The New and Modern Philippine Military Academy (PMA) Museum

This building tucked in the woods is the new Philippine Military Academy Museum. It was formally soft-launched in November last year. According to the Academy, they are preparing to open the museum for the general public sometime in the first quarter of 2026. 

Wolf Moon Over Baguio City and La Trinidad, Benguet

Get out right now and look at the night sky to catch a glimpse of the Wolf Moon, the first full moon of 2026. This is also a supermoon. Supermoons are full moons that are closer than normal to earth and they seem larger and brighter in the sky. There are only three or four supermoons in a year. So yes, you only get to see them a few times a year.

The Wolf Moon was named after howling wolves. Took these pictures today both in Baguio City and La Trinidad.

#wolfmoon #supermoon #nightsky #baguio #latrinidad

Agave Plants Along the Yellow Trail in Camp John Hay Keeps Getting Vandalized

Some visitors at the Yellow Trail in Camp John Hay in Baguio City keep on vandalizing plants along the trail. These agave plants which are located within arms-reach from the trail have leaves covered in etched markings. 

An unpleasant characteristic of many Filipinos is their urge to leave their mark everywhere they go.

Etching your name on the leaves of the agave plants is harmful to them. Leaf decay always starts from parts of the leaf that have been vandalized.

The vandalization of these plants have been going on for too long. Maybe it's time for Camp John Hay to put up signs beside the agave plants to remind people to not vandalize the plants.

SM Withdraws Its Baguio City Public Market Development Proposal

SM Prime Holdings Inc. has withdrawn its proposal to redevelop the Baguio City public market. This was announced through the Baguio City Public Information Office's official Facebook page. The announcement added that Mayor Benjamin Magalong was informed of SM's withdrawal through a letter sent to his office. 

It was in February of 2020 when SM sent their unsolicited proposal to the city for the redevelopment of the market. 

The proposal has met opposition from concerned residents, groups, and organizations. Street protests and petitions were held in Baguio City to oppose the proposal which they described to be akin to mallification or privatization.

The city council was supposed to vote next week whether they will reject or accept the proposal.

#baguio #baguiocity #publicmarket #breakingnews

Why Did SM Withdraw Its Baguio City Public Market Development Proposal?

The city council's review period for the SM market deal will end on January 9. On or before this date, the city council will vote to decide whether to accept or reject SM's proposal. So the city council is just a few days away from making its decision. 

The vote is no longer happening after SM's withdrawal of its proposal. This has surprised a lot of people because SM rarely backs down from lucrative projects like this. They almost always win. They often get what they want.

So why did they decide to back down this time? And why did they back down just a few days away from the city council vote?

Was it a calculated move to save face? Did their intel-gathering tell them that the city council will likely vote NO to the proposal? 

To save themselves the embarrassment of getting rejected, did they decide to just withdraw the proposal instead of waiting for the city council's decision? 

The withdrawal looks like a calculated PR move to lessen the potential negative impact on their corporate image.

You can't blame them though. As far as corporate image is concerned, "𝗦𝗠 𝗪𝗶𝘁𝗵𝗱𝗿𝗮𝘄𝘀 𝗠𝗮𝗿𝗸𝗲𝘁 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗽𝗼𝘀𝗮𝗹" is a better headline for them than "𝗦𝗠 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗽𝗼𝘀𝗮𝗹 𝗥𝗲𝗷𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗯𝘆 𝗖𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗖𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗰𝗶𝗹".

The Real Goals of the Breathe Baguio Branding Campaign

It's the first day of the new year and there's no stressful traffic in Baguio City. No anxiety-inducing crowds. No garbage littered everywhere. Finally, the city and its people can breathe even for just a moment.

Then I saw someone post on social media that this is the result of the city's "Breathe Baguio" branding and campaign.

That's not true though. The "Breathe Baguio" branding was launched by the city in 2021. It was a tourism marketing campaign to attract more tourists. They're saying people should come to Baguio and breathe the city. 

So the temporary respite from traffic and crowds that the city is experiencing right now isn't a result of the "Breathe Baguio" branding. It's quite the opposite. 

Enjoy the traffic-free streets and crowd-free sidewalks for now. Panagbenga season is just around the corner. You know what that means. 

#baguio #baguiocity

Mt. Piling in Banguitan, Besao, Mt. Province

Mt. Piling is a mountain located in barangay Banguitan in Besao, Mountain Province. It's a mountain covered in pine forests.