WOMAN TRAVELLED ACROSS THE GLOBE TO GET TATTOOED BY THE WORLD’S OLDEST TATTOO ARTIST <br />WITH VID AND PIX<br />By Hannah Hodgetts<br />A woman trekked across the remote mountains of the Philippines to be tattooed by the world’s oldest tattoo artist.<br />Sara Howell, 26, from Fayetteville, North Carolina, USA, traveled across the globe to meet Apo Whang-od, 108, in the mountain village of Buscalan, Tinglayan.<br />She endured a 30-hour flight from Washington, D.C., to Manila for the chance to have an iconic piece of history permanently inked by the last mambabatok (traditional tattoo artist) of Kalinga.<br />Sara said: “This was the craziest journey of my life. <br />“We were greeted by our tour guide, Celine. She was like, ‘Okay, we just have to cross the bridge and then hike’. I thought I was gonna die.”<br />After a ten-hour bus ride into the mountains and a two-hour hike through a small town where few locals spoke English, Sara’s adventure had only just begun.<br />She experienced life as a local, hopping on a jeepney - the Philippines’ most popular mode of public transport - before continuing on a motorbike ride up the mountain to Buscalan, where she met her guide, Celine.<br />However, when Sara finally reached the village, she learned that Apo Whang-od had left earlier that morning to attend a wedding in the nearby town of Tabuk.<br />Determined not to give up, Sara stayed overnight in the village and met Grace, Apo Whang-od’s granddaughter, who is also trained in the art of batok.<br />Not wanting to leave her trip without a traditional tattoo, Sara got tattooed by the person closest to Apo Whang-od. <br />Grace created a design using natural ink and used a thorn to tap it into Sara’s skin - a centuries-old hand-tapping technique known as batok.<br />The next morning, Sara and her guide embarked on a three-hour trek to Tabuk in search of Apo Whang-od.<br />At last, she found her surrounded by a small crowd of tourists, quietly tattooing in a little corner.<br />Sara finally received Whang-od’s signature design, three dots, symbolising herself and her maternal bloodline.<br />She said: “Finally, we made it to the village, where she showed us where Apo Whang-od would be and she wasn't there. <br />“I did not come all this way for nothing. I've taken a plane, a bus, a jeepney, a motorbike, and hiked on foot to get here. <br />“I also ended up meeting Apo Whang-od’s granddaughter, who's also trained in the art of tattooing.<br />“I figured let me test this tattoo thing out. So they drafted out the design in natural ink, and then they took a thorn, and then they tapped that into the skin. It wasn't so bad. It was like 6 out of 10 pain. <br />“Our guide, Celine, she decided to make the entire three-hour trek to Tabuk with us. <br />“Celine did her thing and literally tracked down Apo Whang-od. I don't know how she did it. <br />“We approached this house, which I noticed had like a couple of other tourists there, and then literally I turned around and nestled into a tiny little corner - there she was. <br />“We hit it off. <br />“I just knew she was gonna be cool.<br />“We got right to the tattoo. She gave me her signature three dots, which represents her and her maternal bloodline. The journey of a lifetime.”<br />ENDS
