BENGUET | Baguio City, Revisiting my Favorite City

Tuesday, November 26, 2013

Baguio City's Pine Forest

Heading to the airport for my flight to Thailand, I heaved my enormous backpack and boarded the MRT. A storm warning was being announced on TV as I went out of house about an hour ago. Now the rain fell, not all at once, but a slow pattering that incessantly pelted the train’s window, blurring EDSA from my view.

I was mulling over the invite I received a week ago to revisit Baguio City when my mobile phone rang. Visions of pine trees melted into a train full of early evening passengers. My Manila to Phuket Flight just got cancelled.

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Victory Liner En Route to Baguio City

With several days of clothes packed inside my bag, cameras charged full and ready for use, I just can’t get it into my head to simply head home and sulk about the cancelled trip to Thailand.

I decided to try my luck and contact Baguio Holiday Villas if they can still accommodate me and a friend on a very short notice. Such short notice being a few hours away from now.

After some exchange of messages and calls, the sunny beach in Phuket quickly dissipated and images of pine trees half hidden in thick mist re-emerged in my mind.

That night, we boarded a Victory Liner bus and sped towards Baguio City.

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A Flower in Burnham Park in Baguio City

The City of Pines arrived before the day awoke. Without time constraints, we walked the chilly still deserted streets of Baguio City and headed to Burnham Park to wait for the warmth of the sun.

Failing to find Mr. Hot in Baguio, a dapperly-dressed coffee vendor in the park, we bought our cheap styro-cupped coffee from other vendors milling around Burnham.

Baguio Longanisa for Breakfast

With the park slowly filling with morning joggers, we then headed to Baguio Holiday Villas, our home for the next three days. After quickly depositing our bags, breakfast awaited us. My favorite Baguio longganisa along with egg and fried rice never tasted so good.
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Jeepney Bound to BenCab Museum in Benguet

Without a definite itinerary, the plan was to revisit Baguio City’s favorite tourist haunts at a leisurely pace. And with my friend into the arts, the first place I got reacquainted to was the BenCab Museum.

Sitting on the hillsides of Asin Road, the museum is really not a part of Baguio City. But even with its relatively remote location, it’s still frequented by tourists visiting the city.

At the BenCab Museum

There were the usual installations with the now familiar artworks inside the BenCab Museum. The staring bulols are still there. The Erotic Gallery. The artworks inspired by BenCab’s favorite model, Sabel. And the hut, still standing in the middle of the pond.

The Pond at the BenCab Museum

When I first read about the pond at the back of the museum, I distinctly remember the article mentioning ducks roaming around the water. I haven’t seen those ducks during the numerous times I visited the gallery. But this time, I finally laid my eyes on them.

My last visit to BenCab’s Museum was about two years ago and it remained as I remembered it to be.

Giant Dreamcatcher at Baguio's Tam-Awan Village

Not to be outdone, Baguio City itself has its very own unique art gallery.

Nestled against towering pine trees and housed inside traditional Igorot houses, the Tam-Awan Village paintings boasts of native artworks inspired by the mountain people of the Cordilleras.

Muddy Trails at Baguio's Tam-Awan Village

I still remember walking along the twisting muddy trails of Tam-Awan Village and that single, seemingly unending path that I didn’t finish exploring. Now, with nothing but time on my hand, I decided to check that trail once more and finally see where it leads.

The Trail Apex at Baguio's Tam-Awan Village

The trail was especially muddy since it has been raining almost everyday. Walking cautiously, avoiding icky puddles and climbing higher and higher, we finally reached the apex of Tam-Awan Village. From here, one can see a panorama of the surrounding area.

I’m quite sure we can see the rest of Baguio City if not for the heavy fog that ate the city that day.

