Vigan's very best and then some!

MANILA, Philippines - Vigan has another festival! In addition to the fiesta of their patron St. Paul, a commemoration as a city reborn, the Viva Vigan Festival of the Arts, and even a Longganisa Festival, there is now the World Heritage Cities Solidarity Cultural Festival, a six-day affair with parades, heritage and historical activities, an exciting showcase of Vigan, a UNESCO World Heritage City, the only one in the country.

Nothing beats the dazzle of the World Heritage Festival, which we were blessed to have witnessed thanks to an invitation from city Mayor Eva Marie Singson Medina and her family and our friend Susan Calo Medina, the host of the long-running show Travel Time.

We met up with our companions for the trip: Susan with her Travel Time crew, a loyal band who have been with her for the 26 years of the show, plus a writer and photographer for Travel Time the magazine, and three lady friends who, in addition to being big Vigan fans, are great contributors to the local economy due to never-ending shopping. At midnight, we boarded our coaster, artistically painted with eye-catching images of things to do and see in Vigan.

Everyone created their own makeshift cocoons with pillows, blankets, shawls, warmers, jackets, and even caps. After Susan gave instructions to “drive carefully” and “don’t fly” to the team of two able drivers, we set off for the eight-hour land trip to Ilocos Sur.

The author with his travel companions Mila Abad, Vicky Gonzales, and Malou de Peralta (top); Susan Calo Medina (left); and gracious host, Eva Marie Singson Medina (above).

Our headquarters was the Cuidad Fernandina Hotel, a Spanish-era house built in 1758 that had been refurbished with a new wing and a refreshing courtyard. Though the 33-room boutique hotel possesses the charm of the Old World, expect modern conveniences from flat panel LCDs to spa services. It is also a stone’s throw away from Crisologo Street, the mestizo district dotted with more colonial houses and shops of everything Vigan. 

The ever-on-the-go mayor is a city girl – a graduate of the Assumption College, in fact – that has taken to the gentler pace of country life remarkably well. She welcomed the party to a table full of local delicacies, but I chose to have longganisa, pan de sal, and coffee only. After all, it was the first meal of the day, and surely there will be more.

We then proceeded to the mayor’s house on top of a hill where, to our surprise, there was more food: crispy bagnet, their specialty of deep-fried pork belly with crackling skin; a torta of ipon, very tiny fish that come out for two weeks after the full moon during the “ber” months; the Mexican-influenced stew dish of pipian; pinakbet; empanada; the eggplant-based poqui-poqui; and more delicacies that covered every inch of the table.

One of the events in the week-long festival, the Repazzo de Vigan parade – literally a look back to Vigan’s past – made its way through the main roads before ending up on Crisologo Street. Exhibiting the pride of place of the locals, it seemed that all of Vigan turned up for the event – most as participants and some as happy bystanders, who welcomed guests with sunny smiles.

A grandmother demonstrates the famed pottery tradition of Vigan.

According to pre-colonial history, Isla de Vigan was a coastal trading post, where Chinese merchants would exchange goods with the tribes of the Cordilleras, illustrated by two lines of traders marching down the street. The arrival of the Chinese was also marked by several ladies in red-and-gold cheongsams.

Next, the natural riches of the city were highlighted. Farming was represented with the arrival of a carabao and farmers, supported by their wives and families, all of whom mimicked the act of seed sowing on the cobbled streets. An aged grandmother, pipe hanging from her lip, was forming a clay vessel, a nod to their famed pottery tradition. There were also fishermen casting their silver nets, and fishwives offering the catch of the day. Later, it was revealed that most of these actors were, in fact, real farmers, potters, fishermen, and market vendors!

The Spanish era began, and we are reminded of an anecdote that tells the origins of the city’s name: On the banks of the Meztiso River, a Spaniard encountered a native, and asked him, “Como se llama este lugar?” The local saw the Spaniard pointing to a plant, and so replied, “Bigaa apo,” which is the name of a taro plant that was abundant along the banks. Bigaa eventually evolved into Vigan, and that has been its name ever since.

In 1758, in honor of Prince Ferdinand, son of King Philip II, a Spanish Royal Decree transferred the ancient diocese of Nueva Segovia to Vigan, elevating its status as the city, Cuidad Fernandina de Vigan. As the seat of colonial power in the north, Vigan became the third most important hub after Manila and Cebu.

Throughout the 18th and 19th centuries, all aspects of life were affected by the influence of the church – marked by a parade of religious orders. Architecture, art, and cultural influences shifted as seen in bullfighters with their red capes and flamenco dancers in their ruffled skirts.

The revolution that unfettered the Philippines from Spanish rule was fought here as well. Diego Silang was a son of the north, and he led the Ilocano revolt. When he was assassinated, his wife, the fierce Gabriela of Abra, continued the fight. In the end, the Katipuneros were unsuccessful – on the street, the costumed performers fell to the ground, fake blood bursting from hidden devices – and the Americans came.

With the arrival of the Thomasites, the first American teachers, came the gift of mass education. This period also saw the birth of democracy and the process of election. It was at the tail-end of this era when another brave northerner emerged: Eleuteria Florentino-Reyes or Kapitana Teryang lent her house to the resistance movement. There, she stored food, supplies, and medicine for the soldiers. She also braved the frontlines, traveling to her son, Major Estanislao Reyes, to warn them of an American attack.

