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Laoag - "The Sunshine City of the North" Long before the coming of the Spaniards, there already existed an extensive region (consisting of the present provinces of Ilocos Norte, Ilocos Sur, Abra and La Union) renowned for its gold mines. Merchants from Japan and China would often visit the area to trade gold with beads, ceramics and silk. The inhabitants of the region believed to be of Malay origin, called their place "samtoy", from "sao mi toy, which literally meant "our language". In 1571, when the Spanish conquistadors had Manila more or less under their control, they began looking for new sites to conquer. Legaspi's grandson, Juan de Salcedo, volunteered to lead one of these expeditions. Together with 8 armed boats and 45 men, the 22 year old voyager headed north. On June 13, 1572, Salcedo and his men landed in Vigan and then proceeded towards Laoag, Currimao and Badoc. As they sailed along the coast, they were surprised to see numerous sheltered coves ("looc") where the locals lived in harmony. As a result, they named the region "Ylocos" and its people "Ylocanos". Geographic Location Laoag City is bounded by five municipalities: Sarrat in the east, San Nicolas in the southeast, Paoay in the southwest, Vintar in the northeast, Bacarra in the northwest, and finally the China Sea in the west. Laoag City can be reached by both land and air transportation from any origin. Land Area Laoag City has a total land area of 12,747.35 hectares or 127.4735 square kilometers. It consists of 80 barangays, 30 of which are urban and 50 are rural barangays. An area of 930.847 hectare is occupied by the urban core or the poblacion, while 11,816.501 hectares are occupied by the rural barangays. Topography The central part of the city is predominantly lowland, with a sloping terrain of five to ten feet above sea level going west. From the northeastern part of the city going west to Dibua are virgin hills diminishing in height from 52 feet to 10 feet above sea level. In Northeastern part of the city are hills and mountains. The highest among the peaks is 183 feet above sea level. These hills are forested area. Geology Laoag City has a rugged terrain and an irregular outline. The southwestern portion which is part of the physiographic unit known as the Ilocos Coast Strip, consists largely of elevated coastal tract, mainly alluvium overlaying older sediments with some portions of raised coral, andesitic extrusive. The hills along the rolling area above the coastal plans are tertiary and sedimentary rocks such as limestone, sandstone, conglomerates and limy shale. The situation of faulting in Laoag City is influenced in the Luzon Central Cordillera which could be just a case of scissoring along the fault zone or it could mark a rhombohedral split between echelon segments of Dingalen?Lingayen segment connected similarly with Bangui Fault. The Bangui Fault slices in a NW-SE direction on the northern part of the Luzon Central cordillera from Bangui Bay and extends southward to mark the boundary between the Cordillera and the Cagayan basin. Historical data on the occurrence of earthquake in Laoag City pointed out two damaging earthquakes. The most devastating was on 17 August 1983 at 8:13 in the evening wherein a number of reinforced concrete buildings either totally collapsed or sustained major structural damage, beyond rehabilitation. Land Use Classification The general framework for land utilization, having spatial and locational dimensions, is an essential element in planning future developments of an area, The various factors used in drawing up an optimal land use for Laoag City include geology and soils, climate, slope, erodability, existing projects, infrastructure and settlement, national policies on wildlife conservation and other institutional constraints. Climatic Condition Type (coronas) climate prevails in Laoag City. This is characterized by two pronounced seasons, i.e. dry from November to April and wet the rest of the year. The average annual temperature of the city is 27.25 degrees centigrade with a relative humidity of 75.55%. The area shielded from the Northern winds and to some extent from the Pacific tradewinds by the Cordillera and Sierra Madre