death by ukay and other Baguio stories...

i first went to baguio for an eight-day silent retreat at the jesuit mirador villa before my college graduation. we were holed up at the villa atop the lourdes grotto for the entire 8 days and all we did then was pray, eat, sleep, eat, sleep. it was truly meaningful though we we're not able to talk to anyone else except our spiritual director.

it was only during our last night when we were able to talk with our fellow retreatants that i remembered we were more than happy to talk and even shout than eat. it was even past 10pm when we were allowed to go down and roam the streets. i vividly remembered how eerie we felt when our taxi driver toured us around and pointed out the "ghost spots" of the city. it wasn't comfortable feeling scared and cold at the same time. we ended up having a few beers just below the steps where the lourdes grotto was.

that may have been over five years ago. i have been to baguio several times since then and i still feel quite eerie though i've already discovered several scenic spots and other more enjoyable things to do in baguio. this city used to be my most fave in the entire country.

yeah, used to be, because the last time i was there like a couple of months ago i was quite disappointed with how it became too crowded and polluted. traffic has never been that congested. it pained me seeing that the view atop sm baguio where all we could see are lines and lines of houses instead of the usual trees. i used to enjoy walking along session road then but lately it's just so annoying seeing it too crowded no matter what time you would pass by.

well anyway, there's but one thing that is still prodding me to go to baguio other than taho and sweet corn, and that is of course the ukay :D in ukays you can find clothes at really cheap prices and which designs and styles you can't find anywhere else in the malls and tiangges. i've been an ukay hound for sometime now. not just in baguio but also when i go home to my province in iligan. it could become quite addicting especially when you get to find some priceless gems for like 20-30 bucks.

i was in baguio last weekend for a seminar but i also devoted half of my day scouring the stalls in bayanihan. well, anyway let me just share some of my finds...;)