AZALEA RESIDENCES BAGUIO: TRULY YOUR HOLIDAY HAVEN

      Despite our numerous world class beaches, it is the beautiful city of Baguio that has been hailed as the Summer Capital of the Philippines. With it's colder weather and fresh air, it comes to no surprise that people flock to the city of Pines for a relaxing break. 

     Because Baguio has been a Pinoy vacation favorite for decades, the itinerary is usually the same.. Horseback Riding at Wright Park, searching for finds at the Ukay Ukay, Buying delectable treats at Good Shepherd, Biking around Burnham Park, among many others seem to be the staples, and no matter how many times you've gone to Baguio, no trip is complete without it. 

     With so much things to do at Baguio, coming up with an itinerary shouldn't be a problem. In fact, your biggest obstacle would probably be finding the time to fit everything you'd want to do it your given time frame. When planning your vacation, I highly recommend choosing a hotel at the heart of the city. A place strategically located so that it wouldn't be too difficult to get to the city's top tourist attractions.

    A place where, even for just a few days, you'll feel right at home. One place truly does exist in the city of Baguio, and I'm excited to tell you all about my wonderful experience at Azalea Residences.. Your Holiday Haven!

SEEING BAGUIO THE MARIO'S WAY! (WITH TRANSITIONS SIGNATURE LENSES)

        When I hear “Baguio”, I always feel like I’ve just been there a year or two ago. But a few weeks ago, when our plan to visit Baguio along with our other blogger friends finally pushed through, that’s when my wife and I realized that we haven’t been in Baguio since after our wedding. And that was SEVEN years ago! That’s a long time! No wonder there had been a lot of changes there, including a bunch more new restaurants that’s really worth visiting!

        But even with the new restaurants there getting good raves through word of mouth, the classic restaurants still get a lot of customers, one of which is Mario’s, where we had a delicious lunch under the beautiful Pine trees and the refreshing cool weather of Baguio! It was a perfect last stop during our Baguio trip!

LE MONET HOTEL : A BAGUIO MASTERPIECE

    Having had my fill of the sand and sun growing up in Cebu where the beach is 30 minutes away, I've always preferred getaways with a colder climate, such as Tagaytay and Baguio. Though I prefer the cold of Baguio, the thought of an eight hour drive made Tagaytay the more feasible choice for us nowadays. 

    Thankfully, the Tarlac- Pangasinan-La Union Expressway (TPLEX) opened at the end of 2014, cutting the travel time practically in half, making Baguio more accessible than it's ever been before. I am very fortunate that our family has a summer house in Baguio, so we always had a place to stay when we would visit, but at the same time, I always kinda wondered what it would be like to stay at a hotel when visiting the summer capital of the Philippines. 

    2015 was the year where I had to wonder no more, as my fellow KTG friends and I were invited by Le Monet Hotel to experience a Baguio vacation! 

DISCOVERING CAFE BY THE RUINS

What is the logo supposed to be?

         After the long trek from Manila at the wee hours of the morning, my wife and I, together with my parents, finally arrived at our house in Baguio around 10 in the morning. We immediately settled in our stuff, and everyone unanimously agreed (I VEHEMENTLY agreed) that before we go exploring the amazing city that is Baguio, we needed to get some food.  We were all eager to get on with our own plans (My mom and Rina wanted to shop at the Ukay Ukay, my dad wanted to get some rest, and I wanted to... well.. eat again) but of course, after a 6 hour  road trip, food sounded like a pretty good idea. And since it was a holiday weekend, it would be best to not meet the lunch rush hour head on.

       As I had mentioned in my earlier Baguio post, I conducted a small facebook poll to solicit advice from people where to eat when in the City of Pines. Being the picky eater that I am, I was designated by my mom to decide where we'd eat because she wasn't in the mood to get into any debates with me. As we pulled out into the main streets of Baguio, within minutes I saw a sign bearing a name that I had heard many times during my facebook poll - Cafe By The Ruins.

FINDING FOREST HOUSE

Forest House is just one of the many reasons why Baguio is so awesome

                  Yet another "Out Of Town" Post...    I'm not a big fan of the beach. Maybe it's because I practically grew up on one when I was living in Cebu. We practically spent every weekend there. So in all honesty, going to the beach is no big deal to me. And I'm someone who can't stand the feeling of heat. I really need air conditioning. I joke around that one of my super powers is "Invulnerability To Cold". I sleep practically naked and i need to have all the air of the aircon blasting away at me. (Ok, i'm sure that's a mental picture you didn't want, and you've lost you're appetite.. Given the fact that this is a "food post" i'm going to change the subject) Not being stuck up or anything like that, but I really enjoy cold weather. So predictably, one of my favorite places to go in the Philippines would definitely have to be the City of Baguio.

                  Discovering Forest House Bistro & Cafe only reaffirmed it for me.