Ilocos Sampler

The Ilocos Sampler is about our trip from Pagudpod back to Manila. This part of our trip is like a summary that describes every piece of culture that makes an Ilocos tour a unique travel experience.  

On day three, we’re back on the national highway returning to Laoag. The road in this part of Ilocos Norte skirts the sea. Occasional views of tempting foamy surf and mocha sand would come up then would just quickly disappear from our view.

By the time we approached Laoag, we could see roadside stalls displaying local produce including sacks of salt, fat garlic lies and bottles of sukang Iloko –the brown northern vinegar. 

Across the brick-covered Ilocos Norte Capitol is the view of the Sunshine City’s famous sinking bell tower. 

We made a U-turn through a tunnel for a glimpse of the façade of St. William’s Cathedral then up to the fly over for Paoay to visit its famous Earthquake Baroque church.

 

Paoay 

A few minutes drive from Laoag is the town of Paoay. The town’s most famous attraction is its Earthquake Baroque church. From the road, we can see the Oriental spires of Paoay Church that resembles those seen in Angor Wat and Borobodur.  

The centuries-old edifice is supported by massive buttresses found nowhere else in the country. Thus, it rightfully deserves to be recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site –another architectural feat that every Filipinos should see and can be proud of. 

Just across the church is Herencia Café. The café looks like French Café but looking closely at the mural, we noticed that scene depicts the town of Paoay with its church. Herencia Cafe is well-known for its Pinakbet Pizza – such an unusual treat we enjoyed up to the last slice.    

 

Marcos Museum and Mausoleum 

Batac is known as the hometown of President Ferdinand Marcos. The wax remains of the former dictator has become an attraction in this Ilocos Norte town. 

Entering the Marcos Museum and Mausoleum is an eerie experience. Surrounded by Gregorian music, in a dark chamber is the wax remains of Ferdinand Marcos incased in glass. 

After a quick look at the mannequin-like corpse, all of us silently exited the museum/mausoleum probably  thinking –is the dictator’s preserved remains made of pure wax much like those displayed at Madame Tussauds’ Wax Museum? 

 

The Famous Ilocos Empanada

 

Our dark and morbid imagination quickly faded away while we watch intently how the famous Ilocos Empanada is being made in stalls near the church of Batac. 

Using her bare hands, a woman took out small balls of bright orange dough. She then rolled them out and placed the filling of mashed monggo beans, grated papaya, the tangy local longganiza and a whole egg before folding the laden dough circles in half. Trimming the edges with a plate, the empanada is slipped into scalding wok filled with oil. 

Excited and starving, we dipped the crunchy and piping-hot Ilocos Empanada into the tangy sukang Iloko before grabbing a bite.

 

Quirino Bridge

 

Leaving Batac, we returned to Vigan to shop for pasalubong and pick-up some souvenirs before finally hitting the road on the way back to Manila. 

By the time we passed over the iron-braced Quirino Bridge in the town of Santa, raindrops began to pepper our windshield as a sign of blessing for a good trip back home.

 

This concludes our Ilocos tour. Click part 1 –Vigan on Foot, part 2 –Vigan Calesa Tour, part 3 –Ilocos Earthquake Baroque, part 4 –Cape Bojeador Ligthhouse, part 5 –Windmills of Bangui, part 6 –Pagodpud

Peacetime at Adarna Food and Culture

Our Sunday lunch at Adarna Food and Culture is reminiscent of that glittering era referred in history books as Peacetime. We experienced the look and feel of those good old days while savoring the flavorful Sulu Piasok and Adobong Batangas ala Adarna. These house specialties are served in antique silverware and authentic carnival glass platter. 

The dining experience is complete with a tasteful ambience consisting of turn of the century furniture, vintage pop mementoes and object d’art that are creatively displayed in this home-style restaurant along Kalayaan Avenue in good old Quezon City. 

 

Old Jazz and Tertulia Evenings 

Our nostalgia began when we entered the main dining area known as the Bulwagang Adarna through the multi-colored stained-glass sliding doors. Old jazz is being played complementing the vintage posters, photographs, prints and news clippings that embellish the walls. 

