Wandering around museums

“Art washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life.”

~ Pablo Picasso

If you find reading books to learn about a country’s history and culture too tedious, go to museums. That’s a more exciting way of learning given that there are visuals to aid it. And museums, being (mostly) quiet, offer a break from the daily nuisance of a bustling city.

BenCabMuseum

It seemed unlikely, but in spite of living in Baguio City for 9 months, I didn’t visit the BenCab Museum. When I went back to the place a year later in January, 2017, it was originally part of my itinerary. But curling up during chilly mornings in Baguio is irresistible, so instead of going out early, I heeded the bed’s call.

Being an item in my bucket list this year, it must be ticked off, so in May, when my friends and I went to Baguio (my second visit this year), we went to the distant museum despite the limited time we had.

BenCab Museum is located along Asin Road in Tadiangan, Tuba, Benguet, a 20- to 30-minute drive from the city proper. If you plan to go there via taxi cab, I suggest that you ask the driver to come back for you at a specified time, or ask him to wait for you, then pay him extra according to the accumulated distance, or time. Otherwise, you will have to wait for your turn, which takes a while, on the taxi line. There are public market-bound jeepneys passing by the area, but most of them are full.

The museum has four levels, starting from the Street Level (where you enter, register, and pay the P120 admission fee) all the way down to the Farm & Garden Level where Café Sabel is situated. Heads up: They don’t use paper cups, so don’t expect that you can take your coffee out. It’s a museum after all, food and beverage is not allowed in the galleries.

The Farm & Garden Level offers a picturesque landscape that serves as backdrop in photos taken by guests. You’ll love the fog obscuring the green mountains, the cottage in the middle of the pond, and the chilly breeze hugging the surroundings.

Tam-awan Village—a treasure trove of culture and artworks

​​Baguio City became my second home for nine months. When I decided to go back to Manila and start anew, I realized there was one more thing to do before leaving the Summer Capital—visit Tam-awan Village.

Dubbed as "Garden in the Sky," Tam-awan is a village of art galleries built by Chanum Foundation on a roadside hill in Baguio City—a 10-minute drive from the city proper.

Shrek the Musical—an energetic mix of contagious humor

“It's a big bright beautiful world...”

What the world presents is quite different from the picture formed by expectations in your head. This reality—and other life's ironies—dawned on Shrek and Princess Fiona, but the effect on their lives is something that makes everyone wonder, “Why did I not ever wish for this to happen?”

Shrek is a big, fat, ugly Ogre who was sent out by his parents at the tender age of seven. He knew from the start that there's a “big, bright, beautiful world” out there—but not for him. He thinks that only the physically beautiful deserve it; not someone who's hideous looking.

Princess Fiona has been locked up in a tower since she was a child. Every day, she expects that her Prince Charming will climb up the tower and rescue her from the solitary loneliness that has been her companion.

Lord Farquaad, the vain, short ruler of Duloc realizes that he needs to rescue Princess Fiona from the dragon-guarded tower and marry her, so he could be king. But he didn't want to do the mission himself.

They are unsuspecting that their lives will change one fateful day. Sent by Lord Farquaad shortly after arriving in Duloc, Shrek, together with his new-found quirky friend, Donkey, embarks on a mission he accepts with the sole purpose of recovering his swamp from the unjust ruler. The three has different expectations. Little do they know that their stories are written with a different plot.