27 Hours in Baguio

 

Turtle and I have been dying to get away from Manila and visit Lira. We were initially planning to do a Baguio-La Union weekender, but because we had to come back to Manila on Sunday (today), we just voted on doing a full day in Baguio instead.
0300:            departure from Victory Terminal in Cubao
0300-0400:   annoyed passengers sitting behind and in front of us by giggling about silly things, like how the PMS-ing monster reared its ugly head this week; karma strikes back - made us feel icky over a high-school looking couple who must have thought their two reclining seats were a motel room. 
0400-0500:   Mine, asleep// Got jolted awake by the driving, looked out the windows, saw it moving and silently thanked the heavens we were in a bus off to somewhere. #happyplace
0500-0800:   REM-ed// Woke up a bit; thought Mine covered in malong was a giant potsim. Or a moving hotdog. Texted Lira we're already at the Marcos Highway
0800-0900:  last hour for sleeping; arrival in Baguio. It's been 3 years! Lira arrives, wee!
0900-1100:  readying our bearings; coffee; fried bananas; early chika galore. 
1100-1200:  paid some bills at SM Baguio (which doesn't look new anymore - and it has always looked new.)
1200-1330:  Volante - reason enough to take a quick trip to Baguio, methinks.

1. Shrimp Salad - fresh veggies and the vinaigrette dressing was heavenly; Volante knows what to do with seafood.
2. Tuna Sardines Pizza - in the throes of disappointment (yes, ma-drama) over the Smoked Salmon Pizza not being available, we settled for Sardines. Didn't disappoint for the sardines melted with the cheese in the pizza.
3. Pesto Pasta - this one, with meat or meatless, is a classic favorite! There must be something in the basil and nuts in Baguio that makes it really good.
4. Brewed Coffee - strong and really cheap (around Php28). Can we have a Volante branch in Manila, please.
5. Warm Lemongrass Tea - smelled like something that can calm a troubled spirit (and tummy).                  

1330-1430:   some ukay hunting
1430-1630:  Mt. Cloud/ Hill Station 
A recently-renovated complex that houses the North Haven Spa, Mt. Cloud Bookstore, Hill Station restaurant, and Casa Vallejo boutique hotel. Says a local with impish giggling, "there used to be rumors that the place was haunted. That's why my mom is hesitant to try the massage." Absolutely no spirit sightings that day, though there's a Game of Thrones event being planned by Santi of Mt. Cloud. Our Turtle thinks this is an exciting idea. We might be back for that event. 

1. Apple Pie - in a dream I had last week, I was having a pie up in the mountains. The Hill Station Apple Pie had sweet apples and very tasty crust. It did not taste foreign to my native tongue. Yes, it lived up to the dream. If only it had more of the bread on top, it would be perfection.
2. Lemon Caramel squares - according to Turtle, judging by the zest real lemons were used. 
3. Death by Chocolate - thick fudgy chocolate drenched in sweet vanilla ice cream. :D

1630-1830:  Lovely Bones at Lira's
Glad we watched it together. The film dealt with a very heavy issue (child murder/ rape). The treatment of the film was superb, though. We enjoyed it and were traumatized, yes, at the same time. Fun. :p
1830-2030:  late snack with some brownies/ magical bonding with Tita Luchie. Let the LOLs commence. 
2030-2300:  Chaya's (I don't remember ever being this hungry/ happy/ really giggly!) 
They prepare your food from scratch, so prepare to really wait if the other tables are full. It must have taken them more than 40mins to serve our meals. Yes, everything was inhaled in a rush. 

1. Complimentary Japanese Salad - very aesthetically presented, the mixture of tulips, baby onion, cucumber and red radish was a win! Plus, it's free.
2. Japanese Seafood Hot Pot - the soup was very, very clean on the palate, add in the salmon, shrimp, squid thrown in.While eating, I thought I was transported back to Fukui.  
3. Tofu Salad - soft tofu was reaaally good. Must try next time: beef salad.   
4. Mixed Tempura - a tower of vegetable and shrimp tempura. The pumpkin flowers and leaves were heavenly. 
5. Complimentary Strawberry Ice Cream w/ Monggo - could have been better if we had the Green Tea variant. Nevertheless, this sweet ending was a welcome treat.

2300-0030:  Gilligan's 

• A round of San Miguel Apple beer, sisig, Mango cake. 
• Weird night: we got some complimentary San Mig Lemon beer, a note written on tissue paper by Two Amateur Dudes, and, due to a flux earlier that night, a slice of Blueberry cheesecake and a tap from Guy Seated at the Bar.
• The Edralin's played a mixed set of songs from the 70s and the 80s. 
• More silliness, laughter, surprising moments (white-faced dude), and naps on the table.

Some lines/ phrases from that night:

"Nag-dancing na ako!"

"Reggae of the world"

"May iba pa bang halo to?"

"Secret admirers"

"Ako yung nagpabigay ng Blueberry cheesecake."

"Sino ka?"

""Naririnig ko pero hindi ko naiintindihan."

"Super bionic hearing powers"

0030-0200:   Ayuyang attempt/ last one for the road at Session 
The set at Ayuyang was over by the time we got there. Decided to drop by Volante one last time. Asked ourselves that all-important question, "Should we have waffles?" My tummy begged not to, just this once. Settled for a cup of hot chocolate and warm lemongrass tea.
0200-0630:   instead of heading back, we caught some decent sleep at Lira's attic. #goodchoice
0800-1400:   goodbye, Baguio/ see you soon, Lira! Traveled back to Manila.


Of course, some things were left off. But oh the things you can do/ eat/ say/ think/ laugh about in a day!