TABLE no. 7 has a great crowd – one lawyer, one developer, two government employees, and an elder who looks like the rockstar Pepe Smith.
After an hour of legal talk, and another of investments and “development,” Sir Pepe opened his leader jacket as if to unburden his lungs.
The guys took the cue, the master has to talk, and the kids have to listen: “To you Mr. Developer” he looked at his middle-aged seatmate who is obviously wealthier than the rest combined.
“Somehow you bought the mountain or a chunk of it. By some legal maneuverings, notorious occupation, perhaps some undeniable heap of hard work and wealth, you have claimed a piece of nature's gifts. You look into the possibilities, the gains of such investment---a rest house? Subdivision? Apartment houses? Nobody will judge you for dreaming of a shelter from the rain. But perhaps this piece is not for you, this is only for those who already have much to last them a lifetime.”
He fixed himself the rust-colored elixir – mixing C2 and gin like most pilgrims that night. “This is a challenge for legacy, a choice to choose community before self. This is for the noble and the great men and women who will live on after they die. What if, the land that would soon outlive you, be shared to the community instead: a playground, an ecopark, or a communal sacred place? Forget the lumps of houses, the mega structures, and the wads of cash---again, this is a challenge only for the great men and women who knew that they have a choice. What if you invest for the community?”
“I believe in Sustainable Development.” Mr. D, almost whispered. “Come on!” Sir Pepe exclaimed “You bulldozed a mountain, destroying the springs, the whole forest. Sustainable?”
Louie the lawyer came to D’s defense “Aside from his ROIs, the owner simply has the right to his property within the bounds of law”. The gov’t employees looked away not wanting to take any side. And besides, while sir Pepe had given them countless lifts home when they were still schoolboys, Mr. D, unfortunately pays the damn bar bills.
-o0o-
The Customer Service Training and Tourism Orientation for Pasalubong Vendors and Ice Cream Vendors we organized last January 15 was joined by 132 participants (although our data shows that there are about 190 pasalubong stalls in the area, and about 40 strawberry icecream vendors at the Strawberry Farm area).
Volunteer students from BSU-Statistics Org., by doing actual head counts, also revealed an average of 14,000 tourists every weekends (Saturday and Sunday). It means that La Trinidad, as part of the Baguio City itinerary, will inevitably breach the 1 million visitor mark by December considering the crowd-drawing events like Panagbenga, Strawberry Festival, Holyweek, Adivay, Summer Vacations, and the many long weekends that ordinarily doubles the current visitor statistics.
The Municipality of La Trinidad is inviting everyone to attend the Public Hearing regarding the proposed Tourism Code (finally) of La Trinidad on January 24, 2018, 1pm, at the Lednicky Hall, Municipal building. The tourism code contains polices and regulations concerning primary and secondary tourism establishments, security and safety, the tourism council and office, and other tourism-related issues.
