The Million Dollar Question Answered in Baguio

He's now officially my fiancé!

Thursday afternoon, Francis excitedly told me that he was asked by his boss to go to Baguio for a day to do something work-related. Though it seemed crazy to go to Baguio for a day trip (I already did that months ago), I still got excited nevertheless. So we planned to leave for Baguio come 12mn of Friday so we’d be there by 6am Saturday. Then, come late Saturday evening, we’d be on our way back to Manila.

We were going on a daytrip to Baguio for an official business. Francis said so.

BUT HE LIED.

The Roadtrip
I never liked the idea of going on a day trip to Baguio. I’ve already done that for a writing assignment, and it was an insane trip. For me, the majority of the day trip would only be spent getting there—that’s double the time you’d be actually spending touring the place. The only reason why I agreed to that assignment was because it’s Baguio—beautiful, marvelous Baguio.

Francis proposed that to make the day trip less exhausting, we’d leave Manila at midnight so we’d arrive there in the morning the next day. Then on that same day, we’d just take the late-night trip back to Manila. That way, we’d have enough time to enjoy the place without tiring ourselves to death. Practical enough, I thought.

Since there’s still work to do that Friday, we went home first to Francis’ place to have dinner and freshen ourselves before going to the Victory Liner terminal. Fifteen minutes before eleven in the evening, we were on our way to Cubao.

It was weird lugging only my camera bag and a shoulder bag for the trip. Whenever we go to Baguio, I always have big bags with me. But the fact that this particular trip was just like going to a mall here in Manila thrilled me.
The six-hour travel was extraordinarily cold. Francis and I, and I bet most of the other passengers as well, were trying our best to catch some sleep despite the very cold air conditioning. I actually had a really difficult time snoozing, because I've been losing sleep lately. Being a doting mother to our newborn puppies is a difficult job. That road trip gave me the break I needed, never mind if two stopovers managed to interrupt my attempt to get a good night’s rest.

The Buildup
A few minutes before 6am, the glittering lights that dot the mountains of Baguio greeted us a good morning. Upon alighting from the bus, the mountain air embraced us with its very cool (literally) welcome. Because we assumed that it’s still too early for any restaurant or fast food to be open for business, Francis and I decided to kill time taking pictures and chatting in the cold at the bus terminal. “Let’s catch breakfast at 7am,” Francis said. That was the first itinerary for the day. I checked the time—it was just fifteen minutes past six. Still feeling drowsy from lack of sleep, I was not able to control dozing off on Francis’ shoulder. And finally, after 30 minutes that seemed like hours, we got up from our seats and hailed a cab to The Manor in Camp John Hay.

A few years ago, Francis went on a ten-day assignment to Baguio. That trip introduced him to the wonderful but a bit pricey buffet breakfast at The Manor. Therefore, with that sumptuous buffet still in his mind, Francis declared The Manor to be the breakfast place for us. “He must have a hefty budget for this trip,” I thought.

A while ago, when I asked him about budget concerns (definitely, he was given enough money just for himself; I was worried that we’d be spending a lot in this daytrip, when we should be saving for another Baguio visit for the Panagbenga festival), he assured me, saying he’ll take care of the extra expenses. All I need to do was pitch in whatever amount I can. Fair enough deal.

The sun was still slowly making its way to the sky when we settled ourselves at a table. It was a perfect breakfast, what with the splendid garden view and the many choices to satisfy our gastronomic desires. Not wasting any precious time, Francis helped himself to rice, pancit, pork steak, bacons, buttered veggies, champorado (chocolate porridge), baked potatoes, and some fruits. Meanwhile, I busied myself with bacon, waffles, champorado, mango slices, a bowl of cereals with milk, two servings of sunny-side-ups, and a piece each of blueberry and cherry croissants. I don’t normally have coffee (due to health reasons), but that beautiful morning made me order for a cup. Actually, it’s also because I needed it to keep me awake.

I’ve never had a beautiful breakfast like that in a long time. The place was relatively quiet, except for a little chatter of some hotel guests. And there was a bonus for my camera (aside from the photographic food on our plates): two birds were happily pecking away crumbs of bread from the empty plates that the waiters hadn’t collected yet. “This is a perfect morning,” I said to myself.

