Ilocos, Philippines

I had the opportunity to visit Ilocos last month together with my office mates and faculty members of Tourism Department. I am excited to travel but I wasn’t so excited with the place we will going to visit. The first thought in my mind is that the place will be boring. We will just see large rice fields, farmers, trees, grass, etc. Although I really love nature but I don’t know why I am not so excited that time.

We left Cavite at night and arrived in Vigan at the morning. It was a long travel time. It was almost around 10 hours from Cavite. The feeling was so uncomfortable because we slept in the bus for 10 hours and the funny thing was I wasn’t able to bring anything with me (my toothbrush, underwear, facial wash etc.) because I putted it in the compartment of the bus and the bus operator didn’t allowed me to get my things for it will cause delays. So I end up messy the whole day.

We explore the whole Vigan that day. I forgot my embarrassment when I saw the whole city. The place is so amazing and so heritage. I wish I brought a camera that time because I saw lots of good angles and subjects in the place. We do shopping. I bought native shirts, wallets, accessories, etc. We also attended a seminar entitled “Tourism Situation in Ilocos.” It interests me because the speaker reported things they do to improve the tourism industry in Vigan. They also passed some ordinance to preserve the place especially the old houses, streets and churches. The speaker also mentioned that Vigan City was the only place in the Philippines that was not bombed by the US. Want to know why? It’s because of the love story between a Japanese and a Filipina. Because the Japanese was so in love with the Filipina he decided to leave Vigan City (where the Filipina live) so that the US military will not bomb the place.

The day ended and I am so tired. We traveled almost two hours just to get in the hotel where we will stay for three days. So the same situation goes, I slept in the bus for two hours. We finally arrived at the hotel after couple of hours. The name of the hotel is Fort Ilocandia. It was rated as triple A hotel in the Philippines. Again, all my weariness were gone when I saw the place. It was so beautiful inside. It was like a mansion made up of old bricks. Inside you will find disco bar, casino, playing arena, shops, restaurant, etc.

The next day we went to visit different old churches. Take a look at the pictures below. I don’t have camera that time so I just used my VGA phone camera (that’s why the pictures are pixelated).

Sarrat Church

This is the Sarrat Church.

Paoay Church

This is the Paoay Church.

San Nicolas Church

This is the inside view of San Nicolas Church.

So much for churches. Let us talk about summer! Yeah! Summer is here and talking about summer I recommend that you go and visit Pagudpud in Ilocos. I love the blue water and white sand plus the cheap accessories in plenty of shops!

Shops

At my back are the shops for souvenirs and accessories. Every accessories is cost around 10-400 pesos only.

pagudpud

Clear water+ blue skies+ white sand+ great waves= PAGUDPUD.

Wind Mill

You can see this at Pagudpud and you can even go here. It’s Ilocos Windmills. It’s a source of energy for places in Luzon.

Anyway, so much for this Ilocos tour. In the end, the tour was very tiring yet satisfying from the places, foods and bonding moments with my colleagues. So the next time you think of vacation or break, might consider going to Ilocos, Philippines. Sure you won’t waste your money.

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