Also hanging on walls are artworks by Araceli Dans and Gilda Cordero-Fernando –gifts from the artists to restaurant owners Beth Angsioco and Giney Villar.  

From our table is the view of the Hardin ng Sampaguita –an al fresco dining area where the water gushing from the fountain and flowering trees must have provided its guests an alluring setting for terturlia on certain evenings.  

Although the emergence of the bodabil (vaudeville) and the cinema brought down the popularity of the tertulia in some homes in the 1920’s, Tertulia sa Adarna revives the traditional impromptu social gathering where the guests are asked to sing, dance and recite poems on the entablado (stage) set up in one corner of the spacious jardin.

 

Silid ng mga Bituin and Beauty Queens of the Manila Carnival 

After the mouthwatering dessert of Quesong Puti and Langka Fry, we started moving around to see the rest of the function rooms. 

We ascended a flight of steps leading to a room decorated with photographs of old time movie stars like Carmen Rosales, Leopoldo Salcedo, Rogelio de la Rosa,  and those Sampaguita and LVN matinee idols that made a mark in local cinema during their era. This explains why the room is aptly named as Silid ng mga Bituin (Room of the Stars). 

Adjacent to Silid ng mga Bituin is the Silid ng Reyna ng Karnibal (Queen of the Carnival). The Manila Carnival Queen was the proto-type of today’s modern beauty pageants. Among the illustrious reigning beauties were 1908 carnival queen Pura Villanueva who later became our first suffragette and wife of Teodoro M. Kalaw. Author Paz Marquez Benitez in 1912 and in the1920 queen, Trinidad I, who later became the First Lady as Mrs. Manuel Roxas. 

Photo of 1936 Miss Philippines Mercedes Montilla is exhibited in one corner of the room as well as a couple of embroidered baro on the other side and samples of carnival glassware. 

Both private function rooms can be rented out for a consumable fee of 5000 pesos. 

 

The Sari-sari Store 

Of course our generation can easily identify the sari-sari store. The sari-sari store at Adarna Food and Culture is nostalgic for those who grew up in the eighties. The vintage set up is complete with garapon with candies, komiks rack, a banko (bench) with a dama (checker) set, and tubes of plastic balloon. 

Our experience at Adarna Food and Culture not only brought back memories of spending Sundays at our grandparent’s house where our lola would show sepia photographs and tell stories about their time, it also gave us historical and cultural Trivia on Filipino Food. 

Adarna Food & Culture
119 Kalayaan Avenue, Diliman, Quezon City
Telephone: +632-926-8712
Mobile: +63917-961-8113
Email: adarnafoodandculture@yahoo.com

Thank You Filipinas Magazine For The Positive Review

“The Traveler on Foot travel journal is just a little over a year old yet it has logged a lot of intimate journeys in and out of Manila. The blog not just presents personal photos and narrative accounts but historical references of the places he visits, such as strolling along the Muralla in Intramuros or visting Paete during Holy Week. The site also has links to other photo journals and travel blogs, giving browsers options on visiting places in the Philippines.”

- Raymond Virata, Filipinas Magazine

Monumento Up Close

As a child, Christmas season means going to Heart of Mary Villa in Malabon for our family’s annual outreach activity. By evening, my father would bring us to Ever Emporium in Caloocan City to watch mechanical puppets present a colorful and animated Christmas musical up on the mall’s façade. 

For a good view, we would sit on bermuda grass that covers Grace Park not minding behind us is the towering sculpture popularly known as the Monumento –an imposing monument to Andres Bonifacio created by National Artist Guillermo Tolentino. 

 

Adventure Started at Tropical Hut 

In our recent visit to Monumento, the monument is still surrounded by flashy movie billboards and commercial establishments. However, we noticed some things have changed. Aside from learning that the annual Christmas show has seized a long time ago, Grace Park is now enclosed by an iron fence which makes it less inviting for the public to see Tolentino’s masterpiece up close. 

Our adventure began at a nearby fast food joint. It was quite an effort for us to cross the street from the sidewalk to the park because of the continuous flow of vehicles encircling the rotunda. Upon our approach, we thought of scaling the fence since we can not find the entrance to the park. A resident caretaker came out from a makeshift tent and opened the park’s gate. 

