ilocos 2013 - day 2

     As I write this, I have been overtaken by a lot of events, by every other thing except the neighborhood turtle.  Pa'ano oras mga langaw : How time flies. 

First Stop: Vigan, Ilocos Sur, home to the Heritage Village... and Brother Vio. 

     As usual, we left around 9 am.  It was for a small reason : the “boss” of Tess, her three year old son, Kendong.   

Kendong

Blah, blah, blah...  Off we go to Vigan, windows down, the wind blowing on our faces.

     We met with Vio, we were soooo late, but Vio was very gracious in accommodating us in his very busy schedule.  We discussed a couple of church issues and asked directions to the various places we had planned to visit.  We also asked him where we could get our hands on the popular Vigan empanada.

First Stop in Vigan: Baluarte. 

     The animals here are quite friendly.  

No Angry Birds here

They’ve probably gotten used to the backward pace of life in the region.  Meet "Sleepy Hoof". 

Sleepy Hoof

There was a Tiger, but it was in chains... in the background, quasimodo!

Jane (foreground) and the Tiger (background)

But beware!  The Velociraptor isn't that welcoming!

Look out !!!

Next Stop in Vigan: Heritage Village. 

Picturesque View of Calle Crisologo

     When in Vigan, ask where McDo is and you will find yourself a few step away from Vigan Empanada any way you want it!  (The Heritage Village in Calle Crisologo is just a couple of blocks away.)

     The Vigan Empanada is made with a flour dough rolled to a circle (1/8-inch thin and 8-inches in diameter); it is then filled with cabbage coleslaw, crumbled longganisa, and a raw egg yolk; then the dough is folded over the filling to make a half-circle and the edges are sealed; then it is deep-fried in hot oil.  The finished product has a yellowish crunchy crust, with a creamy, spicy, meaty and veggity filling - it is very, very oily!  Dip your empanada in spiced vinegar and you’ve gotten through one mouthful Vigan experience.

     The Heritage Village proved (to me) to be (partly) a let down - dampened nostalgia.  The restored relics of houses that lined Calle Crisologo were distinctly marked by a lot of modern improvisations, e.g. split-type air-conditioners, aluminum-glass jalousies, unpainted wall “palitada” and ballast-type fluorescent tubes hanging on strings outside the time-worn brick walls and age-old hardwood window frames and door jambs.  It was a souvenir market, left and right.

     There was a stop we needed to make on our way back to Ilocos Norte.  It was another one of those relic bell towers we passed by on our way to the Sur - the Masingal Bell Tower outside the Masingal Museum.

Masingal Bell Tower outside the Masingal Museum

Second Stop: Paoay, Ilocos Norte.

     There were still a couple of places we need to go to before the daylight receded - San Agustin Church and Malacanang of the North.

San Agustin Church

San Agustin Church Bell Tower

Third Stop: Malacanang of the North.

     We were told by the tourist guide stationed at the tourist hut on the lawns of San Agustin Church that the Malacanang of the North closes at 6 pm.  We had ample time - it was just before 5 pm and Malacanang was only about 20 minutes away.

     But we had to make a stop - a photo stop - a 3-minute photo stop at the scenic Paoay Lake.

Scenic Paoay Lake

     Run and gun, we were off to Malacanang in a huff.

     "Drat... and double drat!" said Dick Dastardly.  Malacanang closes at 5 pm, and not at 6 pm as we were told at the tourist desk at San Agustin Church.  Blind guides!  We made PR the guard at the gate to let us in, then we made PR the cashier (shooing us away with the motion of her hands when we were still about 50 meters away from her) who collects the P30- entrance fee at the door and the guard (also shooing us away with the wave of his hands) guarding the cashier and all the money that the cashier collected for the day.   Blah, blah, blah... 
    

The Cashier and the Guard no longer at the door.

     The guard who was shooing us away earlier was (a bit later) kind enough to regard us as tourists and toured us through all the rooms of the big house.

Not the Oval Office

Jane fascinated by the antique wooden closets

Children's Bedroom

Scenic view of Paoay Lake from a window

 
     What can I say?  I didn't really want to go there, but what the heck!

OK na rin !!!

     Fort Ilocandia Resort was along the way going back to Fort "Valdez" Ilocandia in Sarat so we took a swing at the place and found the shiny red floor tiles concretely antiquarian.  We weren't allowed to go near the pool.

Fort Ilocandia Resort (FIR)

     We had an early dinner at a grilled-chicken house a bit before it got dark, and planned to rest a while upon reaching home, pack our bags and take a shower before leaving for the airport which was half an hours drive away.  Plenty of time since our flight was at 2200H or 10:00 pm and it was only 7:40 pm.

     When Jane checked our tickets for the flight schedule, she asked me what time 2030H was because that was the time printed under DEPARTURE - 8:30 pm, I said.  It was now 7:50 pm.  2200H was under ARRIVAL.  The clock was now ticking... LOUDLY!  But it was not yet 20 Minutes Before Take-off!

     We threw all caution to the winds, packed our bags, and in 5 minutes we were gone... for good!  My heart was pounding out of my chest!  No, not really.  But it was one of those "panic modes" when you wished you had taken PAL instead of Cebu Pacific - because PAL is Plane Always Late, and I was praying that our flight would be delayed.  Ok, it was delayed.

     And so while awaiting - almost an hour! - the anti-climactic arrival of our airplane, I began writing the blog in Jane's blueberry... ok, ok! blackberry.