Pagudpud is a 2-hour bus ride from Laoag. I am not sure if the information is still accurate but when we were in Laoag, we were told there are no air-conditioned buses going to Pagudpud and so the hubby, who happens to be the lesser cowboy between the two of us, had to endure all the warm wind and humidity he's usually annoyed about when travelling exposed. We left Laoag at around 1pm and arrived at 3pm. Never mind the stickiness of our face, the moist skin, and the tangled hair for taking the said bus ride because this was the kind of paradise awaiting us.
We might have the same question in mind: how did they know we were honeymooners? Lol. I promise I never mentioned a single thing about my wedding to Ms. Ana during our email correspondence so this really came as a wonderful surprise. I still smile each time I remember the very suggestive bed.
Evangeline Beach Resort is just one of the resort chain located in Brgy. Burayoc along the stretch of Saud White Beach Cove in Pagudpud, Ilocos Norte. It is owned by Ms. Ana while the other resorts
are owned by her siblings. From a small talk with the resort's restaurant manager, Ms. Reybie, I learned that the land were basically inherited by these siblings from their parents and so they divided and made resorts out of it. Some blessed kids they were! The other resorts are called Apo Idon, Terra Rika, and Jun & Carol. During our stay there, it was obvious that EBR was more pop.
Ms. Ana blessed us with a room in Villa Ana -- a 2-storey house with 6 spacious bedrooms, a private pool, a dining and kitchen area, and a private veranda for each room. Oh, and for us cyber junkies, it's a plus that the villa is a very strong WiFi zone!
Because we arrived later than the usual check-in time, we didn't have much time to rest. We immediately changed and started loitering the beach which is a good 1-2 minute walk from our villa. Yes, their villas and cottages are not beach front but later on you'll see that Emohruo Restobar is.
The next surprise came in the evening when apparently, the resort prepared for us a romantic dinner by the beach. Now, I have to explain that this isn't the usual restaurant setup. They don't really have dining tables by the sand as we have observed earlier in the day. We noticed them setting the whole thing up as the day turned dusk. We didn't know it was for us. Again, who told them we're honeymooners? Haha. It was all so good except for the spectating guests inside the actual restaurant which somehow made me feel uncomfortable. Like I could very well see their thought bubbles containing questions like "Who are these fortunate creatures?" and "What, they paid more than I did?" Haha.
For dinner, we ordered their bestsellers. Fishy Rolls©, an original recipe, is fillet-o-fish filled with crabmeat, cheese, lettuce, & seaweeds with lemon butter - tarragon sauce. It's like the fish version of chicken cordon bleu only more malinamnam. This discovery was so good it almost made me cry. I'm not even kidding. Since their serving was relatively big, I had to even bring the left-overs to our room. Hubby ordered Pinakbet with Bagnet Toppings which he also failed to finish because it's bigger than his big appetite and being that I'm not exactly a veggie-eater, I wasn't able to help him. As for the rice, apparently they have a huge selection to choose from and hubby ordered Pagudpud Sun Rice© -- another original recipe. It's their specialty rice mixed with vegetable bits, squid and prawns, topped with longganisa & bagnet. It was literally kanin pa lang, ulam na. Because of the overwhelming introduction to so many eyes-watering and mouth-watering food, the boring me just ordered Garlic Rice. Hehe!
How we ended the night is another interesting story to tell. During dinner, it rained hard. So hard that almost everyone in the restobar had to prolong eating and entertained themselves with the live band. Sadly, our divine table setup had to be transferred inside. Hubby and I already considered waiting for the rain to stop to be able to walk back to our villa until Analyn, the staff who had been excellently attending to our every need since the first minute we set foot on the resort, brought us towels and umbrella. And there goes our second VIP moment. People watched as we gracefully braved the wet pavement and 30-second walk under the rain. Good Lord, what a lovely evening!
The morning was no less than awesome. The night before, we were already asked of our order for breakfast, our preferred time of having them, and where we want them prepared. As much as we wanted to have breakfast in bed, we realized we can always do those anywhere. But it's not everyday that you get to experience breakfast by the beach so that's what we chose. I told you, the restau is beachfront.
The morning was no less than awesome. The night before, we were already asked of our order for breakfast, our preferred time of having them, and where we want them prepared. As much as we wanted to have breakfast in bed, we realized we can always do those anywhere. But it's not everyday that you get to experience breakfast by the beach so that's what we chose. I told you, the restau is beachfront.
Ralph ordered from their International Breakfast menu the Scramble Slider© (another original) -- scrambled egg with onion, pepper, bacon, & cheese in a muffin bread. I ordered another original from the Emohruo's Eye Opener menu -- Emohruo's Wake Up Shake Up© -- egg omelet with cheese, ham, mushroom, carrot with toasted bread. Both so glorious; mine with mango juice on the side, hubby's with Evangeline's instant coffee.
