Re-visiting Baguio

Spent the weekend in Baguio with my family. We make it a point to go up there at least once a year for some R&R, but more often than not, because we're there during the holidays, we spend more time in the hotel to avoid the crowds and the traffic.

But because it wasn't the peak season this time, there was minimal traffic, ample parking space and, ergo, lots of time for us to explore the other interesting sites that the city had to offer.

1) Mount Sto. Tomas
This is the moutain that you pass when you go up to Baguio via Marcos Highway, and the one with the two radars at the peak. It's also the first thing that we see every morning when we step out of the hotel (we stayed at Green Valley), so we felt it was practically daring us to climb it. Well, we finally did.


A view of the mountain from the driveway of our hotel. Unless you're wearing the right shoes and have the stamina for it, I suggest you just rent a vehicle (ours cost P400 for a roundtrip) and drive up. Even then, expect a bumpy ride, because the road is very rough. It takes about 30 minutes to drive to the top and another 30 minutes to get back down; when you do get to the top, you'll still have to walk a bit to get to the nice photo-op spots.


Photos from the top of the world (or, at least from the top of Baguio).

The best time to go up would be early in the morning, because by 11am, the fog is starting to roll in; by the afternoon, it would be very hard to see in front of you, making the trip quite dangerous.

2) Maryknoll Ecological Sanctuary
Another place that requires a bit of hiking. We first thought it was just one big garden, but as we walked, we realized it's actually one big exhibit about the earth's history. There are replicas of the Tabon Cave and pre-historic huts, totems that represent the different religions of the world (including paganism), even a mini-Stonehenge.



Entrance fee is P15 person. Don't go wandering off alone because they don't give you maps of the place and you're bound to get lost. Plus, if you trip and break your ankle, I doubt anyone will hear you if you call for help.

3) Cafe by the Ruins
I had been wanting to eat here for ages, so I would consider visiting this the highlight of this particular trip. The restaurant got its name because it was built over the World War II ruins of the home of a former Americal governor-general. All dishes are organically-grown and cater to the health-conscious, so much so that they don't even serve softdrinks. Just juices and teas. The ambience could be described as semi-fine dining, and the prices average P150-P200 per dish. If you've been to Sonya's Garden in Tagaytay or Chateau Verde in UP Diliman, Cafe by the Ruins is something similar to those. The restaurant is small and I can only imagine how crowded it can get when it's the peak touriust season. My brothers sniffed that the food was nothing spectacular, but they conceded that the Old Nick's Tuna Sandwich that my mom got is yummy. Cafe by the Ruins is located at Chuntug Street, across the Baguio City Hall.

***
Random thoughts:

-- Baguio locals are super friendly. They give clear and concise directions when you ask them, and do so with a cheerful smile. If The Amazing Race were held here, the contestants would have a breeze.

-- I was a bit disappointed to find that 99% of the boutique stores and restaurants in SM Baguio can also be found in Manila. And, just like in Manila, the SM here is PACKED with people. Or maybe it's only because it was a payday weekend?

-- I wasn't expecting Baguio to be super cold because it was summer, so I didn't bring the right sleepwear. My mistake. I spent the first night not sleeping so well because I was shivering from the cold. Made me wonder (and worry) how I was going to survive honeymooning in winter Europe.