Vigan Tour

September 17, 2013

This is a very memorable Vigan Tour for me. My very first trip to Northern Luzon and I heard so much about this place famous for its ubiquitous Spanish style buildings. Vigan is part of Ilocos Sur on the North Western Part of Luzon.

The cast and characters in our trip:

Umie              - My Mom

Abie              - My Dad

Achie             - My Sister

Ate Cha           - My sister's friend

Ma'am Mae         - My former teacher and Achie's friend

Kuya Arnel        - Our very friendly driver and tour expert

My trip started late afternoon of September 26, 2013. I was from my office then went to Terminal 3 to meet up with the gang. I first met my family before Ma'am Mae and Ate Cha arrived.

September 16, 2013

• 20:00. The Cebu Pacific flight was delayed due to the usual reason of the turn around aircraft being late.

Manila - Laoag Airplane Route

• 21:00 Laoag International Airport. Fortunately our tour guide Kuya Arnel fetched us at the airport and to our resting place Hotel Tiffany. At the ground floor is Macy's Diner, a 1950's inspired restaurant complete with neon lights and a working jukebox! Upon arriving at our respective rooms. Everybody was tired (The others had 2 flights from the DVO-MNL and MNL-LAO) except me. I strolled around before the long awaited nap.
• 22:00 Apparently, locals sleep early in this region. The surroundings of Ilocos Norte Provincial Capitol and Aurora Park were nearly deserted by the time I took these photos.

Tobacco Monopoly Monument

Ilocos Norte Provincial Capitol

The Provincial Clock

September 17, 2013

• 05:30 Well the early rat gets trapped with the cheese. I was early to rise but last on the line to take a bath. Hotel Tiffany offers a free breakfast but they open at 08:30 and our trip starts at 07:00. Good thing there's a nearby 24 hrs open Jollibee. 
• 07:30  At 07:00 sharpest, Kuya Arnel arrived to drive us all the way to Vigan for the tour. It's a 2 hour trip and I'm excited to see the postcard places. We passed along Paoay Church but Kuya Arnel told as Paoay Church is part of the Day 3 Tour.
• 08:40 A little detour to Juan Luna's Shrine at Badoc, Ilocos Norte. Juan Luna is famous for his masterpiece, The Spoliarium (Often misspelled as "Spolarium", a song from Eraserheads). I'm surprised to know many of our National Heroes and Artists from the colonial period came from Ilocos.

Juan Luna's Statue beside his ancestral home

Facade of Juan Luna's ancestral home

• 09:00 A few photo ops at the Ilocos Norte Welcome Arch.

Ilocos Norte Welcome Arch

• 09:40 Touchdown Vigan! Our first stop was The Shrine of Nuestra Seniora de la Caridad, there is a voluntary donation box for P 20.00 if you want to got the the Bantay Church Bell Tower. I suggest you just pay the donation and enjoy the climb to the Bell Tower. The view is worth the orange bill, and remember to give some tip to the guide who will take you there. They are friendly and know the angles for best shots, you can still pose your way and they'll be happy to take the photos.

Nuestra Seniora de la Caridad Shrine with Bantay Bell Tower

The General

Nuestra Seniora de la Caridad Church

• 10:30 Next stop is Burgos National Museum, the birthplace of Fr. Jose Burgos. The house showcases artworks, artifacts, famous Ilocanos, and events.

The Grand Staircase at Burgos Museum

Trade Galleons - "My favorite among the displays."

The Sugarcane Squeezing Machine

Rites and Rituals Paraphernalia

Trade Ceramics

A 3-D Presentation for the Garrote Execution

The Garrote

• 11:10 After some photo ops at Fr. Burgos's House, we went to Pagburnayan Pottery Making. Pagburnayan means "a place where burnay is made", here we saw the old and traditional way of making quality mud jars. Due to the time constraints and schedule, we didn't try to make the pots. Atleast that's 6 less low quality pots, if our workds will actually turn into a pot. Souvenirs are also available, but I suggest you buy souvenirs at the end of the tours since all the souvenir shops sell the same souvenirs. 

The Pot Factory

• 11:40 Before lunch we visited the Crisologo Museum, the mansion house a huge collection of the family's memorabilia, possessions, books, calesa, etc. The patriarch of the family was assassinated and his bloodied garments can be viewed in his private study. The museum is open to all, and you may give donations for its maintenance which I highly recommend.

Crisologo Private Library 

 Some mementos of Floro Crisologo's Assasination

2nd Floor Sala 

Floro Crisologo's Private Study

• 12:30 We arrived at Cafe Uno. What amazed me most in this cute place is the 3D artworks and the decorations. Although the place is crammed due to these decors, it's still delightful to the eyes. Since the food takes a while to prepare we decided to tour Calle Crisologo as it's just a block away.

