Ilocos on my Mind

Around two years ago, I wished for a kasama on a trip to Vigan. Yun lang, kasama, kauban to Vigan. It was listed on the wishlist site of our barkada. Pero God in all His generosity gave me so much more. He gave me not just a kauban (boyfriend ko pa) pero He made sure na all-expense paid (courtesy of my generous bf). Kasali pa ang plane fare ko to and from Manila. And not just Vigan, sinama pa nya ang Laoag and Pagudpud. The best gyud si Lord.

The highlights of our trip were of course the food. Kain lang kami ng kain. :D Pero ok lang kasi lakad din kami ng lakad. It was purely a backpacking trip. And we did not even have reservations. Kasi ang isa dyan, pinatawag ko sa hotel, tumawag lang, di nagreserve. Hehehehe. Peace sweetheart. :D

It was a trip full of adventures and misadventures. Di namin alam na kailangan pala ng reservations sa bus. So we had to wait two hours sa bus terminal hoping to get a seat as chance passengers. Inulan din kami sa Pagudpud. Kaya yung pics namin dun medyo dark and gray. :D Buti na lang all-weather ang camera ko kaya we were still able to take pictures inspite of the rain.

Tapos nasira pa yung upuan namin sa bus galing Pagudpud. We hightailed it out of the bus as soon as it arrived in the terminal. Baka pagbayarin pa kami. :D

I feel now like I know Laoag and Vigan like the back of my hand. Because we walked all over the place and just took buses, jeeps and tricycles to see the sights. Di kami namakyaw ng sasakyan to tour us. It was more fun albeit more tiring that way. Oks lang, may tagabitbit naman ng gamit ko. :D

It was by God's grace that we did not manage to kill each other during our extended vacation together. He was very patient with me and my tantrums when things did not go the way I planned them to. Ang strategy nya is to wait one hour daw. Kasi that's how long daw it takes for me to recover from a fit. Aba, inorasan pala ako. :D

It was a major bonding time. We joked and laughed at each other's corny jokes. Ay, iya ra diay ang corny. :D

One of the places I liked best is Paoay. I told him that we should buy a hacienda in Paoay kasi ang ganda ng place (ilusyonada ang lola nyo eh) . Sagot nya, "Sure, ilan ang gusto mo?". Sarap batukan minsan.

We also went to this studio in Vigan that specializes in period photography. They have many vintage costumes you can choose from tapos suot mo sila for your photograph. We changed into our Don and Donya attire and had our picture taken. Aba, authentic kaayo ang final product in sepia. :D Mura gyud mi ug silingan lang ni Rizal sa panahon nya. :D The haciendero and haciendera look. Na nalugi sa harvest kasi di kami nakasmile. :D Because I haven't really seen anyone smile on those old photographs so we thought na mas authentic ang hindi nakasmile.

Kaya lang ang init nga mga costumes nila. Igang gyud. Kinahanglan gyud ko ug magsunod-sunod nga nagapaypay nako sa streets of Vigan kung in-ato ako sul-ob. :D I wonder how they did it during the Spanish era. Kahit na walang global warming during that time, feel ko mainit pa rin.

Anyway, here are some of the dishes we enjoyed on our trip.

(clockwise, from left) kamote tops salad with its accompanying bagoong sauce, some very delicious igado, deepfried bunog fish dipped in sukang Iloco. All at Cafe Uno

special and ordinary empanada at Vigan.
too bad we weren't able to take a picture of the Laoag empanada which I think is more delicious.
the laoag empanada is bigger and looks orange.

some food cooked in a bamboo tube. this is delicious. tastes like not-so-sweet kalamay.
we bought this is calle crisologo inVigan

Don C. and Donya M.

The food was all so delicious. We wished we could have tried more dishes. I did not think I would like Ilocano food but I did! The food and all our adventures and misadventures really made it a trip to remember. Next stop, Batanes! I wish. Hehehe. :D