“I drift like a cloud,
Across these venerable eastern lands,
A journey of unfathomable distances,
An endless scroll of experiences...
Lady Zhejiang here we must part,
For the next province awaits my embrace.
Sad wanderer, once you conquer the East,
Where do you go?”
― Tom Carter,
China: Portrait of a People
Back in May, JP and I went to Foreigner Street, an amusement park of sorts in Chongqing that takes kitsch to a whole new level. The place is filled with replicas of Western landmarks, a Western-style chapel, pubs, fairy-tale streets, street performers, hawkers, costume shops that take photos of you in traditional Chinese clothing, and amusement rides. In short, it is crawling with people. People have a love-hate relationship with the park, from what I have read, but for those who see the interestingness in places and things, this place is worth a visit.
Apart from the rides and the touristy souvenir shops, there's a section of old Chinese courtyards, which were fairly quiet and had very little foot traffic, since most Chinese are probably familiar with these courtyards anyway and avoided these places for the livelier sections of the park. I was mesmerized at how real the place looked. I used to watch Chinese movies dubbed in English or Tagalog when I was younger, and in those movies, you can see old Chinese houses with courtyards that had fountains and wells and lanterns hanging outside. And I got to see the real thing here! It was surreal, actually, especially since it was very quiet and I was able to get lost in the moment, just me and my thoughts and the occasional click of the shutter (the husband was sitting in a corner, tired from all the 'splorin', haha!) When you think about it, all the history that probably occurred in this place, weddings, funerals, swordfights(!!!)---it boggles my mind. CNN has a great piece on Chongqing's Foreigner Street here.
A few snaps of what we saw there.
The great affair is to move.”
― Robert Louis Stevenson
Travels with a Donkey in the Cevennes
A friend asked me about Vigan a week ago and it reminded of photos of our trip that I still had to go through. JP and I hit the ground running as soon as we got off the bus in Vigan. An hour after arriving we were in a calesa having a noonday tour of the town. Our driver, who also doubled as the enterprising tour guide, took us to the Bantay Belfry, Paburnayan or the pottery shop and the Hidden Gardens-- a lot to take in when I was shaking off the effects of the scenic 2-hour bus ride from Laoag. But it was a great way to discover the place up close in a few hours, especially for us who were only there until the next day. We also tried a few local delicacies along the way before stopping for native halo-halo at the Hidden Gardens.
The pottery shop was really interesting. You can even sit down and have a go at the wheel, see if you can make a decent pot out of a lump of clay. Looking back, I regret not taking the few minutes to sit down and get my hands dirty. One of the few things I learned on this trip: try everything! I try to apply this as much as I can when we travel, but it is easy to forget, especially when you are pressed for time, money, both, or just tired. But by golly, it is really important to try as much as you can, or you'll regret not doing it, especially when you are scrolling through photos of the trip!
Taking a calesa tour is perhaps one of the best things to do when you arrive in Vigan. For P350 a tour, you get to have a quick look-see at what the place looks like before doing a more thorough exploration of the place the next day. I would advise doing it in the later part of the afternoon, when it's not too hot and people are going home. You'll get a good feel of the town and it's inhabitants when everyone's out and about, preparing to go home, stopping by the church or the market. A few photos of our first day in Vigan. :)
I got the chance to finally visit Vigan back in June with JP. After staying a night in Manila, we took a plane to Laoag, stayed one night there and then took the early morning bus for the two-hour ride to Vigan. The road to Vigan is not unlike what you would see if you travel north or south of Dumaguete--farm land, sugarcane fields, houses, and small towns in between. I get the feeling that is what you would see if you hit any of the provinces in the Philippines. The only difference is that when you reach Vigan, you immediately feel a sense of history, start seeing images of 1900s Philippines, remember Jose Rizal and GomBurZa and all the other bits and fragments that make up memories of history classes in high school and college. I loved how the streets are lined with those old-looking streetlamps, how calesas ply the streets like it's 1910, and how people do modern day activities, like operate Internet cafes or go to the bank inside century old brick buildings. The sound of horses' hooves on the cobblestone streets add to the varied sensations and make those images really come alive.
Once we got off the bus, we started walking, weaving around town towards our hotel. We walked past Calle Crisologo and the other streets which were much quieter since only tourists and calesas are allowed. People were sitting outside souvenir shops, old men and women, young boys were playing, I could see other tourists buying T-shirts and local wine.
After freshening up, we went back out, since it was only a little bit after lunch. After grabbing a bite to eat at one of the restaurants located inside a really old building (no pictures, sadly.) we headed to Calle Crisologo to do some some serious exploring, since you can't really say that you've been to Vigan if you have not been to this street. Calle Crisologo is everything I imagined it to be! Century-old houses line the streets, calesas share the road with the tourists, and I've never seen so much antique pieces concentrated in one place. My eyes were immediately full with all the textures and details.
(*sigh*)
I'll let the photos do the rest of the talking.