Baguio-April 2010
T’was my first time ever to reach this tourist attraction called The City of Pines. I oftentimes envy people mentioning the place knowing the fact that I haven’t been there during my younger years. ( My dad constantly jokes we’ll be in Baguio “pag puti ng uwak” because we’re financially unstable that time. :( ) Baguio is well known especially during holidays or other important events in one’s life. I then promised myself to set foot in this lovely place someday with someone so special and closest to my heart. (and this is happening in a bit…)
I was very excited preparing itinerary with my partner. (I’m lucky to fulfill my promise… and that is being with Bolen…my other half. :) ) Planning our trip was really exciting since I get to search more info about Baguio, get reviews from other travelers, imagining the beauty of my own picture of Baguio from my innocent mind, exploring the wonders of such, seeing a lot of photos which little by little gave me the idea of how Baguio really looks like. We’re accompanied by some of my friends; Melai, Lenn and Ron( bolen’s cousins)and Louie(Lenn’s bf). We had to commute since no one owns a car among us but it was an easy and safe ride for a first timer like me. (thank God!) I thought I’d get dizzy during our trip but apparently I enjoyed the view along the way. Upon arrival, I was stunned by its true beauty and overwhelmed at the same time that finally I got there. I immediately noticed the cute tricycle and even cab which was normally air conditioned in Manila but there the windows are wide open because of the temperature. The weather embraced us with its welcoming cool breeze which made me more excited to tour the area. We looked for our hostel first named Calla Lilly Compound which is just around the town and highly accessible. It’s quite small but enough for group of five besides we’re after the tour rather spend more for a fancy hotel. The cozy ambiance and mom look-alike caretaker welcomed us nicely as expected. After unloading our things, we decided to have breakfast in the city proper which is well known as session road. The area was filled with restaurants, stores and small business establishments not to mention some videoke and comedy bars for nightlife as well. We chose Andoks since that’s the only familiar restaurant that we initially stop by.
We then started our tour in Burnham Park, (the usual place that tourist goes to and shouldn’t be missed) which is a bit in comparison to Luneta Park back in Manila just add the boat ride, cool air, pine trees and our strawberry ice cream… (of course!yum!yum!haha)
Next stop was Mines View, it wowed us with abundance of lush green trees and overlooking view of the city from the top.
As expected, we took several pictures as a group and of course me and bolen at the same time (this was our first out of town together... yey! *-* )
We also bought some “pasalubongs”(souvenir items) then wandered around until we saw the admiring dog named Douglas (I almost forgot his name…whew!) and taken fond remembrance of him as he cuddled to our lap during the photo shoot.
After bidding goodbye to the charming dog, next in our list was Botanical Garden. Well, I’m not really that much of a flower enthusiast but still i can’t help but adore its radiant beauty and richness in color that appeared before our eyes as we entered the garden. 
It’s drizzling that late afternoon so we left the place and went back to our rented cab to continue our tour then drop by to “The Mansion”( the official summer residence of the Philippine President to strike a pose. :)
We headed to the most popular Grotto (the Lourdes Grotto is a Catholic shrine and place for meditation where one can find the image of the Lady of Lourdes) located on a hill in the western part of the city and offered prayers for our loved-ones. This is one of the favorite pilgrimage site during Holy Week and can be access either by climbing 252 steps or driving to a winding, narrow and steep road which we actually did. Reaching the top you can find an altar to light up a candle and offer prayers for whatever personal intentions you might have.
Afterwards we went ahead to Good Shepherd and buy Ube Jams and Peanut Brittle for my family. It was a long, tiresome but fun day for us when we acknowledge the pain of our restless feet so we headed back in our hostel and dozed off. Dinner was served at Padis Point which was perfect for a late night party. The place was excellent to set the mood for an evening full of entertainment and fun. They offer great food and wide variation of drinks to choose from (our group had a tower of margarita I guess,i can hardly remember since I didn’t drink that time) in addition to that they have a live band performing popular music genre.
The night wasn’t over yet for us so we continued our bonding from our hostel.
So We started our tour late the following day.(as expected) Bolen suggested to look for a quaint cemetery called The Cemetery of Negativity, (also known as The Lost Cemetery) which can be found in Camp John Hay. It was built by the American’s in the early 20th century where negative habits or thoughts were buried not people (I guess this is a charming way to remind everyone to remain positive about life as they leave the place…nice!)
We still manage to explore the beauty of CJH which was filled with pine trees everywhere before we had our Lunch at Little John’s. (I really love the baby back ribs served and strawberry shake there! Hmmmm)
We ended our tour with great joy in our hearts and lasting memories.We also bought additional pasalubong before we went back to Manila.
It was truly an amazing experience for all of us to relax, enjoy and temporarily get away from reality and from all the hard work back home this was a magical way to loosen up. I strongly suggest this to everyone, a six hour drive is all worth the highly pleasurable adventure.
Well for me, I must say that this was my sweetest escape… I like! :)
