Memories of Baguio

Hello, you! We're back from Baguio!

I really enjoyed this trip, mainly because my family hasn't done this for a while. We spent the long weekend there and left Manila last Saturday night because we still needed to attend my uncle's birthday party. After six hours at the bus, we reached cold, cold Baguio at around 5 o'clock on Sunday morning :)

The house we rented was just walking distance from the Victory Liner terminal station. After resting for a bit, we got ready to explore the city!

Loaded up with SPF!

We heard the 9AM Mass at the Baguio Cathedral.
It was our first time to attend a Mass in a different dialect so it was a new experience for all of us.

We then walked to Burnham Park where we:

tried on Igorot costumes;

rented bikes;
(Random trivia about me: I don't know how to ride bikes. My 5 year old-cousin Jerico drove me around LOL.)

tried strawberry taho;
(that's my brother's hand, by the way.)

and watched people on boats.

We then went to SM Baguio for lunch where we feasted on KFC Bucket Meal and

Snowstorm ice cream cones.

Determined to visit every tourist spot in Baguio, we then went to Mines View Park, where we

took in the sights and breathtaking views;

and shopped for sweets to take home.

Our last stop for the day was the Botanical Garden,

which reminded me of my visit to Singapore's Botanical Garden more than a year ago.

We headed back to our rented house to rest. We had some low-key leisure time by

playing sungka that Mama bought

while eating organic seedless oranges :)

We were up very early the next day because we wanted to squeeze in more places to visit since we were due to leave later in the day.

We woke up to this glorious sunrise, and after a bit of a struggle with showering (because it was soooo cold even with the heater on), we were off.

We climbed more than a hundred steps up a high stairway to visit the

Our Lady of Lourdes Grotto

where we lit candles and said prayers.

It was a tiring climb up for me who's out of shape, but the view was worth it!

We then went to the

Strawberry Farm

to get some

luscious reds ♥

and

strawberry-flavored beer.

We were supposed to go home already, but Alexis recommended for me to check out Mt. Cloud Bookshop in Casa Vallejo. Well, you know me and the lure bookshops hold to me, so...

I was able to convince my parents to make a quick stop there

where I picked up a hardcover copy of "Rude Awakenings of a Jane Austen Addict" :)

The bookshop was really nice. It has its own rustic charm and wonder and I really felt magic upon entering the door; it was like walking into history itself. It's one of my dreams to have a bookshop just like this one, and I know one day I really will. Someday, someday.

Before we knew it, it was time to say goodbye. We reached Manila at around 11 o'clock last night bearing great memories of our short but wonderful trip. I'm thankful for opportunities to see and experience more of life through travelling. As they say, "A ship in harbor is safe, but that's not why ships are built."