Day 2 of Baguio started late--we had breakfast plans, but some of the girls slept late na daw at nagkatakutan (lol)... Meanwhile, habang takot na takot ang mga bagets, ang sarap daw ng tulog ko (hahaha). As in hilik levelz (hahaha). I enjoyed my view of these colorful houses sa veranda ng aming 3rd floor room. Tambay ako dun everytime I wait for my 3 girls na maligo, dress up, and mag mukap. I miss my quiet time there, I think doon ako truly nakapag recharge and nakapag "bakasyon".
First stop for the day was at the classic-asa-Baguio-ako Cafe by the Ruins. Parang hindi pwedeng hindi kakain dito pag asa Baguio! ;p
Vegetarians! ;)
Tin checking out online the food reco of Sir Anton of Awesome Planet, haha! :p
Our mix-mix orders! ;p May nag champorado lang, may nag bread lang, si Pax had the parang breakfast meal with egg, habang ako more more food trip with the tortang talong (my favorite!) and cheese sticks na kakaiba kasi may zest of orange--pero weird in a good way. :)
Tambay + Take ng photos. Hindi masyado matao ang cafe that time:
After our breakfast came our weirdest, "San nanggaling" itinerary for this trip: Diplomat Hotel. When our cab driver learned about our destination, sinabi niya talaga na mag goghost hunting ba daw kami? ;p I never thought of the place as scary, akala ko eto lang yung foggy place kung saan nag OOTD si David Guison, haha.
This "castle" na parang ginagawa palang is outside the gates of the Diplomat Hotel. I wonder kung para san sha...
Before entering the gates, the guard gave us a short story on this infamous place. He never divulged anything about ghosts or horror stories, sabi lang niya it was first a church, and then a hospital, then converted later on into a hotel. May nag ask ata samin if may multo, but kuya guard did not directly respond to our question.
So off we go to the site...
Saw this HUGE and medyo creepy ten commandments structure near the Diplomat Hotel:
We went there after lunch, so medyo maaraw pa and saktong lamig lang. But when we entered the place, parang we were welcomed by colder temperature. Ang unusual coz the place is open, and obviously, wala namang aircon sa loob. :p Dagdag fear factor, I tell you...But we carried on.
The place is really beautiful, 90% bakante na sha except for the garden and several woods, cross, and the caretakers' room. Pero you can see how big a church this was, and kung gaano ka mysterious ng feel nya the moment you walk in. Eerie beautiful, yun siguro ang perfect description sa kanya. Ground floor palang medyo cautious na kami sa pag take ng photos and mag daldal masyado (maingay kaming group, so pati ito unusual). Our kids Tin and Tracy were unsure na of coming in... But a lady approached me and introduced herself as the caretaker, so I did not looked back na sa door.
Medyo paulit-ulit ko natong kinwento sa friends and family ko, but the highlight of the whole trip was when the lady asked me if we want to see the bell tower. I consulted Pax and the kids, but Tracy and Tin were still unsure. Pax was game, so we walked with ate caretaker, who suddenly whispered to me, "Kahit pang merienda lang po." I told her "Oo naman ako na po bahala", then she entered her little room where I saw another older caretaker. They whispered things to each other, and then later on saw Caretaker2 give her the key. Ate caretaker asked for the pang merienda na before we went up, so inabutan ko lang ng P50.
Medyo nagulat lang ako when she wanted to lock us sa door nato. Sabi ko, "o sige ate pero sama kayo samin", but she shook her head. She'll lock lang pala from the inside para wala daw ibang makaakyat. (???) Marami daw kasing pumapasok at nagvavandal, at dun daw pinaka nagagalit the spirits. One of them asked if paano kung makakita kami ng something, Ate Caretaker replied with, "magdikit dikit lang kayo", which I learned later on was the line na nagpabackout kay Tin and Tracy. Pax and I were alone and quiet as we climbed this staircase. Silently I was expecting history and religion or things na usual ko naman nakikita when I go on tour sa old places like the Angkor Wat....
...But a few steps up, and we were in another floor with the same gray walls and no connecting stairs sa unang tingin. Kami ni Pax were trying to calm down, asking each other quietly, "Asan yung stairs", and at the same time, kept on repeating "Tabi tabi po", "Excuse me lang po a", "Sorry po"...Hindi na kami nahiya sa isa't isa... But parang understood narin sa amin na bawal na takutan. If the ground floor was super lamig, sa second floor, goosebumps level na, as if may humihila sa hair ko. Finally we saw the hall leading to an opening to the "bell tower".
We were really quick in taking pictures, and I remembered Ate Caretaker's reminders including not taking photos in this and that area (di ko gets :p). We went down din agad, and whispered more "tabi pos". When we reached outside of the diplomat hotel to meet Tracy and Tin, we chatted with Ate Caretaker before riding a cab.
The scary thing is, sa cab palang parang nag-ccloud na yung eyes ko as if ready to shut down na, and I was just trying to fight it. I felt extra tired as if nag sports ako, and parang may nagpupull parin sa hair ko. My back was also aching. I've watched 1 million Asian horror movies since college, so I know what these signs meant, kaya kahit nahihiya ako mag sabi sa mga kasama ko at mag mukhang pussy or nananakot lang, I went ahead and turned to Tracy and told her "Sumasakit ulo ko."
Later on, I learned from Pax na she's experiencing narin the same thing kaya quiet na sha in her seat in front of the cab. Tracy told me later on nalang din that iba na ichura ko when I talked to her--not in a monster way a, haha, but in a parang may sakit way.
