As I pass the Lion’s imposing head going to Baguio, all my childhood memories come flooding thru my brain, tugging my heart’s strings...
I was so lucky to have wonderful summers spent with my favorite cousins. As soon as school was out - we start packing our bags, excited to visit the Summer Capital of the Philippines - Baguio.
We absolutely loved the City of Pines. The weather, the fresh crisp air and the fresher crispier Vegetables we had every meal. We’d have home made perfectly whipped Ceasar’s Salad every evening.
Why Baguio? Aside from its cool climate and delicious cuisine, we simply loved to ride horses. Wright park then was clean, safe and full of riders racing around the oval. Passing Wright Park today, its a shell of what it used to be. Only half the lanes are open and riding is limited to children and walking.
We loved riding bareback. No saddle or stirrups to cut your legs and hinder you from quickly jumping of if your errant horse decides to suddenly buck. Complete and utter freedom. Wind whipping your face, hair wild in the air, and the smell of your horses sweat - gives such an exhilarating experience. How I miss it.
If Wright Park was full, we used to ride to Marlboro Country where the view just takes your breath away. After a 2 hour hard ride up the mountain, we sit on the grass, give sugar cubes and apples to our horses and rest our aching backsides. Those were the best times of my life.
I treasure those childhood memories the most.
Since this was a road trip from Baguio to the Mountain Province, I have to share the beauty of this adventurous trail and pull back first from my childhood flashbacks...
The road to Benguet was a series of twists and turns that make your belly flip flop but the view was worth the crazy travel. We rode with our client who drove the whole way and back - manually.
I applaud God’s creativity. The sun’s rays would play on the creases of the valleys and hills, shadowing and highlighting the beauty of nature.
We stopped for lunch at the last municipality of Benguet and ate at their famous Mother’s Way Restaurant. Its an interesting “Turo-Turo” place where they served hot home cooked meals at very affordable rates. Their Mother’s Way special costs P 90 - its a full meal of a huge serving of rice topped with a fried egg, stir-fried fresh vegetables, Fried Chicken and Fried Pork with a tangy sauce on the side. They also have Fried noodles to feed 6 people for only P 65.
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After a grueling 5 hour drive from Baguio, we finally reached our final destination... Mt. Province.
The Main Purpose of this trip was to document the life of a very interesting individual. A multi-millionaire who was born and raised in the Mt. Province. He makes approximately 1.5 Million a week. He only finished Grade 4. Amazing.
What? How? He grows various pricey vegetables and fruits. We went to all his very high tech greenhouses and in one interview with his team, they said that he comes from an Igorot tribe and started with just a few hectares of land. He then decided to sell and invest on Greenhouses. He went straight into modern technological growing. That's when he started making his first few millions.
When we finally met him, guess what he was driving? His own delivery truck. He was going to load the truck with vegetables for deliver and bring them to his supplier - on a saturday. That's why he’s a multi-millionaire. He believes in hard work and leading by example.
And if he’s not driving his truck, he’s driving his BMW.
I used to wonder why foreign tourists visit the Mt. Province, I now know why.
A road trip from Baguio, to Benguet and to the Mt. Province... tiring and back-numbing but worth every hour and every sharp curve.
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