The Philippines (Pilipinas) - Angeles City / Vigan City

THE PHILIPPINES, the country that was once a Spanish colony. In 1521, the arrival of Ferdinand Magellan marked the beginning of an era of Spanish interest and eventual colonisation. In 1543, Spanish explorer Ruy López de Villalobos named the archipelago Las Islas Filipinas in honor of Philip II of Spain. The Spanish Empire began to settle with the arrival of Miguel López de Legazpi from New Spain (present day-Mexico) in 1565 who established the first Spanish settlement in the archipelago, which remained a Spanish colony for more than 300 years, approximately from 1565 - 1821.

Travel dates: 19th July 2013 - 23th July 2013 (~4 days)
Location: South East Asia

Day 1: Arrival at Clark Airport
Arrived around 12: 55 am on the 20th July 2013 at Clark International Airport (formerly known as Diosdado Macapagal International Airport). I booked a hostel called Angeles Budget Hostel. It is located around 10 minutes by a jeepney (a common type of transport) from a famous walking street in Angeles City. Angeles City was used as a US military base during World War II. Angeles city is not really a city for tourism. The city has its reputation for prostitution. However, there is a few places around the city where you can spend a day or two exploring such as Mount Pinatubo or Mount Arayat.

Clark International Airport

The reason I flew to Clark is because I found a cheap return ticket with Tigerairways for only 4,000 THB or 130 US dollars (BKK - Clark). I started my travel from there. A main transportation in Angeles city is Jeepney and tricycle. Jeeney (modified jeep) costs 8 peso for a trip. From Angeles Budget Hostel, a jeepney staiton is located on a main street called Perimeter road. A jeepney takes you to main gate, where you can take another jeepney to DAU (Da-hoo) - a bus station that goes north and south bound. 

 

Tricycle, another type of transportation in the Philippines, slightly more expensive than a Jeepney.

Manila is located around 1 hour bus ride south of Clark International airport. You can take a bus from DAU for 114 peso (no air-con).

Day 2: Manila

Manila may not be suitable for everyone. As for me, I didn't find Manila a good place for traveling. I decided to go though because I wanted to see how the city is. It is not the worst experience but surely traffic was a nightmare (coming from a person who lives in Bangkok). The best way to get around is via a light rail system (LTR) and then a jeepney to your destination since most tourist attractions are not located next to LTR stations. I only spent a few hours at Intramuros (a historic part of Manila with Spanish colonial buildings, a part of it is now a University). I really enjoyed Intramuros though. I  got a tricycle to ride me around; 200 peso for half an hour.

After spending a day in Manila, I decided to go to Vigan city. Vigan city is located roughly 10 hours north of Manila. Got a bus with a company called Partas (The only bus company that goes to Vigan from Manila). The station is located in Cubao, an area in the east of Manila. Finding the station is not easy. You have to keep asking around. This is when google maps comes in handy! just type in Partas Transportation Company then you will find out where it is. I got lost but getting lost is actually fun!

Day 3: Vigan City

The bus from Manila takes about 10 hours so I arrived late around 2 am in the morning. It was difficult to find a hotel. I asked a tricycle at the station, paid 50 peso. He took me to a place called Riverside hotel or something, 800 peso a night. Got up 9 am and went straight to the famous street "Calle Crisologo". Vigan city is a small city compare to Manila. The air is much more clean and people seem more relaxed.

People in Vigan city are so nice. They don't try to rip you off like in people Angeles city or Manila. I got a "Kalesa", a typical horse ride for tourists on Calle Crisologo to show me around for a few hours (150 peso per hour!Great deal!). Places we went include Museums, hidden garden, beach, a zoo and a pottery. 

Unfortunately, I lost my camera so pictures taken with an iphone were available. I would have posted more beautiful pictures of Bantay bell tower, another attraction in Vigan and also a pot that I carefully made!. I based my travel attractions on tripadvisor. It is a great site I have to say!If you do have enough time, I recommend to follow Tripadvisor top 6 attractions. Once you are on a road, it is ok to get lost because then you find something else apart from what is written on the site.

It was about 8 pm when I got a bus back from Vigan to Angeles city. Again, 1 day in Vigan is kind of enough. I spent a few hours after the tour for a facial, body scrub, pedicure and a body massage, total of 800 peso (tips included!). Vigan city was indeed the highlight! beautiful city! UNESCO world heritage has its fame!

On my way back to Angeles city, I got a bus with a company called Dominion. They dropped me off at DAU. From there, got a jeepney to Fields avenue then another jeepney to Angeles Budget hotel.


Day 4: Angeles City , SM Clark, Fields Ave.

Upon my arrival in Angeles city, I arrived late again around 3 am. Explored Fields Ave. Got back to the hotel. Had a sleep and woke up to explore SM city clark.The biggest shopping mall in town! Definitely did some good purchases. I spent my last night in Angeles in the hostel, met a cool Japanese guy who is there to study English. We agreed that Pilipinas is an interesting country with its unique history. I wish I could actually spend more time exploring the beaches and volcano sites. Next time it is!

Last day:

Got up early to a water theme park "fontana". It was not impressive as it seems. However,I enjoyed a man-made hot spring on my last day before my flight home......

 

Tips: 
1. Take care of your belongings really well. There are lots of pickpockets.
2. Don't walk alone in a quiet place at night 
3. Go shopping! It is cheap to do so! SM city clark is great!
4. Eat local food. Not as great as Thai food but you can save a lot of money. Try banana and mango! 
5. Some Filipinos can speak English well but some can't so be prepared.
6. Don't lose your camera like I did! :-)


I spent only roughly 350 US dollars including a return air ticket BKK-Clark. I am sure you can find a good deal like that too! If you get lost, don't be scared. You will always find a solution. Keep asking people around! 
Happy travelling! 

And for those you need information on Angeles city, Fields Avenue, Vigan city, how to go there, what to expect and all that. Feel free to contact me! Happy to help!

Ciao for now.