Garden glows on a hilltop

SEA OF BRILLIANCE LED-lighted tulips and roses at the Jardin Necitas Glowing Garden lure lovers and visitors. —LEO UDTOHAN

PILAR, Bohol — When two police officers decided to tie the knot two months ago, their prenuptial photos in a garden literally glowed.

The photos of Leomando Diño, 32, and Rosemary Buaya , 27, went viral on social media, with Jardin Necitas Pilar Glowing Garden as perfect backdrop on a hilltop in Barangay Bagumbayan in Pilar town.

The place offers a scenic view of the mountain ranges of Ubay and Mabini towns, but romance reigns in the front yard as some 15,000 multicolored plastic tulips and 5,000 red and white roses are lit up at nightfall.

“It is very colorful, blooming, inspiring and romantic,” Buaya said.

Diño  added: “The view and the flowers took my breath away. It becomes more magical if you are holding the hand of the person you love.”

Selfies and groupies

At the entrance, visitors enjoy taking selfies and groupies with 55 LED-light cherry blossoms and animals, such as swans and flamingos. Flowers in the center are arranged to shape an “I,” a heart and a “U,” for  “I love you.”

The glowing garden has made Helen Alagadmo, a town resident, forego a visit to the LED-rose garden Dongdaemun Design Plaza in South Korea and the 10,000 White Roses & More in Cordova town in Cebu province.

Genellie Inting-Calipes, 34, along with her family and friends, did not mind traveling 76 kilometers from the capital city of Tagbilaran to see the garden. They stayed to witness the flowers burst into a sea of brilliance in the dark.

“I was amazed … and it relieved my stress,” said Calipes, who teaches Filipino at Dr. Cecilio Putong National High School in Tagbilaran.

Mayor’s daughter

The garden is named after Mayor Necitas Cubrado.

Her daughter, Vanessa, brought the artificial roses and tulips to her hometown. The flowers with LED-lights are spread across a 2,000-square-meter property on top of a hill in Purok 5, Barangay Bagumbayan.

Some P10 million was spent in constructing the garden and it took two months to completely install the lights.

Vanessa, 32, said the idea came from a friend at MyLedOpto — a company which brought in the glowing gardens’ technology in the country — to build one in their property.

To her surprise, it was a huge hit. When the garden opened on Sept. 27, it drew more than 10,000 visitors.

Jardin Necitas is open from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m., with an entrance fee of P30 for adults.

Lovers who intend to have their prenuptial photos taken are charged P1,000.

Vanessa said her family was planning to open a mountain resort to accommodate visitors who want to stay overnight.

GETTING THERE:

Take a bus or van (GT Express) at Dao Terminal in Tagbilaran but make sure to arrange a pickup for a return to the city.  Motorists can drive to the garden in at least two hours.