Tattooed Women of Kalinga and the Last Mambabatok (Tattoo Artist)

In the heart of the province of Kalinga (Cordillera Administrative Region in Luzon), a small municipality of Tinglayan holds panoramic breathtaking views of rice terraces and sloping ranges where there is Buscalan, a tiny warm community of uniquely tattooed folks who live each day climbing hills, planting, and doing their daily chores despite age and time (the oldest is aged 102, and I also witnessed a birthday celebration of one who turned 90+ which is called "PUSIPUS").

I am happy to be a part of a group of travelers/photographers who visited the Philippines’ last living Kalinga tattoo artist named Whang-od (or Fang-od to some). Having been featured in Discovery Channel’s documentary series "Tattoo Hunter," hosted by Dr. Lars Krutak, the elderly woman who is by now 92 years-old remain to be actively hand-tapping her marks not only on the villagers, but on visitors from all over, her sight as sharp as when she was first taught by her father at age 13. Today, she teaches her 19-year old grand niece so she can pass on the ancient art practice before it disappears.

In my travel to this wonderful community, I made good memories with friends, a documentation of breathtaking landscapes and a peaceful village once dominated by headhunters and warriors, set atop one of the mountain ridges. I carried home a stinging, fresh wound which marks my life’s journey, but I embraced the pain to honor my Filipino heritage from the skilled hands of the master mambabatok (tattoo artist), Whang-Od. She gave me a “centipede” art to protect me in my future journeys, and to keep me strong in all adversity and challenges.

Let me share with you my gallery of an unforgettable adventure.... ~ Rhonson Ng