Beautiful Baguio

"So, we'll be going to Tagaytay and Laguna then, since you told me that both are quite near. But we won't be going down to the crater since I don't think my mom could stand the boat ride and the horse ride," I told my driver, Lito. He nod his head, but I could see that there's something bothering his mind. Before I could ask, however, he went ahead and said "Sir, I think it would be better to take your mom and her friend to Baguio, since they're only here from Friday to Tuesday. It would be a complete waste to take them to Tagaytay and Laguna since Baguio is much better."
"But, it takes at least 6 hours to get there during daylight, right? You told me so. And the only way we could go there faster is to go during midnight and arrive there around 5 or 6 in the morning."
"I don't mind."
"Really? You don't?"
"Yeah, I know how to get there, and it's been quite awhile since I last went there."

So, with that, I settled my plans to take my mother and her friend to Baguio........

It's been awhile, hasn't it? I was there in March 2007. It was probably one of the best times in my life...it was in the period where I was so full of life and full of love. It's amazing how love could really bring colours into life. And I was like a cup brimming full of that wonderful concoction...I was in love, in love with life, and in love with the whole notion of love. That's a lot of loving there ha ha ha.

So, as I sit here in my comfortable Concord office, I tried to recall as much as possible my tour in and around Baguio. 2 months ago...feels like an eternity has passed.

Anyways, back to the story...

Mom and her friend arrived in Makati on Friday, March 23rd 2007. My driver and I picked her up at the airport at around 9 in the evening (after a very satisfying promotion dinner party). We first put their luggages in the apartment and packed some necessary stuff to bring to Baguio. The next stop was my friends' apartment, where we usually hung out. We had a one-hour chat so that Mom got a feel of what my friends were like, and then around 12:30 in the morning we headed out of Makati to go to Baguio.

We made a couple of stops along the way, and after 6 hours of driving we finally got to Baguio. One thing I noticed during that first morning light was that the hills around us were quite steep. I noticed also that there were signs of landslides. My driver told me that landslides happened quite frequently during the rainy season.

First order of the day was to find ourselves accommodation for the one night that we would be staying there. After looking around for options, we finally settled on a small hotel (which name I forgot) and rested there for about 3 hours. We woke up quite refreshed and ready for lunch.

Baguio's Pink Cathedral

We drove into town to find a restaurant and we did. Lunch was quite tasty, probably due to the fact that we just went through quite a tiring 6-hour journey. Mom saw a church along the way and was interested to pay a visit there. It was Baguio's Cathedral. I saw the photo once in a brochure I got from my driver about Baguio, and it was white. But it seemed that someone came up with an idea and painted it pink, which gave it a rather cheap image. Took a couple of pictures here and there, and the place look quite good inside since there was a wedding on that day and the decorations were beautiful. Not long after the photo session we were off on the road again.

Lit0, our driver, took us through a park called "Burnham Park", a park named after the original city's planner. It was quite packed that Saturday morning, so we decided not to get off the car and instead we went to a place called "The Mansion".

Outside 'The Mansion'

The Mansion is, well, a mansion. It is usually used by the Philippines' presidents during their official visit to Baguio. We didn't do much there except take pictures, but that day was an especially fine day with blue skies and nary a cloud in the sky. The pictures taken was exceptional and the place felt peaceful. Nothing else to mention except that mom and her friend bought some oranges. But that's not saying that it was bad. It was an exceptionally fine day. That's why we bought oranges. I think...

Mines' View Many Pasalubong Stalls

Lito suggested that we go to Mines View next. So, that was where we headed after our little sightseeing at the Mansion. There was a lot of stalls there selling many 'pasalubong' (souvenirs in tagalog) of many kinds, from trinkets, clothes, to variety of food. But the (supposedly) real treat was a natural veranda overlooking the valley nearby Baguio. I (finally) managed to get there, after having to wait for my mom and her friend buying souvenirs and gifts. The steps were quite steep, however, and considering my mom's knees condition, I told her to wait at a nearby shop while I take a look down. The veranda was jam packed with people, and I managed to take a shot or two there, but nothing much. The view was indeed good, but according to Lito, there was less houses down at the valley from 11 years ago when he was still there. I guess that means that the view must have been more beautiful in the past, uncluttered by houses and concrete.