 

Tolentino’s Philosophy 

Inaugurated on the 70^th birth anniversary of Bonifacio (November 30, 1933), the Monumento demonstrates Tolentino’s philosophy that a monument should be factual and symbolical. Illustrating his philosophy, the artist placed the sculpture on an octagonal base whose eight sides represent the eight Philippine provinces that first rose to revolt against Spain in 1896. The base ascends three steps suggesting the three centuries of Spanish rule. 

Historian Ambeth Ocampo in his essay Song Without Words explains that the reflecting pool on opposite sides of the monument serves as a reminder of the Filipino temper according to Jose Rizal in El Filibusterismo as “mild and can be drunk but it dilutes wine and beer, extinguishes fire; heated it becomes steam, and ruffed it is the ocean; once it destroyed mankind and made the earth tremble to its foundation.” 

 

Images of the 1896 Revolution  

Below the 45-foot granite obelisk crowned by a figure of the Winged Victory, Tolentino arranged all bronze figures around it with Andres Bonifacio –hero of the Philippine revolution of 1896 as central figure. Behind him is his youngest general, Emilio Jacinto. They are surrounded by a standard bearer of the Katipunan flag and katipuneros in battle mode. 

Moving to one side is a tableau of a Filipino family with the man holding his dead wife while his other hand is stretching out a clench fist. Next to it is a Katipunan initiation rite where katipuneros sign their oaths of allegiance in blood.

 

Tribute to GOMBURZA

Opposite of the main group are martyred priest Mariano Gomez, Jose Burgos and Jacinto Zamora showing one lifeless, another in waiting and one in the throes of death. Collectively known as GOMBURZA, the execution of the three priests ignited Asia’s first revolution against colonial rule. Another group of figure shows torture scenes and death. 

Happy Independence Day! June 12, 2009

 

Pagudpod

No Ilocos tour is complete without enduring the long-hours drive to Pagudpod. The town is located at the northern most tip of the island of Luzon. Famous for its long stretches of white sand beaches and big waves, the Pagudpod coast opens to the South China Sea.

From the welcome arch, we went to the coastal barangay of Saud. The sand in Saud’s beach is as white and as fine as those found in Boracay. Dubbed as Boracay of the North, Pagudpod is home to several beach resorts. However, they are not as pricey as compared the ones in Boracay.

 

Apo Idon and Terra Rikka Resorts 

It was summer. Like in any of the popular beaches in the country, Pagudpod is an ideal destination for the season. We expect that resorts in Pagudpod will be crowded with visitors. But contrary to what we have expected, we found decent and reasonably-priced resorts like Apo Idon Beach Hotel and Terra Rikka to have moderate number of guests. 

The two resorts actually stand side-by-side along the beach front. Apo Idon offers a Jamaican-themed ambience while Terra Rikka has a cruise ship feel with rustic tropical island experience. One thing I like best in both resorts is their unlimited free WiFi access. Imagine surfing the web while listening to the muffled sound of the waves and marveling the view of the great blue sea.

 

Shells and Lobster 

Just off the beach are vendors selling different kinds of souvenirs. These are mostly trinkets and shell items. We bought some souvenirs for our friends at home. Massage services are also available by the beach.

Also sold along the beach were seafood. Different kinds of fish and shell fish can be bought directly from the fishermen and have it cooked by the resort’s chef. For dinner, we had a two-kilo lobster which we got for only 800 pesos.

 

Sunset at Pagudpud 

Our overnight stay in Pagudpod is the final leg of our tour of Ilocos. We have skipped quite a number of attractions in this tour due to the lack of time. It only proves that there are endless surprises that await anyone who visits this historic and eco-cultural destination.

On the next day, we are headed back to Manila. I am very excited to share a summary of experience going homebound in an article I will call the Ilocos Sampler.

 

This is sixth of the articles about Ilocos. Click part 1 –Vigan on Foot, part 2 –Vigan Calesa Tour, part 3 –Ilocos Earthquake Baroque, part 4 –Cape Bojeador Lighthouse, part 5 –Windmills of Bangui