Exploring Philippines 32 - Vigan (Post 3 - Going Around)

We woke up early the following morning. Well, actually it was not really that early. Before 7am, Jay's grandmother drove us to the nearest and well-known sinanglaoan food shop. According to her, the sinanglao in this part of  town is a blockbuster such that the shop closes before noon time.

Sinanglao is one of the favorite food among Ilocanos and oftentimes, people will literally make time to dine and enjoy this food with much gusto. The continuously heated large cauldron is placed near the shop's entrance. As customers come in, they can make their orders right away.

We planned to visit the nearby Crisologo's museum after our sinanglao food trip. Since we finished our food early and the museum will open at around 8am, we went to the heritage village just to kill some time.

Since it was still early in the morning, most of the shops were still closed. The Crisologo street of the heritage village was almost empty and we made use of the opportunity to take more pictures.

By 8 in the morning, we went to the Crisologo museum. The Crisologo ancestral house was converted into a museum. The two-storey house showcases different artifacts of the family which include a library, vintage office equipment, the car where Floro Crisologo was shot, a calesa, and some personal stuff of the Crisologo family to name a few. 

After an hour of stay at the Crisologo museum, we hired a calesa. We rode towards the nearby town of Bantay. We'd been told to visit the shrine of Our Lady of Charity which was built in 1590.

Under ten minutes of the ride, we reached the shrine. We were extra grateful because there were only  few visitors which favored our photo session activity.  One of the trustees of the church told us that the nearby bell tower was used by the late Fernando Poe Jr. in one of his films that was shot in Ilocos.

The bell tower looks small from a distance. But bell towers are not built small. The moment we set foot at its base, we can tell that it was built for the whole town to hear its bells ringing. And with several bells hanging on its tower, definitely, the message can cover a good distance.

After two hours, we went back to Vigan and visited the pottery place.  It was lunch break and we were not  able to mingle with the workers here and watch them deliver their part. But somehow, we did not went home empty handed. There was one maker who stayed even during the lunch break (most probably, he was able to have his break earlier) and we were in luck. As usual, I conversed with him, seizing the situation if he can model for me later on. Most probably, they are no stranger to people coming to this place and asked them for some shots. That's why when I asked him for a pose, he heartily obliged.

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