The Birth of Budget Biyahera…

I started my travels when I was about 7 years old. My father, a former NHA employee, would always bring me and my brother to his travel escapades. He took us to several family reunions in Pangasinan and in some parts of Zambales. But the one trip that I will never forget was the one in Baguio. I remember it as one of the most memorable of all the trips that I've been to.


Spending a few days in this pleasantly cold place was an adventure on its own. And traveling as a kid by land, on an approximately 6 to 7 hour trip was pure bliss. Except for those two times that I had to bawl my brains out, I still enjoyed the long bus trip. Drinking Sprite actually helped me to feel less light-headed during the trip. 

Experiencing Baguio as a kid made quite an impressive memory. I remember photos taken of my father driving the bicycle with my then 3 year old brother, somewhere in Burnham Park; and posing in front of a film camera, while my knees jittered by the overlooking area of Mines View. I also recall what may have been a hundred steps, going all the way up to the Baguio Cathedral; and enjoying lunch at Barrio Fiesta with family friends.

Since then, I’ve made five more trips to Baguio throughout my years. Then again, those trips have their own stories to tell. But through that first real adventure, will I always thank my father. For he helped me embrace the wanderluster in me.

And even in memory, Daddy will always continue to be a part of my journeys…

[In loving memory of Tom Flores --- February 02, 1960 - February 19, 1995]

Explore & Be Free!
Always,
Mai

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100 comments

  1. Baguio is always a favorite vacation destination for me as well. Lucky for me I have a friend who lives there and accommodation are sometimes free if indeed I booked earlier among their other usual visitors. I've also been there for some work-related trips.

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    1. Hello Giay! Baguio will always be a favorite of mine.. Iba ang memories na binigay sakin ng lugar na yan, kahit super layo! hehe.. thanks for dropping by. =)

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  2. I actually miss Baguio and this same place holds a lot of memories--memories of travel not really with my father (such as yours) but with some set of friends. I hope my father was as adventurous but he has other interests of his own. XD

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    1. My dad was indeed the Biyahero. I got that from him. =) And indeed.. Baguio will always have that certain oOmph to every traveler who's been there. =)

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  3. Never been to Baguio but its on my list this year, June hopefully. :)

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    1. Really? Go there this June, magpalamig ka na lang although baka maulan na by then..

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  4. Nice share. Baguio is really a nice place to have vacation. I plan to schedule in going to there next month. :)

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    1. Salamat! =) Just a simple tribute to my dad.. and go na, para malamig ang summer mo this April! =)

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  5. I am living in Baguio city since 2007. :) Baguio will always be my favorite place. Glad to know that you enjoy your stay. :)

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    1. hello dear.. Thanks for dropping-by! Love Baguio city to bits! Where in Baguio are you staying? =)

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  6. I started my childhood travels in baguio too

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  7. Baguio never fails to weave its charm on me even up to now. Here's to another year of travel and exploration. Cheers!:)

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    1. Ye! Cheers Blanca.. I hope to visit Baguio again real soon. =)

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  8. Aww, I lost my father too, ten years ago, and I can totally relate to how certain places and trips will always remind you of dad! :)

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    1. I lost my father 17 years ago naman.. and every time I travel, lagi ko siyang naaalala..

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  9. wow, your fondest memory of your dad happens in Baguio... cool...

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  10. May,

    Beautifully written post. Baguio, indeed, is a haven for most vacationers. I studied in Baguio and I understand how you feel. Have you been to the asin hot springs not far from Baguio? or the Maryhurst and Pink sister's. Parang nasa ibang bansa ka, lalo na pag foggy siya.

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    1. Thanks Jena! I actually plan on visiting both places.. cguro pwedeng side trip kung pupunta akong Sagada. Sagada kasi is another dream destination. =)

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  11. Happy traveling :) I'm hoping to travel to Baguio, too! Any ghost stories to share?

    jadeserinabioneda.co.nr

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    1. Hello Jade! Naku.. I've no ghost stories.. too scared for those! hehe

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  12. I can see your post that you have many woderful happy memories with your Dad. My teen daughter Ishi and my OFW hubby are also close and malambing to one another...Ang sarap tignan....

    And also, Baguio brings back many happy family memories

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    1. Thank you Cielo.. I miss my dad everyday.. Tell your daughter to never stop creating happy memories with her parents. =)

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  13. We can always learn a thing or two from our dad. I want to travel around the world and someday, I want to do it with my whole family. And I wish I can enjoy Baguio even more... 

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  14. It was my dad too who instilled in me the love to travel. Every time he's away I'd get a postcard from him of wherever he goes. Greece, Hamburg, Amsterdam, Norway, name it and he'll send me one along with a photo of himself...His gesture made me interested in geography and history a lot...it was with pure regret that I wasn't able to bring him to Vienna before he passed away. :( But I'm sure he had a longer list of the places he saw compared to mine...miss him!

