MIATA CLUB PHILIPPINES
GOES TO BAGUIO
Oct. 18-20, 2002
People of Miatadom:
Your fearless leader and your gallant troops have returned. The raiding party consisted of the following: JojoO, JoeyA, JoeyP, Jenny, EddieS, Odie, Chem and his son Nico, Keith, Jun, Carlo, and myself on the friday morning foray. ChitoF, Zaffy, Collins, Alfie, and Lino Zamora on the Saturday morning foray. Joining the raiding party at Baguio Country Club were Joselu, Martin Tanco and his wife Miya. Take note, that's 19 members who participated in this historic milestone event!
We took off at 4am sharp last Friday morning from the Julia Vargas Caltex
station. JoeyA who committed to going was conspicuously absent. A little
while later we learn that JoeyA mistakenly thought that take off was set
for 430am and he called to say that he'd catch up. At the Balintawak
interchange I posed a query over the radio to the group if JoeyA could
still catch us taking into consideration that we had 20 minutes and at
least a 10km head-start. JoeyP responds that it would be no problem for
JoeyA. Not 10 minutes after I posed that query JoeyP radioed, "and Almeda
IS HERE!!!". I go, "where is he?" , "right behind you"
JoeyP says. I
shift my eyes into my side mirror and -WHOOOOSSSSHHHH!!! Almeda passes me
as if I was standing still!
At that moment a lightning strike force formed consisting of Almeda, Perry
and Odie acting as an advanced party for the group. You should've seen how
these guys were dicing up the road and weaving in and out of traffic! In a
short time they were out of sight and out of radio range.
The second group, in which I was running, was led by Keith. All was well until we hit the town of Carmen in Pangasinan where Keith authoritatively announces over the radio that we were not to cross the bridge thereat but instead we were to turn right as directed by the signs. Each one in the group relays the message to those in the back. We follow Keith and the roads soon enough turn into secondary and then tertiary roads until they were simple farm to market roads lined on each side with rice paddies that the local farmers used as a surface on which to dry their palay. All of us, most vocally Jenny, successively ask Keith "is this really the way?". No answer. Keith proceeds with determination turning at intersections positively as though he had been through there countless times.
The locales through which we passed were like a time-warp. We go through tiny municipalities the centers of which were lined with enormous trees which seemed like they'd been there forever. Very picturesque, very scenic, but some of the roads were starting to get really bad.
Soon enough we hit primary highways and that lifted our confidence for now it seemed that we were headed in the right direction. At a Shell station we spot the miatas of the advanced party and we ask them if they'd been there long and they said about 40 minutes. We told them about the route we took and they inform us that we went the wrong way. We should've crossed the bridge, the bridge that we avoided! Boy did we feel inept! Keith confesses to me up in Baguio the following day that he hadn't been to Baguio in 14 years! Sheesh!!!
Picture taking at the Shell station and poking fun at our little misadventure and once again we were off! We hit Marcos highway and it is praiseworthy! Though only two lanes, it's wide and smooth with lots of room on either side to avoid oncoming cars should you be caught on the oncoming lane while passing a slower vehicle. The curves were fast and properly banked and on the lower portion of the climb they could be taken at triple digit speeds. Now some of the guys from the second group were now flying at a pretty fast clip with the advanced party. Notably, Chem was feeling mighty proud of himself seeing that he was able to keep up with Almeda and Perry as we blast through the wide sweeping turns, our tires dancing on the very edges of adhesion.
As we arrive in Baguio at around 930am, we stop at a gas station where Almeda complains and apologizes to us that he couldn't go as fast as he could up the mountain as he had been running low on gas. Well, at least for a moment there we felt as though we were supermen behind the wheel : )
We check in at Baguio Country Club and get our lodging assignments. A sumptuous brunch at the veranda restaurant at BCC with our host Jojo Ozaeta who directs our attention to a sign on the wall where his name is proudly heralded on a wing under construction, the "Roman Ozaeta Wing", the sign said. Wrong move Jojo. Now, we felt like real hot stuff! We were the guests of the main man! The dude whose name is on the wall is the dude we're with - nobody can say "no" to us! From that moment on, we were the loudest bunch there each time we ate at that restaurant.
After brunch we withdrew to the cottage for some relaxation after the long drive. This became a planning session where we mapped out what we were to do while we were there. It was determined that we needed supplies and fast (i.e. BEER!!!). We also decided that we were going to have a barbecue at the cottage the following night as Jojo made arrangements for us to have dinner at a French restaurant in town that night.
And so off we went to get our supplies at the Commissary in John Hay which is like 3 minutes away, nice drive but short. We got back to the cottage stored our provisions and we were soon bored. What were we to do in the meantime? None of us were golfers. The only golfer among us was Keith, and he was nursing a gout ridden foot. It was only 12 noon we had just had brunch and dinner felt like a millenium away. Fortunately, miata club members are virtually never at a loss for stories to tell or opinions to give. And so we sat in the cottage telling stories giving opinions, going over each other's cars, much like we do at the Fort on Friday nights but now we were in Baguio! Martin Tanco along with his wife and sister even joined us.
