On our final stop on the way back to Laoag City, we stopped by Cape Bojeador Lighthouse. This is also known as the Burgos Lighthouse, since it is located in the town of Burgos. It is built back in 1892 on a small hill along the highway, commanding great views of the South China Sea and of course the neighboring towns.
The purpose of the lighthouse, like most lighthouses is to guide ships. In this case, it is to guide the ships away from the treacherous coast of the Ilocos Norte. Surprisingly, the lighthouse is still operational. The old kerosene lamps have been replaced with new lenses and powered by solar panels.
The lighthouse building itself is quite well maintained. It is the highest lighthouse in the country. A short climb from the main highway will bring you some old, but well maintained houses. The caretaker of the house can let you up the lighthouse tower itself. I’ve never been to a lighthouse, let alone climb one, this was surprisingly interesting place. The light itself was turned off, of course, but it can be seen from the neighboring towns.
The view from the lighthouse itself is spectacular since we get a good view of the northwestern side of the main island of Luzon. The entire province of Ilocos Norte lay at our feet. As expected the wind on top is quite strong, although it might make a good spot for a wind farm, it will definitely ruin the views.
While we were going around taking photos of the lighthouse. To our surprise, there was this very attractive lady going around the lighthouse and having her photo taken by a camera crew. It turned out to be Philippine actress Heart Evangelista. Her boyfriend at that time was all around her, so we weren’t able to take any photos of her lest we get beaten up.
After ogling at her for a few minutes, we made our way down the lighthouse and caught a jeepney back to the Laoag city.
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