Day 1: Pagudpud, Ilocos Norte

On our way to our final destination, we came across an old church in the town of Bacarra. The historic Church of Saint Andrew the Apostle is a cultural landmark which was built in 1593 by the Augustinian friars. It was declared as a Natural Cultural Treasure in 1973 by President Marcos. It is known for its 'domeless' belfry which is detached from the main church building. The entire dome was toppled and destroyed during the 1983 Luzon earthquake. It was an imposing sight to behold as the exterior/ facade still retained its vintage look while the interiors was reinforced with steel roofing during its renovation in 1986. I am glad we dropped by to say a prayer for our journey.

Bacarra Church and the domeless belfry

St. Andrew the Apostle Church, Bacarra

We knew we were close when the gigantic windmills of Bangui were in plain sight. Standing tall like some alien lighting system although I can attest that during the night time it isn't illuminated, at all.

It was already almost 4 P.M when we reached our hotel. It was too late for a tour so we simply had a relaxing day at the beach in time for the sunset and capped the long day with an early dinner at the restaurant of the resort.

Most of the resorts are located on Saud beach and they don't have websites for online booking. You either email or call them and they require you to deposit your reservation in a bank before they can confirm your booking.  They have FB pages but most of them didn't reply to all my FB messenger queries.

But I persevered and got lucky, I found a place that not only replied promptly to all my emails but also accept Paypal payments for booking. Much more convenient + the room was spacious with two queen beds, a big toilet and bath with a balcony to hang your wet clothes.  My only complaint is that the aircon was not cold at all, so I requested for an electric fan. It was the height of summer so it was scorching hot!