Lakbay Norte

 Rediscovering the City of Pines

By Earl D.C. Bracamonte

The North Luzon Expressway Corp. (NLEX), in partnership with Victory Liner, SM Supermalls, and Microtel embarked on another Lakbay Norte destination; this time to the summer capital of the Philippines via Clark, Pampanga.

Our stopover at SM Clark apprized us of the mall's "Travel Your Color" campaign where every hue on the spectrum corresponded to a specific itinerary. Blue stood for beaches, yellow for food and gastronomy, red for arts and crafts, green for the great outdoors, and orange for culture vultures.

The campaign saw the mall as travel destination, especially for those who don't want to travel far from home. The mall is a one-stop shop for dining, family entertainment (like IMAX movie viewing, ice skating, or bowling games), shopping, and bonding moments.

There's more snaps and more fun time with the barkada every time you stay at Microtel Baguio. More than its comfortable and clean facilities, the hotel makes for an ideal choice of stay because of its proximity to Baguio's tourist attractions, from parks to museums, as well as food stalls of pasalubong finds.

Aside from the popular BenCab Museum, art aficionados would love the bric-a-brac at Ililikha. Film director Kidlat Tahimik (known for his 1977 opus "Perfumed Nightmare) bonded with other local artists to offer this maze of alleyways offering food and eclectic art forms right in the heart of the city.

A visit to the Baguio Museum afforded us a chance encounter with sculptor Ernesto Dul-ang, who was responsible for some of the most beautifully sculpted pieces on display. It was during a guided tour that executive director Stella de Guia informed us that the roof of the museum's topmost floor is colored black as it approximates the soot-covered ceilings and roofs of most Ifugao dwellings.

Foodies would revel in Microtel's wood fire brick oven pizza at Amare La Cucina, aside from its other mouthwatering delicacies. Plus, barako coffee lovers would be delighted to know that there's a percolating coffee machine at the lobby area where guests can have their unlimited supply of caffeine fix.

Lakbay Norte offers the best travel propositions through its network of carriers (Victory Liner), paved dedicated highways (SCTEX/TPLEX/NLEX), drive & dine stopovers (Hap Chan and Bloom & Baker Café among many others), as well as outdoor and indoor destinations (SM Supermalls).

Our romp back to Manila brought us to a night tour of the 4th Avenue connector in Caloocan City, prior to its opening for public use. And despite how many times one might have trekked the familiar corridors of North Luzon, there is always that hideaway you might have missed in your previous trips.