Ilocandia is the term given to the traditional
homeland of the Ilocano people.
From the original
western strip of Northern Luzon (now known as the Region 1 or Ilocos Region),
Ilocandia has spread throughout the Cagayan Valley, Cordillera Administrative
Region, and some parts of Central Luzon.
Being in the
Visayas, I have long heard of Vigan which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site as it
few Hispanic towns left in the Philippines where its structures have remained
intact, and is well known for its cobblestone streets and a unique architecture
that fuses Philippine and Oriental building designs and construction, with
colonial European architecture. It makes me want to go there so that I will
have the experience to go back in time to the Spanish era. I was able to find a
great seat sale that will allow me to and so I did! I came traveling with my
friend/office mate that time so it was a
lesser burden when it comes to expenses.
LAOG CITY
Laoag City is our
jump-off point. The city is the province's political, commercial, and
industrial hub and the location of the Ilocos Region's only commercial airport,
the Laoag International Airport.
How I got there:
You can get to Laoag
City from Manila in two ways - by land
or by air. Taking the land route gives
you a travel time of 10-13 hours. We are
pressed for time so taking the plane is the best and time-saving option. The
flight is about 45 minutes to an hour.
CebuPacific and Philippine Airlines have routes there.
Where I stayed:
My friend and I
stayed at Texicano Hotel.
Texicano is ‘a bit old’. Yes, it’s not winning awards for, well, anything, but
this is still a popular backpacker selection. As long as you don't expect much
then it is good for a night's stay. We actually stayed her for two nights - the
night we arrived from our flight from Manila and the night we arrived from
Vigan city (check details about what happened).
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| *prices may change prior notice |
For
more a list of LAOAG ACCOMMODATION: Cheap Lodges, Pension Houses, Resorts and
Luxury Hotels, visit this page.
The things I did and the places I went to:
The airport is in
Laoag City so we decided to tour Laoag on our last day there. At least, we
won't fret much on catching our flight. Flights to Laoag are usually at night
time so when we arrived in Manila, we had to stay the night there and we stayed
at Texicano Hotel. We were hungry by the time we arrived and the hotel has a
restaurant but we opt to check if there are still places open that we can eat.
We were lucky to find one, a Kampampangan restaurant in Laoag - Ravanden's. I
haven't tried authentic Kampampangan dish so I can't compare it to anything
else but it was satisfying. We went back to the hotel after as we had to be
early the next day to catch the bus going to Pagudpud.
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| Inside Ravanden's |
By the time we got back from Vigan, we stayed at Texicano Hotel once more. The kuya that we contacted for the Pagudpud tour referred his cousin for the trike tour in Laoag. We paid Php600 for the entire tour. By the next day, he was already waiting outside of the hotel. We were pressed for time as we had a flight schedule at 7PM bound for Manila so I asked kuya driver if we can cover the places and be done by 5PM. He said that it can be done so and so we checked out of the hotel and brought our things with us during the tour. We first asked him to take us somewhere to eat and somehow requested that it should offer their dishes because we would like to try them. He took us I think to his favorite carenderia and it was what we need. I ordered Dinakdakan, which is a twist to the regular grilled pork – it’s pork belly plus liver plus ears, covered in pig’s brain , and Sinanglaw, a dish made of the pig’s internal organs, whose broth is flavored by the pig’s bile. Those may sound gross but they were tasty. I am adventurous with food so I wasn't afraid of trying out locals' dishes. After that, we started our tour. Here are the places we went to:
Marcos Museum and Mausoleum
Paoay Church
Paoay Lake
Malacañang of the North
Museo Ilocos Norte
Fort Ilocandia Resort
St. William's Church And Laoag Sinking Bell Tower
La Paz Sand Dunes
The 4x4 experience
that we had at the La Paz Sand dunes was awesome. It is a must try if you are
in Laoag. It was not part of our tour package but our tour guide/driver agreed
to take us there and wait for us. For a group of 4, the ride costs about Php2500 including the sand boarding experience. But we were
just a group of 2 but we were offered Php1500
for half an hour without sand boarding. It was an awesome deal for us so we
took it and it was a really fun and exciting ride for us! I enjoyed it very
much!
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| Laoag Sinking Bell Tower |
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| St. William's Church |
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| Paoay Church |
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| Malacañang of the North |
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| Fort Ilocandia Resort |
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| A fountain inside Fort Ilocandia |
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| Museo Ilocos Norte |
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| Dinakdakan |
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| Sinanglaw |
What I want you to know:
- Flights are usually at night, so better make the necessary arrangements with your late check in with the hotel of your choice and of your itinerary.
- It will never hurt to ask and maybe you can get a good deal with that ;)
- I had trouble with sand going inside my shoes at the sand dunes, I never expected to get of the 4x4 to take pictures and such so better put on the proper footwear and depends on the time you go there - sun glasses if you can.
- Bring change with you as there are corresponding fees for museums which varies from Php30-Php120.
Check out my Pagudpud adventure on my next post!
