Ilocos Tour Part II: Vigan Tour

VIGAN, Philippines - We welcomed Day 2 with moans and groans from having to wake up at such an ungodly hour.  Nevertheless, we were ready 30 minutes later than projected but just in time for the 8:30 am Partas bus to Vigan (Php 133).

What supposedly was a day trip turned in a whim, into an overnight stay.  To walk on Vigan cobblestone underneath the yellow street lights has always been this odd dream of mine, this is apparently something I share with my traveling companions. I've always imagined it would be magical and nostalgic, dreamy like a sepia photograph.  (And it was.)  

After an almost 3 hour trip, we immediately looked for some place to sleep and bathe on a student budget.  There's a tourist outpost near the mouth of the town and they suggested Arcellana's Lodging House. We also asked the local tricycle drivers for  a nice and clean place to stay (on a very, very tight budget) and they also suggested the place.  Arcellana's Lodging House a tricycle away from Calle Crisologo.  We took their non-aircon dorm type rooms at Php 200 / person / night.  

After unloading some of our stuff, our Vigan Tour started!  Baluarte Zoo, owned by Chavit Singson, was our first stop in Vigan.  It's (still?) free and unfinished.  

Php20 fee to have your picture taken with this poor tiger

Travel tip: pick your tricycles.  Haggle and charm them into a reasonable price before riding unless you want to be surprised by your tourist fare at the end of the trip.  If they don't budge, there are always more tricycles in the sea (or rather, road).  

We went to loomweaving (which I do not have pictures of) and pagbuburnay (jar-making) after Baluarte.  

We tried to walk back to the Vigan Cathedral (St. Paul's Cathedral) but gave up halfway.  Blaming the heat and our hunger, we rode a trike back to the plaza and went inside the nearest airconditioned eatery we could find -- McDonald's.  

Fully recharged and ready for more walking, we started our afternoon with the Vigan Cathedral.

The facade has a very recent paint job (note the scaffolding, haha), but the body remains a plain concrete.

I wouldn't normally associate red as a "holy" color, but the application is actually quite appealing and complements the altar nicely.

My favorite part of the church is its vaulted ceiling.

Obligatory artsy photo.

The Crisologo Museum was our next stop.  The museum is actually Crisologo's own home, a traditional bahay-na-bato.  We were greeted by an eager guide who ushered us into the first room with a brief introduction on Crisologo.  

Finally, a group photo.  

We're always too preoccupied geeking out about things we learned in class (interiors, furniture, accessories during the Spanish colonization.. just imagine us spazzing!).  Another home-turned-museum is the Syquia Mansion.  A very knowledgeable guide welcomed us into the mansion, leading us from room to room. The Syquia's are an affluent family and this affluence is very much evident in their home -- from the house itself to the littlest of details.    

The courtyard is located at the second floor.  The owners of a house usually stay at the second floor while the ground floor is usually for the kalesa and the horses.

Nothing in this house is not extravagant.  Notice the gold (actual gold!) frame of the mirror.

Walking for hours under the scorching heat pushed us to finally end our semi-walking tour.  We saved the best for last, of course.  

Calle Crisologo is a UNESCO Heritage Site famous for its cobblestone road, kalesas and the old Spanish colonial houses that line the street.  Here you can buy pasalubong and antiques.  Before walking the length of Calle Crisologo, we took a coffe break in, well, Coffee Break Vigan.  It is a quaint coffee shop with aircon (!!), free wifi (!!!) and tasty coffee (!!!!).  We waited for the sun to set hoping for an orange-tinged walk.  

The golden hour wasn't as golden as we hoped it to be, but it was stunning nonetheless.  

We had dinner in Los Majitos de Vigan, which I recommend as well.  Their food is good and reasonably priced, the ambiance was okay, and they played 90's music.

Too hungry to care for the focus, I apologize.  We had Bagnet con Tofu, poqui poqui (an eggplant/egg dish) and pork sisig.

Also, different-colored Tanduay Ice and a game of cards (until we were told it was bad luck to play in a business establishment) as we waited for the rain to stop.

Walking down the lit Calle was quite the experience.  It was a wistful journey, a re-imagination of what life was like back then.  The gentle wind, the good company... to quote a book, "I swear in that moment we were infinite."  It was good to end the night on this note.

Recommended: Arcellana's Lodging House,  Coffee Break Time Vigan,  Los Majitos de Vigan

Ilocos Tour Part I: Churches and Empanadas - A tour of Batac, Paoay and Naic
Ilocos Tour Part II: And Everything was Yellow - Beautiful, beautiful Vigan
Ilocos Tour Part III: Here and Back Again - More of Vigan and its neighbor, Bantay
Ilocos Tour Part IV: Here Comes The Sun - Pagudpud, Bangui Windmills, Cape Bojeador Lighthouse
Ilocos Tour Part V: When The Day Met The Night - Laoag, Vintar and our last hurrah!
Ilocos Part VI: It's All Gonna End - Sarrat and Paoay Again