Kumukunchi Adventures: Baguio Day 1

November 01, 2013

This is one of my favorite DIY trip I've ever planned. I read various articles regarding Baguio in order to come up with my own itinerary for a 2 Day Trip to the Summer Capital of the Philippines. The usual packages for Baguio Trips range from 3,500 to 4,500 for a 2 day tour within the city. Some unique tours in Baguio were far from the city proper so if you really want to explore the far corners of Baguio City, a little research will really help. I'll attach my actual itinerary in this post afterwards. I would also like to apologize for the poor quality of photos, I am still a novice in night shooting and the shots I made for this day were full of noise. Again, sorry. :(

11:00 Arrival at the Victory Liner Bus Terminal (Pasay). I am going to Baguio with Ruffa & Mimi (my classmates during undergrad years). The terminal is clean based on my standards, it has the traditional overpriced food stalls. What caught my attention at the terminal is that they offer tour packages to various northern places. There is also a 2nd floor waiting area for those who bought premium tickets. I'm on a budget so I only booked for the standard aircon bus ticket, I tried the online booking for the 3 of us and I was satisfied on how smooth the processing was. Book online on their website, wait for their email for your reference number, pay thru bank deposit, and wait for your tickets. They charge 455 php per ticket and an additional 10 php per ticket and a standard 40 php courier service for the delivery of your tickets. I suggest if it's peak season or long holidays to reserve your seats in advance to avoid waiting as a chance passenger.
12:30 Since the three of us were at the terminal before our 13:00 reservation, we asked if we could be chance passenger for the 12:30 bus. Luckily the guard let us in. By the way, Victory Liner Buses really leave ON TIME.

Time: 11:30, the bus really left at that time. Thumbs up to Timeliness

A view of Mount Arayat along North Luzon Expressway

14:00 Dau - Mabalacat Terminal. The 1st stop of the day.

Pasay Terminal to Dau - Mabalacat Terminal

16:30 Tarlac City. The 2nd stop. There's a nearby Mcdonald's if you want standard fast food.

I was surprised to see this, not something you see everyday

Dau - Mabalacat Terminal to Tarlac Terminal

18:30 Sison. The 3rd and last stop before ascending to Baguio City thru Marcos Highway. There were a lot of food to choose from in this stop compared to the last two. Since it was getting dark, we decided to eat something not so junk. I ate fresh lumpia for just 35 php.

Tarlac Terminal to Sison Bus Stop

Mimi & Ruffa with our Bus at Sison

Sison Bus Stop offers a lot of snacks to choose from

19:30 Touch down Victory Liner Terminal. They used Marcos Highway going to Baguio City because buses and trucks were banned to pass Kennon Road after 2011. Don't expect to see the Lion's Head, but you can have a glimpse of the ruined Marcos Head along the highway. I was not able to see it because it was already dark by the time we passed by. After you disembark you will instantly be persecuted by agents to stay on a transient house. 250 to 400 per person is already a very good price. Look for transient houses close to this price range. We planned to stay on Susana Homes, the feedback on this place was good but Ate Susan can't be reached so we chose a nearby transient house. The house was a relic, I'll not recommend it to others. Since we're only staying at it to sleep and refresh, I accepted the offer. This was our greatest regret on our trip to Baguio, you should really feel comfortable on your bed to recharge your bodies for long walks at various parks.
20:00 Hill Station Restaurant. We also read some recommended restaurants at Baguio and this one just always pops up as on of the best. Since our budget was at 200 php a meal we decided to try it out. The restaurant's ambiance was very cozy and relaxing, no nearby noises and you have this feeling that you can take your time doing things here. The only consequence was the bill shock. Our bill for that meal alone was 1,100 php. That's 10% of our total budget for the 2 Days trip, at least I could say we enjoyed the food and the environment. I recommend Hill Station to people who go to the Baguio whose budget is a little bigger, maybe I'll dine again here when my means permit me to do so. Haha

Ruffa with the menu and the cozy seats as background

The interior design is just fascinating

Bread with Olive Oil and Dukkah as dip for appetizer. I ordered this Cream of Mushroom

Ruffa & Mimi ordered this tasty Chicken with Java Rice

Grilled Chicken Sandwich with Chips

Entrance to Hill Station

Signboards of other establishments alongside Hill Station

Casa Vallejo is located just above Hill Station

21:30 Part of our tour was a night stroll to Burnham Park. We walked the length of Upper Session Road. Beside the park was a night market so we decided to look at the goods offered by the locals. You can buy various garments for the cold weather as well as other fashion items. Scarfs and bonnets cost around 35 to 50 depending on the quality. Jackets start at 100 php. After buying some scarfs we went to Igorot Garden.

The Famous Session Road

A monkey at the Igorot Garden

22:00 Strolling at the Burnham Park late night was fantastic. The usual crowd of people at the park was relatively low and you could take pictures of you with the beautiful landscapes.