Buhay Bahay-Bahayan

I’ve always had itchy feet.

And it’s not alipunga.

When I was young, I spent every summer vacation with my cousins in Manila, Alabang, Batangas, and Cebu. When I grew up, I wanted to see more.

Among the few places I’ve been to, Tagaytay gets the number 1 slot. I discovered Tagaytay because of my wife, who acted as my tour guide when we were dating. She’s been there a number of times. And somewhere along the frequent drive to Tagaytay, we fell in love (asus!). Tagaytay played such a significant part in our relationship that when it was time to tie the knot, Tagaytay was the only option. And because we’ve pretty much explored the area, we picked the best place in Tagaytay to get married, Tagaytay Highlands.

My second favorite place would have to be Hong Kong. First, because our flight to Hong Kong was my first ever plane ride. So imagine my excitement. I was giddy. There were butterflies in my stomach. I don’t know whether I should pee or poop, or both! Syempre, it was also my first time to travel internationally. My dad traveled a lot before he retired. And he would always tell me stories about airplanes, airports, and the different cities and hotels he’s been to. This time, it’s my turn to experience those things. I was trying to remember everything so that I could tell him about my travel.

Since my wife and I were still dating that time, that travel in a foreign land with no one to turn to but ourselves, with the good and the bad, the adventures and the misadventures, all the more tightened our bond.

My third favorite place would have to be Boracay. We stayed at this little gem called Boracay Tropics. The staff was friendly and courteous. The service was superb. The breakfast buffet, although not as impressive, was quite awesome on its own. And because most of the foreign guests would rather sunbathe in the nearby beach, we almost always had the pool all to ourselves when it gets too hot in the beach. Plus, it was our honeymoon.

(Photo Source)

I’d like to end this with a shortlist of our future travel destinations. First would be to go on a European trip. If you want to now why, visit Kumareng Grace’s site and search for detailed posts about her own European trip experience, and you’d want to have that too. Second would be Israel. Our church arranges group travels to Israel once or twice a year, and we’ve decided to join them in maybe two years. On my third would be Palawan. Considering the cheap flights and budget-friendly accommodations available, I think we’d visit this paradise in no time at all.

This is my entry for Kumareng Grace’s post-birthday (for her birthday last September), pre-Christmas, and pre-2-year anniversary in blogging (in January) contest. Visit her site for contest details and to see the awesome prices.

Baguio now offers tons of food choices to choose from. A foodie’s paradise, I say, what with all the fresh produce within easy access. So after sampling the food at Cook’s Inn, we’re off to a new restaurant the next morning. We tried this restaurant called Cafe by the Ruins. I’ve read mixed reviews about this restaurant, all in the extremes. Different strokes for different folks, I guess.

I think we ordered almost everything on their menu. The fiber-rich kamote (sweet potato) bread loaf was served warm. Tear a piece and slather with butter and strawberry jam. Sarap! I can’t really tell how this bread differs from any regular flour bread, but it was really good.

In addition to beef sinigang and lumpia (above pic), the infamous Cordilleran broth pinikpikan and the mechado, which came with mushroom gravy, mashed potatoes, and buttered vegetables and looked more like slices of pot roast and is very different from the usual mechado we’ve had, were quite good.

I played safe and ordered the adobo sa manga, and my wife had Tita Susie’s Crispy Tapa, which was actually shredded tapa fried to perfection. This was served with a slaw of chopped tomatoes and onions on a lettuce bed. This is a definite must try. As you all know, I’m not a beef eater, but I’d definitely have this anytime. It was that good. A Sinamak vigegar dip would have made this dish even better. I even finished it all off when my wife was full. Also, the restaurant uses red organic(?) mountain rice, which to me looked more like purple, but good nonetheless.

All in all, this is one of those must try restaurants in Baguio. Good food and good ambience. We’ll be coming back to try their Pan au Chocolat, Chocolate de Agua, champorado with tinapa, and the glorious thick bacon. A nice siesta at Pineridge was inevitable.

Cafe by the Ruins
25 Chuntug Street, Baguio City, Philippines

After a short stop at Pineridge Condominiums to drop our bags and have a little rest, we were on the road again. This time, we were looking for a place to have breakfast. We were all very hungry. After a lot of discussion over the two-way radio we brought, one for each car, we finally decided to try Cook’s Inn.

Cook’s Inn is a small restaurant inside Burnham Hotel. That’s how far I got when I searched for some info about this restaurant. So, here’s an instant post, with pictures to boot, about this small restaurant from the same owners as Forest House (I think).

Here’s a small peak at the Burnham Hotel lobby too, which is decorated with ethnic bags, mats, trinkets, and armors and weapons from the Ifugaos, I think.

Since it was breakfats breakfast, we had their -silog varieties (at around Php90 each). The longganisa was quite good, and my daing na bangus, though small (no bigger than an egg really), was quite tasty. But the clear winners were their sinigang and pansit (sorry no pics, told you we were hungry). Really good and tasty. If you get the chance, you might want to try their buttered chicken and fish fillet in white sauce too.

For inquiries and reservations, contact

Cook’s Inn
Burnham Hotel
21 Calderon St., Baguio City, Philippines