Every Summer, we go back to our province to have a break from the buzz of the city. The city is so fast phased. Every corner you turn, people are always in a hurry. I lived in the capital of the Philippines, Manila, for a very long time, and I can say that this jungle is full of competition, so there is no time to slack off.

Thank God because we still have breaks from time to time. This is when we pack our things up and leave the craziness for a while.

Up in the North!

Our province is up North. It takes about 5 to 8 hours of land travel from Manila to return home. We make the most of our vacation whenever we are in the province, so one of our bondings is eating out.

One day, my mom saw this beautiful hotel and restaurant overlooking the sea from Facebook. My mom asked me, "Hey, Ji, look at this! (pointing to a photo of her kumare(friend) riding a banana boat).
I was like, "Who is that?".
And then she goes, "Let's check this place out".
Oh, she meant the place, not her friend. So, yeah, the next day, we will be having our lunch there.

On the road~

The place was a little bit far from our home. I fell asleep in the car because I was bored and probably tired from last night. People talked so loudly and I woke up because of the noise. I looked in the window and, oh! Wow, the freaking view is beautiful! That is why people were so noisy. Ahhh~ I had not seen the sea for a while. It was refreshing to see the sea!

Vitalis Resorts

The name of the resort is from an Ilocano painter who migrated to France. It is inspired by the ever-famous Santorini, Greece.

Experience the white structures, the blue sea, and the white sands of Ilocos Sur. The view will enchant you!

So there are two resorts of Vitalis, namely Vitalis White Sands and Vitalis Villas. We visited first Vitalis Villas because at that time, they were promoting the resort and the staff wanted us to take a little peek. The whole resort was still in partial construction at that time.

This is the entrance of the resort. It is a mini chapel for weddings and other church celebrations. The name of the chapel is Immaculada Concepcion.

On the side, there are rock landscapes and flowers.

We went straight ahead to the restaurant, this time in Vitalis White Sands. The restaurant is not that far. It is about 3 minutes drive, so no inconvenience at all.

Oh, la la~ The view!

I will never get over of this view! We were seated outside of the restaurant over looking Vitalis Villas. There were people swimming, jetskiing and kayaking. People can rent a jetski and kayak for a certain hour from the hotel. Ugh, now I am jealous! I wanted to swim too but too bad I did not bring my bikini, lol.

Everyone is hungry!

I forgot to take a photo of the restaurant. So this this where people can dine and eat while over-looking the cobalt sea!

Source: Vitalis White Sands Facebook Page

Stop taking pictures and gossiping. It is time to eat! We ordered grilled squid, fried tofu, grilled pork, pinakbet, biryani rice, leche flan with sweetened banana, poki-poki (boiled eggplant with onion, tomato, and fish sauce).

Their pinakbet is freaking good! I recommended getting this dish. Also, pinakbet is the most authentic Ilocano dish.

Leche Flan and sweetened banana perfect for dessert.

We spent around 3,700 pesos ($74) for the whole lunch. It is good for 4 to 5 pax. The food is really good! I rate it as 9/10. I really like the restaurant's service. The servers were very nice and accommodating. We liked our server so we tipped him generously.

Let's look around!

After lunch, we took photos and just appreciated the view. You cannot find this view in the city. I just thought that time to extend our stay in the province but we got responsibilities back in the city.

It was Summer and super hot, so a hat is essential! Do not forget to wear sunscreen too.

A jetski that you can rent!

Me looking at the people swimming in the warm water. I was so jealous at this point, haha!

Conclusion:

It was really fun that day because I got to see a beautiful view of the cobalt sea and also had bonding with the family. Our tradition in the family is to at least go out of town and travel together. This makes us closer as a family.

I recommend Vitalis Resort whenever you visit the Northern part of the Philippines. Their food and service are really good. I rate them 9/10. Also, try Ilokano dishes such as poki-poki and pinakbet. There is so much more to explore in the North!

So why fly to Greece if you can experience Santorini in Ilocos Sur?

Check Vitalis Resort's official Facebook page here and website here.

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That is it for this article. I will see you at the next one!
📸 All photos are owned and taken by me, otherwise credited. ©️jijisaurart