Suyo, Ilocos Sur

Last weekend D and I drove to the northern part of the Philippines on to Suyo, Ilocos Sur. He’s been there before and was raving about how he liked the place and how everyone he met there was kind and friendly. Because it would be a long drive (333 kilometers away from Metro Manila), we left home at 4:30 in the morning. We had a short stop over at a Total gas station at Apalit, Pampanga for breakfast at around 6 a.m. I like having early breakfast there because I always see different species of birds in the area.

The drive after breakfast was quite scenic and we admired the sun shining through the fields around the Mount Arayat area in Pampanga.

We passed through La Union province which is known for its surfing spots. D and I were planning to have seaside lunch, however there was a stretch of heavy traffic on to the beach, so we ended up taking an alternate route towards Suyo. Fortunately we found a restaurant that served Filipino and Ilocano dishes along that alternate route. D got the chicken stew and I had the pinaputok na pampano, which was recommended by their staff. It was my first time to have that dish, where the pampano was stuffed with tomatoes, ginger, pepper and onion. It would then wrapped with banana leaves and oven roasted. I’m so happy I went for it. It turned out to be the best pampano dish I’ve ever had!

After lunch we drove for another couple of hours and finally reached Tagudin, Ilocos Sur, where we would be staying for the night. We checked in the inn, dropped off our things and drove to Suyo.

At Suyo D unloaded his bicycle and explored the area, while I visited a cooperative store and shopped for local products like mushroom chips, turmeric tea, and coffee beans. I also bought onions and turnips from the farmers’ market. I enjoyed chatting with the people in the market as they were warm and welcoming, and they prided talking about their hometown

As the late afternoon approached, D and I drove up to Mount Tapao, famous for the stunning view of the surrounding mountains and the South China Sea. The road up to the mountain was steep and only had one lane. I held my breath hoping there would be no descending cars up ahead. I imagined it would be hard to back up if there would be an approaching vehicle. Luckily we got to the top without any issues, and we were rewarded with a beautiful sunset view – a fantastic way to cap our short and sweet visit to Suyo, Ilocos Sur.