Villa Angela Heritage House in Vigan, Ilocos Sur

During our recent family vacation in Ilocos, we included in the itinerary an overnight stay in Vigan.  I was the one tasked to do the bookings, and since there were sixteen of us, there were two considerations: (a) a place big enough to accommodate all of us; and I think most importantly (b) it should be budget-friendly.  Because of these considerations, I couldn’t recommend the place where my husband and I stayed when we went there in 2002.  So, I did some research, and after browsing thru blogs and forums, as well as inquiries from friends, I trimmed down my choices to three and finally came up with just one, that is, The Villa Angela Angela Heritage House.  Villa Angela is said to be where Tom Cruise stayed in 1989 while shooting his movie, Born on The Fourth of July, and a photo of him with the owner hangs on one of the rooms in the Villa.

We were given one of the dorm-type rooms downstairs, with 5 double-deck beds, plus 6 extra beds.  We were comfortable enough except that when we entered the place (and it was already dark when we arrived since it was the last leg of our itinerary, so we came all the way from Pagudpud), we all felt creepy when we saw the room, with the old cabinet (an aparador as it was known in the old times), all wooden furnishings and ceiling, the very long dining table, old piano, old chairs, everything old.  It took as a long time to finally settle down and adjust to the surroundings.  The kids were the ones who easily adjusted, my daughter Faye even opened the cabinet and said, “Mommy, there are lots of pillows here”, and everybody were telling horror jokes, like, “Faye, these pillows smell funny, and there might be skeletons inside that cabinet!” These made the hair on the back of my neck stand up.  Finally, we all adjusted and we all began to appreciate the surroundings, like, how well-preserved it was, and how accommodating the caretakers were.

A set breakfast was included in the room rate, and while we all felt creepy the night before when we saw the long dining table, we were pleased with how it turned out when the caretakers had arranged our breakfast in the morning on the same “creepy” table.  It felt good to see old table cloth with lace and made of crochet, with old mugs and starched table napkins. It was like going back in time, and I remember my own mother’s crocheted curtains and table cloths.

It was a simple Filipino breakfast, and each of us was given a choice between the famous Vigan longganisa and fried bangus (milkfish).  Majority of us chose longganisa, except for those watching their cholesterol levels,  who felt guilty eating the fat-laden longganisa.  In the end, we also get to eat everything, and not really a  1:1 serving, the caretakers weren’t so strict, after all… bless them.

On hindsight, we should have made Vigan as a first-stop in our itinerary, instead of proceeding directly to Pagudpud.  If we did that, we could have squeezed a visit to Laoag on our way back.  That’s what we missed — the museums were already closed when we arrived in Laoag because we under estimated the travel time from Pagudpud to Laoag, and I guess, partly to blame was the driver that we hired who didn’t have the common sense to bring an alternate, and instead brought his wife, so, naturally, he didn’t last long and was sleepy and had to request for quite a few pit stops just to refresh himself.

But despite these few unexpected turn of events, it was an enjoyable family vacation where everybody had so much fun, after all, what’s a little bit of discomfort in exchange for the well-deserved bonding and relaxation time with the family?

I’m adding this post to Food Trip Friday and Weekday Potluck by Sassy Chef.