Later on, I learned from Pax na she's experiencing narin the same thing kaya quiet na sha in her seat in front of the cab. Tracy told me later on nalang din that iba na ichura ko when I talked to her--not in a monster way a, haha, but in a parang may sakit way.
When we reached Camp John Hay, Tracy decided to huddle the group, and prayed. More Diplomat Hotel insights in Pax's blog post. I did not Googled na it's inside "secret" stories, but si girl matapang so you might want to read her post for more detailed ganaps.
Anyway, at Camp John Hay, where it's sunny and bright (and hot!) na (haha), our first stop was at a convenience store, where Pax and I reenergized. As in Gatorade na ang ininum ko (lol), while Pax bought an ion drink! Sabi nya parang sinuck ng spirits our energy, and it did felt that way!
After our prayers and our talks, parang nawala na the heavy feeling (thank God!), so we looked for the woods area where we can take nice outfit photos! :) Check mine HERE.
Selfie time! Sobrang daming adventure ng Day 2! :D Haha!
Team Instax reprezent! Had to document this moment with prints! Grabeng ka-epican, not only the place and the climate, but our experiences!
Because of what happened, super thankful ako for these girls! I don't know ano na nanyari sakin if wala sila, but ika nga ni Ate Caretaker "kapit-kapit" lang kami sa isa't isa!
The next day, Tracy went on a wedding so mag isa lang syang nag cab and, out of curiosity, was able to talk to the cab driver about Diplomat Hotel and her 2 (pasaway) friends who went up the Bell Tower (hehe). Kuya taxi told Tracy na most people who go up to the Bell Tower ang napopossess. "Malakas" daw kami, kaya nalabanan namin. I had doubts when I heard Tracy's story, but I quietly prayed and thanked God, I guess I do have strong faith even with all my doubts.
Bilang yolo nadin ang mga kaganapan, on our car ride up to the Ben Cab Museum, I stuck my head outside the window and felt the cool breeze on my face! Sarap sa Baguio!
Kung mamalasin nga naman, the Ben Cab Museum was closed! Bakasyon pala sila ng Mondays, hassle! ;p Sayang ang tinaxi namin, haha!
We went home nalang to rest before heading out again for dinner. The kids slept, but ako, kahit malamig na ang hangin at tubig, I took a bath and went to my balcony. Grabe talaga lakas-tama sa akin ng experience, I had to think take time to keep my mind blank lang muna.
For dinner, we tried this recommended place called the Ketchup Food Community:
It's several restaurants pala in one compound, so moremore choices for the different taste buds, hehe. I wonder why Ketchup!? Ang cute lang, love that word (hehe, random)
After dinner, and para more Baguio places ang mapuntahan, hindi pwedeng we don't get coffee and dessert. We had a short cab ride to Pnky Cafe. I think Tin also suggested this, mainam talagang may "researcher" sa group noh! ;p
The place is super artsy inside and out. Traveling-inspired sha, so very interesting picturean ang every corner. I love the lomo table the most! :)
And this triple-maleta corner table < 3
Pax, Tracy, and Tin were so excited din! :D Travel bugs na talaga! ;p More photos:
Ang cute ng souvenir display nila, labeled with Scrabble alphabet! ;p
More maletas, and the cute "passport" menu:
Coffee, hot chocolate, and brownies:
Tiny wooden maleta for the bill:
Photo op by the lomo-table. Gusto ko gawin to in my room. :p
Links:
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7 Comments
Oooohhh the Diplomat Hotel... Ay may chika pala akong nalaman rin sa isang travel blogger nung nagpunta sila dun... Ang sabi naman sa kanila, kaya hindi allowed umakyat sa may bell tower kasi may something na nanunulak or parang may nagkaka-urge na tumalon ka... At infair, inayos na nila yung dun sa may paakyat, dati kasi sa pictures ang nakikita ko may nakasulat na "keep off" chu chu...
ReplyDeleteNAKAKATAKOT NAMAN THE TRIVIA!!! :p
DeleteHahaha sorry naman :3
DeletePero nagtugma pala yung sa blogpost ni Pax, about the nun na tumalon... Pwede kasi yung "nanunulak" or something...
I first read Pax's post and now yours. Grabe ka windang pala ang diplomat experience nyo! hehe. Good to know na di kayo mashado naapektado. Question, if you had known about all the scary details about the place, would you still have gone to the hotel and up the 2nd floor? :P cool post!
ReplyDeleteI dont know but feel ko di manlang ako pupunta sa place na yun AT ALL if alam ko!! ;p But depends din sa mood, ang adventurous ata ng gising namin ni Pax nun! ;p Thanks Ate Kai for reading! :)
Deleteyou should also try to visit Baguio's christmas village near Baguio Country Club =) It's great there at night. =)
ReplyDeleteMy friends and I actually went there before, inikot naman namin lahat but we didn't feel any presence at all... lucky us nalang siguro hehe. We even had jump shots near the entrance and we pose near the cross. on top. haha. There was no caretaker at that time so we were the only ones in the building. Ano pa ba maganda puntahan sa Baguio... You might also want to stop by to kafe klatsch or forest house for a coffee... Actually, maganda maglakad lakad sa camp john hay... you can go there for picnic and stuff. Baguio also have this Kamayan eat all you can restau, it's only 250 pesos each, plus the scene is great too. =)
ReplyDeleteYour turn! Always excited to read your comments! :)