Backpacking: Ilocos Norte

So here's the second part of our great Ilocos adventure. I loved Ilocos Norte better than Ilocos Sur. But don't get mad, 'cause that's just my personal opinion. And I'm sure nature lovers will agree with me.

Ilocos is so beautiful it's just breathtaking. So far, the most beautiful province I've been to. Now that doesn't count much because I haven't been to that many provinces in the Philippines. Haha. What I'm saying is it's worth the nine-hour bus ride all the way from Manila.

Once you see the sights there, you'll wish you're a professional travel blogger. Or that you have all the time and money in the world to visit other places as beautiful as Ilocos. And I am not exaggerating, trust me.

Anyway, here's the story. We left Fort Ilocandia at around three o'clock in the afternoon. We were ready to leave after lunch, but we couldn't get a ride out so we had to wait for over two hours. Good thing the security guards in Fort Ilocandia were kind enough to introduce us to someone who can give us a tour of Ilocos Norte. In case you find yourself lost there, give Ilocos Travel a call. They have the warmest, kindest tour guides and drivers there.

First Stop: Cape Bojeador Lighthouse. The lighthouse wasn't really included in our itinerary. Come to think of it, we didn't really have an itinerary. Hahaha. But I've heard about Cape Bojeador from friends, and they were simply awed by it. So I suggested we make a quick stop just to see for ourselves. 

  

It's so beautiful, no? I'm actually thankful we made a visit to Cape Bojeador 'cause I got to conquer my fear of heights (again). If you've read my post on Ilocos Sur (shameless plugging. haha!), you'll know I first beat my acrophobia when we climbed the bell tower. 

Seeing how old the lighthouse is gave me goosebumps. It's a bit eerie 'cause it's really old. Some parts of the roof are already dilapidated. But they say the lighthouse still works just fine. If it weren't made of bricks, it would be long gone by now. I'm actually thankful we came by in the afternoon. Who knows what we'll see there at night. Haha.

  

  

The climb to the top was worth it. Just look at the view! We weren't allowed to reach the highest point 'cause it's off-limits to tourists.

Second Stop: Kapurpurawan Rock Formation. I wasn't really looking forward to this part of the tour. I mean, what's so great about big rocks and white sand? Boy, did I regret what my sentiments. Haha. Our visit to Kapurpurawan was actually one of our best stops. If you're one to be easily amazed, you'll agree me.

According to the tour guide assigned specifically to Kapurpurawan, the Rock Formation was supposed to compete alongside the Puerto Princessa Underground River for a slot in the list of the new wonders of the world. Sadly, we were allowed only one entry so Kapurpurawan had to give way. O diba, ang selfless lang. Haha. That just goes to show how beautiful Kapurpurawan is. Level sila ng Underground River.

Quick Trivia: Some of our local films have shot their scenes here - Si Agimat, Si Enteng Kabisote at Si Ako and my favorite, Suddenly It's Magic.

See how chalk-white the sand is? It's like Boracay sand turned into a huge boulder. Haha. We were scared to touch it for fear of ruining this God-given gift. No words can describe how pretty Kapurpurawan is, and I'm sure our photos didn't do it justice. You'll have to see it for yourself.

Third Stop: Bangui Windmills. Who goes to Ilocos and passes up the chance to drop by their famous windmills? No one. An Ilocos Norte trip is incomplete without a stop in Bangui. 

They might look like your ordinary electric fans, albeit a thousand times bigger in size, but the windmills are simply stunning. Up close, they're more than huge propellers. They 're overwhelming, your heart will skip a beat when you see them. Again, this is no exaggeration. It was just sad that we got there while the sun was already setting. If we got there five minutes later, we wouldn't have been able to take photos. 

Fourth Stop: Laoag City Sinking Bell Tower. It was already night time when we got back to the city. So we had no choice but to visit the bell tower while it was dark. Surprisingly, it was a blessing we got there precisely at that time, or we wouldn't have noticed the image of the Blessed Virgin Mary on the side of the tower.

