I'm here to share my experience and guide you on your travel to Vigan.
We came from Baguio City, so we rode a bus from there for 5-6hrs, depending on the bus.
From Manila, travelling time would be 8-9 hours, again, depending on the bus.
From Vigan we rode a Partas "Deluxe" bus. Travelling time was 8 hours.
A deluxe bus costs more than the ordinary air-conditioned bus. But traveling with comfort is our priority. And it was worth it! It was spacious and the seat was very comfortable with a foot-rest below it.
When we arrived at Vigan, it was around 4pm and we went straight to our chosen hotel which was "Residencia Mojica Hotel". We chose to stay there because it was affordable and the hotel looks new. The room that we stayed in was small, since it is only good for 2 persons. There's a bathroom on every room, too. It was affordable, clean and a walking distance to Calle Crisologo which is a plus. I would recommend this hotel if you're looking for a cheap place with modern facilities. 1 night for 2 costs, P700.
After a few minutes of rest, we headed down to Plaza Salcedo to watch the Dancing Fountain. It happens everyday, 7:30pm and 8:30pm. It's a must-see! The show runs for 30 mins changing from 6 songs! We had so much fun watching it. So don't miss it!
After watching the dancing fountain at Plaza Salcedo, we went to Cafe Leona to have our dinner.
We ordered the Cafe Leona Vigan Specialty and a bowl of Mushroom Soup. Unfortunately, i was not able to take a picture of the soup.
FYI, the bangus is NOT boneless.
The soup was just "okay". it wasn't anything special. The bangus(milk fish) was NOT boneless so i had a hard time eating that one. The pinakbet (vegetables w/ shrimp paste) was too salty for me. The bagnet (fried pork) was crispy, so it was delicious. The Vigan longganisa was very tasty compared to what i've tasted on the other restaurants in Vigan.
We then headed back to our hotel since we were too tired. And it was around 10pm already.
The next day, we had our brunch at Cafe Uno, this time. A cafe located just below Grandpa's Inn. This is what we ordered:
1.Kusina Felicitas special fried rice which was so delicious! you should try it.
2.Dinengdeng (vegetable soup with shrimp paste)- it was my first time trying this one and it was okay.
3. Bagnet (fried pork)- it was crispy so it was delicious. Also it is paired with onion,tomato and bagoong sauce.
4. Poqui-poqui - eggplant with egg. It was okay.
5. And of course, we ordered their Vigan longganisa - it was good but i prefer Cafe Leona's Vigan longganisa.
The interior design was very vintage. That's a plus for me.
We then walked down to Calle Crisologo! We bought souvenirs and had some pictures taken. Every house has it's own unique structure!
Just look at this beauty! <3
It was scorching hot so we decided to rent for a kalesa to tour the City!
Rate is P150/hr. :)
Our first stop was the Bantay Church(St. Augustine Parish Church) and Belfry. Admission is free on the Belfry but Donation is highly recommended. :) It's for the maintenance of the church.
St. Augustine Parish Church
Located just beside St. Augustine Parish Church is the infamous Bantay Belfry.
Isn't it beautiful? I fell in love with this shot!
By the way, you can climb the Tower up to it's 3rd floor!
Here's the view on top!
We then went to the Elpidio Quirino Museum after that, which was the former Provincial Jail. There were lots of cool stuff here, too. And the place was huge and well-maintained.
The museum is air-conditioned.
After that, we then headed to Hidden Garden.
Hidden Garden has lots of plants to offer at an affordable price. But we did not buy any since we don't really need one. hehe. The place was big enough that we were out of our breath when we reached the restaurant that is found inside, which is called "lilong and lilang restaurant". We went there around 2pm so we did not order any meal. We just had a cold, refreshing halo-halo. And it only costs P80. If you want to taste their food, better visit there earlier or during your meal since i heard their food is delicious.
After chowing down our refreshing halo-halo, we then headed to our last stop.
Crisologo Museum was our last stop since our pocket is nearly empty. lol
The house is filled with the Crisologo's memorabilia, too.
We rode the kalesa for 3 hours and we paid P500 (supposedly it would only cost us 450). But since the kutsero(driver) does not have change, we just gave him all of it.
We headed back to our hotel since it is just 2 blocks away from Crisologo Museum, and had our afternoon nap.
We went out at around 8pm to tour Calle Crisologo at night.
We walked around Calle Crisologo and took some pictures.
And headed straight to the Vigan Empanadahan which is located just beside Plaza Burgos.
It's a must-try! Best when dipped with Vigan Vinegar.
After munching the delicious Vigan Empanada, we walked back to Calle Crisologo to have a final glimpse on the view before we went back to Manila the next day.
We also bought Coffee and Cupcakes at Coffee Break on our way back to the hotel.
The cupcakes were delicious, not too sweet, which is perfect for me.
We also tried eating at Abuelita's right before we headed down to the bus station. The food was tasty and it is very cheap. I would also like to recommend this restaurant if you're on a tight budget but craving for an authentic Ilocano dish.
That ended our trip to Vigan. We had so much fun during our stay there. It was satisfying and very full of historical aura.
Thank you for reading guys. Hope you'll find my blog helpful on your trip to Vigan. Enjoy!
Comments
Post a Comment