When people wonder why I proudly declare myself as a “GI” or genuine Ilocana even as I already grew up in Metro Manila, they soon find out that it’s because my parents and grandparents from both sides of the family all hail from the North. While I can understand the language and still speak a few bits and pieces of Ilocano, I only got to spend a few weeks of each year in the region when I was growing up. But one of the highlights of our summers then was the annual trek to the beach and this had to be in La Union. With its long coastline, gently sloping into the sea and its soft, gray sands, it was the perfect beach destination before heading for Baguio to cool off.
Though I agonized about the long drives before, now I remember them with fondness as I keep returning every now and then and notice the big changes in the countryside. As one enters the province of La Union, you come upon a fork in the road that is the town of Rosario. This is where a right turn means you’re heading to Baguio through the Pugo-Tuba route, and a left turn means you’re heading towards Ilocos through the coastal towns of La Union. At this junction, there used to be a rest-stop, restaurant cum mini-museum. This circular structure with wide, open windows that let the cool air in especially in the summer, used to house Ilocano artifacts and traditional tools and implements that proudly introduced our Ilocano heritage. Now, all that stands is an old, dilapidated building that serves as an unintentional playground for kids, or a temporary shelter for transients, but not even used by the local government as a security outpost.
I remember Rosario for its treehouse I use to climb in my youth. Today, several other La Union towns sport treehouses of their own like Agoo and Balaoan, what with their big acacia trees still standing and perfectly preserved. Through Sto. Tomas, Aringay, Bacnotan, San Juan, Agoo, Bauang and San Fernando, we could catch an occasional glimpse of the South China Sea. When I was a kid, squeals of delight would erupt in the car from my sisters and I as we intermittently get a view of the inviting blue sea. “Malapit na, malapit na tayo sa beach!” my Mom and Dad would promise us, so that we’d quiet down a bit. Nowadays, it’s quite difficult to catch even a glimpse of the beach. Too many commercial establishments have been built by the roadside thus covering one’s view as you drive by.
My family is related to the Aquinos, Borjas and Gaerlans of San Juan, and we used to stay at the family beach resort, named after Lolo Mariano and Lola Pilar in Bauang, La Union. I remember MARPIL’s cottages would sometimes be occupied by uncles, aunties, and cousins but a few doors would still be rented out to vacationing foreigners. While fathers, uncles and lolos drank and had their favorite pulutan – kambing, and our mothers, aunties and lolas played mahjong at the resto-pavilion, us kids would frolic on the beach all day.
For those who can remember, this same stretch of beach would be shared by neighboring resorts like Nalinac, Long Beach, and Cresta del Mar. But today, only Long Beach still exists.
Since the big earthquake of 1990, the coastline seems to have moved and the long stretches of sand reaching out into the ocean have disappeared. No more areas for sunbathing or sandcastle building, or space to do an early morning jogs. Waves now lap constantly at the raised foundations of resorts, hotels and beachside restaurants. Receding tides sometimes offers a small stretch of sand, but more often than not, the sea has encroached upon the seaside spaces of my youth. During a visit to Long Beach a few years ago, I was shocked to find the seawaters so close to where we were eating. I could see and hear the evening waves crashing unto the rocks beneath the restaurant’s floorboards as if any minute the sea would just engulf us. In Bauang and San Fernando this is the reality: there is only the sea for the beach frontage itself are all gone.
Meanwhile, the big, scary waves of Agoo and San Juan have become the main tourist attraction here. The same great, crashing waves which our parents warned us about and kept us from swimming in these areas are what surfing enthusiasts have come to conquer. Big business has boomed around this and surfers are now regular visitors, giving new life to the resorts and hotel industry here. Surf shops, restaurants and coffee bars have likewise emerged in the recent years. 