Do you see the image? Amazing, right? This bell tower is the only part of the cathedral that's still standing up to this day. It's said to sink at a rate of an inch each year. It'll probably still be there on my next visit, though it wouldn't be as tall as it is now. Haha.

My relatives are planning a trip to Ilocos Sur and Ilocos Norte this summer. If I tag along, hopefully I'll get to visit some of the stops we missed, like the Paoay Church and the Marcos Museum. Keep you posted! 

Credits to my friend Tracy Leaño for some of the photos.

Check In: Fort Ilocandia Resort Hotel

You know you've checked into a great hotel when you want to stay there more than you want to explore the world outside. Haha. 

I think it's a blessing in disguise that my friends and I failed to make a reservation at any hotel or inn before traveling to Ilocos. We spent a good two hours deciding on - more like arguing about - where to stay. Most of the inns there are fairly priced. Some are even cheap and backpacker-friendly. But, a lot of them are fully booked already. 

While searching the net for hotels in Laoag, my friends came across Fort Ilocandia Resort Hotel. At first, we thought it would be absurd to check into a hotel as luxurious as that, considering that we were on a "budget vacation". We allotted less than a thousand pesos for our hotel. But after a while, we realized that it's probably okay to splurge on our accommodation since we saved a little from our discounted bus fare. Besides, touring can be really exhausting and we deserve to relax after going around two provinces in one day! So it was settled. We placed the call and made reservations at Fort Ilocandia.

Almost two hours after leaving Vigan, we found ourselves in front of the "Welcome to Laoag" arch. We rode a tricycle - yes, a tricycle! - to Fort Ilocandia. We were actually hesitant to get off right in front of the lobby! Imagine a ritzy hotel with guests alighting from tricycles. Haha. 

To be honest, there's actually one other reason why we chose to stay at Fort Ilocandia. Remember Thai actor Mario Maurer's movie Suddenly It's Magic? Well, some of the scenes there were shot in this hotel. And the die-hard fans in us wanted to see and experience where Mario had been. Pathetic, no? Haha. From then on, we started calling our tour the Suddenly It's Magic Tour or the Mario Maurer Tour.

It was a long - and I mean really long - walk from the hotel lobby to our room. Talk about a very sprawling hotel. I'd actually get lost if I try to take a walk all by myself.

The red brick facade and interiors gave the place a very homey atmosphere. It also gave the hotel a very vintage vibe.

The rooms are all neat and very cozy. They say all the rooms come with cable televisions, air-conditions, hot and cold showers, and individual balconies. The very cute balcony drove us all crazy! Haha. We were given a room with the perfect view of the pool and the rest of the grounds. Too bad we didn't have time to swim or even lounge in the pool.

The hotel also looked great at night. If you've seen the movie, you'll know this is where they shot the wedding scene. We were all shrieking with amazement at being in the same spot where Mario and Erich were. The hotel personnel were starting to give us their knowing looks. Haha. Apologies for being really big fans.

Our one-night stay at Fort Ilocandia was a once in a lifetime experience. It's actually one of the best hotels I've ever checked into. The next time I pay Laoag a visit, I'll try really hard to convince my parents to make us stay there. But next time, I'll make sure we bring our own car. Commuting from Fort Ilocandia to the city proper is next to impossible. And I don't plan on going back to this hotel by means of a tricyle again. Haha.


Visit Fort Ilocandia Resort Hotel at
Barangay 37 Calayab, Laoag City,
Ilocos Norte, Philippines
www.fortilocandia.com.ph 

Dine In: The Hidden Garden

Like I said, The Hidden Garden deserves its own blog post. It's 'cause I think food is serious blog material. Haha.

The Hidden Garden is not just a restaurant. It's where tourists (and probably natives) go to dine and shop for clay pots and plants. As implied by the place's name, the Hidden Garden is hard to spot from the highway. Duh, hidden nga diba? You have to go through a maze of potted plants before you reach the main restaurant.

