Ilocandia Invasion - Vigan

September 2010


All the way from Laoag, we reached the historic town of  Vigan through bus ride for about 2 hours. We asked the bus driver to dropped us in Vigan Capitol, then we take a tricycle ride to Grandpa's Inn where we had our reservation.Upon entering the inn, I felt like I'm on a Spanish era.

The inn's antique collections was displayed on the lobby such as paintings, clocks, telephones, pianos and other musical instruments.

Having an imaginative mind will really scare yourself as we can see on movies that old things surely came from the past. And past has its own story, such as ghost story :-) Well, I didn't entertain such thoughts as it will ruin our vacation.

It was past eleven 'o clock and tired of our daytime activities in Laoag, though we are excited to visit the Heritage Village we fell on a sounded sleep. But we knew Calle Crisologo is more scenic during night time so we decided to wake up as early as 4 'o clock.

We went to the Heritage Village to see the famous street with a cobblestone, Calle Crislogo. I admired the people of Vigan on how they preserved their cultural heritage, it was indeed worth it for UNESCO to inscribed the entire city of Vigan as World Heritage Site.

We take a hike on the cobblestone street and see preserved old buildings and ancestral houses. The buildings show how solid the materials we're used before as it reach on 20th century.

To preserved the cobbled stone street, no other transportation are allowed to pass by on it than 'calesa'. Yes only 'calesas' are allowed to roam around the streets of Calle Crisologo.

It was downpouring early in the morning so we decided to get back to Grandpa's Inn and freshen up, take our complimentary breakfast and begin our city tour.

We take our breakfast on the inn's restaurant, they prepared us sinangag, sunny side up egg and Vigan longganisa. 

Their resaurant has a nice ambiance, the wall has different kinds of paintings for sale. One of the painting captured my attention, the 'Mother & Child'.

We started our city tour on the famous St. Paul Metropolitan Cathedral which faces Plaza Salcedo.

Next stop is Father Burgos Museum, which was the home of the famous martyr during Spanish era. The museum showcase a lot of antique collections and things that Filipinos used in the past.

Then next stop is Bantay Church Shrine of Nuestra de la Caridad which is one of the oldest churchest in Vigan, it's a gothic and baroque inspired architecture.

An entrance of Php10 to enter the gate to have a nice view of the picturesque belfry, Bantay Bell tower.

Then we headed to Burnayan, a pottery manufacturer where the craftsman demonstrate on how to make jars out of molded clay.

We bought some 'pasalubongs' outside the Burnayan where there are few stalls selling different kinds of stuffs and crafts made by the locals.

Next stop is the Crisologo Museum, it was the ancestral house of Floro and Carmeling Crisologo. 

And our last stop is Chavit singson's Baluarte,  an interactive mini zoo with a panoramic view and enjoy the place for free.

It was lunch time when we finished the tour, before heading back to Laoag to catch our last flight to Manila, we take a lunch on a nearby 'carenderia' where they were also selling 'longganisa' and 'bagnet'.

The tour in Vigan refreshen my patriotic sense, able to appreciate those who gave their lives for us to enjoy the democracy that they desired for their future generations.