From Sea to Mountains

Today was a travel day, for the most part.  We decided to head back to Manila by way of Baguio, the Summer Capital of the Philippines and one of my favorite parts. And yes, I'm not going to lie, a lot of it has to do with the cooler mountain temperature but at the same time, it really is gorgeous.

Since we are only here for a week (I really must plan that better next time), I forget that I spend most of the first week of visiting sleeping off the jetlag.  And so I have to say, while I have not exactly caught up on my fun reading (yes, it's Chernow's "Hamilton"), I have done a fantastic job of catching up on some much-needed sleep.  For all of you who always worry that I don't sleep, I can promise you I'm doing something about it on this vacation. For that space alone, I feel grateful. I feel much more present in the moments I am awake. I definitely can easily pass out again in 15 minutes, though. So all of this to say that I'm enjoying it right now.  Check on me in a week and see how that jetlag is treating me once I get home...

But as I said yesterday and posted on the Facebook today, I finally got some better shots of the hotel before we left this morning.  Can't wait to return.  

Ciudad Fernandina Hotel, Vigan, Ilocos Sur

Please note, while I love going north, I usually am pretty good with only staying for a couple of days. It's easy to get bored when you know no one up there and don't have a lot to do. I always got at least one book read when in Ilocos Sur. But this time, it was entirely too short. So I mean it when I say I can't wait to return.

I love the koi

As we left, I realized there was one bridge we all completely slept through on the way there - the Banaoang Bridge, also known as the Quirino Bridge, in Ilocos Sur.  The bridge is named after Elpidio Quirino, a late president of the Philippines. It is highly praised for its architectural design and marvelous engineering. It connects the town of Santa and Bantay and crosses the Abra River. It offers a truly gorgeous view.

This bridge probably holds a place of fascination for me because it is easily one of the most beautiful parts of the drive, a really great marker that signals that we are getting closer to home.  Like home, it holds an important place in my heart for that reason, often the way that I feel about the Holland Tunnel or the Lehigh Tunnel - just signifying proximity to a place that means something. In this case, the view is simply fantastic:

The bridge is no longer in use but you can zipline from it. They let us drive over it for some reason.

Panoramic view is necessary in the Philippines.

The view from the bridge

The Banaoang Bridge

Pete giving tinubong a try

When we got back into the car, we dug into the bamboo treat that you see in the picture above. It's one of my mom's most favorite foods and she always gets it when we come home - Tinubong. 

It's basically a mixture of young coconut meat, sugar, margarine, cheese and ground glutinous rice inside a young bamboo (tubong).  It's then cooked over fire and rotated and done when the top of the tube dries up.  You keep it on the embers for a bit longer and then when it cools, you tap the bamboo to crack it and pull it apart and then you just pick the mix off the sides with your fingers or a spoon to eat it.  It's native to Ilocos and was usually only served during special occasions - my mom said it was always made around Christmas. But it seems they realized everyone likes it so it's made year round now if you visit. It's pretty good, not as sweet as you would think. And everyone wants the burnt part, where the "meat" meets the bamboo.  Tastiest part.

Before making our way into the mountains, we made one last stop to take pictures of the Pacific.  I think you'll agree it was well worth it.

Of course I had to dip my toes in the clear, blue water. Gorgeous.

After this gorgeous view, we made our way into the mountains, twisting on the narrow roads on our way to Baguio. But when we arrived, the weather was absolutely sublime. I actually wished I had a sweatshirt, that's how beautiful the weather is up here.  It was in the 70's and overcast when we arrived and I'm sitting pretty comfortably at 67 degrees right now.  

Dear God, how can I possibly think 70 degrees is cold?  Have I assimilated?!

We had a fantastic Filipino dinner that included beef sinigang, bisteak, pork adobo, crispy dinuguan (lechon kawali dipped in dinuguan) and garlic rice.  I've definitely had some ice cream while here, but I blame the heat.  For those of you who don't know what any of that food is, trust me, it's baller. And amazing.

I promise some amazing pics of Baguio tomorrow.  I was a little too sleepy today to do much better.

So. Going to try more sleep so we can get up early to head back to Manila.  Lots to do in the final day and a half when we get there.  Pop, I'm headed your way.