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| Oh, beach. Why do you have to be so far. |
The rest of the morning was spent in the waters. The beach sand is obviously no whiter and finer than that of Boracay but I'd choose this over the latter any day since I have long since outgrown party-ing and seeing lots of abs and girls' boobies and bikinis on display. Haha, like I fancied the latter before! Seriously, I'd like to think I matured a lot the past year. The beach and crowd preference is a strong indication, for one.
As the day progressed, separation anxiety slowly attacked our melodramatic hearts. This, by far, was the best short vacation we had and cruel as it was, we had no choice but to leave because work and the empty apartment are waiting. We checked out at exactly 12nn but before finally leaving the what has become our little hidden paradise, we spent lunch with the couple friends Yam and JM again. It was the day they left Laoag and we requested that they drop by our resort before proceeding to their own which was at Maira-ira Beach.
As the day progressed, separation anxiety slowly attacked our melodramatic hearts. This, by far, was the best short vacation we had and cruel as it was, we had no choice but to leave because work and the empty apartment are waiting. We checked out at exactly 12nn but before finally leaving the what has become our little hidden paradise, we spent lunch with the couple friends Yam and JM again. It was the day they left Laoag and we requested that they drop by our resort before proceeding to their own which was at Maira-ira Beach.
Since we were a bigger crowd by lunch time, we ordered bigger meals. First is from the Native Specialty menu that is good for 3-4 pax -- the Evangeline's Plate© composed of 1 whole grilled bangus, grilled pork liempo, beef ribs stew, & salted eggs with KBL (kamatis, bagoong, lasona) served with 3 plain rice. We also ordered the very savory Kare-kare Seafood -- prawns, squid, & fish fillet in peanut sauce, served with shrimp anchovy paste. Seriously, this set unleashed in me the most indescribable emotions. Too good to be true! For dessert, they served all of us Mangoes and Bananas n' Crepes. And that's ending our luxurious vacation with a bang!
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| Top left: Hubby and I at the bar. Ms. Reybie at the rightmost. Bottom right: With the ever so nice & caring Analyn |
To be honest, I haven't been to a place where everything I ate clicked with my taste-buds. Don't get me wrong. I'm actually very easy to please and I also have no claims on being a food expert. However, let's face it, it's very rare to find a place where everything is just perfect! EVERYTHING. Evangeline Beach Resort gave us that. More than the unforgettable satisfaction we got from the food they serve, another thing we will forever cherish is their hospitality. If this trait is equated to being a Filipino, then they are the most Filipino people I have met in my life. They treat you so warm and so personal that you start to wonder how strangers are capable of showing sincere compassion to another stranger as if they're family. No wonder it was so hard to say goodbye.
Since Florida Bus
From Laoag to Manila, we took Partas again. Bus fare is at Php700+ (sorry, failed to note again) per head. We left at exactly 5:00pm and arrived in Cubao terminal at 4:00am the next day. Eleven friggin hours on a non-deluxe bus! No wonder body-ache was at its most severe the next day. Lol
There goes our 3-part honeymoon-vacation. To conclude this entry, I'd like to thank our ever faithful Lord God almighty for making sure we get to spend the honeymoon right after the wedding. If you haven't learned yet, ours is a miracle wedding. Everything is on budget that honeymoon never did land the priority list. We learned to accept that we might just spend our first few days as married couple in our apartment, in a park, or in our favorite restaurant. I admit I prayed for this but it was the type of prayer that's OK not to be granted if God's will. We just really want to get married, that's it. Nonetheless, He is the generous God that doesn't change regardless if we are expecting, hopeless, indifferent, or secure. He is the same faithful God.
Psalm 37:4 Take delight in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.The Lord knows the desires of our heart long before we do. That's how powerful He is. This gift is another proof, not that we need one, of how mysterious His ways are. We just have to remain faithful and continuously worship Him, with or without awesome surprises like this.
I'd also like to thank Ms. Ana for the generosity. Too bad we weren't able to sit down over dinakdakan or something. Haha. It would have been a thrill finally meeting you. Also a big thanks to Ms. Reybie and Analyn. Your warm accommodation made us feel so at home. Please extend our thanks to the rest of the very nice staff. We are definitely coming back!
Evangeline Beach Resort
Saud Beach Cove, Burayoc Point,
Pagudpud Ilocos Norte, 2919
Philippines
Email: emohruo_ana@yahoo.com.ph
The Ilocos Adventure: Vigan
The Ilocos Adventure: Laoag
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Your stay at the resort seemed divine, literally and otherwise. God really does work in mysterious ways, eh? ;)
ReplyDeleteIt was and He does! He continuously blesses even the undeserving.
DeleteWe lacked time when we were in Ilocos and only stayed for a few minutes in Pagudpud. When we reached Blue Lagoon, it was already dark!
ReplyDeleteIlocos is one of the places I wish to revisit. I'll keep this resort in mind.
Thanks for sharing!
Bummer! You should! And don't forget to drop by EBR :)
DeleteYou're welcome :)