Asian Journal- The Filipino-American Community Newspaper

"Lay out all your clothes and all your money. Then take half the clothes and twice the money."

— Susan Butler Anderson

Vigan has pedigree. And tons of character. It was founded 436 years ago in 1572, a half century after Magellan first stumbled onto our shores and made the fatal mistake of messing with the feisty Lapulapu. But I digress and proffer my apologies for sounding flippant about history.

Vigan’s name is derived from "bigaa", a tuberous root plant related to the edible "gabi" with big, bright green fronds common to the place. Vigan is the third Spanish city to be built in the Philippines, after the first one in Cebu and the second, in what is now Manila. Once in Vigan, you can take a calesa just for the experience but a hale and hearty visitor equal to the task, can do a walkabout in comfy sandals, shorts and T-shirt, an anahaw fan, a bottle of water, a camera, a cellphone and a wide-brimmed hat. Nearly all the points of interest, are within walking distance of each other: the St. Paul’s Metropolitan Cathedral; Plaza Salcedo; the Burgos House—the best by far in the region—which was also called the Ayala Museum at one point for the family’s role in its preservation; the Archbishop’s Palace; the Crisologo Museum; Plaza Burgos, Syquia Mansion among others.

But the core of a visit to Vigan must be focused on the Kamestizoan district, also known as Heritage Village, along Calle Crisologo where one will find the few remaining ancestral houses on a street showing the classic lines of Spanish architecture. On the street level are shops and persuasive sellers peddling souvenirs, local crafts and antiques. Of the goods available, the cotton Ilocano blankets locally woven in simple plaid patterns and in varying thread counts and quality deserve some attention. They are not as collectible as the hand-made, colorful Amish quilts that command top dollar but these are blankets that are meant to be used to give one a warm, fuzzy feeling, not unlike Linus’ security blanket, on a hot summer’s day or blustery winter’s night. These pure organic cotton blankets woven the old fashioned way is breathable fabric that loses its form and sheen when washed but sure feels wonderful on the skin after repeated uses. Perhaps only India and other cotton-growing countries have something similar. Burnay pottery in natural or stained earth tone colors has primitive appeal and is perfect for homes and gardens but quite cumbersome to lug around if you’re traveling light. Leave them for the locals instead.

Find delight in Ilocano cuisine. Like the people in the region, there is nothing bland or tentative about it. It either grabs that part of the brain that controls your taste buds or not at all. A trip to Vigan is not complete without tasting its famous langgonisa, tiny bite-sized pork links with distinctive vinegar, garlicky taste that puts the kielbasa in the dust. Then there is delicious bagnet, Ilocano chicharon, deep fried pork meat, best eaten with garlic rice, big red tomatoes with pure Sukang Iloko as dipping sauce while other food fanciers use freshly cooked bagnet crushed and sprinkled generously on top of any pancit recipe "to kick it up a notch", as Emeril would say; chichacorn for snacking, tastes very much like the commercial Boy Bawang brand; crunchy empanada—Vigan style—is not the regular empanada you know and scrumptious okoy prepared fresh and deep fried in black woks in the many tiny food stalls in Plaza Burgos is something you have to check out while sitting on the park benches as you chow down on your order hiding behind huge Jackie O sunglasses. You pretend to be oblivious of the townspeople openly gazing at you with wide-eyed curiosity while you fumble in your purse for some chump change, feeling guilty about panhandlers with babies in their arms asking for money or food.