vigan Archives - I Wander

As a destination that’s well known for its diversity, the essence of a trip to Southeast Asia for most would probably include a rundown of the well-known ancient ruins, beaches and secluded islands, through natural landscapes and tropical rainforests and generally having a good time in the region’s megacities. A not so prominent (and less popular) theme are its old towns, some of which have been preserved as UNESCO World Heritage Sites. These are deserving destinations in their own right, and are perfect supplements to those doing long trips across the region. Earlier this year, I had inadvertently completed a small milestone by visiting all the UNESCO World Heritage towns in Southeast Asia. As there are only five, it’s no mean feat. I was not really ticking it off any list. It just happened.

brightly colored buildings such as these in hoi an, are a common sight in all of southeast asia’s unesco towns

Those of you who have been reading this blog for a while might notice this habit of mine of ranking stuff regarding Southeast Asia. This one’s no exception. In order of preference (and I’ll explain why), this is how I would rank the 5:

…

If there ever was a much awaited leg in my trip, this had to be it. For the longest time, I had wanted to visit Vigan – the Philippines’ own UNESCO World Heritage town. Vigan was a name that had captured my imagination. Like a town jumping out from the pages of a history book, Vigan is said to be the best example of a Spanish colonial town in Asia and I wanted to see for myself whether this is really the case. For some odd reason, I had my first exposure with these UNESCO World Heritage towns overseas, namely with Penang and Malacca in Malaysia and then with Luangprabang in Laos. Vigan was a destination that I had kept waiting for far too long.

From Laoag, we had set out early in the morning for Vigan, again stopping by some interesting sights along the way. But before heading south, we detoured east-ward towards Sarrat, which today is more known to be Ferdinand Marcos’ birthplace. The major landmark here is of course, the house where our ex-President was born. Though looking humble by today’s standards, it is certainly well-preserved. Parts of it were redone in brick while the second storey still retained the typical turn of the 20th century Filipino-style wooden panels. Admission here was free and we were treated to actual paraphernalia used by the former president as well as a peek into the actual room where he was born.

…

The UNESCO World Heritage Towns of Southeast Asia

Ilocos Adventure Pt3: Stepping Back in Time in Vigan