Rosario resort raves on nice landscaping

ROSARIO, Batangas—When we think of Batangas, the beach comes first in mind: A beautiful sunset that is irresistibly amazing, the strokes of the wave that invite you to swim, the fine sand that summons you to lie down and enjoy the stars at night, and more views that encourage you to make your digicam busy.

But when I think of Rosario, Batangas, I can only imagine a garden resort. You can find many garden resorts here but the Barcelona Garden Resort stands out.

Barcelona Resort Rosario Batangas

Barcelona Resort in Rosario, Batangas

As I came to the resort, what surrounded me were different kinds of plants that gave me a relaxed garden feeling, an invigorating break from city life.

Barcelona Garden Resort (BGR) is a corporation owned by theBarcelonasiblings Leonisa B. Clarkson (married to a Canadian), Marcelino Barcelona, Sta. Maria B. Sianquita, Melvin Barcelona and Eugenia B. Elicay. This was originallyBarcelona’s rest house since all of them live inCanada. Siblings of theBarcelonafamily, a native of Brgy. Maalas-as, were given a piece of land by their parents and they decided to put up a rest house.

It was year 2007, when people started coming and visiting BGR that made the owners realize to open it to the public.

BGR is known for its beautifully-landscaped grasses and colorful flowers in the garden. That is why their resort is home of different garden weddings not just couples from Batangas but also from other cities and countries.

Go to the resort’s picnic cottages-cum-nipa huts: the grass is nicely paved. In between these nipa huts are plants. The same can be seen in each of the air-conditioned cottages: plants fronting all over the cottage, products of professional gardening.

Credit that to co-owners Leonisa Barcelona and Canadian husband Bob Clarkson. They were married inVancouver,Canadain 1988 and discovered that they both have a passion for plants. So they bought a home inVancouverwith a big backyard to enjoy their mutual love of gardening.

Even Mr. and Mrs. Clarkson, in their dealings with clients as realtors, will ask for cuttings from their clients’ gardens of plants that caught their eyes. So the couple’s passion for gardening “blossomed” in 2006, a visit to the Philippines to originally kick-start their future plans of building a retirement home —on an acre of family heritage land— turned into what is now BGR (www.barcelonagardenresorts.com).

Aside from the garden, another attraction of the resort is their six-foot swimming pool (for both kids and adults) that one really can’t resist. Kids will also enjoy BGR’sPeacockGarden(with a colorful blue peacock statue), while adults can also get to hammer the videoke machine at BGR’s pavilion.

Even the chapel, found beside the peacock garden, stands on nicely-paved grass. No wonder this resort is also a preferred venue for serene weddings.

“People came here just by the word of mouth. Their friends from Batangas will refer BGR to their friends inManila. Also, the owners invite their friends fromCanadato visit BGR whenever they’re in thePhilippines,” said Marlon Barcelona, resort manager.

About Jeremaiah Opiniano