND IT IS THE HOME OF THE T'BOLI, whose defining art is T'NALAK - abaca fibre cloth, dyed by hand, WOVEN TO PATTERNS THAT COME TO THE WEAVERS IN DREAMS. The designs are not drawn, copied or written down; a DREAMWEAVER receives a pattern and holds it in her head through months of weaving, and the cloth is not cut carelessly or stepped over. LANG DULAY, THE MOST FAMOUS OF THEM, DIED IN 2015, and the question of who carries it on is live. MOST VISITORS COME FOR THE ZIPLINE instead - a long, high run over the SEVEN FALLS, which is genuinely spectacular and takes twenty minutes. THE LAKES THEMSELVES ARE CROWDED WITH TILAPIA PENS, which feeds the town and has changed the water. Mindanao's reputation keeps visitor numbers low; the highlands are cool, quiet and very beautiful. Buy cloth directly from the weavers - it is the whole economic case for the tradition.
Lake Sebu, South Cotabato, Mindanao, Lake Sebu, South Cotabato, Philippines
LAKE SEBU IS ROUGHLY TWO HOURS BY ROAD FROM GENERAL SANTOS, which has an airport with flights from Manila and Cebu, or about the same from KORONADAL. THERE IS NO GATE ON THE TOWN; individual sites charge small fees. THE SEVEN FALLS ZIPLINE runs in daylight hours with a fee per run and is normally ridden as a pair of lines; THE FALLS THEMSELVES ARE REACHED BY LONG FLIGHTS OF STEPS. LAKE BOAT RIDES are arranged at the shore. WEAVING CENTRES AND T'BOLI HOUSEHOLDS WELCOME VISITORS DURING WORKING HOURS - buying cloth directly is the point, and T'NALAK SHOULD NOT BE STEPPED OVER OR CUT CASUALLY. THE HELOBUNG FESTIVAL IN NOVEMBER fills the town. IT IS COOL AT ALTITUDE and rain is frequent; the wet months are roughly June to October.