CHRONICLES OF A SOUTHEAST ASIAN SOJOURN – I
Linger at Lingayen for Tropical Treats
By Karen Blythe
Trotting across the globe from Madrid to the Far East just to tell Guidepost readers a few tall tales? Why not? Well, actually the “chronicler” is travelling through Southeast Asia anyhow, albeit for reasons that aren’t work-related, so why not write about the more outstanding sights and impressions on the long trip and share them with the readers? They just might prove entertaining – if nothing else.
Travelling vendor of wicker crafts on a horsedrawn cart takes a break on a hot high noon.
Here it goes . . .
It was a sultry kind of weather, with the golden tropical sun fighting a winning battle with the threatening overcast, when we landed on the historic shores of Lingayen, the capital of the province of Pangasinan in western Luzon. That is the largest of the 7,200 islands in the Philippine archipelago.
One who is familiar with this part of the world would find it quite as it should be in this bustling first class municipality whose ubiquitous tricycles, so quintessentially Asian, and the jeepneys, the enduring legacy of World War II, habitually zigzag in and out of narrow street lanes with total disregard for civilized traffic rules. You wouldn’t believe it but this daredevil stunt has its charms, in the way that acute danger mesmerizes!
The architrave of the beautiful neoclassical capitol building “erected [in 1918) by the Government for the administration of a civil state promoting life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.”
The synergic mix of the Spanish and American colonialism and Filipino nationalism has given rise to a surprisingly gracious town: young in spirit today but replete with a past that’s overlaid with the rich patina of never-a-dull-moment history.
We would recommend splendid immersion in this magical Filipino-American-Spanish town that the elderly tourists with links to World War II may have forgotten to visit and the young still have to discover.
Palm trees and balmy breezes
By car it takes some five hours from Manila to reach Lingayen.
Neighboring towns are a treasure trove of tropical enticements to top off your holiday in Pangasinan: the Hundred Islands in Alaminos, the mysterious coves in Sual, and white beaches everywhere, many of them as yet to be defiled by senseless tourism.
We promise you’ll thank us for this recommendation.
A (FURTHER) LOOK AT LINGAYEN
The Maramba Blvd., named after Daniel Maramba, the first governor of the province of Pangasinan. You may not see the sea from here but you can definitely scent it!
A place to stay
Kings of the road: the tricycle and the jeepney
The legendary jeepney, legacy of World War II, has been converted into a most colorful public transport. As in all imaginable places in the Philippines, it weaves in and out of the narrow street lanes in Lingayen.
A front view of the provincial capitol which is right on the beach of the historic Lingayen Gulf where the convoy of Allied forces led by Gen. Douglas MacArthur landed in 1945 to liberate the Philippines from the Japanese.
