Taiwan, Baguio

(WIP – pics to post)

The past month had given this writer the opportunity to travel some more than than the Iloilo trip the last time. To Taiwan and Baguio, as a matter of fact.

Taiwan (Aug 18-23) had always been a regular destination ever since I worked there for a good number of years, and the place has grown into a more mature and confident place than when I stayed there in the 90s (that is last century!). I say that because as the world turns its back politically on Taiwan, Taiwan has shown a more “I don’t care” attitude about it – The world may think so much of China, but that doesn’t mean we cease to exist. And exist well, prosperously and at peace. Commerce seems to be booming, the MRT system buzzes along with the busybees that are the Taiwanese people to-ing and fro-ing about.

A pleasant surprise came into view as my plane descended on Taoyuan airport – windmills! The huge, white, towering types that I saw in science articles are now, with very little fanfare (or simply because I am not in Taiwan), “planted” along what I assume would be the eastern coast (I counted 20 but google says there are more than a hundred now, enough for 105,000 households. Imagine turning on the aircon, browsing the web, while the tv is on, and the coffee pot’s percolating, all from free electricity!) Perfect that I was bringing with me super howler Egay, aka Sepat. It was fretfully anticipated but that didn’t stop me from directly proceeding to the electronics market across the train station and put down an order for an Acer TravelMate notebook and a Benq digital camera.

And what a howler it was! The next day, I knew before leaving my friend Pablo’s house that to carry an umbrella would risk me flying away like Mary Poppins so I stuck through with my nylon jacket. Sure enough, I could barely hold on to my own body against the wind. Ever see cartoon characters Rage! Rage! against the wind, headlong with their arms flailing behind them? Well, walking beside some tall buildings that had a funneling effect, I certainly did look like those ‘toons, but this time, it wasn’t very funny.

Fortunately, the rains only lasted two of the five days I stayed there. Pablo, recently married June of this year, had moved to a new place in Beitou, and there I was in the new guest room with a computer and a DSL connection! In a quiet side street, next to a police station and community center, a short distance to local eats (my favorite fan-thuan!), by the hills, next to a creek, a short distance to very well developed hiking trails: his place couldn’t be more feng-shui auspicious. Good friend, Lily, who now tutors local kids in English seems pretty well settled, a lifestyle so different than what she had before, and quite evidently so much better for her.

A few of the errands I had planned to work on this trip went undone, but intentionally; better decisions I would think. The stock market is down, and I don’t think I’m getting any younger so liquidating some of my stocks and canceling my health insurance may not be prudent things to do. As for the LCD TV I promised my Dad (or rather, I promised myself I’d get for my Pop), the Beijing Olympics is still many months away, and by then, prices would still inch down a bit. And that makes another trip back to Taiwan in the horizon. As a friend and I always say, let’s make a trip that needs a reason.

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Baguio (Aug 31 – Sept 1)

My Cervini (college dorm) graduating class college retreat was the last time I’ve been to Baguio – most memorable for the facts that what was supposed to be a silent retreat ended up being a mini party interspersed with some memorable dramatic moments, courtesy of some Eliazo (the female dorm) residents.

So there we were, some friends and I, driving up north with a stopover at the Shrine of our Lady of Manoag. Thanks to aforementioned Egay slash Sepat, a declared holiday meant that i got leave credits to push through with Baguio.

Congested would be an apt term for Baguio, an opinion I’ve heard repeatedly from other people. Even so, the treats that Baguio offers still makes it worth the trip: the views, the fresh air and the cool weather, the Pink Sisters convent (should go back for the singing, kuno), Mine’s View and the fresh food market (though pesky vendors is one thing they can have less of). Even so, we do note that they have much less beggars than the good ole’ metropolis of Bayani Fernando, and mostly, everyone seems to at least try to eke out a living by vending something. But yes, we also do note that asking for directions from the ordinary man on the street is not such a productive exercise, which we conclude, comes from the fact that it has a very high transient population – which begs the question, if everybody is trooping to Baguio, where did the real old-time local residents go?!?

Oh, I must mention as well that our stay at the Baguio Country Club was quite pleasant, save for particular incidents of bad, unprofessional service from the front desk and restaurant staff. But when the service is good, as it was in the coffee shop where they sell the justly famous raisin bread, it was exceptional and memorable (a banana cake-tasting offer turned into full-service, sit-down affair with a gorgeous view when we told them we are waiting for a carwash to finish). That did translate to a Php980 bakery purchase, so it was the right thing for them to do, sucker customer that I am.

So there, a couple of thousand bucks poorer, but all the happier for having made that trip, we got back to Manila with a resolution to do it again in the future, this time with lesser trips to SM Baguio, please.