 

Because we were on quite a tight schedule, we didn't get to explore the restaurant as much as we wanted. We just went straight to the dining area to order lunch. All five or us were really hungry already. Plus, the Ilocos weather didn't help the situation. It was scorching hot outside!

We tried to order all the Ilocos specialties, but we only ended up with these:

Poqui-Poqui. It's a native meatless Ilocano dish. If I were to guess how it's cooked, I'd say they grilled the eggplant then sauteed it with onions, tomatoes and egg. It's not the best-looking vegetable dish in the world, but I think vegetarians will enjoy this one.

Bagnet. Ahh, the much talked about dish of the North. I was actually looking forward to tasting authentic Bagnet from Ilocos to see if it's any different from what restaurants in the Metro serve. Frankly, they don't differ much. They just have more generous servings in Vigan. And an order of Bagnet there comes with a plate filled with tomatoes and onions. You'll have to pour lots of Ilocos vinegar on this plate to enjoy your Bagnet better.

Ilocos Pinakbet. It's cute that they serve this dish in small palayoks. It's your typical pinakbet, but with more string beans mixed with small servings of Bagnet. Pair it with rice, and voila, you're good to go.

Vigan Longganisa. Aside from the Bagnet, Longganisa is also one of Vigan's specialties. Their Longganisa is different from what we have back home 'cause it's bigger and, I think, juicier. Though I believe the secret lies in the sawsawan - again, their famous Ilocos vinegar.

We also ordered one more dish which I failed to take a picture of. It's the Ilocos Dinengdeng (served in a small palayok just like the Pinakbet). The name sounds funny, right? Haha. From what I've read, it's made with boiled vegetables, seasoned with bagoong. The dish is completed by adding fried or grilled fish.

The Poqui-Poqui and Dinengdeng aside, these Ilocano dishes are not-so-new to me 'cause most of them are served in restaurants in Manila. Nonetheless, it was fun trying out their authentic dishes. I'd say Vigan is quite blessed in the culinary department. It's a must-visit for food lovers and adventurous eaters.

Backpacking: Vigan City, Ilocos Sur

I swear, if I had all the time and resources in the world, I'd never stay in one place. I'd always be off to nowhere in particular. It's 'cause I believe that experience is the best teacher. And that if you wanna learn about another city or another country, you have to go out there and experience it for yourself. There you go. I'm a frustrated backpacker.

So to fulfill my backpacking fantasies, I joined my friends from law school in a great Ilocos adventure. Yay!

We decided to go on our very own "budget vacation". Right after finals, we boarded a bus headed to Laoag, but we were to get off in Vigan. We're so happy even law students get a 20% discount on bus fare. Haha. Our seven-hour bus ride ended at half past five o'clock in the morning. We took a tricycle to the city proper. We failed to make a reservation at any hotel or inn, so we ended up having a very early breakfast at one of the nearby inns - The Cordillera Inn along Calle Crisologo. 

It was the typical Ilocano breakfast - Vigan longsilog and coffee. The innkeeper was kind enough to let us plug our phones into their outlets so we can recharge our batteries, and use their restroom so we could freshen up. After breakfast, we took our things to Puregold Vigan and deposited them at the baggage counter so we wouldn't have to worry about lugging our bags. Smart move, right? Haha. 

Frankly, we were a bit disappointed after seeing this small serving of longsilog. We went all the way to Vigan for this?!

We went to St. Paul's Cathedral located at the very heart of the city to take a glimpse of their church and to make three wishes. Filipinos believe that if it's your first time to visit a particular church, you get to make three wishes which will all be granted. No hurt in trying, huh? :)

Lined up at the side of the church are these kalesas. They're popular among tourists who wish to explore the city but who do not want to do it on foot. Normally, only four people are allowed per kalesa. But somehow, we managed to convince the kutchero to let all five of us ride on his kalesa. I think we somehow tortured the horse after forcing her to take us around town for five and a half hours. We almost didn't notice it, but the kutchero had to change horses to accommodate our weight. Talk about cruelty to animals. We almost killed one while in Vigan. Apologies!

