Morning Swim at Saud Beach,Pagudpud

Since we didn't had the chance to swim after we arrived in Pagudpud, we decided to wake up early for the morning swim as we planned to leave the homestay at 9am sharp. I woke up at around 5am, however it's still really dark outside. So I patiently waited and checked back again by 5:30am, still no light. But we started to ready ourselves and went to the beach at exactly 6am. We could still clearly see the quarter moon and the morning sun hiding from below the mountains. Excited to swim, we dropped our stuff at a nearby beachrock. From Saud Beach, one could see the famous Bangui Windmills surrounded by the morning mist from a distance. The view is breathtaking!

Since we went there on the last day of February, which is generally off peak season, we have the whole beach for ourselves! Our morning swim made us see from a short distance local fishermen working on their caught fishes.

Sadly, we only swum in less than two hours, which is obviously too short of a time for us to lazily lounge on the beach and have more fun in the sun. *sigh* It felt so hard to pull myself from the beautiful view. But that's okay, we'll surely get back and make up for the lost leisure time!

Bus Pagudpod - Laoag route

Sinking Bell Tower

We left Pagudpud at around 10 in the morning and arrived in Laoag just in time for a quick lunch. Before getting a tricycle to get us to Laoag Airport, we stopped by the famous Sinking Bell Tower, walking distance from Jollibee. The tower is sinking about an inch into the ground every year with half of its front door buried deep into the ground. After we got the shots we needed, we cramped ourselves into a typical small local tricycle and drive down about 15-20 minutes to Laoag International Airport.

More pictures at The Walking Tripod /

Bye Vigan, Hello Pagudpud!

Our 2 hour Kalesa Tour ended in Plaza Salcedo right in front of St. Paul Cathedral. We paid Php300 and had a quick dinner at McDonalds, just beside the cathedral. There are also a number of good local restaurants you can choose from in Vigan such as Cafe Leona, Epectos Bar and Grill, Cindy's, Hambre, Tessie's, Uno Grille and Los Majitos. And yes aside from McDonalds, there's also Jollibee and Greenwich.  

Dadapilan, Center for Ilokano Studies

After lunch, we went back to our lodge, the Dadapilan and bid farewell to Ate Malot for the warm welcome and hearty breakfast meal. Our accommodation fee is an affordable Php 300 including breakfast. Their area is just a few blocks away from Heritage Village and a stone throws away from Simbaan a Bassit and an internet shop :)

We left off and made our way to Partas Terminal heading to Laoag. It was an hour and a half trip and paid Php121 for the bus ticket (air conditioned). From Partas Terminal in Laoag, we quickly rode a tricycle to take us to the terminal bus going to Pagudpud. The ticket cost a cheaper Php60 but unlike Partas, the bus we rode was just ordinary and crampy. But heck, we enjoyed the 2 hour trip anyway with gorgeous views to feast on!

On the Road to Pagudpud

Our trip going from a historical tour in Vigan was such an "amazing race" experience. We moved swiftly and wasted no time dashing up and down the buses and tricycles of Vigan and Laoag, all while carrying huge backpacks full of bottles of strawberry jams we bought from Baguio! Yup, I know stressful! The whole amazing race drama made us want to get a day of full body massage.

Just after an hour on the road, I started seeing beautiful stretches of powdery sand, sparkling blue waters, and vibrant orange boats. I immediately transfered to a window seat to capture those gorgeous views. And then minutes after, we saw a line of towering Bangui windmills. The last drop off point was at a building after the municipal hall. From there we rode 2 tricycles at Php40 each (tricycles here like those in Laoag are pretty small!) and stopped by at Rlyns Homestay. Since we'll be leaving early the next day, we opted to just stay at a homestay/transcient house located right in front of Saud Public Beach. When all things are set, I immediately went straight to beach to capture the glorious sunset in Pagudpod beach. Since the beach in front of our lodging is not owned by any private resort, the entrance fee is a cheap Php10.

  view more photos at The Walking Tripod.