Detourista
After an adventure in Ilocos Sur, I made my way to Abra with, travel buddy, Gael.
It was my first time to explore this province & the #1 spot on our bucketlist was to visit Caparkan Falls. Unfortunately, as we found out later, February & the entire the summer season was a terrible time to go since the waterfall dries up during these months. We were told that we should have scheduled our trip between August to November.
Even with no prior plans of alternative places to go, we had an amazing time in Abra thanks to the help of locals who showed us beautiful spots in their home province and warm Abreño hospitality.
We started with a day tour around capital Bangued and the heritage town of Tayum.
Then, an overnight homestay at Kili Village in Tubo, the last town before crossing to Mountain Province. We came to this remote village to see the Kili Falls but discovered the scenic rice terraces and serene hot spring pool to be equally worthy reasons to go.
Back in Bangued, we enjoyed a day trip to Apao Rolling Hills & Piwek Rock Formations in Tineg town. We were lucky to have witnessed a sunset view of the mountainscape, bathed in a spectacular auburn light.
On our last full day, we journeyed to San Quintin to buy Tabungaw Hats. NCCA National Living Treasure awardee, Mr. Teofilo Garcia himself showed us a demonstration of how the hats were skillfully made from huge “gourds” or “upo” to the finished products. Then, we traveled to La Paz to see the town’s traditional loom weaving industry.
Places — Vigan » Narvacan » Bangued » Tayum
3AM — Vigan to Narvacan bus.
Narvacan to Bangued, Abra bus.
5:30AM — Arrival in Bangued.
Bangued city tour, in Abra, Philippines
Bangued sightseeing.
Bangued Church.
Bangued Plaza.
Victoria Park viewdeck.
Abra Foundation Day parade.
Tayum heritage sites & Gabriela Cariño Silang Gallery
Tayum sightseeing.
Tayum Church.
Pass by Tayum old houses.
Gabriel Cariño Silang Gallery.
Rest in Bangued-Tayum.
Places — Bangued » Kili Village, Tubo
Quick tour while waiting for the jeepney departure to Kili.
Breakfast at Doming’s Pancitan (Brgy. Patukanay, Tayum) — Pancit Miki is the specialty of the house.
San Lorenzo Ruiz Shrine photo stop.
Bangued to Kili Village transport on shared car — The supposedly “daily” jeepney to Kili did not have a trip that day. Instead, we joined a shared car with other stranded passengers.
Casa Real de Bucay (Old Abra Provincial Capitol) ruins photo stop.
Arrival in Kili.
Kili village, waterfall, hot spring & rice terraces, in Tubo, Abra, Philippines
Kili Village sightseeing.
Kili rice terraces.
Kili Falls.
Kili hot spring pool.
Rest at Kili homestay.
Places — Kili » Bangued » Tineg » Bangued
Continue Kili Village sightseeing.
Kili Village to jeepney waiting area transport on motorcycle taxi.
Jeepney to Bangued.
Tineg – Apao Rolling Hills & Piwek Rock Formations in Abra, Philippines
Tineg day trip.
Apao Rolling Hills.
Piwek Rock Formations.
Rest in Bangued.
Places — Bangued » San Quintin » La Paz » Bangued
Abra – Tabungaw Hat Making in San Quintin & Loom Weaving in La Paz, Abra
San Quintin & La Paz day tour.
Tabungaw Hat making in San Quintin.
Hat making demonstration by Mr. Teofilo Garcia, awarded by National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA) as a National Living Treasure.
Loom weaving in La Paz.
Places — Bangued » San Juan, La Union
Bangued to San Juan transport on Manila-bound Partas bus.
Special thanks to Mr. George Lalin, tourism consultant of the Office of the Congressman, Lone District of Abra, for helping us plan our trip and showing us around the province.
Next trips:
La Union Weekend Trip
Laguna, Cavite, Metro Manila 2017
Previous trips:
Narvacan & Ilocos Adventure 3 Days
This trip is part of Marcos’ Luzon Summer 2017 & 2017 Detours series.
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