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Northern Exposure: The ILOCOS Trail
How do you traverse a huge province consisting of Ilocos Sur and Ilocos Norte in just one weekend? We – with a group of eager students -braved the rains and the endless bus trip to experience a weekend of old architecture, climbing lighthouses, filling our stomachs with the local cuisine…in short, we fed our souls.
Friday – Departure Day
Saturday – Day 1
The real first stop was at Sabangan Cove in Santiago, Ilocos Sur, a 2-hour trip from La Union. This cove is a fishing and weaving community, known for its abel iloko or the ilokano textile. The textile tradition from this community came from the Itnegs of Abra located in the highland areas of Ilocos. Based from researches, the Itnegs used to occupy the lowland areas but when the Spaniards started to occupy the Ilocos area, they resisted the colonization and moved up to the mountains of Abra. You can find these textiles inside houses where you will see a number of women weaving using the old traditional foot looms. The next stop was the church of the Nuestra Senora de la Asuncion in Sta. Maria, Ilocos Sur. This is one of the four world heritage churches in the Philippines declared by UNESCO. Built in 1765 under the Augustinian order, it is seated on top of a hill or the highest point of the town. We trekked our way up to the church to see huge buttresses that protected the structure from possible earthquake damage. At the left side of the hill, facing the church, was another plight of stairs, this time going down that leads you to the ruins of the old cemetery chapel. The rains started to fall heavily as we were entering Vigan, Ilocos Sur. We went straight to Hotel Salcedo de Vigan for our first Ilokano lunch which consisted of Ilocos Sur longganisa, dinoydoy (squash and ampalaya cooked in broth), and crispy bagnet (deep fried pork meat). This hotel is well recommended for travelers going to Vigan, probably the best example of an adaptive re-use of an old structure. It used to be an old mansion which was renovated and made into a hotel with modern facilities that still maintained the charms of the old Filipino bahay na bato (house of stone). We organized a game patterned after the popular Amazing Race reality show for the students. All of the stops and challenges were part of the cultural experience of Vigan. The race started at the old Quema Mansion. They raced in calesas (horse drawn carriages) and looked for Esteban Villanueva's Basi Revolt painting at the Burgos museum. Then followed to the burnayan or pottery place where they molded jars with their own hands in the traditional way. The students found their way to the local market, learning the Ilokano language by translating the Tagalog song 'Bahay Kubo' to Ilokano by asking the locals. They ran along Crisologo Street to buy Vigan products with their P100. For the final challenge, they documented the cooking of the famous Vigan empanada (stuffed pastry). As a reward, they each got to taste of the delectable local favorite snack. It was the fastest way to learn about the town in the most fun and exciting way. We were starting to drain remaining energies from our tired bodies but it was the perfect way to end the day before going to Laoag City.
Sunday – Day 2
We first headed off to San Agustin Church in Paoay, Ilocos Norte built in 1710, another UNESCO world heritage church in the Philippines. This church is more commonly seen in postcards and books that represented Ilocos Norte. The most prominent part of this baroque architecture are its buttresses with huge volutes, having strong influences from other Asian countries like the Borubudur, the ninth-century Mahayana Buddhist Monument from Central Java and other ancient temples in Southeast Asia. If you intend to go church-hopping around Ilocos, you will notice that most of the bell towers are detached and are built at a distance from the main church structure. This is to protect the church in case the tower collapses during an earthquake. The Museo Iloko in Laoag City was awarded by the National Commission for Culture and the Arts for its well-researched data on Ilocos Norte and for its adaptive re-use of the old Tabacalera warehouse in Laoag City. We had a tour of the museum and found good Ilokano products to bring home at the sarusar or the gift shop. Ten minutes from Laoag City is the town of Sarrat, the birthplace of then President Ferdinand E. Marcos. This quiet town is quaint enough for you to have a good stroll along the river with big old trees near the Sta. Monica Church. We went inside the church and saw its magnificence through its long nave and huge wooden trusses which has been exposed for years. Beside the church are the ruins of the old convent that used to house government offices. We then headed to Cape Bojeador Lighthouse in Burgos, Ilocos Norte. I am always stunned every time I visit Cape Bojeador. This lighthouse is majestically standing on top of a hill facing the China Sea. It is said that if you turn on a radio on top of the lighthouse, you will be receiving frequency from the neighboring country of Taiwan. We climbed up to the topmost viewpoint of the lighthouse and enjoyed the view of the sea. This has been a favorite stop for those traveling to and from Pagudpud town. We were down to our last major stop, and the wind was calling out to us that day. The skies cleared after several days of raining. Everyone was excited to see the Windmills of Bangui. The wind brushed against our faces as we watched the waves crashing to the shore at eight feet high, but the windmills stood calmly. On our last minutes in Ilocos, I mused over how I was still amazed by the magnificence of its built structures, the warmth of the locals, and the natural beauty of the sea and mountains. The drive home was long and quiet. It was in that silence when I knew my soul had been fed by another wonderful journey. |
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