Visiting Ilocos

Last Saturday I left Cebu for Manila en route to Laoag, Ilocos Norte  with my younger sister Jackie, her husband Paul Noerenberg and their children Lance and Leyton. Also with us were my other sister Chingbee, her husband Jerome and their children Kat Kat, Kirky and Peanut and my younger brother Jun-Jun, his wife Trina and  their son Carlo.

Junjun and I went to the airport early as we had to arrange matters with the Cebu Pacific Air office. We were “warmly” received at the Mactan Cebu International Airport. The  air-conditioner was on low power or  was just malfunctioning.

It was hot in   the airport which  was swarming with people. I don’t  know what happened that day.  The past few times I was there,  the air-conditioning system was fine. I hope the airport’s general manager Paul Villarete does something about it.

The flight  to Manila went  well just like our flight to Laoag City, where we were fetched by a coaster from Plaza del Norte  and ferried to the hotel where we had a sumptuous lunch.

After lunch we went on a city tour, dropping by Batac to view  the well preserved  body of  former President Ferdinand E. Marcos. The Marcoses have kept their grip on Ilocos Norte with  Imee Marcos as the governor and her mother Imelda as  congresswoman.

We stopped by tourist spots in Laoag City like the sunken bell tower and old church.  The next  day we left Laoag for Pagudpud but immediately returned because there was no cellular phone signal in the area.   Network connectivity is  crucial  for my sister Chingbee and husband Jerome because of the nature of their business.

We decided to go to Vigan City for the night. We checked hotels like the Salcedo Hotel but found them somewhat creepy. We decided to transfer to Felicidad Hotel which   had modern and spacious rooms. We immediately decided to tour Vigan’s  famous streets.  Walking down  Crisologo Street, it felt like we were transported  to the Spanish era.

The cobblestone street was deserted and the old buildings were closed for the day.  We were the only ones moving about taking photos.  Our hotel rooms featured old wooden panels and squeaky doors. My nephews were challenged by the old ambience of the hotel that reminded them of stories about ghosts and white ladies.

Anyway, I welcomed the hotel’s wide rooms, high ceilings and wooden floor planks  that  made me reminisce about the past. In this part of the country,  there’s a scarcity of ice cubes. But I loved the place because it was  tranquil.

As  Filipinos I hope we  first seek out our own tourist spots which are worth visiting before  travelling abroad.  You will find much to love and be proud of.

The only downside is the expense.  Often times, it’s  cheaper to travel to neighboring countries in Asia.

I hope  tourism industry players put more effort in offering reasonable packages to encourage Filipinos to experience the variety of places in their own country.

Many friends say that it’s  cheaper to go to Hong Kong or Singapore than to visit  Vigan City. But I encourage our readers to visit beautiful places like Vigan which give you a glimpse of the olden but golden days.

The  Department of Tourism can be more  aggressive about promoting affordable domestic tourism packages with the  cooperation of other stakeholders.