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  15. kudos to your dad for raising the budget biyahera the way he did! our parents do have lasting influence on us + in our lives, long before they are gone....one of my father's legacy is the gift of reading + i would like to be able to pass it on to my son, too! 

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  16. iLIKE ur tagline explore and be free.,..

    iba talaga pagkasama mo ang parents mo sa bawat journey ng buhay mo.

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  17. You're right Liz. We can definitely make each time count. We just need to will it. =)

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  18. I Miss my dad too.. laki din talaga ng impact ng dads natin noh? It's been 17 years, but I still bring my thoughts of him with me, through my every travel. =)

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  19. That's so heartwarming to read. And for sure, you will be able to pass on that great trait on your son. =)

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  20. Sobra AXL! Makes me miss my dad even more..

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  21. parents always want the BEST for their children.
    if only they can give everything that we wish to have or places we wish to go... they would find a way.

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  22. yay! i envy you for being a traveler since then..me?i grew up with my grandpa ;) and my stuff before with him include 'sabong', 'sabong' and 'sabong'..hahahahaha..

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  23. I hear ya Marri! =)

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  24. Ang cute naman ng 'sabong' comment mo.. I'm guessing you know a lot about cock-fighting na? =)

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  25. I'm a papa's girl too and I can relate to your sentiments. Sometimes, we can only wish for time...we will always remember that time spent together. 

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  26. I hear you Tori.. very well said. =)

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  27. I haven't exp travelling with my father that far, yes I don't remember at all, too bad that he died early

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  28. I haven't exp travelling with my father that far, yes I don't remember at all, too bad that he died early

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  29. I feel for you sis.. I actually wish that my father lived a little longer..

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  30. I wish we could travel with my father more. Lagi na lang siyang trabaho. But we usually join their company outings kapag summer. But traveling on our own as family, bihira lang. Now that I have a family of my own, I try to include him in our vacation.

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  31. Wow, you started your travel love story at a young age pala.. :) My dad doesn't like traveling that much so he never took us out of town. It's our mom who'd bring us to the province, or oftentimes, it's my school-related out of town trips that enabled me to see more of the Philippines and Asia. What my dad and I enjoyed bonding over though is food.. :)

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  32. I'm glad you and your dad have something in common to bond with. And your love for food truly shows din. Galing mo pa magDescribe at magsulat! =)

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  33. That's nice of you, Gene. Always try to include your dad in your trips. I'm sure he'll love the company. =)

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  34. I missed the days too when the whole family will go on a holiday, kahit sa malalapit lng na province every summer, the sweet memories that summer brings.. :D

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  35. So true Josie! Kaya kami, every summer talagang we make time. =)

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  36. i remember going to baguio na lagi akong nahihilo. i had motion sickness when i was a child kaya mabibilang din lang yung times that i go there. i just wish mabalik nila ung dating baguio; malinis, malamig and friendly ang mga tao.

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  37. hello Rachelle! Sorry for replying so late. I just saw your comment upon stumbling on this post today. Anyway, when was your last visit? Hirap din talaga pag mahiluhin sa biyahe. I was like that before, pero na-overcome ko din. I guess yung mga nasakyan ko lang na bus eh mas okay na mag-drive. As for me, ok pa din naman ang Baguio. Sana lang di na matuloy yung pagputol ng mga puno. :(

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  38. that is very touching, i just recently lost my dad this year and it was very painful and hard for our family..

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  39. Maria Gemma Defeo-HilotinOctober 31, 2012 at 12:02 PM

    Thanks for sharing your memories with your dad! For sure he's smiling reading your post in heaven! He was so young!!!

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  40. He's too young... "Gone too soon." But I'm sure, he's happy wherever he is now because you continue to explore the world he had left at a very young age of 35. If you don't mind my asking... what caused his early demise?

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  41. Hello Ms. Marri! My dad died po because of a brain aneurysm. :/

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  42. Yes, Ms. Gemma.. He was indeed very young. :( But thank you for the kind words...

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  43. Hi Rachel.. I feel for you. :( Sending you my deepest sympathy's...

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  44. I nice to know who influenced you to become and adventurer and I am sure you got you genes from your Dad. Isn't it great to have happy memories of your Dad and your travels together =)

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  45. Reading this made me think of my own father. I expect to write another post about him this coming month because it's his birthday. We never really forget even if they have long been gone.

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  46. Sad naman ao bigla. 7 years lang pala age gap namin ng father mo. You are lucky to have those fond memory from him.I never had those kind ofmemory from my father. if meron man ,hindi ko maalala.