The Japanese era was ushered in by kimono-clad women with spinning umbrellas. Romance was the seed of a legendary story here. Against all odds, two Filipinas fell in love with Japanese soldiers – Belen Castillo of Vigan and Major Sakae Narioka and Adela Tolentino of neighboring Magsingal and Captain Fujiro Takahashi – and their forbidden relationships saved the city from destruction.

An oversized television screen, behind which an actress played the present mayor, marked the arrival of the modern city. Vigan was reborn as the first city of Ilocos Sur in 2001. Today, it is a progressive hotspot known for its tourism, shopping, and cuisine. It was the moment to blow their own horn – Vigan is a multi-awarded city, both in the region and across the country. They have received distinctions for social service, medical services, livelihood programs, low crime rates, and cleanliness. Vigan is also in the running to become the Philippines’ bet to the New 7 Wonders Cities, the third global voting campaign that selects the most favorite cities. 

Showing their spirit of belonging, so many people – all the barangays, students, private employees, city workers, and more, more – were in the parade. Later on, we discovered that it was, in fact, a competition with a huge first-place pot – P100,000! All the participants were winners, receiving varied amounts from P70,000 to P30,000. And that is on top of the P30,000 group assistance money that they received to kick start their participation.

The parade ended with a showcase of GMA-7 artistas, a sure crowd-getter that happens in all parades nationwide. Aloft their decorated kalesas were TV and movie actors Isabel Oli, Mike Tan, Michelle Madrigal, Bianca King, and Manilyn Reynes.

After their version of the Kasaysayan ng Lahi, we sought refuge in the nearby Leona’s Café. There, we had more food, but I only tried the empanada, pizza longganisa, and crepe longganisa. A few steps away, there was the Food and Trade Fair, which the group toured for a pirate’s horde of goods. There were the famed abel weaves made into towels and tablecloths, blankets and napkins, everything and anything. A Manileño was spotted snapping up baskets, plant holders, standees, and more native home products. Eventually, the group succumbed to big furniture items like a credenza, a side table, and a buffet table, which will be shipped back to Manila. With topnotch craftsmanship, it was just hard to resist these Vigan finds.

Too soon, it was dinner, and we found ourselves in Mayor Medina’s garden, a refuge blessed with a cool breeze and a canopy of stars. We had our pick from the night’s never-ending menu, from lechon to a delicious pastilles de leche that was ironically made by a dentist. There were also cupcakes in ube, cookies and cream, and one spiked with chili – I stopped counting after the last spicy bite – all from Leila’s café, which is owned by the Mayor’s daughter, Janina Medina Fariñas.

Next day, after Mass, we made our way back to that house on the hill for breakfast. Our host has been the epitomé of hospitality, and these feasts have become lessons in Filipino cuisine. Today, there was bibingka pascua, a rice delicacy that is traditionally served only during Christmas. But since this trip feels like the holidays, there it was with sinuman, patupat, and miki soup.

After the feast, we decided to go our separate ways for the day. Some went to governor of Ilocos Sur Chavit Singson’s Baluarte Zoo, an 80-hectare property populated with a large herd of white deer, plus camels, ostriches, parrots, orangutans, and tiburin or mini horses. Others sought pottery. Susan was off to interview the mayor and film the performers of the zarzuela, daniw, and dallot.

Lunch was served at the Hidden Garden, a secret restaurant in Barangay Bulala full of potted plants, sculpted topiaries, and flowering bushes.

Once again, our table was laden with riches from Vigan kitchens – sisig, pinakbet, bagnet, sinigang, pork ribs with sampaloc. We appreciated all the local specialties, because everything was just so good. To go with the theme of food, Corazon Regua was present for a how-to demonstration of the salupsup, another delicacy made from malagkit rice slightly toasted with coconut and muscovado sugar.

An excerpt from a zarzuela, “Babae ng Digmaan,” was performed, all the actors being city employees. The lead was played by Kenette Rabago, a nursing graduate, who works at the City Disaster Risk Reduction Office.

We met more people that we could not forget, such as Edred Piamonte, the Information and Cultural Officer, who was in charge of this grand affair as festival coordinator, and Joanne Gutierrez from the Office of the Mayor, our den mother and tour guide, who some people counted on to procure, from the market, extra packets of longganisa and bagnet. 

Back at the hotel, after packing our bags and taking our showers, we gathered at the courtyard. There, we were surrounded with sacks of chichacorn and dragon fruit, a crate of frozen longganisa, and huge boxes of bibingkas, all of which were sent by the gracious mayor.

There was nervous laughter all around as we wondered how to fit all these gifts plus our luggage, which by now had plants, plus our shopping loot, plus the TV equipment, plus ourselves in the coaster.

The Travel Time crew, who seemed to have seen and done it all, asked us to settle in our seats. Slowly and scientifically, they distributed the bags, the potted plants, the boxes, the packages in every nook and cranny of the coaster. When all was loaded, we were amazed not only because everything fit but also for the fact that we were comfortable in our seats of choice. Don’t ask me how they magically did it!

Bursting to full, we made our way home. After a couple of hours, one of our companions found a tiny empty space in the bus. Then, she lamented how, in this hollow spot, we could have placed one more bag of longganisa or one more ream of abel. We looked at her in disbelief. Then, everyone burst into laughter as we continued our journey back home. Text and photos by Edu Jarque