Buluarte, Vigan, Governor's Place

Governor's Place

A note from Chavit Singson - It's a pleasure to share my home to you. You will find the Baluarte staff and volunteers are dedicated to the care of its animals as well as to making your visit a memorable one. That's because we value the traditions that have made this place world-class, the diversity that makes Baluarte today, and the teamwork that will bring this place to new heights for the future in education, entertainment, animal conservation and management. I hope you enjoy your visit.

COME and play with the animals! Be one of them roaring and whistling, indulging in the joys of the moment, you are in Baluarte, the only one of its kind in the country. Not just a zoo, Baluarte is an interactive wildlife sanctuary and facility, with the breathtaking view of its dominating scenic boulders amidst trees and greens.

We are dedicated to facilitating education, conservation and protection of endangered species and wildlife. Children and those who are young at heart will rediscover life amongst the animals in unique and entertaining ways specifically through first-hand experience.

Memorable events such as feeding them, petting them, riding the "tiburin", a small horse-drawn carriage, and visiting our Butterfly Garden will surely be an extraordinary adventure for you and your family. What's more incredible is that admission to Baluarte is FREE.

Baluarte is 80 hectares of gently rolling terrains, hills and mountain sides, the structures of facilities and amenities, its phases of construction is in its best possible realistic and natural habitat for good and sound animal care.

Located along the western seaboard of Northern Luzon 408 kilometers north of Manila, bounded in the South by South China Sea, Baluarte has its breathtaking view of Vigan City. Baluarte is open to the public and admission is FREE. It is actually Governor Chavit's gift to the people of Vigan where residents are accorded free use of spaces for their livelihood programs.

Baluarte is currently in the state of further improving their facilities for both animals and visitors. We basically plan to implement the open zoo concept wherein animals will be kept in more sizable enclosures to give them more space to roam, play and move around.

History

Baluarte started off as a rest house in 1991 with celebrity friends like Fernando Poe Jr. as regular visitor spending long weekends. The place has already considerable numbers of domestic animals like monkeys, chickens, large lizards (bayawak) and rare bird species, right inside the Baluarte forest, these rare bird species are found only in there. Governor Chavit, loves nature and exhibits passion for animals. Baluarte setting is that place where he can enjoy peace and quiet and away from the demands of a busy life and urban living. As a political leader of Ilocos Sur, people searched for him continuously.

So the rest house cannot anymore accommodate people and friends who also enjoy the place, that was, when he decided to slowly construct Baluarte. He first constructed the main house and seeing the beauty of the next, he abandoned the old main house, made it the guest house, and constructed a multi level house on a hilltop that magnifies the fantastic view of Vigan City that stretches all the way to the South China Sea.

Governor Chavit, his Ilocano traits of industry and frugality made the best part of the Baluarte as you can see today. The indigenous materials, like boulders found in the area that was used extensively comprised the construction, is the dominant scenic view of the place. Aptly called Baluarte, taken from the Spanish word meaning, a fortress, a domain, or a territory. He is not a planning guru, he is a hands-on man, and he sure has the knack for the best aesthetic and architectural design one can really appreciate.

Together with his architect Estrellita I. Rugnao, a Chavit scholar, he spent hours in poring over renderings and architectural plans of the facility with the main focus on his social responsibility and cutting edge architecture. Baluarte is not just a zoo, it is his HOME, he opened it to the people and you are most welcome here, so come and enjoy his hospitality.

Bantay, Vigan, Bantay Bell Tower

Bantay Bell Tower , St. Agustine Parish Church

Bantay, a town next to Vigan, will take you to a beautiful belfry of the same name. Towering over the town, the Bantay Bell Tower is a sight to behold, standing separately over a hilltop next to the equally beautiful St. Augustine Parish Church.

The original structure as it stands today was built by Augustinian Missionaries in 1591, most likely as a part of the parish church nearby. It was made of bricks, rocks, and a mixture of seashells and sugar cane. There are hardly any renovations done to the structure, except for the repairs of the stairs inside the tower.

The Bell tower stands on the tallest point in the town, and was used as a watch tower during the Spanish colonial period. As such, the tower is aptly named since “bantay” is an Ilocano word for both “mountain” and “guard.”

Climbing up the second level of the belfry is no problem, but going up the third level may take a bit more guts. The wooden stairs are new, but the rickety sound. The tall, open window views from both levels are breath-taking; the bell tower provides a good view of the houses and town cemetery below, and the mountains in the horizon.

The bell tower is also popular as a location for the filming of the Panday movies by the late Fernando Poe Jr.

Burnayan, Vigan

Earthen pots at Burnayan

Burnayan is a place were earthen pots and other clay products are made. It is a place where cottage industry of burnayan (pottery making) is thriving.

