Much Ado About Rice Terraces

I was a little disappointed knowing the facts below ... I have that mistaken notion that there is only one rice terrace in the world ... and that is the Banaue Rice Terraces in Sagada in Baguio.

I was a little dismayed and disheartened ... because I thought we were the original. Whoever made it first is immaterial ... now we should not take credit that our ancestors were a genius bunch because other countries have also thought of putting the same novel idea into reality. 

I don't think they have internet access several centuries back ... or they have cellphones where Igorots talk to other Asian counterparts and compare notes ... so we can't accuse anybody of copying the works of others. That would be the first work of plagiarism ever recorded in olden times (if that was really what happened)- a practice where a country takes someone else's work or ideas and passes them off as one's own.

I did my own research and I found out that rice terraces are not our Igorot ancestor's brainchild ... other Asian countries have their own version of it too ... as rice terraces exist in the following locations. Who made it first ... and who copied ... is the 24-dollar question.

1. Banaue Rice Terraces - Philippines

2. Mu Cang Chai Rice Terraces - North Vietnam

3. Sapa Rice Terraces- Vietnam

4. Yuanyang Rice Terraces - Yunnan Province China

5. Tegalalang Rice Terraces - Ubud Bali Indonesia

6. Rice Terraces Facing The Ocean - Hamanoura Saga Japan

7. Rice Terraces With Hillside Villages- Annapurna Nepal

8. Rice Terraces With Stilt Houses - Jiabang Guizho China

9. Sikkim and Himachal Pradesh Rice Terraces - India

10. Pa Pong Piang Rice Terraces - Thailand

11. Hong He Hani Rice Terraces - China

12. Houshitogue Tanada Niigata Rice Terraces - Japan

You see ... I can't believe Rice Terraces are a dime dozen ... even Miagao Iloilo in Barangay Cabalaunan has its own rice terraces (I only know it today). The fact that Banaue Rice Terraces was heralded as the eighth wonders of the world is losing its substance. 

The once Stairway To The Sky ... which is a rare experience is fast becoming ordinary and common ... passe and becomes of little value. It is even eroding its mystery and the enigma of the story behind the story. 

What was worse was ... browsing images of the other rice terraces just like the image above ... Banaue pales in comparison beauty-wise, grandeur-wise, or splendor-wise.

Guys don't bash me for feeling this way. I am no spoiled brat who felt rice terraces were losing its charm and magic. It is just one of those days when information overload strikes from nowhere and siphons whatever appreciation or patience left of you.

Don't worry ... this is just temporary ... it will pass!