christmas dinner 2005










I am glad that somehow we all still got together this year before going to midnight mass. We had been doing this since the '90's. Locations would rotate. Arrangement was always potluck. It was a time to catch up with each other. Of course we missed those that have left Bangkok already and those that were elsewhere at the time. Merry Christmas!!

Ilocos Excursion, December 2005



















It has been a while since I did a tour in the Philippines. While thinking about my vacation to the Philippines, a friend of mine suggested why not go to the North and visit Vigan. But then I decided that there are several nice places to go in the north so I asked my sister Bing to join me. We initially based ourselves in Laoag, the capital city of Ilocos Norte. Because of budget constraints we found ourselves a nicely appointed pensionne named Balay ti Blas located near the city center. Before we start our day, we always had a very hearty breakfast of a choice of ilocano longganiza, tocino, daing na bangus or danggit. From Laoag, we coud do a day trip to Vigan. Within the vicinity of Laoag itself you could visit the old church of Paoay, visit the market of San Nicolas and order bagnet ang longganiza to handcarry back to Manila. We went to Sarrat and even got to see the sand dunes where Bongbong Marcos currently lives in. The weather was quite challenging. But then I did not go there for the sun and surf. I went there so I can take pictures. Having an overcast day is actually a blessing if used properly. On our last full day we went to Pagudpud to see this famous resort town. Along the way, we saw that the farmers were very busy preparing the fields for the second planting season so I asked Buddha to stop several times so I can take photos of farmers at work. That day started overcast and once we got to Pagudpud, it was literally light to heavy showers. People were friendly everywhere. When we got caught in the rain we were invited into one of the houses beside the beach to wait the heavy rain out.

It turned out that deciding to Ilocos was a blessing because strong rains hit Boracay and Puerto Galera, the other places I was considering. Buddha was a great guide and helped me lug my knapsack filled with the different cameras I was using. He also volunteered to take our pictures provided I mount the camera on a tripod. Most of all I was able to spend some time with Bing who will be moving soon to Brisbane, Australia.