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  47. Napakabata ba ng dad mo ng kinuha ni Lord. Nevertheless, He had opened your eyes to what you are now a good traveler. Sayang, ang late dad ko kasi is more of a home-body person.

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  48. At least your father kept an integral part in you which is your love for travel and Baguio being my hometown is always a nice place to travel.

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  49. So that's how it all started... I bet he's happy "up there" seeing his daughter now successful because of his influence in you. :)

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  50. It's amazing how our childhood affects who and what we are today. Your dad is very proud of you, I'm sure.

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  51. ha! It's good to know that the genes are pass and we thank your father cause without his travel escapade, we wont know the budget byahera herself :)

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  52. Thanks for sharing this personal story of both your family and the beginnings of your traveling bug! :) Oh, I've only been to Baguio once, 4 years ago, and I distinctly remember having nothing but strawberry taho for the meals on my first day there.

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  53. Yes, Ricky. :) I'm actually blessed to have had so many great memories of my dad, especially the traveling part. :)

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  54. So true, Ms. Teresa.. When's your father's birthday? :)

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  55. I'm sure Ms. Tess that yourfather is very proud of you, especially with your achievements as a daughter and as a mother now. :)

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  56. Ok lang po siguro home-body, just as long as nakapag-experience kayo together ng worth while moments, na you'll forever get to cherish. :)

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  57. True on both points, Franc! :)

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  58. Thank you for calling what I have a "success".. hehehe! Thanks Che, I appreciate your kind words. :)

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  59. I think so too, Rizza. Thank you. :)

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  60. Aww.. hehe.. thanks JR! :)

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  61. Thanks Jason! :) And bigla ko tuloy naMiss ang Strawberry Taho. :) Ako, last time I had some was 4 years ago too. :)

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  62. Budget Byahera has grown in terms of journey and following through the years. Cheers.

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  63. Aww that's a touching story of how you are empowered to start with all your travels. I'm deeply touched. I appreciate your blog posts more thinking that each of them is tied with someone you love.

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  64. wow! so that's how the traveler in you came about :) I love Baguio too, its a place I will always been wanting to go back and visit.

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  65. Awesome to know about how Budget Biyahera started. I better start taking my little siblings to various travel destinations so that they will become like you one day. :)

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  66. Great to know your father is a traveler by heart too. going with him through reunions and everywhere else shows much he loves you. Moments with fathers are worth to cherish. Thanks for sharing the birth of this post/blog.

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  67. What a lovely story this is Mai Flores. Thank you for sharing with us.

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  68. It's great to know that your dad introduced you to love traveling :) Thanks for sharing this :) My dad also loved traveling but because our mom is prone to motion sickness and we were quite poor, we were hardly able to go to any fun vacations :/ It's great to read your story and how you continue to honor your dad during new jaunts :)

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  69. great to hear that you really enjoyed baguio the first time you went, especially with your dad. It's a great city and though it's not been the same as it was a couple of years back, it's still a good place to build new memories. :)

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  70. Revisiting again this very inspiring post. Just want to share a thing, My late dad once told me that "Daddy's girl or boy" will grow up more independent that children who are more 'motherly' attached. Laki talaga ng influence ng dad mo sa iyong travel life.

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  71. I was three years old when I first visited Baguio with my family and like you I experienced biking with my dad. These are precious memories I'd cherish all my life.

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  72. A very nice story. I hope I had the chance to travel with my father also. He died early kasi so I only have few memories of him (I was just 9 years old then).

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  73. Your father started your love for travelling and I'm sure he's guiding you in every travels you make these days.

    I've been to Baguio once palang and I am planning to bring our family there before the year ends.

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  74. Thank you, dear. That means a lot. :)

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  75. I actually want to go back and visit! It's so hot here in Manila. :)

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  76. Aww.. that's nice to hear. Thank you Kim. :) Do bond with your sibs real soon. :)

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  77. Thank you for posting this nice message as well. :)

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  78. Traveling has been a good way for me to not only let out the stresses of life, but to also continue what my dad has started. And thank you for sharing that part of you. Hopefully, your mom ain't experiencing any more motion sickness when you do finally travel somewhere. :)

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  79. Indeed. :) I actually miss Baguio. :)

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  80. Awww... thank you po tay! :) Salamat po for that insight.

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  81. At least we still had some good years with our fathers before they passed. My dad passed away when I was 11.

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  82. Do go on a road trip soon! Baguio will never fail to surprise. :)

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  83. So cute naman po the one with a sidecar bicycle. And it was also cool to know that you continued what your father been started. .keep it up!

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  84. Oh, that's how things started for you. Nice to see you and your father at the above photos, timeless indeed.

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