First Stop: Bantay Church and Bell Tower. We stayed inside the church for less than five minutes, just to take a peek and make another set of wishes. The bell tower is the most picturesque one I've seen so far. And I still can't believe I managed to climb up to its highest point! Quite an achievement for the acrophobic in me. I was shrieking the whole time I was climbing up. 

The view was worth it, though. You can see the entire city from the top. You can even see the West Philippine Sea. (See what I did there? Haha.)

The climb down was even harder and scarier. All those squeaky floor boards! I was shaking by the time I reached the ground. One of my friends found this on our way out of the church grounds:

This one is called Tinubong. It's a kakanin inside a bamboo stick. The fun part actually lies in smashing the bamboo so you can get the Tinubong out. It tastes like Bico (for the Manileños) or Sinukmani (for the Lucenahins). I decided to get my brother three sticks since he loves all kinds of kakaning malagkit.

Second Stop: The Syquia Mansion of Former President Elpidio Quirino. It's called the Syquia Mansion and not the Quirino Mansion because the house belonged to the President's wife. I didn't get to hear much of the story because I was too busy snapping away.

This is a huge replica of Juan Luna's Spolarium, found at the Syquia's living room.

I asked the tour guide if I could give the punkah (the manual fan on top of the dining table) a pull, but he said they've already removed the string. Sad.

Third Stop: Crisologo Museum. Honestly, I'm not very familiar with the story of the Crisologos. All I know is that they're one of the most prominent families in Vigan. If you want to know more about the museum, better click here than rely on my guesses. Haha. I didn't take much pictures inside this museum 'cause I found it to be a bit eerie. After all, there once lived an assassinated congressman. In fact, the museum owner, who happens to be his wife, kept the clothes he wore when he was murdered and put it inside a glass casing for all the world to see. I only took a peek 'cause I didn't want to dream about it at night.

There was also an attempt on the life of the congressman's wife. She was pregnant on the day she was ambushed while inside this car. Fortunately, she and her baby survived. According to the tour guide, she's now 90 years old.

Fourth Stop: Chavit Singson's Baluarte. This place is animal heaven for the kids and the kids at heart. Governor Chavit  has all kinds of animals here - reindeer, tigers, snakes, geese, ostriches, iguanas and the list goes on. Visit to the Baluarte is actually free of charge. You don't have to pay anything to enter the premises.    I'd say that's pretty generous considering the money needed to finance a zoo's upkeep.

We arrived there around noon, just in time to witness the animal encounter show. Again, it's free. One of my friends even got the chance to participate. And we had a photo op with one of the Zoo's famous tigers.

Fifth Stop: The Hidden Garden. That was where we had lunch. I won't post any pictures here 'cause I think it deserves its own blog post. Just a teaser though: many celebrities have come to dine there 'cause they say they serve the best Ilocano dishes.

Sixth Stop: Calle Crisologo. This is Vigan's famous cobblestone street. Tourists who want to be transported back to Philippine Spanish colonial time and those who want to experience a vintage Vigan take a stroll in this very busy street. The residents have preserved the houses' old look, but they've transformed most of the houses' lower floors into business establishments. Here we shopped for pasalubong for our loved ones back home. All the famous Vigan products are here - Cornick, Vigan Longganisa, Abel Iloco, Empanada, Tinubong, etc.

There. That ends our Vigan trip. Vigan is actually very easy to explore. You can finish going through all their famous tourist destinations in half a day. Like I said, we explored Vigan via a kalesa so it took us a bit longer to see the sights. Imagine the very tired horse doing all the walking for us. Haha.

Our Vigan trip turned out to be really fun, considering that it was a Sunday. Sadly, some of the tourist destinations were close to the public. We didn't get to visit Padre Burgos' home, and we also failed to try our hand at pottery making.

We left Vigan at half past three in the afternoon, after getting our bags from Puregold. We boarded a Laoag-bound bus right next to the grocery. We got to Laoag after almost two hours.

So there. Watch out for my blog on our Ilocos Norte trip!