I was finally able to visit Baguio to shoot the Panagbenga festival highlights this year. And while the street dancing and the grand float parades are the main items on the itinerary, I had some chance to go around the city and re-acquaint myself with some of its popular tourist traps.
The Panagbenga Festival is always a crowd drawer, with thousands of visitors heading up to the "City of Pines" during the weekend of the parades. Hotels and lodging houses, especially those near the city center, can be fully booked months in advance. Baguio can be very crowed at this time and getting around could be a challenge. But with a little bit of luck and good timing, I was still be able to see some of what this popular destination offers.
Mines View Sunrise
Mines View, Panagbenga or not, will always be crowded. But come here at dawn and you'd be able to experience the very reason why this spot is a popular viewing area. Dawn is the best time to see what the view in Mines View is really all about.
Veteran Tree
Down the road from Mine's View stands a very old (over 100 years old) picturesque Benguet pine tree called The Veteran Tree. It has survived the elements for as long as it could, but finally succumbed to it. The tree was declared "dead" in 2011 and local artists transformed it into an amazing work of art. Not sure how long this will last, go see it if you have the chance to.
Wright Park
Perfect place for a morning horse ride. I could not understand though why some of the horses's hair are dyed pink. To make them more appealing to the children maybe?
Baguio Public Market
Perfect place to sample Baguio's delicacies and shop for souvenirs. A friend and I stumbled upon this longganisa section while walking through the market trying to dodge the horrendous traffic.
Burnham Park
This is one of Baguio's most recognizable landmarks in the city center. And with the horrible traffic during the Panagbenga weekend, we found ourselves walking most of the time and passing through the park. Might as well take some photos.
Baguio Sunset
Best place to catch it if you are stuck in the city center is at the viewing decks of a big mall at one end of Session Road. The mall guards are usually touchy about you taking photos inside the mall, specially with a tripod and that "professional looking" camera (they have funny ways of defining how a camera can fall into this category, but they leave you alone at the viewing decks.
Baguio Cathedral at dawn
The Cathedral is lighted beautifully during the Sunday dawn Mass. The façade lights are turned off immediately after the first mass. I took these before heading out to Panagbenga park where the floats are being prepared for the parade.
No comments:
Post a Comment