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Baguio, Benguet: Advice
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What advice would you give to someone who is moving to Baguio, Benguet, Philippines?
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What advice would you give to someone who is moving to Baguio, Benguet, Philippines?
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Baguio City is known as the primary escape to the heat of some urban areas like Manila during summer season, hence, it is called the ‘Summer Capital of the Philippines’. Even during the height of the heat, Baguio still remains to be a comfortable place to be in, that is why tourists flock to the city of pines. As tourists, a good 5-7 days is all it takes to explore the city and its neighboring provinces. It includes strolls in camps and parks, (Camp John Hay and PMA), visit museums (BenCab), taste of good food (Forest House along Loakan Road), nature tripping (strawberry picking at La Trinidad), hiking, and mountain climbing, among others. There are varied activities to do. It is a different story when one transfers to Baguio City for good. *First, you have to have something productive to do. It may be work or employment or passion in any craft waiting to start. If not, you may find yourself bored as the weather is very conducive to just staying put at home with a TV remote control in one hand and a spoon on the other. Yes! it is a place to easily gain weight. *Next, the place is wet almost all thoughout the year except for 2-3 months during summer. If you are the kind of person that gets affected by the gloomy weather, I should say ‘be ready as it rains every so often’. * If you plan to stay in Baguio to put up a business, think about this. .. Baguio is a tourist area where tourists visit during summer and holidays. Therefore, businesses can be seasonal too. Be ready with strategies and plans on how to make business work during lean months. In this connection, busy season creates a mass of humanity and cars. During this time, visitors’ cars plus the local vehicles create horrendous traffic, so, it is best to just walk to your destination. Generally, a daytime walk is always a nice stroll with its pleasant weather. *Lastly, it would be nice to note that the locals are friendly people. They care about their environment so it would be good to be one with them. They are peace-loving people too. If you are ready to acculturate yourself and be a part of the beautiful city and its people, go ahead and enjoy living in the city where I was not born but very much willing to spend the rest of my life.
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For the purpose of information, Baguio city is the original dwelling of the Igorot Ibaloi tribe. The next tribe is the Igorot Benguet Kankanaey. For the past few decades and until the present, the Igorot Mountain Province Kankanaeys have migrated into the city and have become probably the majority tribe in terms of population. During the late 1800s and early 1900s, Ilocano, Pangasinan and some Tagalog lowlanders have made Baguio their home so that their children, born in this city, identified themselves as Baguio boys or girls. During those years also, Chinese and Japanese resided in the city and started some business and farming. Some Spaniards and some Europeans have also come in to reside and traded and did some mining business at the communities surrounding Baguio. The Americans established Baguio as a chartered city in the early 1900s choosing it to be the Summer Capital of the Philippines, where the government came to escape the summer heat of Manila. They chose this place due to its mountain terrain and pine trees being similar to some American cities. They established schools that trained young men and women to educate the surrounding communities and mountain provinces. The nearby municipality of La Trinidad, where there is a valley was the choice of the Spaniards in the 1700s to be their Estancia. So, at present, the city is populated by a mix of highlanders and lowlanders. It would be best not to hold on to your style and attitudes when coming to reside here. Better adjust and be courteous, kind and not argumentative be and confrontational. Smile and know that you are easily accepted if you show gentleness. Blend. You would know outsiders easily by their brash attitude, though this may not true for all of them. Outsiders can also be identified by the way they drive. They push their way and rush the pedestrian lanes, when they should instead slow down. Of course, some Baguio drivers are also not courteous but they can be reprimanded, unlike outsiders who insist. So, please drive with courtesy, signal properly and smile as you make eye contact with the other driver. Manila drivers avoid eye contact because this would cause trouble and confrontation when in Manila. English is spoken and understood by the majority (mostly by highlanders and original dwellers). Ilocano and Tagalog are dialects for conversation and there are many who still speak Ibaloi and Kankanaey (both known as Igorot dialects). Welcome to Baguio city. Now heavily populated, polluted and noisy. Nevertheless, it still is the wonderful city of the Cordilleras.