After about 6 hours drive from Manila, rains greeted us upon our afternoon arrival in our first day at Thunderbird Poro Point Resort. We didn’t mind really as it gave us time to get acquainted with our lovely rooms and the resort. The rains lingered on the next days but it was fortunate the sun showed itself from morning to mid-afternoon, giving us opportune time to explore several attractions around La Union. Our first two stops were the Pindangan Ruins and La Union’s Botanical Garden.
Our Van drove us to Barangay Parian where the Pindangan Ruins can be found. I felt Estan’s excitement as he told the group he had wanted to see this ruins for some time now. With a great enthusiasm for churches, he got off the van to check out the ruins once we arrived. We entered the enclosed walls near the Carmelite Sisters Monastery, who are also private owners of the ruins.
Built in May 6, 1786, the Pindangan church symbolizes the unity between two villages – the coastal village of San Vicente de Balanac and the foothill village of Guillermo de Dalagdang. Both villages benefitted from the protection of the church under Fr Jose Tores in 1759 from assailants, pirates and headhunters. The churches name came from the Ilocano word “Pindang” which is the local’s method of drying fish.
The church was damaged in 1892 due to a strong earthquake and has been buried under heavy vegetation for some time. It was only recently when the Carmelite Monastery unearthed the ruins to reveal its massive walls with flying buttresses and good condition well made of corals and bricks for all to appreciate its significant heritage.
At the hilly terrain of Barangay Cadacalan, 8km east of San Fernando City proper is the La Union Botanical Garden. This garden inaugurated on March 2, 1996 was the first of its kind in the Philippines as it’s a scientific garden and the center for laboratory research in Northern Luzon.
The garden is huge containing various plants living in the tropical climates. Aside from the flora are several fauna found in cages within the garden. It’s a very refreshing place to explore and therapeutic at that. Let’s take a closer look at the flora and fauna found at the Botanical garden through this Video. Hope you guys enjoy it.
Ferdz Decena is an award-winning travel photographer, writer and blogger. His works has found print in publications such as Singapore Airlines’s Silver Kris, Philippine Airlines’ Mabuhay, Cebu Pacific’s Smile and Seair InFlight. He has also lent his expertise to various organizations like the Oceana Philippines, Lopez Group Foundation, Save the Children and World Vision, contributing quality images for their marketing materials.
