Photos: Sonny Valenzuela, Danny Valenzuela, Dave Laurio and Eddie Flores

After celebrating the New Year at my brother Danny’s and his wife Cindy’s residence, we were ready for a tour of northern Luzon. Our trip started with a long drive to Candon, Ilocos Sur, where we were graciously hosted by my sister Quiding’s and her husband Eddie’s longtime friends Rey and Perlie Borge-Dario, followed by a day’s tour of Vigan, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, then on to Pagudpud in the province of Ilocos Norte on the northern tip of Luzon.

The 8-hour drive from Manila to Candon was long but enjoyable. I rode with the boys who are in their teens or early twenties. There were stretches of animated conversations and lively stories among the brothers and cousins, with lulls of quiet in between as they fell asleep in a seemingly synchronized manner. I have not mustered the courage to drive on Philippine highways, so my nephew Kitt drove the entire distance. My job was to help him stay awake and alert. I could tell that he was getting weary when he asked me several times “how much longer”. As I looked at the map, I could only tell him what part of the way we have traveled, but not how much longer in time. Although the first part of the journey was on modern expressways, the latter part was on single lane routes that turned into dirt roads at times, making the rest of the drive unpredictable. Kitt passed tricycles, jeepneys, and buses with agility that he must have acquired from years of playing video games.

Candon

Rey was eagerly waiting for us on the main road when our caravan of two SUV’s and a minivan arrived in Candon. He waved and signaled us to turn left to get to their newly built vacation house near the beach, not too far from the main road. He and Perlie went all out to entertain us, just as they did when we visited them last spring at their residence in Vancouver, Canada. As soon as we entered the house, we were served an afternoon snack of pansit (pan fried noodles). That evening, they hosted a dinner party by the beach, complete with karaoke. Eddie was conspicuously absent for this favorite pastime of his. He caught a bad cold that day, and reluctantly rested during the evening to be able to enjoy the trip to Vigan and Pagudpud the following day.

Vigan

After a satisfying breakfast at the Borge’s house, we were on our way to Vigan, the capital of the province of Ilocus Sur. I have never been to Ilocos before. I was pleasantly surprised with what we saw in Vigan. The historical city is a throwback to the time that Spain ruled the Philippines. The quaint colonial town is well-preserved. We rode calesas on well-kept cobblestone streets to tour the city. A calesa (or kalesa) is a horse-drawn carriage that the Spaniards introduced in the Philippines centuries ago. During one of the stops, we witnessed an expert potter demonstrate his craft. The calesas also took us to Baluarte Park, which features an entrance-free animal park built on the property of former Ilocos Sur governor Chavit Singson. The park houses many animals, from gentle butterflies to feral tigers. Carefully positioning my camera between two cage bars, I warily took close-up pictures of a huge sleeping tiger, fully aware of the danger of coming too close to the wild feline. There are museums in Vigan that honor Philippine heroes such as Father Jose Burgos and Diego Silang, and former President Elpidio Quirino who hailed from Vigan. Lunch was at Max’s Restaurant, a household name among Philippine restaurants. Eddie and Quiding had their wedding reception at Max’s in Manila many years ago. The proprietor of Max’s in Vigan is Perlie’s close friend Lucy. She treated us to a hearty lunch at her restaurant.



Batak

On the way to Pagudpud, we passed by Batac, Ilocos Norte, former President Ferdinand Marcos’ hometown. In Batac is a museum of the former president’s memorabilia and a mausoleum with the dead president’s preserved body inside a refrigerated glass enclosure.

Pagudpud

It was dark by the time we reached Pagudpud. It was a drizzly night, and the wind was strong. Our vehicles’ headlights lit the otherwise pitch-dark dirt road in the forest by the sea. It was difficult to get our bearing to locate the place where we were supposed to stay. Upon finally finding and inspecting it, we declined to stay in the disquietingly dark and damp shelter by the seashore. We searched for another place and lucked out in finding Kapuluan Vista Resort. Most of the available rooms were dormitory style. Under the circumstances, we were glad to grab the rooms, cold water shower, shared bathroom, and all.

The following morning, we awoke to a stunning view of the South China Sea in front of the resort and the forested hills behind it. A couple of locals gathered seaweed on the verdant marshy part of the seashore just ahead of the undulating waves. The wind remained quite strong. It was prudent to avoid standing underneath the coconut trees. After buying some fresh fish to cook for lunch, we proceeded to a place aptly called the Blue Lagoon. On one side of the beautiful beach is virgin mountain forest, on the opposite side, the crystal blue sea. The strong wind and big waves prevented us from swimming, but the spectacular view more than made up for it.




We were the only group of people on the beach. While a young boy of thirteen peddled his ware of sea shells and semi-precious stones to us, another smaller group arrived. One of the men from the group approached us. The man turned out to be Danny’s close friend and former classmate Tony, who happened to be on vacation in Pagudpud also that very day. Tony, like Cindy’s sister Frieda and her husband Rico who were also with us, now lives in Australia, and they know each other quite well, too. Furthermore, Tony was my student in calculus during his college years at the University of the Philippines in Quezon City. Touring in the Philippines was not only an opportunity to see beautiful places, but also an occasion for chance meetings with old friends!



The trip on the island of Luzon from Manila to Ilocos Norte reminded me in some ways of road tours we have taken in Europe. At night, the Vigan town center is reminiscent of a European centrum with its street cafes serving food and beverages. Just as when crossing country borders in Europe, the language changes as one travels from province to province of Luzon. The local language changed from Tagalog, to Kapampangan, to Panggalatok (Pangasinan), to Ilokano as we traveled north. When we reached Ilocos Norte, we could even pick up Chinese stations from Taiwan on AM radio. Like in Europe, there are many old churches to visit along the way, so many that the boys anticipated visiting another church each time we stopped. We went into several of them. Of note are the old church in Candon, the St. Augustine Church near Vigan with the imposing belfry standing atop a nearby hill, the Baroque-style St. Paul’s Cathedral in Vigan where we heard Sunday mass conducted in Ilokano, and the church of Manaoag in Pangasinan which enshrines Our Lady of Manaoag, a wooden statue of the Virgin Mary that is said to be over 400 years old and to which miracles have been attributed by the local inhabitants.

When we arrived back in Manila, Cindy’s sister Annie and Mommy, their mother had a delicious dinner already waiting for us. As Kitt, who had been driving for hours, made a beeline to the restroom, another enjoyable family road trip came to an end.

 

 

Munting Nayon News Magazine