This month, red roses are an easy find even in Los Baños town in Laguna province after local officials opened a centralized flower market right outside the University of the Philippines Los Baños (UPLB) campus for Valentine’s Day.
Janos Lapiz, barangay (village) chair of Batong Malake, said the market project was one of the local council measures meant to ease traffic in the university town of Los Baños, especially on Feb. 14, which also falls during the UPLB February Fair. The weeklong trade and homecoming event draws about 10,000 visitors, alumni and residents every night.
“The vendors used to sell roses on sidewalks or at the UPLB gate, slowing down the traffic flow,” Lapiz said.
In the past, the vendors paid P50 in business clearance fee to sell roses on Valentine’s Day. “We’re doing away with that this year. It’s just a pity because some vendors even have to borrow from loan sharks for capital,” Lapiz said in a phone interview.
The flowers come from stalls in what has been popularly known as “Dangwa” (after a bus company which has a terminal on Dimasalang Street), a popular cut-flower market in Manila. Some of the vendors in Los Baños buy dozens of roses worth P5,000 to P20,000 and sell the long stems to college students for P50 apiece.
More than 30 vendors have already signed up for the free flower booths to be set up on a parking space of a commercial center on Feb. 13-14, Lapiz said.
Batong Malake officials are also issuing rerouting and parking guidelines around the campus for the February Fair. But Lapiz said “it’s still advisable to take the jeepneys or just walk around instead so they wouldn’t have to worry about parking.” Maricar Cinco