Mountains, respectively. However, tropical cyclones and storms visit the region because of its vulnerability to the Southwest monsoon (PAG-ASA Report). Language/Dialect Ilocano is the principal dialect, but Filipino and English are the basic tools of instruction in schools. Brief History of Laoag According to the old folks, the city's name was derived from an Ilocano term, which means, "light". History further reveals that way back in the Hispanic era, an Augustinian missionary had commented in his Diccionarios Geogratico Estatistico Historico de las Islas Filipinas that Laoag has a clear atmosphere presenting a beautiful sky - so explained its name. History books pointed to the Ilocos Region as one of the first three political divisions of Luzon that was organized into a province at the early stage of the Spanish colonization. Toward the northern portion of the Ilocos Region is Ilocos Norte where the proposed Laoag City Commercial Complex Project designed for the central public market and the commercial complex is located. Laoag City was converted into a city on January 01, 1966 through a plebiscite and ever since remained the provincial capital of Ilocos Norte. From thereon the city has undergone a lot of improvements. It is continuously growing and progressing because of its geographical location, the characteristics of its people and the unbelievably good peace and order situation. The City of Laoag, the Sparkling Gem of Ilocandia, is located at the west central part of the Province of Ilocos Norte bordering the China Sea. It is along the Manila North Road. It is 78 kilometers from Vigan; 217 kilometers from San Fernando City; 363 kilometers from Tarlac; 420 kilometers from the National Capital (Manila); and 274 kilometers from Baguio City. Laoag and Ilocos Norte are Famous for.. PAOAY CHURCH. Built of coral blocks and stucco-plastered bricks, the architecture is a unique combination of Gothic, Baroque and Oriental. Construction of the church was started in 1704 and completed in 1894. A few meters away is the coralstone belltower which served as observation post of the “Katipuneros” during the Philippine Revolution, Paoay Church is included in the UNESCO’s World Heritage List. BANGUI-PAGUDPUD BEACH This stretch of beaches in the two municipalities are earmarked for development as tourism estates. BANGUI WIND FARM Right beside Pagudpud lies Bangui, a peaceful, scenic coastal town with a rich colorful histroy. In recent years, the construction of 15 wind turbines standing 70 meters tall became an added attraction to Bangui, attracting tourists and phtotographers alike. The Northwind Bangui Bay Project is a 25-megawatt wind power generation plant, the first wind power plant in the Philippines and in Southeast Asia!The facility provides 40% of the power requirement for Ilocos Norte. Click here for Tourist Attractions in Laoag and Ilocos Norte. How to Get to Laoag City By Land Serviced by major bus lines every hour that ply the Laoag-Manila route. By Air Asian Spirit (Jet Aircraft) flies from Manila to Laoag every Tuesdays, Thursdays, Fridays and Sundays. While Cebu Pacific (Airbus) provides 3 times a week flights from Manila to Laoag on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays. Other airlines offer 3 international flights weekly from Kaoshiung and Guangshou and back. There is also a flight 6 times weekly from Laoag to Hongkong and back. Emergency Services Medical Facilities ILOCOS NORTE PROV’L. HOSPITAL Laoag City Telephone # (077) 772-0311 RANADA HOSPITAL Laoag City Tel # (077) 772-0133 NORTHERN ILOCOS NORTE DISTRICT HOSPITAL Marcos PIDDIG MEDICARE & COMMUNITY HOSPITAL Piddig LAOAG CITY GENERAL HOSPITAL Laoag City BANGUI DISTRICT HOSPITAL Bangui BACARRA GEN HOSPITAL Bacarra DINGRAS DISTRICT HOSP Dingras BATAC GEN HOSPITAL Batac SAN JOSE GENERAL HOSPITAL Batac Police OFFICE OF THE PROVINCIAL DIRECTOR Camp V.S. Juan, Laoag City Telephone # (077) 772-0788 LAOAG CITY POLICE STATION Telephone # (077) 772-0201 *** Police Stations are located in all municipalities. Tourist Information and Assistance DEPARTMENT OF TOURISM, LAOAG SUB-OFFICE Heroes Hall, Laoag City Telephone # (077) 772-0467 LAOAG CITY TOURISM COUNCIL Office of the City Mayor Laoag City |
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