In La Union, like the rest of the Ilocos region, the old churches are a must-see. As kids, we used to hear mass either at the St. William’s Cathedral of San Fernando or the Basilica of Agoo. The latter was built during the time of Tourism Secretary Aspiras, a known Marcos crony. It got so controversial because of the church mural which included the face of Imelda and Ferdinand Marcos as well as the Aspiras couple. Nearby, across the road, there used to be a museum of sorts where proud Ilocano traditions and culture were displayed. There were religious artifacts dating back to the Spanish colonizers, some old books and documents from the American Period, and World War II memorabilia from the Japanese Occupation. Today the building is part of the local government center, and underneath stands the Senior Citizens Center.
While many people flock over to Manaoag in Pangasinan, Piat in Cagayan Valley and Penafrancia in Naga City as popular pilgrimage sites, few know about Our Lady of Namacpacan in La Union. Legend has it that during a time of great drought and famine descended on La Union, an image of the Virgin Mary came to feed the starving people, hence the name “namacpacan” - which means to feed. A church was built in her honor and the spring underneath the church is said to produce miraculous healing waters. And to get so-called nourishing liquid is free, but people must bring their own bottles and containers to get some.
My family is related to the Aquinos, Borjas and Gaerlans of San Juan, and we used to stay at the family beach resort, named after Lolo Mariano and Lola Pilar in Bauang, La Union. I remember MARPIL’s cottages would sometimes be occupied by uncles, aunties, and cousins but a few doors would still be rented out to vacationing foreigners. While fathers, uncles and lolos drank and had their favorite pulutan – kambing, and our mothers, aunties and lolas played mahjong at the resto-pavilion, us kids would frolic on the beach all day.
For those who can remember, this same stretch of beach would be shared by neighboring resorts like Nalinac, Long Beach, and Cresta del Mar. But today, only Long Beach still exists.
Since the big earthquake of 1990, the coastline seems to have moved and the long stretches of sand reaching out into the ocean have disappeared. No more areas for sunbathing or sandcastle building, or space to do an early morning jogs. Waves now lap constantly at the raised foundations of resorts, hotels and beachside restaurants. Receding tides sometimes offers a small stretch of sand, but more often than not, the sea has encroached upon the seaside spaces of my youth. During a visit to Long Beach a few years ago, I was shocked to find the seawaters so close to where we were eating. I could see and hear the evening waves crashing unto the rocks beneath the restaurant’s floorboards as if any minute the sea would just engulf us. In Bauang and San Fernando this is the reality: there is only the sea for the beach frontage itself are all gone.
Meanwhile, the big, scary waves of Agoo and San Juan have become the main tourist attraction here. The same great, crashing waves which our parents warned us about and kept us from swimming in these areas are what surfing enthusiasts have come to conquer. Big business has boomed around this and surfers are now regular visitors, giving new life to the resorts and hotel industry here. Surf shops, restaurants and coffee bars have likewise emerged in the recent years. 
In La Union, like the rest of the Ilocos region, the old churches are a must-see. As kids, we used to hear mass either at the St. William’s Cathedral of San Fernando or the Basilica of Agoo. The latter was built during the time of Tourism Secretary Aspiras, a known Marcos crony. It got so controversial because of the church mural which included the face of Imelda and Ferdinand Marcos as well as the Aspiras couple. Nearby, across the road, there used to be a museum of sorts where proud Ilocano traditions and culture were displayed. There were religious artifacts dating back to the Spanish colonizers, some old books and documents from the American Period, and World War II memorabilia from the Japanese Occupation. Today the building is part of the local government center, and underneath stands the Senior Citizens Center.
While many people flock over to Manaoag in Pangasinan, Piat in Cagayan Valley and Penafrancia in Naga City as popular pilgrimage sites, few know about Our Lady of Namacpacan in La Union. Legend has it that during a time of great drought and famine descended on La Union, an image of the Virgin Mary came to feed the starving people, hence the name “namacpacan” - which means to feed. A church was built in her honor and the spring underneath the church is said to produce miraculous healing waters. And to get so-called nourishing liquid is free, but people must bring their own bottles and containers to get some.
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