What you don't want to miss when you go to Baguio this summer

With the proliferation of cheap airfare offers and free publicity from celebrities and other beautiful people who frequent the islands, the seduction of the sultry white sand beaches of the South has become much harder to resist, dimming the popularity of other vacation destinations, particularly those in the hard-to-reach North.

 

But there’s still nothing like the icy cool kiss of Baguio City to cool one down in the summer heat, and those who are tired of unwittingly bringing home bags of sand at summer's end would do well to pay the city a visit. 

 

Even with the more-or-less eight-hour bus ride and the complaints that the highlands are no longer what it used to be, there is still enough to see, smell, and taste in Baguio to make the tedious journey worth it.

 

Of course there are the usual haunts that everyone knows about: Mines View Park, Burnham Park, Camp John Hay, the Pink Sisters’ Convent, and then Good Shepherd for pasalubong. But there are other places as well, places that are perhaps out of the way and are easily missed, but are sure to make the summer vacation as memorable and enjoyable as one spent on the beach.

 

Ukay all night

 

The Baguio ukay-ukay (used clothing stores) is nothing new. 

 

The ukay experience in the city has become the stuff of legend, with shoppers claiming to have bought an original Louis Vuitton Speedy for P20, or a P50-Givenchy dress, or authentic Doc Martens in mint condition for only P100.

 

These ukay success stories have never been proved, but have fed the legend anyway, so much so that many ukays have now popped up along shopping hubs like Session Road and the Baguio City Market. But the best (and cheapest) ones are those that have no permanent address, those ukays set up on the streets that you have no chance of finding again once you pass up on them.

 

Now one can even try their luck at finding dirt-cheap designer goods well into the night, as ukay vendors have taken to occupying Harrison Road in the evenings and even up to the wee hours of the morning—some vendors proudly claim that they don’t pack up until the last shopper leaves.

 

Everything fresh at Mother's Garden

 

Of course, there is more to Baguio than the ukay-ukays. More than anything, the city is known for its general freshness—fresh air, fresh flowers, fresh produce. For sure, this freshness can be had almost anywhere in Baguio, but they come in generous amounts at Mother’s Garden, a restaurant/garden/farm/crafts workshop along the city’s Upper Fairview Road.

 

The mother in question is Therese Jison, who says that the place is her “tribute to the city, to prove people wrong that Baguio has become ugly.” In that respect, Jison succeeds phenomenally because if there’s anything Mother’s Garden is, it’s beautiful.

 

Beautiful, not only because of the garden’s rustic charm, but also because of the garden’s sweeping view of Baguio City, lovely by day and breathtaking by night.

 

It can be tiring to go up and down the steep slope of the garden so those who are more inclined to lounge around all day might want to stay at the al fresco dining area, or try their hand at pottery and woodcarving at the workshop, but to do so would be to miss out on the bulk of the fun.

 

Further down, there is a lot to make the descent and subsequent tiring ascent worth it: a replica of a traditional Cordillera village, a hands-on planting garden where guests can try their hand at cultivating their own organic herbs, a garden filled with a rainbow of flowers, strawberry fields, and lots of charming animals that love to pose for the camera.

 

And anyway, when you come back up, you can feast on the freshest food: salad, pizza, sandwiches, and even hearty meals like Sicilian Chicken, all made with ingredients right out of the garden and all costing less than they appear.

 

Art adventure at Tam-awan

 

Not far from Mother’s Garden is Tam-awan Artists’ Village. You’ll know when you’ve reached it because you’ll see a big wall painted with colorful doodles—the kind of wall you’ll only see where a group of artists are gathered.

 

Obviously, there is a lot of artwork to be seen at Tam-awan. Aside from a gallery that hosts exhibits from the village artists, and a café that displays wall-to-wall artwork, the village artists are also around to do live sketches for the guests who want their portraits done. Even the signs on their restroom doors are paintings.

 

But more than just an art haven, Tam-awan is also a place where people can experience living like a traditional Cordilleran. Aside from the eco-trails that compel you to hike farther and farther up the mountainside for the best view of the city, the owners have also purchased the last few remaining huts from the Kalinga and Ifugao tribespeople, and are renting them out for P500/night.

 

The Dukligan or fertility hut is particularly popular, and is even said to work for barren couples who wish to conceive. 

 

The Kalinga hut, on the other hand, can house a sizable group of people, and even has provisions so you can light a bonfire inside the hut, just like the tribespeople used to do. The very same hut is said to still house the spirits of its former inhabitants. 

 

Haunted or not, a night at the huts is an adventure waiting to happen, because really, how many people can say they've slept in the last remaining authentic Cordillera huts in the world? –KG, GMA News

 

Disclosure: The author's trip was sponsored by The Manor at Camp John Hay in Baguio City.