22 places we visited in Ilo Ilo City


We were supposed to travel via plane, yet an unexpected circumstance occurred, so we had no choice but to take a ship.  I will not go into so much detail anymore, so I’ll start when we already arrived in Cebu. We had a quick stop at the aforementioned city and had the chance to stroll for a little bit. We only got to visit Sto Nino Parish Church and their Robinsons mall. That was my second time going to Cebu, the first one was quite swift since we rode an airplane but travelling by sea surely brought so much peace. 

Here are snippets from our quick stop at Cebu:


   
    

After almost 13 hours of travel, we finally arrived at the famous City of Love, Ilo Ilo! For our entire trip, we actually stayed at 4 hotels in total since we went to a lot of tourist spots and one location is quite far from the others. 

22 Places we visited in Ilo Ilo:

    Main Destinations

  1. Carles
  2. Gigantes Islands
  3. San Joaquin
  4. Calle Real
  5. La Paz

    Historical Churches

      6. Jaro Cathedral
      7. Miagao Church
      8. Molo Church

     Museums

      9. Museo IloIlo
     10. National Museum of the Philippines / Old IloIlo Provincial Jail 

         Cafe/ Restos

         11. Madge Café
         12. Mac's Garahe
         13. Netong's Original La Paz Batchoy

         Mansions

         14. Yusay-Consing Mansion/ Molo Mansion
         15. Ledesma Mansion

         Plazas

        16. Molo Plaza
        17. Jaro Plaza
        18. Plaza Libertad

        Other Spots

        19. Robertos
        20. Garin Farm
        21. Megaworld
        22. Esplanade
      ___________________________________________________________________________

    If I were to describe our entire trip with one word, 'Malaman' would be it. Like a bowl of batchoy, it is filled with various ingredients and seasoning making it very 'Malaman' hahaha! 

    This blog goes to my travel buddies, my Tita Ma'am and Tita Anna <3

    P.S The flow of destinations above are already categorized but have been listed below according to their numbers in our itinerary. 
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    1. Robertos

                                 

    The first thing listed on our itinerary was to dine at Robertos. It's a very famous resto in Ilo Ilo and is situated near Calle Real across Plaza Libertad. 

    2. Isla de Gigantes (Carles) 

    Next thing listed on the itinerary was Carles, one of the districts in the City. Since our next agenda was Island Hopping, we checked in at Chateu de Aow which is situated in Carles. The latter is near Bancal Port, so we just had to ride a tricycle and the fare was 10 pesos/ person. We started our journey very early since we didn't want to burn too much skin (my titas are very keen if sunblock's what we're talking about :P ) 

    I wrote a separate blog about my experience in Gigantes Islands. If you'd be so kind, pay that post a visit! :)) Sailing along the seas of Gigantes Islands (ladytrishadacer.blogspot.com) 


    3. La Paz Market

    The moment when I mostly felt that I was in Ilo Ilo was when we went to La Paz. To me, it was the heart of the city. We checked in another place called Urban Inn. Their rates are quite reasonable since the rooms were very cozy and nice. The place is just near La Paz Market so it was convenient for us to hop from place to place. When we arrived at La Paz, we strolled along the streets, visited their mall, ordered Molo (a must) and went back to our room. I wasn't able to take a picture of the market since we were caught up by the hustle and bustle of the area. It's just like Cogon here in Cagayan de Oro but a little cleaner! HAHAHAHA

    4. Madge Café

    The next day, we never missed the chance to visit one of the most renowned cafés in the city, Madge Café. It is quite close to the heart of the Ilonggos since it has been filling their stomachs with delicious coffee and food for quite some time. Our rate? A 10/10!

                                                    
                                  
    let's just pretend you did not see that crumpled tissue over there :P


    5. Netong's Original La Paz Batchoy

    What's an Ilo Ilo trip if you fail to try an original bowl of La Paz Batchoy? We didn't wanna miss half of our lives and so we ate the famous La Paz Batchoy at La Paz! We also tried Netong's Dinuguan and Rice Puto; the perfect combo to ever exist.  

    ate La Paz Batchoy at La Paz

    "Pag nganga sa tita anna, picturan taka" hahahha

    Here's their menu, if by any chance you're planning to dine there! :)

    6. Mac's Garahe


    We were eager to visit this cafe since their egg-coffee has been making a name in the city. My taste bud gives their egg-coffee an 8,5/10, maybe because it's new to me :). It's just near the Esplanade, so there's an additional .5 in my rating :P. Here's what we ordered: Adobo flakes and a cold glass of egg-coffee, burger for Tita Ma'am, and Spam for Tita Anna. They both ordered hot egg-coffees.

    7. Esplanade

    After eating, we then walked along their esplanade. One of my most favorite thing that we did in Ilo Ilo was to walk along their bridge that has colorful sides. If you visit their city, don't forget to take some time to stroll along their esplanade.

