Manila to Ilocos in a Picanto, Part 5 (Pagudpud nightmare)

It was one of those days when you start off well and then it just goes wrong. We left Balay da Blas at about 10 am after breakfast and headed out to Pagudpud, which was going to be about an hour and half drive. On the way, Pedro and I had one of those stupid arguments which result in both just being annoyed and quiet. And that was the worst part.

We got to Pagudpud and asked for a few hours before realizing it was going to be impossible to find a decent room that wasn't either overpriced or doubling as a storage room. We looked at hotels, homestays and chicken coops and everything was of course full.

We decided to drive towards Cagayan and check out Maira-ira Point, that which has Kapuluan Vista Resort, which is a lovely place to stay in if they're not full. They have an entire wedding party staying there so we couldn't get a room until the 31st of December, so we decided to give it a miss. The place looks awesome, though. Set on a windy beach with windswept hills in the backdrop. An old woman in another resort offered us a room for PhP 2,500 after finding out that we're from Manila (so I guess it's cheaper if you're Ilocano) so we just thought, well, it's not the best swimming beach, and spank us if we're paying that much for a room the size of our car. Why do people do this? It doesn't exactly say friendly and hospitable, does it?

Went back to Pagudpud, asked at other resorts. Still no vacancy. Decided to retrace the road to Laoag and find the first available room, which turned out to be in a complex called Villa Lita Riverside Resort. I hated the place, and for almost the same price as our lovely apartment in Balay da Blas in Laoag, I would've happily burst into tears. But by this time Pedro and I aren't talking to each other, and I had a killer headache that only screaming murder could appease, so we decided to stay there.

As they were having someone's 18th birthday at their restaurant, food wasn't on the menu. I hated the place. It was loud because of the party at the restaurant, the TV doesn't work, and the bed was tiny and uncomfortable. Times like that, you just have to count your blessings and hope that the car doesn't break down and get you stranded in that place.

It didn't.