In the late afternoon however, we realize that we'd gone back in time with the story telling as we were already discussing the beginnings of the club! Interesting as that was, we felt that we needed to do something else. The game room! The club has a game room and we could play billiards, bowl, or ping-pong. However, at the game room we indifferently play one game and a half of billiards and somebody says - let's eat! By this time everyone was hungry as our last meal had been brunch. We were out of that game room quicker than we could say "siopao".
We head towards Session Road where Odie leads us in a search for Star Cafe which we find quick enough. There we discussed the upcoming BRC track day to which our club is invited but which is presenting some time management challenges as it is scheduled on the same day as our traditional breakfast meeting for November. More on this on another e-mail.
After merienda at Star Cafe we proceed back to the cottage to await Jojo for our dinner engagement. While waiting we notice that there are policemen with M-16's wandering about the gate of BCC. Gradually, the gate and the parking lot are rife with activity as there are now firemen running about the place. We learn soon enough that there's a bomb threat. We also learn that bombs had gone off in Manila. Great! One of the rare instances that I choose to go to Baguio and there's a bomb threat! Not only that, I have managed to get myself into a room in the building rather than in the cottage. If something goes wrong while we're sleeping in that room I'd have to climb down three stories rather than just jump out of a low cottage window. What the heck!
In the end no bomb was found. Moreover, the order with which BCC handled the situation was very impressive. Turns out the event only made the beginning of our evening more interesting.
Once the cars were allowed to leave the parking lot we headed towards the restaurant in Jojo's Landcruiser. Nice car incidentally.
At the restaurant we met Jojo's brother in-law who is introduced to us with the qualification that he is the owner of a less than 2th km red miata. We quickly ask if he's selling it but he just as quickly tells us that it's for his son when he gets old enough to drive.
The food at that restaurant is incredibly good! If you're in Baguio, you gotta try it out! Salud's, I think is it's name. Difficult to get to, but the food is well worth it.
After the restaurant at around 10pm we head back to the cottage for more fraternizing. But now the early Manila take-off and the beer which I had been drinking since noon was starting to catch up with me. Sitting on the armchair which I had proclaimed to be my throne whilst in Baguio, I was already dozing off. However, the others were still talking and they relate to me that though I was sleeping I was still participating in the conversation giving responsive comments despite being asleep. Eventually, it was time to retire.
The following morning, as I awoke at a little past 7am, Carlo was still asleep with his biological CAI at full bore. I wondered if the others would wake as early as I considering the previous day's activities and the extended evening festivities. I called JoeyA to wake him up. To my own embarrassment these guys were already awake and were headed towards the veranda restaurant for the breakfast buffet!
We met them at a little past 8am and had breakfast. By this time we had
met up with Joselu who arrived the night prior and was having breakfast
with his lady companion. The breakfast buffet at BCC is great! But then
again mababaw ang kaligayahan ko jan, tapsilog lang masaya na ko!
That morning JoeyA had to leave for Subic, Odie and Eddie had to leave for Manila. We hung out at the veranda restaurant until about 11am when ChitoF, Zaffy, Collins, Alfie and Lino arrived. They had driven up in two cars: Chito's Vitarra, where all of them rode, and Lino in his newly acquired BRG miata. Alfie had driven the Vitarra up and gave it a good wringing. They related an amusing story of how they had slalomed through all the McDonald's of Pangasinan in search of strawberry sundae to no avail.
The rest of the day was spent searching and deciding on a place in which to have lunch and finally decided on two different places splitting the group into two sets. In the late afternoon we decided to go on a run and we drove to the PMA grounds but were denied entry as they were on red alert. So we just happily cruised around in chilly Baguio with our tops down, with just a hint of a drizzle, enjoying the weather and the twisty, winding roads. Baguio is miata heaven! After PMA we went to the Mansion House and drove by Mine's View Park and then back to BCC.
By then it was time to make arrangements for our barbecue. The long-awaited and long-ago planned miata club barbecue has finally been fulfilled! And what a barbecue it was! We had tenderloin, pork-chops, lamb, tanguinge, salmon, bangus - everything! Moreover, we didn't have to do a single thing, BCC did all the work. Members of the staff came to the cottage with the food and they grilled 'em right outside our cottage! Joselu and his lady friend arrived bringing 4 bottles of wine. Next time I hope Selu forgets the wine and just brings more girls! As the evening progressed Jojo arrived and then Martin.
As a fitting cap to the Baguio run, Jojo hosted for drinks and coffee at the BCC bar where we conducted a semi-formal meeting in which we extended our gratitude to the people without whom the Baguio run could not have been realized. They are: JoeyP for coming up with idea and coordinating the preliminaries for the run; JojoO, who hosted the run's participants at the BCC, and ChitoF who contributed two additional rooms so that more members could participate on this run at reduced cost. It is persons like they who contribute and volunteer their time, effort and resources so that we can have more opportunities in which to enjoy our beloved toys as a club and to further enhance the camaraderie amongst club members. Thank you gentlemen and thank you to all the participants of the just concluded Baguio run!
-joeyb