Hey! My first travel blog! Huraay!
This tour was in 2010, just less than a year after I graduated college. Please bear with me for the lack of thorough detail; I don’t have the habit of memorizing places and things when I travel. Nevertheless, the places that we visited here are very popular, and most certainly have been featured several times (as must-see places in the province or in the Philippines for that matter).
I went with few of my college friends to Ilocos province last April 2010, for 3d2n tour. We paid for a travel and tour service from A&A Travel and Tours, based in Ilocos province. We opted to pay for their service for a hassle free tour: they provided the transportation during the tour, booked us in hotels, and prepared our flexible itinerary. What was not included though was the transportation from Manila to Ilocos. For that, we took the Florida Bus. We took the midnight schedule of departure since the plan was A&A will be waiting for us at the terminal in Vigan, Ilocos Sur the next morning.
Our first stop was in Vigan, specifically in Vigan church. The church was expectedly old but grand. We ate some light breakfast (just plain rice and Vigan longganisa) at one local karinderya. Afterwards, we explored Calle Crisologo, famous for its well preserved old houses and streets in bricks just like how everything looked like during the Spanish colonization in the country.It was like walking into a history book, except we see tourists just like us wearing modern clothes.
Aside from walking, people may explore this famous street while riding a horse-pulled carriage, known as kalesa. The street was lined with several shops, where anyone can buy souvenirs like t-shirts, native ornaments, antiques, Ilocos delicacies, etc.
While inside the streets of Calle Crisologo, our guide led us to a Crisologo Museum, where old pictures, newspaper clippings, and all sort of antique knick knacks were displayed. The displays gave us insights of what happened during the pre-Marcos regime, and how the Crisologos helped developed the political system of the province. Inside this museum (slash, old house) was an old kalesaas well, which looked pretty fancy.
Then we went to another museum, the Syquia Mansion, which housed well preserved personal belongings of later former President ElpidioQuirino. Pictures, collections of different antiques made locally and from other countries, and oil paintings may also be seen. There was even a huge imitation of the famous Spoliarium painting by Juan Luna inside! TheSpoliarium was the painting submitted by Juan Luna, one of the country’s best known painter and revolutionist during Spanish era, during an international exposition in Madrid in the late 1800s and garnered him his first gold medal.
For lunch, we ate the common Ilocano dishes like bagnet (double to triple deep-fried pork with fat and skin on) and pinakbet (sautéed mixed vegetables with shrimp paste). We also had sinigang na hipon (shrimp soup), some mango-tomato-onion salad with a bit of soy sauce (which served as our appetizer and sawsawan), and of course, rice! I believe we ordered another serving for each! Hah!
Baluarte Zoo was next in our itinerary that afternoon, when the sun was its highest and hottest. So, we did not go to each and every part of it. We did watch their animal shows though, featuring some exotic animals like the iguana and alamid, and others including an eagle, a squirrel, and an albino Burmese python.The host played with a wild pig, which displayed its talent in painting. At the entrance/ exit of the zoo were different kinds of colorful birds, where visitors may touch them and have their pictures taken with the birds.
We visited and rested for a while in the Botanical Garden. Restaurants and shops may be found inside. Visitors may also buy some plants of their choosing. I bought some indoor plants for my mom, and I wish I had bought more if only I won’t be commuting back to Manila.
After the much needed rest, we went to Pagburnayan, place where traditional pottery-making was still being followed. We saw a master potter in action and we were all like, “hypnotized”, looking how he contoured that clay. After all the massage, the smoothing and caressing of that piece of earth, there we saw a beautiful vase!Luckily, we were allowed to try making our own work-of-art. Of course, I didn’t miss that chance. We all thought it was easy, like how the master did earlier. But man, that was tough! I had sweat all over my body before I could even pull up the clay! My finished product may not be perfect, but I think it was AWESOME. B-)
We all did not mind the sweat and the dirt from our pants and shoes. We just cleaned up a bit and went again to another destination: the Bantay Bell Tower or Bantay Bellfry. This bell tower looked unique because of its reddish bricks and baroque-Gothic inspired architecture.
Reaching it was some climb though, as it sits on top of a hill. The view from the very top was breath taking, so I say it was worth it! From there we saw an unobstructed, cloudless, panoramic view of Ilocos Sur.
We finally left Ilocos Sur and crossed Ilocos Norte and went to Fort Ilocandia, said to be the only five-star hotel in the northern Luzon. We were asked if we wanted to try the Ilocos Sand Dunes nearby, but our driver said it would take a lot of time to try out the activities there. We might not be able to do the other things in our itinerary, so, we said pass.
Fort Ilocandia looked like another park-shopping center place where people can rest, take good photos, shop, and dine. We did not stay long in here. After some 15-minute strolling, we decided to head straight to Marcos Museum and Mausoleum. Different memorabilia of the Marcoses, particularly of the late former President Ferdinand Marcos and his wife, Imelda Marcos, were displayed inside. There was a huge room with walls full of pictures commemorating their time together before and during Marcos’ presidency. In the mausoleum was the glass-encased preserved remains of the late president, which, until now, I am not sure whether it was his real body, or just a faux. Many speculations and theories have been spreading for years about this. In both the museum and the mausoleum, taking pictures was prohibited. However, my friends were able to sneak some shots (only in the museum).
Next in our itinerary was the Malacañang of the North, which we were all excited to see. Who would not? The name itself suggested grandeur, since Malacañang is the name of that which houses the President of the Philippines.
Malacañang of the North, on the other hand, was said to be built as a rest house for late former President Marcos. I believe it wasn’t as big as the real Malacañang, but still, it was still pretty huge. The wooden floors, ceilings, stairs, and the furniture were all well maintained, as well as the garden facing the Paoay Lake.
Inside this “palace” was a huge painting of the famous Paoay Church, said to be one of the oldest church in the Philippines built during the Spanish colonization. This church was where we headed next.
Paoay church (also known as San Augustine Church) retained its original structure for centuries. Besides the fact that it withstood several earthquakes and typhoons, the architecture of this structure is noteworthy.
Unfortunately, the church was closed at the time we went (for some unknown reason), so we just walked around its perimeter and marveled its beauty and the history with it.
The church was said to play a major role during the revolution against the Spaniards when its bell tower served as an observation post for theKatipuneros.
Our first day was almost ending, but before we head to our hotel to rest and recharge ourselves for tomorrow’s itinerary, we tried the much talkedpinakbet pizza at the restaurant in front of Paoay Church. As expected, it had string beans, eggplant, onions, tomatoes, and a bit of shrimp paste, aside from of course, cheese.
With hot sauce on the side, we finished two 16-inch pizzas in no time. B-)
Thanks to my travel companions, Melds, Cecille, Kris, and Kenneth for the pics!
Also see Ilocos Sur and Ilocos Norte, Philippines (Day 2 and 3)!
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