Baguio-Benguet Banquet

The incredible view from Baguio's newest attraction: La Presa of "Forevermore" fame. (Photo by Your City Promdi) 

Hitched an overnight trip to Baguio and Benguet with my mom's company outing.

Crash!
The whole group came from Lucena and I met up with them somewhere along Edsa a little after midnight. I was planning on sleeping the entire way up so I'd be bright and breezy on our first day, but things didn't turn out quite the way they were planned. Our group got into a little accident--our car bumped the street center island, smashing a few MMDA planters, disarranging the axle wheel, and disabling the whole car. We had to be towed to this little police station in Quezon City, wait for all the administrative and police papers to be filed, and wait some more for the replacement vehicle that will take us the rest of the way. We were delayed about three hours, which meant we were trapped in quite a lot of traffic jams from Manila to Pangasinan.

Revisiting the Baguio Basics
We finally arrived in Baguio at around 2PM  (no actual lunch for our valiant group, sadly), billeted to our transient hotel rooms, then set out to explore what we can of Baguio. I've been to the Pine City for about four times previously so if it had been up to me, I'd have visited more of the less visited, culture-y side of Baguio. For the sake of most of the party--who had never been to Baguio--we decided to explore the Baguio Basics--Botanical Gardens, Wright Park, Burnham Park, and Mines View. I decided this is a good time as any to update my Instagram feed.

Our driver wasn't familiar with driving in this city we ended up having to rely on my GPS for directions--with me as navigator. Imagine that. I'm glad to tell you that we all got to our destinations safe and sound. There may or may not have been quite a few times when we missed intersections and had to back track. The kids were able to get their photos taken with the Igorots at Botanical Gardens, romped around the horses at Wright Park, and ate a lot of strawberry taho (More on that later).
Botanical gardens. (Photos by Your City Promdi)

Wright Park horses. (Photo by Your City Promdi)

We were supposed to go to Mines View but decided against it when the road we took to get there was blocked and we didn't have the patience to find another way. Off we went to Burnham Park, where we had dinner at the very exotic Chowking's (yum! noodles after the chilly Baguio air) and then take the kids out for a boat ride. Trust Your City Promdi to bumble through the paddling, but--miraculously, again--I was able to get from one side of the lagoon to the other without causing any wet incidents.

The Banquet

The next day was spent visiting the Grotto of the Lady of Lourdes, eating more strawberry taho, and travelling off to Sitio La Presa (of the teleserye Forevermore fame) then further into La Trinidad Benguet. The scenery was amazing--like being so big I can touch the face of God and yet feeling very much like such a small dot compared to the beauty of nature.

And now, my favorite part! We were able to go shopping for food. When in Baguio and Benguet, everything will always be about food.

I've already mentioned the yummy strawberry taho--so delicious, everyone in the whole group orders a cup whenever they see anyone selling it anywhere. There were also other iterations of strawberry products in an explosion of pink: ice cream (times two!), jams, and the fresh berries themselves. There were various other fruits well.



And then there were the greens--so fresh, so crisp, and so, so cheap. We bought bags and bags of lettuce and carrots and cauliflower and broccoli. I don't know what the others in the group did with theirs. But mine resulted in a veritable feast in our Makati apartment. We had the healthiest three days this apartment has ever seen in a long, long while.


Now, I still have quite a few food stuff from the tour, and I'm hoping you can tell me what to do with blueberries and some strawberyy preserves. Chime in with your comments below.

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