While enjoying our fare, I was telling Francis of my plans to bring my mom and my sister to Baguio before we get married. Then came the talk of spending our honeymoon there in Manor. Other small talks about sketchy future plans occupied us.

Happily satisfied, we took a stroll before proceeding to our impromptu plans for the rest of the day. But I had to remind myself that half of our stay in Baguio would be devoted to his work. What were we there for but his weekend work assignment, right?

“Matagal ba yung gagawin mo for your work? (Would it take long for you to finish your work?),” I asked, worried that it might eat up the rest of our short stay.

“Mga two hours. May pinapatignan lang sa akin na establishments (About two hours. I just need to check out some establishments),” Francis replied—to my relief. After strolling a bit more while taking pictures of the place, we sat down to rest. Not too many guests were loitering around the hotel’s garden. But because the area where we were was getting a bit crowded, we decided to transfer to another less occupied spot. While walking to get there, a Japanese man approached us and asked if we can take a picture of him with his family. I happily obliged and was rewarded with their sincere thank you’s. Sitting down on a pavement at this curved corner separating the garden from the cliff, we proceeded to take some more pictures. And because I wanted a decent picture of me (worthy of a profile pic)  wearing my newly acquired (and current favorite) flat suede boots, I asked Francis to take more photos.

“Sandali lang, may props ako para dyan (Wait a second, I have props for that pose),” he declared while rummaging through his backpack.

“Props?” I asked surprised. “Ano yan, buri hat? (What’s that, straw hat?)” I added laughing.

Then, everything happened so fast.

The Proposal
The last thing I remember was that I was reeling. When I saw Francis in front of me, kneeling down with a ring in his hand, mouthing the words “Will you marry me?” I felt like I was falling. I was so dumbfounded and stunned and shocked, I had to ask him if what’s happening was real.

“Toto, totoo ba ‘to?! (Toto, is this for real?!)” I asked him more than five times (Toto is one of his pet names at home). And when I finally realized that what was happening was not a product of my imagination nor my lack of sleep, I blissfully replied, “Yes! Kailangan pa ba itanong yan? (Yes! Do you really need to ask that?)” Hugging him tightly, I still had to make sure that all that was not just a very happy dream (as cheesy as that may sound). Finally, I was able to convince myself that what was happening is true. The oversized ring on my right hand (we had it resized the following day) smiled at me with winking eyes. And as much as I wanted to shout with glee, I can’t—up until now, I’m a bit hoarse. I just managed a suppressed scream while trying to figure out who to call first to break the very wonderful news. Of course, my mom and my sis were the first on the list. It was so nice to hear them laugh and gasp with me in disbelief. Then it was my friends’ turn to hear the news (sorry, my dear pals, for ringing you that early!). I was like an insane little girl pacing here and there, alternately making calls and hugging my former-boyfriend-now-fiancé Francis.

After the shock, Francis told me about all his plans leading to this proposal—how he conspired with: my office pal Mari-an, who helped him find the perfect place in Baguio to propose; our college friend Sheryl, who used her "connections" to help Francis find the perfect engagement ring; our long-time friend Ate Jha-jha for some important advice; and other friends who he consulted with—most of them my friends, too. He met with several of them in secret, telling me he’d do some work-related errands when in fact, he was already on his way to meet these friends of ours for some “planning session”. Now I’m left to wonder if they really are my friends—how dare they conspire against me?!? Haha!

But of course I can’t complain. Who would, if the conspiracy leads to such a beautiful revelation like this?

I have to give it to Francis—he’s so good at pulling off surprises like this. But what he doesn’t know is that he’s the biggest surprise that I received. And for him, I only have God to thank…

To all our friends who helped make this moment come true after 9 years, THANK YOU SO MUCH!

Now it’s time to upload all those pictures that tell the rest of that magnificent day’s story.

P.S.
Yes, there really was no official business assignment. It was just one of those many lies that Francis made up so he can get down on his knee and “beg” me to say “yes”. Hahaha!

Photos here.