BAGUIO CITY?A total of 23 families displaced by floods had set up beds at the Mansion House, the summer residence of Philippine presidents and a favorite tourist spot whose compound is off limits to visitors.

?It?s a good place to sell pirated DVDs because this place draws tourists,? one of the evacuees said, drawing laughter from reporters.

Assisted by cadets of the Philippine Military Academy and supervised by social workers, evacuated families settled in the main hall where somber portraits of Philippine presidents used to hang. The walls had been stripped bare and children were laughing and running all over the place.

Survivors of landslides that hit Baguio and Benguet had a taste of the good life at the Mansion House, after President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo opened its doors to them on Saturday.

On Sunday, Ms Arroyo welcomed the evacuees herself when she flew here at 7 a.m. to assess the damage wrought by landslides and floods in the Cordillera Administrative Region. She also offered the summer cottage of the Vice President as temporary shelter for typhoon victims.

Surrounded by water

Some families said they were displaced by floods at the City Camp Lagoon where water levels rose as high as 20 feet.

Evacuees included government employees like Linda Fines, an official of the Department of Tourism (DoT) here.

Fines said her house in Barangay Brookside was suddenly inundated with water ?but we did not know where it came from.? Stranded in an evacuation site, she moved her family to the Mansion House as soon as it became available.

Another woman marveled at how well evacuees here were being treated. ?I can even have my blood pressure checked every hour. There?s a medical station in front.?

Trapped in the city

Mayor Reinaldo Bautista Jr. said the Mansion House and other government summer homes could be used to house tourists trapped in the city.

At least four busloads of students from Taguig City and Laguna have been camping in various parks here since Friday when major routes to Baguio became impassable due to landslides.

Street vendors at Wright Park said two busloads of students from the University in the City of Taguig had been staying at the park for days and cooking their meals.

Down to noodles

?We have been here since the storm. We stayed in [a Baguio hotel] but we had to leave when it became expensive. We used our money for food, but we are now down to noodles,? said Jenny Lomibao, who escorted 120 hotel and restaurant management students to Baguio.

They heard about the storm only when they were on the road to Baguio on Thursday.

?Their parents are very worried,? Lomibao said. She said the Mansion House security personnel allowed their buses to stay inside the compound on Saturday night. However, they were not allowed to get off the bus.

?We did not mind because it was safer there,? Lomibao said. However, the buses were asked to leave on Sunday when President Arroyo arrived.

Another mansion

Ms Arroyo proposed that the Malacañang of the North (Malacañang ti Amianan) in Paoay, Ilocos Norte, could serve as a temporary evacuation center for the victims of Tropical Storm ?Pepeng? there.

But Paoay Councilor Galen Pobre told the Inquirer that no one took advantage of Ms Arroyo?s offer as many returned to their homes after floodwaters receded, Pobre said.

The Malacañang of the North, however, continues to open its doors for tourists and will accommodate evacuees as the need arises, according to local officials.

Paoay Lake overflows

On Friday, Paoay Mayor Bonifacio Clemente said the severe flooding in the town was caused by the overflowing of Paoay Lake.

Residents, whose houses were flooded, sought shelter at the public market in Barangay Nagbacalan, while others moved to school buildings and relatives? houses.

Clemente also said he did not think it was necessary to move residents to the Ilocos Norte mansion because they were already in safe areas.

He also feared the mansion might further deteriorate if it would be opened to evacuees.