Burnay made of rich red Ilocos clay. These jars are hand molded on a potter’s wheel and mixed with sand and baked at a high temperature in a huge brick-and-clay ground kiln. Burnay is known to be stronger than ordinary terra cotta.

“The “Burnay” industry preseded the arrival of the Spanish colonizers in the Philippines. Introduced by early Chinese settlers, the “Burnay” served as an all weather container of loca products for shipment to China and other Asian kingdoms in pre-colonial times. “Burnay” is also used in the fermentation of fish sauce, vinegar and “Basi”, the Ilocano wine from sugarcane juice.”

They still do it the old-fashioned way in the burnayan and it’s impressive that they took pains in maintaining it. A carabao goes round and round a shallow hole full of red clay and god-knows what else (the horse peeing flashed in my mind). It’s supposed to produce a clay with a fine consistency, perfect for shaping into works of art.

Once the right consistency is reached, one man takes a lump of clay and smacks it into the turntable, which runs on human power. A worker kicks the bottom of the circular stone contraption sideways, spinning the entire thing. Another worker shapes the clay to the desired configuration.

The hand-molded figures are dried, then transported to the brick-and-clay kiln, where the pieces are “cooked” for some time. The kiln stretches to around ten meters, with its back resembling the scales of a crocodile baking under the sun. 

-visitpinas

Bulala, Hidden Garden, Vigan

Hidden Garden

If you are visiting Vigan, you shouldn’t miss to visit the Hidden Garden. Especially if you are a flower and plant lover. Experience the beauty of the garden. For sure you will fancy the floral collection, air plants growing on driftwood, and bonsai tree. It is a garden of lush tropical plants and coffee shop. They serve coffee, coconut juice, orange empanada, and fresh fruit shake.

Hidden garden offers family-style dining in a relaxing and comfortable setting. It has a nicely landscaped garden with a native ambiance. Wide variety of tropical plants, flowers and trees plus red clay pots and antique finds can be seen here which are also for sale...

The plants you can buy ranges from as low as 20.00 php to 30,000.00 php.

It offers delicious Filipino and Iloconano / Ilocandia dishes such as pinakbet, dinengdeng, vigan longganisa and bagnet. Vigan Longganisa is a pinoy version of chorizo, unlike other longganisa, it is less sweet and is garlicky, it is best paired with sukang Iloko (Ilocos Vinegar)

Over all, Hidden Garden is a must try "eat" place in Vigan, affordable price, good food, nice service and lovely ambiance.

A lot of celebrity and prominent people have visited this place.

A sneak peak in their rest room for lilong [for men] and lilang [for women]

Vigan, Calle Crisologo, St. Paul Cathedral

Calle Crisologo - Mena Crisologo Street

Crisologo Street is located in the Historic Center of Vigan, Ilocos Sur, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The Mestizo Section of Vigan is also a National Cultural Treasure. The person the street is named after, Mena Pecson Crisologo is among the most-respected sons of the Ilokos region. He wrote Mining wenno Ayat ti Kararwa, which many compare to Jose Rizal’s Noli Me Tangere; an Ilocano translation of Don Quixote entitled Don Calixtofaro de la Kota Caballero de la Luna; and a zarzuela entitled Codigo Municipal.

The major attraction of Vigan is its mestizo district which is filled with Spanish-style houses that evoke a bygone era when its people lived prosperously because of the Manila-Acapulco maritime trade.

For visitors who want to experience being transported back to this period in Philippine Spanish colonial time, a walk or a calesa ride through Vigan’s Calle Crisologo or Mena Crisologo Street is a must.

The houses are simple but lovely subjects ready for picture-perfect shots with their roofs of red tiles, thick walls, huge doors and stair cases leading to rooms of high ceilings and sliding capiz shell windows. Having survived the many natural and man-made calamities throughout the centuries, the families who own these treasures have endeavored to maintain them.

Visitors can admire more closely the architecture and intricate craftsmanship employed in the grill and wood works when they step inside some of the houses that have been turned into stores and museums. They can even experience staying in a heritage house during their visit as some have been converted into inns.

Though a trip to Calle Crisologo is enjoyable during the day especially because of the opportunity to shop for Vigan’s best products (antiques, abel woven products, bags, basi wine, burnay and dimili products, chicharon, jewelry, sweets, Vigan vinegar and woodcrafts) in the inobtrusive shops located in the ground floor of some of the grand houses, a walk through it is magical at night.

Since it is closed to vehicular traffic at any time of the day, the stillness and shadows that come with the night adds more to the 18th century ambience of the lamp-lit street that local and foreign visitors love. Couples can take advantage of this romantic atmosphere by having dinner in Grandpa's Inn

Food is an integral part of the culture of Ilocanos. Grandpa’s Inn is the perfect place to indulge yourself in gastronomic experience with its three restaurants, The KUSINA FELECITAS which offers authentic Ilocano cuisine, The UNO GRILLE for your charcoal grilled favorites, The CAFE UNO the place to go for your coffee, cakes and pasta.

