Nothing much happened during Day 5. We checked out of our hotel in Vigan early in the morning, at around 4:30 am, and we found ourselves traveling back to Manila.
But here are the more interesting stories of how we got ripped off in Vigan.
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Carinderia Scuffle
I believe I already told you about the first time we got ripped off (yes, there's a second time!) - in less than an hour after arriving in Vigan. Because our rooms in the hotel were still being fixed and we wanted to try "authentic" Ilocano dishes, we decided to give the nearby carinderia a try. The place was really sparse - there were only monobloc chairs and even these were lacking - but I guess the adventuring spirit really kicked up in us because we eagerly took our seats and ordered the Ilocano fare we were hoping for.
Lo and behold, we were given below average-tasting dishes with a few pieces of meat tossed in. When I worked in the office 4 years ago, we sometimes ate from a very little carinderia where the taxi drivers eat, and the food we bought there was delicious. What I mean is that eating in a carinderia doesn't mean eating a poor excuse for a dish. Even their pinakbet has cabbage - who puts cabbage in their pinakbet?
Worse, the servings were very little. And worst? The owner of the carinderia increased the prices of the dishes and drinks every time. For example, when we first asked one of the "servers" the price of family-sized soft drinks, she said P25. Then the owner would insist that it is 35 or 40. Everything kept getting more expensive!
We paid more than P500 for 5 cups of rice and 4 measly platitos of ulam.
(Actually, the worst thing about that carinderia is how their food sent me to the emergency room! That was one of the few times I thank God Yuri is picky!)
Tricycle Kafuffle
Speaking of the emergency room, before we were actually able to check out, my mom had to take me to the hospital because my stomach pains (and nausea and diarrhea again) came back and were even more terrible than the first time. We asked the front desk for the nearest hospital, and the ladies pointed us to "Lahoz Clinic and Hospital."
Yes, it was very near (just 5 minutes away from Green R). Yes, we immediately discovered that it was also a rundown hospital. The funniest thing about that hospital is that everyone is asleep - even the guard. If I didn't have a bowling ball for a stomach then, I would've laughed loudly. But it's fine; I was given acceptable service. And it was not in the hospital where we got ripped off.
No, it was the tricycle driver who did the honours. When we came out of the hotel, he and his tricycle were just by the front door so naturally, we approached him. We requested to go to Lahoz Hospital. It was already 2am, so we asked him if he could wait so that we wouldn't have any problem going back to the hotel.
When we emerged from the hospital, instead of going back to the hotel, we asked to be taken first to another hospital nearby, which is Metro Vigan Hospital (which is the better hospital) since the medicines we needed to buy were not available in Lahoz. Off we went.
Finally, after buying the medicines, we asked to drop by a 7-11 on the way back to the hotel to buy Gatorade and some food. Then we finally went back to the hotel.
On the way, my mom and I decided to give the driver P200 since they charge P15/person - we had a total of 4 stops (including the hotel) but thought to pay the driver extra for his time. When we handed him the payment, he looked at us incredulously and said, no, he's charging us P330.
P330 for a tricycle ride. In a small town. At 2-3 am when there weren't even any other passengers who could have ridden his tricycle.
I mean, he even knew I was very sick, but he still demanded his fee. We didn't want to start a fight with this potentially dangerous stranger in the middle of a strange town so, while mumbling to ourselves, I handed my precious P300 to him. Huhu.
Then I thought of the tricycle driver who kindly gave me a tour of Vigan museums, did not charge an exorbitant fee, and even volunteered to take our orders for longanisa (which he promptly delivered to our hotel while we were still in the hospital - I hadn't even given him payment yet!). What a difference! I just feel like I need to say this to clarify that I am not generalizing Ilocanos from Vigan.
Please tell me honestly as we are not from Luzon (in Davao City, tricycle fares start from as low as P5 and rude drivers - jeepney, tricycle, taxi - are actually a rarity): did the second tricycle driver charge us fairly?
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