Valley cluttered with houses

View from the top of the Grotto

Lito took us to a place called Lourdes Grotto. Lourdes Grotto is basically a shrine dedicated to Mary, mother of Jesus. It sits atop a hill. You can go there either by a winding road or climbing the 250-something steps at the side of the hill. We went by the road since my mom wouldn't be able to climb the steps. It was getting foggy at that time, and it was drizzling as well. After saying a quick prayer in front of image of Mary, we went for a quick tour around Camp John Hay. The place was, to me, a resort for rich people. Some areas inside were restricted, and we were only able to see the houses from the outside. Oh well...

Zola at Session Road

The last place we visited that Saturday was Session road. Dinner was in a cafe called 'Zola'. Pretty nice place with wi-fi internet connection (wow!) for those who has their laptops with them. After dinner we took a stroll along Session to see what they have in store. It was nice to see the road full of activities: people walking here, there and about; many restaurants serving many kinds of food; stores selling many different merchandises and 'pasalubong'. On the whole, I would say that this road is Baguio's equivalent of Singapore's Orchard Road or Yogyakarta's Malioboro road...probably more to Yogyakarta's Malioboro but less ethnic. The road was full of activities, something that I really like. We ended the day feeling very tired, but very happy and relaxed.

Actually...


Before we called it a day, we had a short visit to Burnham Park. It was only a big park with a large pond in the middle where people could go on a paddle boat to enjoy the day. But since it was around 9 in the evening, the place was rather deserted and quiet. We didn't do much there except walk around the perimeter of the pond to enjoy the night breeze and have a little chat. Nothing special there, so we didn't spend too much time and not long we were on our way back to our hotel to finally call it a day.

A good spot for a morning exercise

In the morning the day after, I went to Lourdes Grotto again with Lito. Something he said when we were there the day before intrigued me. He told me that once, he went up the stairs up to the Grotto while praying along the way for his wish to come true. He said that anyone that climbs the stairs up to the Grotto will get his or her prayers answered. At least, he got his answered (he got his promotion in his previous job). I found this to be quite intriguing, not in the religious sense but more to a stamina-testing sense. So, I went there in the morning for some exercise (and hopefully get my prayers, whatever they are, answered along the way).

The climb wasn't too bad. 255 steps were not as hard as it sounded. Sure, I was out of breath by the time I got up. But I was not THAT out of breath. The weather that morning was really good, the sky was clear and there was no fog. After saying our prayers and taking some pictures, we went back down the stairs and went back to the hotel to grab breakfast and pick up mom and her friend to go attend Sunday mass at Baguio Cathedral. The Cathedral was quite packed with people coming for Sunday mass. We took some pictures again after the mass, and again we went to Mines View. It seemed that the previous day's 'pasalubong' session was not enough for my mom and her friend.

Mines View Veranda

I took the opportunity to take more pictures there in Mines View (since the ones I got from the previous day was still lacking in matter of quantity). While waiting for mom and her friend to finish up, Lito told me about the big earthquake that happened a long time ago there. It was so big that it altered the course of a river.

We experienced a bit misfortune there, however. The key to the car we were using were broken and Lito had to go to town to get some tools to start the car without the key. He managed to do that, so after about an hour of waiting we were on our way again to have our lunch. We ran out of idea so we went yet again to Zola on Session road.

Before we left Baguio to return to Manila, we went to Philippine Military Academy. Nothing much special there, so we just took a couple of pictures and we finally left Baguio for Manila around 4 o'clock in the afternoon. We went through a slightly different route on the way back and the view was much, much better than the view we saw on our way there. Lito pointed out a bridge without water underneath it. That was where the river whose course got changed during the big earthquake used to be.

Sunset near Baguio

Baguio is a beautiful city. So, if any of you happens to be in the Philippines and have a couple of days to spare, definitely a place worth checking out. Planning to go there again when I have the chance. There are so many things that I missed out during my short stay there. Until then, I said my good bye to Baguio. Till the next time I see you again.