 Our Dream Bikes

Calle Crisologo 3-D Art 

 Classic Decors

Bantay Bell Tower 3-D Art (Sorry for the ghost at the back)

• 12:45 Calle Crisologo! This has always fascinated my childhood because it's always in postcards. Calle Crisologo is an 18th Century street in Vigan City complete with cobblestone walkway. The street is off limits to motor vehicles, this adds more to the colonial ambience along with the callesas that will give you a ride for a fee. I suggest you just walk the 400 meter walkway of the historic street.

Calle Crisologo Street Sign 

The Postcard Perfect View of Calle Crisologo

• 13:15 The food was delicious. I recommend the grilled sea foods and vegetables, the Ilocano style tinola, and dinengdeng. Pair the grilled food with Ilocano bagoong and vinegar and you'll appreciate living the good life. Pork is against my diet so I can't give feedbacks on there renowned empanada and longganisa.
• 14:00 After good food and a good rest, we went to Baluarte. This place is owned by Chavit Singson, the present governor of Ilocos Sur. This zoo has no fee for virtually everything it has to offer except, of course, for the souvenirs and sugarcane juice which I really enjoyed after the walk around Baluarte. Other zookeepers also give indirect hints of givings donations, you can ignore them or give tips it depends on your generosity but Chavit discourages such tips. At the time of our visit there were cages that doesn't have animals, and I was not able to visit the butterfly farm. The place was well maintained, I think the improvements are still going on and for a free tour it really is value for the time you spent. It was funny how me and Ate Cha went all the way up to where I think was the grooming area of the tigers just to meet them up close. I highly recommend this place to be in you bucket list in your Vigan tour.

Ate Cha on the FREE pony ride 

 My parents posing with the bonsai pony

 One of the laid back tigers in the zoo

 The Golden Fortress is Chavit Singson's Mansion

 The Baluarte Landmark

 A group of swans at one of the pens

 Gov. Chavit Singson discouraging donations at Baluarte

 Jurassic Park

 Baluarte

 I think this is a Brachiosaurus

 Bambi!!!

 Sorry for disturbing you. :)

A Lucky Shot with the tiger

 Me with my cooperative Macaw

Baluarte Welcome Landmark

• 15:00 After the fun filled zoo experience at Baluarte we went to the Loom Weaving. It's nice to know people still practice this art. I remembered the movie Wanted during the visit to the weaving area. They sell woven products here but I forgot the price.

 A Weaver in Action

A Weaver in Action

• 15:15 The last place we visited was the Hidden Garden. A paradise for Bonsai lovers and I think anyone who loves botanical gardens. The air here detoxifies your lungs, and the view refreshes the eyes. The garden's ambiance is very relaxing. Good thing this was the last stop, it rejuvenates the tired body with the fresh air all around. The place is somewhat cramped because of the pots but strolling the garden was really rewarding in itself. We had some fresh buko juice and Ma'am Mae and Ate Cha tried the empanada. The buko juice was not phenomenal, and according to Ma'am Mae, the empanada was not good. I recommend Hidden Garden for its plants, not for the snacks we tried.

 Welcome to Hidden Garden!!!

 A Beautiful Gardenscape

 Life's Good

 A Grotto at Hidden Garden

 At Lonely Lover's Corner

 Plants here are well maintained

 Some bonsai for sale

 Bonsai Garden

 Entrance of Hidden Garden Restaurant

The Tasty Looking Merienda

• 16:20 There was a short stop-over at the Plaza Burgos so I was able to capture some photos.

Vigan Cathedral 

Vigan Cathedral Bell Tower

• 17:40 The Ilocos Empanada deserves a 2nd round after the brutal judgement at Hidden Garden so Kuya Arnel took us to a small stall beside Paoay Church. Ma'am Mae and Ate Cha were finally satisfied with the empanada and I thank Kuya Arnel for saving the image of Ilocos Empanada. While they were eating, me and my sister took the liberty of taking photos of the nearby Paoay Church.

Paoay Church Bell Tower 

Paoay Church

• 18:00 Touchdown Laoag City. We delivered the senior citizens to their quarters for some rest. After a refreshing bath we ate at a nearby Max's Restaurant and rest a bit. 
• 20:00 We noticed some bikes for rent in front of Hotel Tiffany. The rent was at P 25.00 per hr, and fortunately 3 bikes were available. Me, Ate Cha, and Ma'am Mae decided to have a night tour of Laoag on our Japan surplus bikes. We call the bikes Sandara in our province at Datu Piang, Maguindanao.
• 21:00 After an hour of biking thru the city and reaching dead ends like Rizal Park and Laoag Sports Complex near Discolandia (The red-light district of Laoag), we went back to our hotel to prepare our things for tomorrow and recharge our bodies.
• 22:00 LIGHTS OUT...