The road to and from Baguio

We are happy to say the way to Baguio by land has become pleasurable because of well-paved roads. The best time to drive up to the mountain region is on a weekday. There are less vehicles, big and small, traversing the route. Our siblings decided to have a two-day family R&R one Tuesday morning.

We started out early. Those who did not manage to have an ample breakfast decided we should all meet at the Shell station on the highway, which took us less than an hour to reach. Here we realized that the road to Baguio has many offerings, provided by eateries that dot the route. Not only do the travelers get hot beverages and hotdogs, which we used to take when we were frequently visiting Tarlac, but much, much more. The station, now called Shell of Asia, is a string of eateries from Hen Lin to Café Paris. Should one forget any gear, footwear or whatever, there is nothing to worry about  the place has a store with all these.

We made it in time for a late lunch in the Pines city. The temperature was just right. The check-in at the Baguio Country Club (BCC) was quick, with an efficient staff in attendance. In minutes, we were seated at the Veranda with a good view of the golf course and, of course, the mountains.

That started our “honeymoon” with the club’s culinary delights. We did not want to venture outside because of the usual heavy traffic in the downtown area.

At the Veranda, the braised lamb had an unlikely pairing of noodles done like pancit canton. It was delicious so we did not mind the unusual combination. One can’t be at the club and not have dinner at Hamada, the award-winning Japanese restaurant, where we had misono, eel and grilled fish. Depending on occupancy, they offer breakfast buffet, a sumptuous array of everyone’s morning fancy.

Of course, the last stop is the Bake Shop, where it is a must to bring home the famed raisin bread (which has become more soft, chewy and really raisin-filled at P128), banana bread (P170), carrot loaf (P150) and the mini croissants (P150 a pack). The taisan was recommended but it is tagged at P300 per. We thought it was better to buy longganiza at P380 a kilo, for the assurance that indeed it is made of pork.

One side of Mines View Park has been transformed into a shoppers’ mini complex with stores selling brooms from P130 to P220 per, depending their thickness; souvenirs, including silver pieces; and bottles of sweets and cookies (three for P100).

Siempre, we drove to Good Shepherd’s for ube and strawberry jams and other sweets. On one side of this compound is a store of organic products, among them Kalinga coffee. On the other end are bakery products including ube rolls. The lady with the big and sweet Cordillera oranges was not around the riding area.

The SCTEX (Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway) provides travelers with a much smoother drive to and from Baguio. Of the three routes, we chose to enter Kennon road both ways to delight our two-year-old B with the view from the zigzag road. As we descended on Pangasinan, garlic in garlands took our fancy, so did the province’s famous bukayo-suman specialty, the tubic.

By mid-day we stopped for lunch at Mega Station, a few meters from the expressway. The strip has branches of restaurants found in Metro Manila, a stand-alone stall of native step-ins and slippers (from P220 to P349) and an outlet for signature garments, then on a buy-one-take-one promo sale.

We chose Kenny Rogers, which to our delight serves Hainanese chicken rice as their latest offering. Puede na. A nephew went next door to Razon’s and brought back dinuguan at puto and tamales. Our balikbayan in the group would not pass up having the halo-halo. She tremendously enjoyed it. End of a glorious 48 hours.

Have your own family bonding.

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