Vigan, Northern Philippines

Vigan is a coastal city on the West coast of Luzon in the Northern Philippines. It is famous for its well preserved Spanish architecture.

The horse carts, called Calesas travel around the centre of town and seem only to be used by tourists.

I came here from Sagada, a village up in the mountains. Took two jeepneys and two mini vans over 12 hours to make the trip. Sagada's Canaway Resthouse was 250 Pesos a night and after my long day I accepted the last room at the Villa Angela which was the family room with two double and one single bed for 3850 pesos (AUD$96, 2840 Baht)

Over 130 years old, this stately home has only six rooms to let.

Price included continental breakfast.

Shame about the instant coffee, but the surroundings were very pleasant.

So nice is the hotel that A list actors from Hollywood stayed here whilst filming "Born on the Fourth of July" Here is a photo of Tom Cruise with the owner.

The windows are very curious, No Glass. They have been fitted with pieces of shells called capiz, a bivalve mollusc common in the sea here.

Quite a change from my usual guesthouses.

Sagada So Quiet

Up in the mountains of Northern Luzon in the Philippines, just a few hours from the world famous Banaue rice terraces is the small town of Sagada. Firmly on the backpacker circuit, this town is famous for it's limestone caves and it's relaxing, laid back atmosphere.

The limestone hills add a surreal quality to the landscape.

I could not  help but to walk on the left past this overhang on the road.

One of the main attractions is the cost of living here. A room at the Canaway Guesthouse with private bathroom and Wi fi cost 250 pesos a night (AUD$6.25, 190 Baht)

There are pleasant walks along paths with views over neighboring rice fields.

The hills are covered by pine forests which sadly, are not indigenous to the area. The remoteness of the area in times past led to some strange local customs. One strange rite was the 'air burials' where coffins are suspended from cliff faces in a rocky valley.

Local restaurant choices are few but those that are there serve tasty dishes. This one specializes in.......You guessed it Lemon Pie.

And this one, yoghurt dishes.

The most exotic thing I ate here was civet coffee at my favorite Bana restaurant. Civet cats are native wild cats and the coffee beans are harvested from their droppings before being cleaned and roasted in the normal way. Reputed to sell for 70 pounds a cup in London, you pay only 200 pesos at Bana's (AUD$5, 150 baht). Some may question the level of cruelty in caging these wild cats and feeding them coffee beans.

Banaue World's most famous rice Terraces

Caught the 8AM bus from Baguio which wound it's way for five hours through the mountain ranges before reaching a plain where we turned North and passed by the towns of Bambang and Bagabag until finally reaching Banaue at 3PM.

This is typical of the scenery of the mountains. The road was never straight and we were continually climbing or descending. Although it was the wet season, this day was all sunshine.
Most of the hotels in Banaue take advantage of the view of the rice terraces across the valley.

This is the view from my hotel restaurant window. I stayed at the Uyami Greenview for 900 pesos a night (AUD$22, 660 Baht).
The next day I hired a trike which is the local motorcycle/sidecar arrangement for 200 Pesos ($5, 150Baht) and was taken to the 'viewpoints' to see the terraces.

Up here in the highlands, the cooler climate means the farmers only get one crop a year compared to the coastal fields where three crops is common.

The crops are planted in January/February and harvested in June/July. The rest of the year the paddis lie fallow. So, what do the farmers do with all that down time? The souvenir shops are full of wooden carvings so that would take up some time. But if you only get one annual crop, the best solution to avoid running out of rice is to create more rice fields.

This crop is almost ready to harvest. When harvested the stalks of rice must be left to dry.

Then the stalks are de-husked and the grain is spread out on a flat surface to dry. The lack of flat surfaces often means that the road is used and traffic weaves around the drying grain.

Angeles City, Philippines

Flew on Cebu Pacific Air from Bangkok to Clark Base which was the old US airforce base before Mount Pinatubo blew up and covered it with ash. Flight left at midnight and arrived at 4 AM. Somehow managed to score 3 seats in an exit row despite the plane being 75% full. Nice to stretch out but the dents from the seat belt buckles will take a while to fade.
Plenty of taxis awaiting in arrivals, was quoted 500 pesos (AUD$12.30) but after telling the tout I only paid 300 pesos last time he agreed to this. (I have never been here before)
If you wonder what $22.00 buys you in accommodation, here is a picture of Daniella's place.

 

It is a very safe place to sleep, the receptionist sits in a caged office and an armed security guard patrols the lobby.....

Had breakfast a couple of blocks away at a coffee shop/minimart and it had an armed guard as well:

 

After having been here a day the major differences in comparasion to Thailand are 

 No language barrier, everyone speaks english

No motorbike taxis. 3 Wheeled motorbikes called Trikes charge 150 Pesos a ride (120 baht, AUD$3.70)

Huge restaurant portions, weetbix and fruit order had 6 weetbix pieces.

Fewer smiles.  Although friendly once engaged, the instant smiles from Thailand are missing here.

Gun culture. Even small shops have a guard with a holstered pistol.

 

This was my ride from breakfast cafe to the bus station. Cost was 150 pesos 1 AUD$ = 40 Pesos) little boy came along as well. Tight squeeze in here, no room for your head. You have to either slide forward and recline or sit up with your chin on your knees. Not very comfortable.

Other alternative was a taxi at twice the price or a public jeepney which go along set routes.

 

These are styled on the WW2 jeeps and are ubiquitous on the Philippine roads.

Made a visit to a supermarket and found this guy handing out samples of a local brandy called Excelente.

 

95 Pesos a bottle (AUD$2.40, 80 baht) or if you like vodka,

 

Only 79 pesos (AUD$2.00, 60 baht) for 700ml.

Off to Baguio in the highlands tomorrow, might be interesting, the rainy season is in full swing and they say a typhoon is expected.......

Daily walk in Hua Hin

Daily life in Hua Hin starts with a walk through the town to the fishing pier and home via the railway station.
After negotiating the busy main road, I pass by one of the town's premium hotels, the Centara Grand which was used as a backdrop to some of the scenes in the movie 'The Killing Fields'. The friendly gatekeeper is happy to pose for a photo'

Outside the hotel gate is one of the many Tuk Tuk stands along the route

The next hotel along the route is the Hilton which dominates the skyline and has the premier position next the the beach with the stones which give Hua Hin it's name of 'Stone Head"

Some of the original Chinese shophouses remain in various states of preservation. The better sited ones have become shops like this one

This one in a prime position surprisingly remains a family home.

On the right of this road, it appears to be a solid wall of buildings but a gap shows that most are built on piers out over the water of the gulf of Thailand.

These are restaurants or guesthouses and make a pleasant place to sit and enjoy a local dish with a sea view.

At the end of this street is the local fishing pier. There are often naval patrol boats and sea police tied up here. The squid boats anchor on the beach and their catch is sorted and cleaned under a large awning at the base of the pier. 

Helping Mum

The Gulf is being heavily over fished by these boats

Back on dry land, a mobile matress shop has parked outside the squid factory.

This family of kittens has been growing up on the footpath along my way.

Time to stop for the daily Bangkok Post here

Back over the main road and past the original covered market to SraSong road where the SongThaews wait to take you further afield.

Past the garden centre with it's most desirable water features

Then a shortcut along the railway platform 

To stop for a kilo of mangsteens

With the majority of the traffic being motorcycles, a fuel station is a very low tech affair.

Leaving the busy roads behind, my quiet and peaceful street

Home again to Laila's Guesthouse.

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