Hunt for the Ifugao Weaved Coin Purse

Last April 2008 I bought a weaved coin purse in Banaue Rice Terraces Viewpoint for 10 Pesos (Affordable!). I just needed a coin purse to organize my noisy coins  and did not consider the quality nor how good it looked. I only knew that by buying this small piece of weaving I am able to support the local businesses of the Ifugao people. Besides, if it gets damaged or destroyed by carrying a lot of my coins it will not bother me since it only cost 10 Pesos.

Other than a few notices from my friends that I had a cool looking coin purse, I never gave much attention to it. When it started deteriorating last December 2010, I looked back and realized that my coin purse was 2 years and 7 months old! For a very affordable price of 10 Pesos it had that good quality! I still used it even if the weaving was slowly showing the tip of my keys. But never did it allow the keys nor my coins to fall out.

On March 2011, I tried replacing it by a yarn-weaved coin purse that I bought from a Baguio Bus Station also at 10 Pesos. Unfortunately, the texture was rough, unlike my old coin purse, and there were too many fray yarn threads. I tried getting used to it but after three days the coin purse had a hole big enough to let my keys and coins out. Luckily, I still had my old coin purse.

Last weekend (April 2011), as we were headed to Hungduan, Ifugao for the Hungduan Climbathon 2011 we passed by Banaue. As soon as our bus arrived, I was in look-out mode for the Ifugao weaved coin purse. We went inside Hidden Village Lodge and Restaurant for lunch and as soon as I entered a basketful of weaved coin purse was there waiting for me, still at 10 Pesos per piece and the same good quality weaving of the Ifugao people.