day2: ilocos norte - pagudpud tour

day1: ilocos norte - batac and paoay tour

We woke up early the next day 'cause we were supposed to start trekking Kabigan Falls at 7am. But you know how life happens sometimes and at around 7:30, we were still waiting for our Food in Apo Idon. Medyo malas talaga kami during meal times. We hurriedly finished our breakfast so past 8am, we were leaving the restaurant already. We had to wait for the others though.

Apo Idon Restaurant

9am, we were on our way to Kabigan Falls. My inner mamumundok self was rejoicing! But being the good friend that I am, I made a conscious effort to hide it a little. Don't tell her that I told you pero mamatay matay kasi sa pagod si Monique. Hahaha! Peace, teh!

The trail was really easy and we only had to walk for 30 minutes. It was just fitting 'cause I wasn't impressed with the falls. It doesn't take much to impress me when travelling; it's just that I've seen Sagada's Bomok-ok Falls already and it kind of set the standards. Sorry, Kabigan Falls. Magkabigan pa rin tayo, ha? #waley

Job, Monique and I dipped in the cold water while Tiny willingly took photos of us. Let's just say he's more of a photographer than a swimmer. *insert Boracay private jokes here* Hehehe. Monique swam all the way to the falls and since she made it to other side alive, I followed too. Booyy, it was no joke swimming against the water, for the lack of a better term, force. I made it though, I made it. ;)

Googled Facts: (1) It's in the barangay of Balaoi, municipality of Pagudpud, province of Ilocos Norte. (2) “Kabigan” was derived from the Tagalog word “Kaibigan” which means friend. The falls was given that name because the water from the river and the falls are magkaibigan. {really now?} (3) The 80-foot Kabigan Falls is accessible via a 30-minute, 1.8-kilometer hike from the national highway through a forest trail, the falls drop into a natural pool suitable for swimming.

trail on the way to the falls

Kabigan Falls

Probably because we weren't on track with the itinerary, we went to Blue Lagoon first before exploring the rest of Pagudpud - Patapat Viaduct, Bantay Abot Cave, etc. We left Kabigan at around 10:30 but it took a while before we were able to settle in Blue Lagoon. It was almost twelve when we found a nipa hut of our own. The guides suggested that we share nipa huts with the other guests but they obviously didn't like the idea - me neither, you selfish bitches. Hahaha!

On the way to Blue Lagoon, we bought lobsters for paluto. Everyone did the same so it was another waiting game for lunch. I waited in our nipa while the three of them roamed around the beach. I was starving by the time our food was served. A good mood definitely compensates, I could have run amok. Haha! I kid. :P

lunch by the beach

We wanted to try Hannah's zipline but it wasn't functioning as it should that day. The cables weren't stretched enough thus the pulley stops halfway through. Each guest will only be pulled by a staff to reach the other end of the line. And korni dba? So after lunch, the lolos slept in the nipa while Monique and I toasted ourselves under the sun for more or less an hour. I will never, ever get my fair complexion back but who cares.. YOLO! :P 

Googled Facts: (1) It's in the barangay of Balaoi, municipality of Pagudpud, province of Ilocos Norte. (2) It's also known as Maira-ira Beach as it is located in Maira-ira Point, Sitio Malingay. (3) Access to this public beach is from a secondary concrete road on the north side of the Maharlika Highway just before approaching the Patapat Viaduct.

Blue Lagoon

4ish, we left Blue Lagoon. It was a quick drive to our next destination - Bantay Abot Cave. There are two things I won't forget about the place. For one, there's a kid with muffled speech who kept on insisting that he'll be the one to take our photos. We knew he's doing that for a living so even if our driver can do that for us, we let him took a few snaps. I felt pity for the kid not just because he had to earn a living at his very young age but also because he gets bullied for the way he talks. I'm a laitera myself but there's no way I can ever poke fun at someone who has a disability. Aren't they easy to spare? On a less serious note, the other thing I won't forget was how I struggled to keep the other half of my dress in place. It's a little embarrassing. 

Googled Facts: (1) It's in the barangay of Balaoi, municipality of Pagudpud, province of Ilocos Norte. (2) In Ilocano, bantay means mountain while abot means hole, so there you go mountain hole. (3) Bantay Abot Cave is not really a cave but a hill that was wrecked by an earthquake in the 80's leaving a hole in the middle. The top of the cave is covered with lush green vegetation adding to the beauty of the cave.

Bantay Abot Cave

the other side of the 'cave'
via

30 minutes after, we moved to Patapat Viaduct. I was tired at that point and all I wanted was to lean on the bridge. When our driver initiated to take photos of us in the middle of the road, I passed. Tiny's the only one who was able to convince me after saying "para sa kin" in a nananakot voice. Akalain nyo yun, nasisindak din pala ako? Hehehe. Kidding aside, it was just my way of making it up to him for being our resident photographer.

Googled Facts: (1) It's located in the barangays of Balaoi and Pancian, municipality of Pagudpud, province of Ilocos Norte. (2) It is the 4th longest bridge in the Philippines. (3) This coastal bridge is elevated 31 meters above sea level and traversing a distance of 1.3 km, connecting the Maharlika Highway from Laoag, Ilocos Norte to Cagayan Valley.

Patapat Viaduct

We left around 5pm and headed to where we can buy pasalubong and souvenirs. Job and Tiny bought a picture frame decorated with windmills and said they're going to print a photo from the trip to place there. Monique said they printed photos for us but I still haven't gotten my copy. The disadvantage of leaving Eastwood. Meeeh. 

I also saw Paraiso ni Anton at the other side of the road but we didn't get to visit it, along with Bagong Lipunan. Well, at least I had a glimpse of the former. 

Paraiso ni Anton

We were back in our crib 6ish. I took a nap while the three of them checked out Saud Beach and took silhouette shots while the sun sets. At around 9pm, we went back to Apo Idon for dinner. After, I almost dozed off again but I fought for my right to freshen up before finally hitting the sack. Wheew! I'm such a lola!

*photos from the third, sixth & seventh collage from Tiny;  first photo in Kabigan & my photo in Patapat Viaduct from Tiny too

day3: ilocos norte - bangui and burgos tour

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