If you live in Baguio, sooner or later, you'd run out of something entertaining to do. If you live in Baguio, one day you'd just realize that your world became too small for you. If you are older and done with night life, Colorado and Hydro waterfalls, Asin hot-springs, the Benguet mummies, Mt. Kabuyao, Clondikes hot-springs, and you are dead-bored with the other so-called tourist spots for local tourists like the crowded Burnham park, Mines-view, taking photos at the gate of Mansion house, cowboying in Wright park, John-hay, Lourdes grotto, hobnobbing with the Tam-awan artists, picking strawberries at the strawberry farm, trying fortune cookies in Bell church, and shopping for souvenirs at Asin woodcarvings or at the public market; if you are not a tourist in Baguio, what else is left for you to do?
Well, you can always hang-out in airy SM Mall until you get broke.
For my guest, I searched the internet for other things to do and I found one very attractive offer in which you don't have to travel too far. It can be a one-day trip... Attractions include a lake, a hotel, a swimming pool, a camping park, and a gold mine tour, all in one package, perfect! - or so I thought.
Since the internet data is very scanty, we went to the Tourist Information Office to ask for more information. They gave us numbers to call, only to find out that these numbers are not working. The next day we started-off anyway, trusting our luck.
The mine tour lasted about an hour and it was quite good. We tried our hands on rock-drilling. And to make the experience more impressive, the tour-guide even exploded a dynamite
***
My first time to enter a mining tunnel was when I was at the University. I and my friends were escorted by the miners themselves. These miners were the ones we were trying to organize to form a labor union against the mining corporation. Wow, those were the days.
The second time I visited a gold mine tunnel was in Sado island, Japan. I think this mine is one of the oldest and it is now converted into a museum complete with life-sized effigies. Walking through the tunnels, the heavy energy of the gruesome conditions and stories of the prisoners and exiles who were forced to work there, felt as heavy as gold.
***
I don't support mining as a livelihood, if I can help it.
Gold panning, the traditional way of doing it. Separate the gold from the non-gold by sifting.
Can you see what I see?! Gold dust!
This is the camping park. I was trying to melt my belly in this exercise ropes.
Reading in peace.
I looked forward to swim in the much advertised lake but it wasn't available! We were told that to go to the lake, we have to go through an underground tunnel aboard a rickety miners' train. Unfortunately, the train metal tracks were stolen or too rusted or both. When we later happened to see the lake from a distance, (it is actually a dam) it has very little water so I think I couldn't have swam there anyway.
So this was our 2 days excursion to Balatoc Mines, it could also be done in just one day.
Well, you can always hang-out in airy SM Mall until you get broke.
For my guest, I searched the internet for other things to do and I found one very attractive offer in which you don't have to travel too far. It can be a one-day trip... Attractions include a lake, a hotel, a swimming pool, a camping park, and a gold mine tour, all in one package, perfect! - or so I thought.
Since the internet data is very scanty, we went to the Tourist Information Office to ask for more information. They gave us numbers to call, only to find out that these numbers are not working. The next day we started-off anyway, trusting our luck.
There was the swimming pool. But it was drained because they were not expecting visitors (!?) We spent the night in that dormitory hotel. The building is very old, more than twice my age. The corridors were dark just like the dark goldmine tunnels, but we encountered no ghosts and the surroundings was quiet and peaceful.
The mine tour lasted about an hour and it was quite good. We tried our hands on rock-drilling. And to make the experience more impressive, the tour-guide even exploded a dynamite***
My first time to enter a mining tunnel was when I was at the University. I and my friends were escorted by the miners themselves. These miners were the ones we were trying to organize to form a labor union against the mining corporation. Wow, those were the days.
The second time I visited a gold mine tunnel was in Sado island, Japan. I think this mine is one of the oldest and it is now converted into a museum complete with life-sized effigies. Walking through the tunnels, the heavy energy of the gruesome conditions and stories of the prisoners and exiles who were forced to work there, felt as heavy as gold.
***
I don't support mining as a livelihood, if I can help it.
Gold panning, the traditional way of doing it. Separate the gold from the non-gold by sifting.
Can you see what I see?! Gold dust!
This is the camping park. I was trying to melt my belly in this exercise ropes.
Reading in peace.I looked forward to swim in the much advertised lake but it wasn't available! We were told that to go to the lake, we have to go through an underground tunnel aboard a rickety miners' train. Unfortunately, the train metal tracks were stolen or too rusted or both. When we later happened to see the lake from a distance, (it is actually a dam) it has very little water so I think I couldn't have swam there anyway.
So this was our 2 days excursion to Balatoc Mines, it could also be done in just one day.
1 comments:
Lorenzo said...
Oh My Gulay! Brings back so much memories! I really enjoyed that post! Thanks so much!