Words of one truly proud and enamoured of his city. I'm talking about no less than the mayor of Baguio City. In his welcome speech during my seminar in his city last week, he never failed to punctuate his sentences with the word "beautiful", the adjective ever present as if its the only word left in the English vocabulary to describe the city of pines. Redundant is an understatement but I guess the good mayor just got carried away in his zeal to promote of what to him is the best city in the country. While I'm not totally in agreement, I do say it is one place worth staying and visiting. For one thing, I just love their taxis and those behind its wheels. When I arrived and asked about where I could find my hotel, an obviously proud local, sensing my apprehension when I learned it was far off from the downtown proper, assured me that the taxi drivers of Bguio City are honest and that they would bring you to your destination he fastest way possible without tampering with the meter as was my usual experience in Manila (I know, I know, this revelation about Manila is not good publicity). I soon found out that his was not an empty boast. In all my commutes on Baguio's taxis, not once did I feel that I was being "taken for a ride" and my fare never went above a hundred pesos even though the distance and traffic made such rides a long one. Indeed, the people are doing its best to make their place as tourist-friendly as possible.
Going back to the place that is the closest in experiencing Western weather, I soon found some most welcome and unwelcome of changes. More on that when I get home. For now, I have to do some late minute shopping. Till then...
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