Things You Can Do in Baguio City After Summer (Part 1)

In the many times I have traveled to Baguio City, most of those were during hot summer days - February and March (Panagbenga season and during daddy's death anniversary). It is true, the City of Pines is more popular during summer because of its favorable weather, but when rainy season comes, the hype seems to die down. Maybe because most of well known Baguio City attractions are best visited when the sun is up and the sky is blue... but I was blessed to have traveled to Baguio during the rainy season, and I am happy to say that there are still so many awesome places to check and things to do even if it is raining outside.


Enjoy a cup of hot drink and some pastries.

Casa Vallejo near SM City Baguio houses three interesting places, one of which is the Hill Station, where you can enjoy snacks. They offer sandwiches and different drinks, but people mostly visit this place for their desserts.



Feed your mind.

Right next to Hill Station is Mt. Cloud Book Shop, a local book store that sells mostly Filipiniana books, but there are also very interesting foreign books. The first time I set foot here was last March and I instantly in love with the place! This book store offer so many books that are not usually available in big, popular book stores, which adds more charm to the place. Last March it was here that I got to buy my copy of Noli Me Tangere and El Filibusterismo, but the next time I set foot here, I vow to buy these two books in their hardcover format.


Have a one-of-a-kind cinema experience.

As you exit Mt. Cloud Book Shop, this spread of movie posters will pique your interest, and if it is raining outside and you don't feel like roaming around, you may opt to stay in and enjoy a movie. Since this cinema is not located in the mall, this for sure will be a different kind of a movie experience, especially that they show movies that are not really shown in common cinemas.



Taste the flavors of the Cordillera.

Baguio City is a foodie's heaven, with so many restaurants left and right. Surely, you may find food places in the city that offers different kind of ambiance and flavors, but if you want to be very true to the Cordilleran experience, I recommend you check out Café Yagam. Their specialty is the Sagada-roasted coffee, but they also offer pastries and traditional Cordilleran cuisine.

I was able to taste four of these dishes - The Pinuneg, Binungor, Kini-ing and the Pinikpikan. To keep warm from the cold Baguio weather, we also had the Tapuey (rice wine). More about this food trip will be shared in the upcoming posts.





Appreciate art.

Most of the artwork in this 4-storey museum is made by the National Artist for the Visual Arts BenCab (Benedicto Reyes Cabrera), but there are just so many galleries in this museum that would tickle your senses. If you get tired, there is a hut outside for you to rest at, or you might want to try the food at Café Sabel.





Learn about hard work.

The Easter Weaving Room may look like a big souvenir shop where you can buy different kinds of products - from food to jewelry, from poncho to footwear. However, the magic happens downstairs, where they weave the fabric they use. You may think the Cordilleran fabric may be expensive, but when you visit their weaving room and see just how difficult it is to weave these fabrics with intricate designs, you will appreciate the products even more. Biggest lesson I learn - don't sell yourself short.

There are still so many things to do in Baguio after summer, but I will cut this post short for now and hope you can join me again next time when I post the part two of my series of articles dedicated to the City of Pines. My biggest gratitude to the people of Azalea Residences Baguio for making this a one-of-a-kind trip.

*** Jenn ***