Tam-awan is Baguio’s melting pot of nature, faith, and art. Many artists from various parts of the country go to Tam-awan as if it is an artist’s mecca. You’d find a figure of a fertility idol carved on a fern tree’s stalk or a Bulol on a post at the view deck. Human body parts are also carved on posts and doors of tribal huts.
Try standing at the clearing in front of the coffee shop and bask in the beauty surrounding you: greens and reds from trees and plants, various images that depict the beliefs of the native folks, and paintings and sculptures that are beautifully hand-painted using various artistic mediums.
Such harmony has always been a way of life of the ancient tribes in the region that has been passed on from one generation to another. Despite technological advancement and modern structures, Tam-awan is able to preserve the things that are held dear to Cordillera’s tribes—their surroundings, their beliefs and their expressions of life.
Those who visit here will find that tribes believe that gods dwell in every place, including in trees and other natural resources. This is called animism. With such beliefs, they include carvings of their gods in their homes, in plants, and other areas where they usually hold activities. Some of the tribes carry this belief to the present but, for those who have been converted to Christianity, they still acknowledge that nature is life and a gift from God. Thus, there is a need to preserve and conserve it.