Salisbury Steak at Baguio Holiday Villas

Lunch was usually spent back at Baguio Holiday Villas, trying out various dishes from their menu. My mouth still waters over the first meal we ordered from their very helpful staff, their salisbury steak (₱198.00). At first we thought the price was a bit steep, but after seeing how large the serving was, we zipped our lips and let their food do the talking.

Ukay Ukay Find at Baguio's Night Market

Nights were usually spent downing a couple of Red Horse beers and listening to a country singer strum his guitar at 108 Session Road Cafe, a bar somewhere along Session Road. Afterwards we get our hands dirty at Harrison Road. The massive Baguio night market ukay-ukay at the back of Burnham Park will make anyone’s hand all dusty after sifting through thousands of second hand clothes.

My finds; an AC/DC hoodie for ₱200.00 and three trek pants for almost the same price. Surprisingly, one’s even a Columbia!

Horse Riding at Baguio's Wright Park

My friend told me she’s been to Baguio several times but has never been to Wright Park. It was totally unbelievable. Everyone’s been to the Wright Park and the Mansion, come on! She then told me that she’s previously stayed at the posh Azalea Residences which is really but a stone’s throw away from the park.

Horses for Rent at Baguio's Wright Park

With that, we immediately rode a Mines View bound jeepney and alighted at the foot of Wright Park. The stinky smell of horse manure immediately pervaded our senses.

Ascending the flight of stone steps in the park, she asked where it led. Just wait and see, I smilingly told her.

The Haunted Laperal White House in Baguio City

On our last day in the city, we decided to go to Camp John Hay.

En route, we passed the infamous Laperal White House which got some heavy airtime a year or two ago due to a documentary made by Jay Taruc for GMA 7. Their team has set up webcams inside the rooms of the haunted house and apparently one of them recorded a voice from out of nowhere saying nandito kami, in a spine-tingling voice.

The Haunted Laperal White House in Baguio City

The house is closed to the public during my first visit but has since opened up, probably due to the number of tourists visiting it after Taruc’s I-Witness aired on TV.

Camp John Hay's Eco Trail in Baguio City

But it’s not the haunted house we’re after.

After hailing another jeep, we proceeded to Camp John Hay’s Eco Trail. It’s not a popular destination for tourists visiting Baguio City, heck, most don’t even know it exists—being well hidden from the road.

Traversing it from end to end, we emerged at the John Hay exit near the Forest House restaurant. For almost an hour, we were under nothing but thousands of pine trees.

Pancit Batil Patong in Baguio City

And all that hiking usually leads to another round of food fest. And surprise surprise, we found a carinderia selling Tuguegarao City’s famous pancit batil patong right about the gate we exited from John Hay. For ₱60.00 a plate, we again relived the best pancit we’ve ever had.

As I dug into my plate, I can’t help but notice how the dish is peppered with all sorts of fresh veggies. Well, we’re in Baguio City after all.

Longanisa Galore at the Baguio City Public Market

And a visit to Baguio almost always ends in one place, at the Baguio City Public Market. After buying the requisite Good Shepherd strawberry jams and Mikasan choco flakes, we were pleasantly surprised to find a section of the marketplace selling all sorts of longganisa. Our baggage promptly got heavier by a couple of kilos right after.



Baguio City Location MapBaguio Holiday Villas ►ROOM RATES
Address: No. 10 Legarda Road, Baguio City
Contact Number: (074) 442-6679, (074) 619-3920 (0922) 891-4738
Email: baguioholiday@yahoo.com.ph
GPS Coordinates Map: 16.410558, 120.590921



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4 comments

  1. at ako na lang ata ang di pa nakakatikim ng strawberry taho... booo!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Good Day,What are the Pros and cons of living in BAGUIO CITY? I know it's far from the beach but it's just OK for me..Thank You and God Bless.. Benjie Valloyas

    ReplyDelete
  3. Find exotic Vacation house for rent in Baguio. Have a look at our vacation house for your quality time to stay in Baguio. Rates start from 6 guests - 6000 PHP/day.

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