Cordillera Inn Hotel and Restaurant welcomes you with traditional hospitality at its best. With their excellent service and reasonable prices, they guarantee your stay to be rewarding. A warm, cozy atmosphere provided by efficient service to make your vacation worthwhile.

St. Paul Cathedral

St. Paul’s Metropolitan Cathedral was built by the Augustinian clergy around 1790 and like the St. William’s Cathedral, it has features a design intended to minimize earthquake damage that was referred to as “earthquake baroque”. Furthermore, it also features the Neo-Gothic and pseudo Romanesque motifs. There are brass communion handrails copied from China, complete with Chinese characters scribbled by its makers.

In the south of the cathedral lies the eight-sided bell tower used as a safety measure of the church. It was said to be built separately so that in any event of an earthquake, it would not topple into the church. The design said to have a Chinese Feng Shui influences. Lies inside the church is a tombstone of the great Ilocano poet Leona Florentino.

It is also in this church where Vigan’s Beloved late Governor Floro Crisologo was gunned down while he knelt on a pew inside the Cathedral in 1970.

Batac, Ilocos Norte

Batac

The word "Batac" in a local dialect translates as "pull". More loosely, it refers to "the people's pulling their efforts together."

Batac has an interesting colloquial origin of its name. According to a legend, set in pre-settlement Batac, a man fell into a deep hole while he was digging for the root crop "camangeg". He struggled to get out but could not despite his best efforts. He cried for help but nobody was around. He waited for hours and had given up hope of being saved. Fortunately, two men from the neighboring town of Paoay happened to pass by. They heard the man shouting and traced it to where he was trapped. Upon seeing him, they heard the man say "Bataquennac! Bataquennac!" The two men did not understand until the man explained that he was saying, "Pull me up! Pull me up!" They did just that. When the two men reached their hometown, they told their story to their friends. Since then, the town has been called "Batac," which is derived from the word "bataquennac." but that is only a tale, the true origin of the Batac was named by the Batak tribe who exist five hundred years a ago. Before the Spanish colonization. And the ancient tribe of Batak in Ilocos Norte is related to the Batak Tribe of Toba Lake In the province of North Sumatra Indonesia.

Batac is home to these famous orange empanadas.

An empanada is a Spanish and Portuguese stuffed bread or pastry, also known as “impanata” in Italy. The name comes from the verbempanar, meaning to wrap or coat in bread. Empanada is made by folding a dough or bread patty around the stuffing. In Spain, empanadas are usually large and circular in shape and are cut into smaller portions for consumption, whereas in Portugal and South America empanadas are normally small and semi-circular (this type of empanada is commonly known as empanadilla in Spain).

In Ilocos, some towns, like Vigan and Batac, have popularized their versions of this Spanish pastry. Vigan’s version is a delightful mixture of Vigan longganisa, shredded cabbage and egg, then deep-fried to a crispy wrapper. Batac’s version, which is said to be Ilocos Norte’s Best Empanada, uses Batac longganisa, monggo sprouts (togue) and egg, then also deep fried.

Pagudpud, Ilocos Norte, Saud Beach

Saud Beach

Philippines’ Saud Beach topped the list of the best beaches in Asia according to John Borthwick of Australia’s biggest selling daily newspaper, Herald Sun.

Saud beach lies on the northwest coast of Luzon and is located in Barangay Saud, Pagudpud, Ilocos Norte.

Saud Beach is the most popular destination in Pagudpud, Ilocos Norte but it is still relatively untouched so for those looking for a secluded, peaceful and quiet beach, then Saud is the place for you. Do not expect for a vibrant nightlife in Saud though. There’s nightlife in Saud but it’s life with the wind and the waves.

The fifteen windmills of Bangui can actually be seen in the distance from Saud Beach as both Bangui and Pagudpud surround the Bangui Bay.

Pagudpud prides itself as among the places with the longest stretch of contiguous white sand beaches.

Apo Idon Beach Hotel

Apo Idon Beach Hotel is a sophisticated blend of tropical and Mediterranean styles.

Natural and organic materials of hardwood, anahaw palm leaves, capiz shells, natural stones & terra cotta tiles, are combined in rustic assemblage to render texture, color, and tradition.

As you feel great with our cozy indoor accomodations, have fun outdoors! The hotel's beach front is right at the juncture of Saud White Beach Cove and Burayoc Pt., where you have a wider selection of fun-filled activities.

Apo Idon Beach Hotel is endorsed by Lonely Planet, an international travel guidebook for independent travellers. Likewise, the hotel is highly commended in various electronic fora by cultured and well-travelled guests.

Indeed, Apo Idon Beach Hotel is the best and nicest place to stay in Pagudpud!