On architecture and God's creation

Ilocos tour - Day 2

Macy's Counter

Before anything else, we went to the market to buy bagoong - a fermented fish condiment. After this, we had our breakfast. By the way, we stayed at Hotel Tiffany. It had the basics - bed, blanket, pillow, towel, soap, hot/cold shower, unclogged toilet, tv, aircon, mirror and sink. They have a restaurant named Macy's where we ate our breakfast. The restaurant had that 60's design and they even have a working jukebox. I loved their beef tapa--it was just like my mom's. Their hot chocolate drink was a little on the sweet side, I don't know why they even bothered adding a sachet of sugar on the side.

This jukebox was actually working

First stop: Cape Bojeador and Burgos Lighthouse

Burgos Lighthouse

Cape Bojeador

Too bad the tower of lighthouse was off limits. You could only take pictures of the perimeter. Again, there are too many tourists and it was scorching hot even if it's still early. But the view was priceless. Too bad they don't sell lighthouse keychains.

Second stop: Kapurpurawan Rock Formation (Puraw = white)

This was the closest that we could get to the actual rock formation

I've been hearing good things about this and I was really excited that it's included in our tour. There's an entrance fee but kept to a minimum(30php). I thought that you could climb the actual rock, but it was a restricted area--probably to maintain the form of the rock. Too bad we weren't able to try and climb one of the white rocks with grooves that looked like steps. Make sure to bring your shades(or umbrella) and apply sunscreen. 

Third stop: Bangui Windmills

First five windmills

I don't know why, but I'm one of those people who were totally amazed of these gigantic windmills. Maybe because its a great backdrop for photos :) The windmill photo on the left was under maintenance at that time. It was almost noon so we stayed on where the shadow of this windmill was cast to shade us from the heat of the sun. There were stores near the windmills where you could buy souvenirs (keychains, t-shirts, photo frame, etc.). I bought a t-shirt printed with facts by national geographic even if it was a size bigger.

Lunch @ Kangkang Cafe by the windmills

One variant was good for 3-4 persons so we ordered 4 cups of rice, tinola, and grilled squid. Since we were a large group(3 vans with more or less 12 people inside) the orders came 1 hr later. It was really slow--or so we thought--surprisingly, all orders came in after waiting for an hour and everybody finished eating at almost  the same time. Our tinola(250php-i think) was a bit bland and the chicken pieces were small and it contained more skin and bones than meat. The grilled squid was not overcooked, it also went well with soy sauce.

Since we still had time, we agreed to finish all our destinations for the third day. That way, we could relax on our last day.

Kabigan Falls

Fourth stop: Kabigan Falls

I've been to several water falls, and so far, my favorite was the one in Puerto Galera - the Aninuan Falls. The height was not that high but you could have the place to yourself. Going back, the trek on the way to the falls was not that difficult. There was also an entrance fee (30php comes with a guide for a minimum group of 10). If you're really a fast walker, you could reach the falls in 15 minutes. The pool was a bit small in diameter , shallow, and most tourists were in it. We didn't bother swimming, we just took photos instead.

Doesn't look that clean compared to other waterfall pools

On the way back, you could buy tupig - an delicacy made with ground sticky rice, molasses and coconut wrapped in banana leaf  or karioka - a fried ball shaped snack made with sticky rice and coconut  rolled in brown sugar  or refresh yourself with a cup of fresh coconut juice sans the milk and sugar.

Patapat viaduct

Fifth stop: Patapat Viaduct

This is a road connecting Cagayan Valley and Ilocos Norte. 

Sixth stop: Paraiso ni Anton

Paraiso ni Anton

If you drive to the end of the Patapat viaduct, you would drive by the Paraiso ni Anton. I don't know who 'Anton' is, but this is a small waterfall where locals consider its water "miraculous". We did try drinking water from this. It was cool and refreshing and it didn't taste like soil. We refilled our water bottles from this mini falls and the bottles became sweaty. You could also see that the water is really clean.

Seventh stop: Blue Lagoon

Blue Lagoon

The driver swears that this is a really beautiful place-even comparable to Boracay. Yeah the sand was offwhite and fine but the water wasn't blue. Probably because it was late in the afternoon. Our consolation: we saw Mark Gil (a celebrity) and he was kind enough to accommodate our request to take a picture with him. Here, the most popular resort-Hana Resort-according to our driver a.k.a tour guide, offers the longest zipline above water. We considered trying it but when we saw a person hanging from the line and moving ever so slowly, we decided to skip it. Imagine a zipline where the line is just like a conveyor belt--very boring. We also didn't bother taking a swim since there were a lot of people at the beach and there was no place to wash up. So my sister and I decided to eat dinner. Just in time, we were done eating and our tourmates were done swimming.

Our dinner: grilled maya-maya and eggplant ensalada

Last stop: Polaris Beach Resort

This was where we stayed for the night. It had the basics: beds, pillows, soap, water heater, unclogged toilet, tv, aircon. But--the blankets were too thin; it can't keep you warm, there were insects(though not the bloodsucking types), and you still have to ask for towels at the lobby.