Right after Banaue, we drove down to the beautiful city of Vigan. I have always dreamt of visiting Vigan, Vigan city is one of the many well-preserved Spanish colonial towns in Asia. The construction of beautiful old houses provides so much of a European vibe. Walking around Calle Crisologo for instance made me feel like I was indeed in Spain.
We stayed overnight at Hotel de Salcedo. Situated in the centre of Vigan, it is within a 5-minute walk to Crisologo Museum, Public Market, and St. Paul’s Metropolitan Cathedral, literally provides easy access to all the city has to offer.
Kalesa was once the ride for VIPs in the 18th century introduced by the Spaniards.
They serve breakfast at the main restaurant within the Hotel. I love the Fried Bangus which I have not eaten in ages. Bangus or Milkfish is marinated overnight and crispy fried usually served with rice.
Most of the restaurants around the area are extremely busy at night. It could take 30 to 40 minutes to get a table unless you want to settle for fast street food, which aren’t too bad at all, it is a real pinoy experience.
We also visited a couple of places, one is the beautiful Hidden Garden de Vigan. Inside, although small you’ll find a wide range of home-grown botanical plants. It is usually free and open to the public all day. Within the yard they have a restaurants that serve local Vigan Especialties. Such as Vigan Longanisa (Sausage), they have amazing halo-halo dessert as well (Image above).
To sum up the day, we went to a nearby beach for a quick dip, had our last dinner in Vigan by the beach then head back to Manila. Vigan is definitely a place worth visiting!
x R
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