                                 

    8. MegaWorld / Festive Mall

    The biggest mall that I've ever been in would probably be the Megaworld. The place is referred to as their K-Town as well because there are many korean stalls in there. There was even a wall wherein different K-drama Characters were manually painted. Tita Anna, who is an avid K-drama fan couldn't take her eyes off the wall, kidding aside hahaha

    My eyes were really amazed by how huge it was and how tempting all of the items on sale were. Words are not enough to depict how nice it was back there so I'm just going to let the pictures talk! 



    9. Calle Real

    The Calle Real has long been historic. So, a tourist who longs to visit Ilo Ilo really sets his/her eyes whenever he/she passes by the said street, that was the same for me. Even though it was already saturated with multiple stalls, you can still feel somehow a 'historical sense' because of the buildings, they give off a Spanish kind of vibe. 


    10. Garin Farm, San Joaquin

    A literal patch of heaven on earth. This is how one would describe Garin Farm, located in San Joaquin, Ilo Ilo. 
                                 


    Since we stayed at La Paz, it became a 3-ride journey for us. A bus from La Paz (14 pesos each), a 2 hr-jeepney ride to San Joaquin (80 pesos each) and a tricycle directed to Garin Farm (15 pesos each). 


    There is also an entrance fee at the Garin Farm, 150 pesos/ person.


    Upon entering the farm, you'll be greeted by what they call the 'Green Tunnel' and there are quite a number of different animals by the side, but don't worry they are harmless since they all have their own proper cages.  


    Along the tunnel, there's a Bahay Kubo, a wide pond, a swimming pool, lake, and a resto. So, the farm being tagged as recreational, spiritual and agricultural is truly reasonable.




    456 steps. 


    This is the estimated number of stair-steps we needed to take in order to reach HEAVEN.  


    Since it is a pilgrimage, you can really feel the essence of spirituality in there. The stations of the cross all have human-sized figurines, and they are placed across one another when you climb up the stairs. 



    Hangak kaayo ang 456 steps mga madam super HAHAHA!

    The journey was exhausting yet when we reached the top, it paid all of the sweats away. The constant "kapoy kaayo do" phrases were all worth it! 

    We landed on a patch of Heaven on Earth. 

                                  

    11. Jaro Cathedral

    This was the first church we visited in IloIlo. What's interesting about this one is that its belfry and the church itself are separated due to an earthquake that happened long ago. Nonetheless, the beauty of the church never got destroyed. The church was built in 1874.


    12. Miagao Church

    When we went to Miagao Church, it started to rain so we stayed at the church for a bit and my Tita Anna prayed and did the rosary. The sides of the church looked like the sides of a castle. Looking back, I couldn't believe that I went to a church that was built in 1786!


    13. Molo Church

    We actually just passed by the Molo Church, but we were able to witness how wonderful and sacred it was even just by its exterior. This was the only photo that I took of the church:

                                                

    14. National Museum of the Philippines / Old Ilo Ilo Provincial Jail


    We also visited the old provincial jail of the city that has now become the regional extension of the National Museum of the Philippines. It is divided into 5 galleries, and they all vary. 

                                              

                                     

                                     

                                     

                                     

                                                      

                                                

                                      

                                      

                                     

                                     

                                     

                                     

                                     

                                     

                                     

                                     

                                     

                                     

                                     

                                     

                                     

                                                     

                                                 

    15. Museo IloIlo

    The last place we visited in IloIlo was their museum. Take a peek at some of the pictures below:

    16-20. Other Spots we visited


    We happened to pass by and witness the beauty of the Ledesma Mansion, Yusay-Consing Mansion (Molo Mansion). We also went to Molo Plaza, Jaro Plaza and Plaza Libertad. 
                                 


    The four places where we stayed during our entire Roxas and Ilo-Ilo Trip:
    1. Chateu de Aow 
    2. Pete's Inn
    3. Urban Inn
    4. City Corporate Inn 
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    Hey, thank you for reading up until here! :)

    I already said this in my previous Roxas blog, but I'll say it again and a million more-- What I loved most were not just the places but the people themselves. How they talk and welcome tourists is top tier, and I couldn't help but be amazed at how sweet and lovely the tone of their voices are, pure melody to the ears. 

    I totally enjoyed our entire trip and just couldn't say anything but THANK YOU to my titas and THANK YOUUUU to our Almighty Father. HE made all of this possible. 

    I hope you enjoyed reading about my entire expedition just as much as I enjoyed writing it. 
    If you are planning to go to IloIlo, THIS IS YOUR SIGN. 

    ______________________________________________

    Go fill that luggage and TRAVEL WHILE YOU'RE YOUNG! 

    _________________________________


    Embracing life as it is,

    Lady ♡

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