crisp climate

My "Vacation Marathon" was jump started by a weekender in the Northern part of the country. My cousin invited me to a trip to Baguio, because her friend (who has also become my friend) had a coupon for a night's stay in a new establishment in the city.

 

I was last in Baguio in December 2010 and January 2011, and I doubted that much had changed so I wans't really craving for much activities. The long bus ride, the change in scenery and being away from the regular things I do was really already enough to scratch my "itchy" feet. We planned to take the night bus from Cubao so we'll arrive very early the following day in Baguio so that we can maximize the time. We left Cubao Victory Liner Terminal at 2:00AM and arrived at Baguio around 8:00AM. I was wearing clothes from Friday night which was a dress, and slippers. We unboarded the bus and a cool gush of wind welcomed us. I quickly put on my jacket to combat some of the cold. We decided to look for a place to stay for one of our companions. The coupon we had was only for 3 people and we thought that we might have to pay a large sum for an extra person in that hotel. We walked to Hotel 45 but found that there were no available rooms. I suggested that we have breakfast first because I was getting hungry since we only had strawberry taho as we left the terminal. We ate at Jack's in Session Road. We finished eating by 9:30 and the sun was shining so brightly. The wind was still cold, so it was a really pleasant time to be on the street, save for the backpacks we were lugging. We decided to go to the hotel, even if we couldn't check in yet, we could just leave our bags at the reception area. So we took a taxi and headed to Azalea Residences.

 

A few minutes later, we pull into this beautiful driveway and I cannot help but smile. I wasn't expecting a swanky place like that. We went in to ask the receptionist if we can leave our bags. Lucky us, the room is already available and we could check in already! Yey. So we went to our room, and it was beautiful! Plus it could fit 4 since it had a queen size bed and a sofa bed that can accomodate 2. We washed up (since it's been 24hours since our last bath!) and went out to explore.



Day One: Burnham Part, Orchidarium, Good Taste



We rode a jeep that took us to Burnham Park where we strolled round and generally just enjoyed the beautiful weather. We took pictures in the nearby playground and walked around the lagoon. It brought back so many memories because when I was young we would go to Baguio every summer and we had lots of pictures riding the boats in that park. We saw street food and indulged ourselves with guavas, green mangoes and jicama (singkamas). It was nearing lunch time so we asked ate where we could have lunch. She suggested a restaurant called Good Taste which was just a few blocks from the park. She pointed us to the right direction and we started walking.

 

On our way, we passed by the orchidarium and my companions (being collectors of cacti and environmental scientists) got distracted. We went in and just walked around. Climate plays such a big role in gardening. The leaves were bright green, and the flowers were bursting with color. It was breathtaking. We continued on and saw the sign for Good Taste so we easily found our way. It looked like it was a really good place to eat as there were so many people eating. We were lucky to get seats, then proceeded to ordered three main dishes. We were surprised when it arrived at our table because it was family style and the servings were huge! We couldn't finish the large order of garlic butter chicken (we think it's 3 whole chickens) so we had it for take out. We went to SM (I know, right?!) because my cousin needed to buy something. When we were there, we all felt sleepy since we did not sleep well during the travel. We decided to just head back to the hotel and sleep it off. But before that, we bought a facial mask and a foot soak in Watsons so we can turn our room to a spa.



Hotel lobby, Room and Balcony, Zio's Pizza :)



We arrived at the hotel and proceeded to slather our faces with the chocolate face mask. All four of us couldn't keep our eyes open, and were alseep in no time. I woke up an hour and a half after to wash off the mask and rinse my feet, then went back to sleep. We woke up at around 6:00PM, more than anything else, because we were hungry. I got up and went out the balcony where I was welcomed by extreme cold (I was wearing a mini skirt, i know, bad fashion choice for Baguio). I declared that it was too cold to go out to eat so our friends just decided to get take out pizza from the nearby Zio's. They arrived just in time for the premier of Walking Dead Season 3 (there was a marathon and it was all we were watching) carrying a huge pizza box. We opened it and it was a scrumptious 16" half quattro-half all in one pizza. I loooooved the four cheese pizza. It didn't taste as salty and the thick crust was divine. Perfect for the cold weather. Before we retired for the night, we called the front desk to say that we will just pay for the extra person in the room. An extra bed costs Php1500 but we told them not to bring in the bed anymore since we can squeeze ourselves in the beds. The receptionist told us if we were not using the bed, we will only be charged Php500 which includes a free buffet breakfast. After a minute, the front desk called again and said that their supervisor told them that they will give us the extra person for free! What wonderful service, and a lovely end of the day.

 

The next day, we reluctantly left our comfy bed and cool, breezy room (I love that there was no aircon and I was still snuggled under the comforter) to have buffet breakfast at Azalea's Tradisyon Restaurant. Their breakfast selection was good, and their tapa was very tasty. After breakfast, we took the jeep to Mine's View Park and Good Shephered for some picture taking and pasalubong shopping. I like buying pasalubong from Good Shepherd because (1) I love their Snowball Cookies which goes for 140/jar, (2) They have the freshest ube (mine was still hot when I bought it), (3) the strawberries in their jam are whole strawberries and not sparse, and finally, (4) they accept credit cards! We returned to the hotel at 11 so we can check out by 12. Once we checked out we took a taxi to Session and had a sizzling steak lunch then to SM (again, right??) to leave our bags at the package counter. We then proceeded to Camp John Hay where we walked around, took pictures, ate strawberry sundaes, and just lay on the grass, appreciating the cool wind, beautiful landscape and blue sky.

Mines View Park, Good Shepherd, Camp John Hay

It was getting dark, so we left Camp John Hay and went back to SM where we will meet with the cousins of my cousin. We stayed at a cafe and played Monopoly Deal and at 7:00, at the suggestion of my cousin's cousin, we took a taxi to 50's Diner for dinner. We stayed outside since it was full inside and we didn't mind the cold (savoring the last hours of crisp climate). Their servings were really huge and like most of the restaurants in Baguio, you're getting a lot for your money. We stayed there until 9:30  then proceeded to Victory Liner station to catch the 10:00PM back to Manila.

There was a beautiful buggy-esque car outside the diner which was owned by the diner owner

We arrived at 3:00AM on Monday, when straight to my cousin's house. Caught a bit of Zzz's then reported to work by 8:00AM.

For this trip, money well spent: 900 (Bus vice-versa), 1500 (6 meals + snacks), 750 (Pasalubong), 350 (various expenses).

I love weekenders, don't you?

<3, dee