“We live in a wonderful world that is full of beauty, charm and adventure. There is no end to the adventures we can have if only we seek them with our eyes open.” – Jawaharial Nehru
Once upon a time, a young woman who is enjoying life, vacationing from the inlands of North America decided to visit the Ilocos Region, composed of different provinces located in the northern part of the Philippines. And I was so thankful she did because I get to go with her. Yups. I thank my cousin for tagging me along.
First Stop: Vigan
This is the arch located at the entrance to the City of Vigan.
We arrived around 2 a.m. We boarded a bus bound to Laoag, Ilocos Norte and asked to be dropped at Vigan, Ilocos Sur. After hours of travel, we were so hungry. Thankful there was a 24-hours fastfood chain along the highway. We had a "midnight snack-breakfast meal" and later on decided to walk towards Calle Crisologo, a place that can take you back to the Spanish Era.
We rented a room within Calle Crisologo. The place is so lovely at dawn, no people traffic. It's like we had the place on our own.
Here's a glimpse:
We walked along the plaza including Plaza Salcedo which is just beside Calle Crisologo.
Look at the skies. Ain't they lovely?
Infront is a plaza with fountains. They had a dancing fountain show later in the evening. Unfortunately, I can't find the pictures we took from there.
We rented a tour guide who also owns a tricycle (a motorcyle with a sidecar) to tour us around the city. We first went to Bantay Bell Tower.
This is Bantay Bell Tower from afar taken at dawn.
Here is a close-up picture of Bantay Bell Tower taken early morning.
After Bantay Bell Tower, we were taken to a garden featuring different flora and fauna and various landscapes.
This big cactus caught my attention. It measures approximately 2.5 feet in diameter.
Nearby is a pottery where we experienced making pots. It needs skill and expertise to be able to make one of nice shape, size and thickness and one that won't break when sun-baked.
Of course, this picture is just for the sake of a picture. We really were not able to make one good pot as it keeps getting deformed.
Back to Calle Crisologo, we entered the house of the Crisologos. One of the display is the Certificate of Floro Crisologo into the practice of Law in the Philippines. He is the patriarch of the Crisolgo clan and is known for legislating the law which created the Social Secutiry System in the Philippines.
One thing you shouldn't miss when you visit Ilocos is the famous Ilocos Empanada. It looks like a big dumpling with crust made of rice flour colored orange and a filling of monggo sprouts, shredded green papaya, Ilocos longganisa and whole egg. There are stalls along Calle Crisologo and the vinegar that comes with it is savory and flavorful.
We had our lunch in a carinderia (small restaurant/eatery) which offers a lot of Filipino cuisines. They all look delicious and tasty you won't even know what to choose.
After lunch, we went to Baluarte Zoo. It features various animals which includes ostriches and other kinds of birds, tarsiers, Bengal tigers, lions and a lot more. You can even rent a cart drawn by donkeys or small horses.
That was the end of our Ilocos Sur tour. We spent the afternoon resting in our rented room. Then we had early dinner and went to the Plaza to watch the fountain show.
Places visited:
- Bantay Bell Tower
- Hidden Garden
- Pottery
- Pasalubong/Gift shops
- Calle Crisologo
- Baluarte Zoo
- Plaza Salcedo
These places are just near each other and you wouldn't really spend much time travelling from one place to another. For us who don't have our own car, renting a tricycle driver-tourist guide was a huge help. He definitely knows where to take us; good places, good food.
Things I learned:
- Take a LOT of pictures. They are all you will get plus the experience once you get home.📷📸📷
- Take your time. You travel to de-stress and enjoy.
- Patience is a virtue.
Enjoy the pictures and hope I gave you some idea about planning your tour to the north. Next time I'll be dropping our tour to Ilocos Norte, another province just right after Ilocos Sur. Watch out!