Guerrero Farm

It rained at dawn so I decided to stay in bed a little while longer. Well, until my host knocked on the door to announce that coffee is served. Outside, the rain stopped and the skies show promise of a warm day ahead. Before leaving the house with its fierce, minute residents (Mako, Orca, Rushdie and Summer), I grabbed one book on Camino from Jale's stash for some inspiration.

We bought supplies at Burgos in a store just a few paces from the "Alalingan" jeepney terminal. 

We missed our stop and had to go back. The landmark, Rowena's store, that Googlemaps pulled up operates no more. That's why.

It rained again as we started our trek. We had a slow start as the dirt road was soft from the moisture and we had to really look before taking a step. Both sides of the road were occupied by alternating fields with standing canes ready for harvesting and those cleared for planting. Since the toilet at the store was occupied, I did my thing amidst the tall sugar canes just like in the old days.

Crossing the first bridge brought us to a markedly different world. Looming above us were fruit trees teeming with red and yellow round fruits. Yea, we passed by a huge "rambutan" and "lanzones" orchard. The road seemed to stretch forever and all we could do was look at them longingly. 

I don't know why we decided to stop and ask for directions instead of relying on the app. It turned out that people assumed we needed directions in going to the baranggay proper that we ended up where the highway was. LOL. Instead of going back, we took the concrete road which surprisingly provided us with different kind of challenges. On the thickly populated areas, we grumbled about pedestrians being left out in urban planning as we had to stop and stay still whenever ten and twenty-wheelers pass by. The perks of taking that way though was sampling "lanzones" that fell on the road from the tree or from passing vehicles. From the stands, we tried the longkong, duko, zamboanga and the bisaya varieties.

As the road started to slope upwards, the landscape changed. We passed by groves of Gmelina, mahogany, pine trees and scores of game farms. At one farm, we stopped to take some pictures only to get startled when a dog jumped out of the bushes, gnarls reverberating through the hills. It was as big as a horse and I nearly swallowed my heart. 

We walked nearly four hours by the time we spied the Guerrero Farm signage.  Our disappointment at the lack of challenge had soon changed when the 45 degrees incline came to sight.  It was short but I was out of breath when we reached the summit. 

With very little time to spare before it was time to leave for the city, I took a nap to refresh myself for the downhill trek. That was after sipping coffee by the pond, a filling lunch at the Mexican-inspired cantina, and a relaxing walk around the resort. I avoided the pool area though. It was filled with guests shrieking with delight, their voices drowning the loud music blaring from one of the cabanas. 

Just outside the resort, the farm dump truck passed by and assured us of its passing that way again after unloading its cargo. So we decided to while away the time at a store to wait for it. No sooner did it start to get dark, we decided to join a mother and son duo who were on their way to the baranggay proper. 

I wouldn't go there for meditation as most of the visitors don't see it as a place of respite. Or maybe, we just didn't share the same definition of relaxation. It served our purpose, though. The place provided us with a destination; a goal. 

Itinerary 1:

Php 17.00 Burgos Terminal to Boy's Town (PUJ)

     100.00 Alangilan to Brgy. Concepcion (tricycle)

       15.00 Brgy. Concepcion to Guerrero Farm Entrance (tricycle)

     100.00 Hiway to Guerrero Farm (habal-habal)

Itinerary 2:

     100.00 Guerrero Farm to Hiway (habal-habal)

       15.00 Guerrero Farm Entrance to Brgy. Concepcion (tricycle)

       15.00 Brgy. Concepcion to Talisay City (PUJ)

Bucalan Sunflower Garden

             Not as spellbinding as the Hokkaido Spring Gardens but this latest local tourist magnet may as well be on its way in that direction.

             There is without any doubt that the Bucalan Sunflower Farm is the hottest go-to place in La Carlota to date.  Established only a little over a year ago, the small patch of land (used to be the sugar central mud press dump site) now teems with golden blooms that lent the rather drab landscape with something beautiful to behold.

            In Greek mythology, the nymph Clytia died of a broken heart, transformed into a sunflower and relentlessly follows the love of her life, the sun god Apollo.

            Unrequited love or not, behind the farm is an inspiring story that needs to be told. Here Bucalan Sunflower Farm bares all.

Who is Bucalan Sunflower Farm (BSF)?

             I’m a police officer assigned in Mindoro. I own the place but my father manages it.  Our family name is Flores. In Spanish, Flores means flower, right? Both my parents are not only plant enthusiasts but have green thumbs as well.

           

What is so special about sunflowers?

            I have been assigned to various places around the Philippines and I’ve seen a lot of theme parks and gardens. It was the sunflower that really caught my eye.

            My fascination for sunflowers inspired my best practice at work involving the Tokhang inmates. Institutional work program for inmates is part and parcel in the reformation process but the question lies on what program to implement. So instead of the usual agricultural produce like rice or corn, we agreed to take a more novel step and engage in producing cut flowers instead.

            To cut the story short, the program was a success. Our produce were sold to local flower shops and we even supply some to Dangwa in Manila. As a result, our inmates found purpose with this unique and profitable venture.

What motivated you to start a farm in Bucalan?

            As our initiative here in Mindoro met is purpose and with more seed to spare, I suggested to my father to make use of the barren space and start a garden for recreation. We started with only a hundred seeds. Then the flowers bloomed and people started to notice.

             

            When I started a page on Facebook about our farm, the public’s response was overwhelming. It was shared many times over which resulted to an influx of visitors. It was unexpected.

            Entrance is free as the garden was not intended for commercial purpose. It just feels good to see people leaving the place happy.

           

What shall we all expect from BSF in the future?

            The garden will be reopened to the public in September. For the convenience of everyone, we will develop the area inside Central Azucarera de La Carlota near the Admin building. We will start with a thousand seeds featuring varieties coming from Japan.