Tag Archives: talisay

February 7, 2012

Around Negros: Lovely Sunset at The Ruins

By Mark Mayo - Magallanes

Metropolitan Bacólod, lone metropolitan area of Negros Island, is the heritage and financial center of Negros. Composed of Silay, Talisay and Bacólod Cities with a population of three quarters of a million, it is the most populous area of the Island. Bacólod and Silay Cities are within the tourism map because of Masskara Festival and heritage houses respectively. Talisay City was not in the tourism radar until recently. This city is often confused with a namesake in Cebú but what catapulted this humble city of less than hundred thousand to the tourism map is a burned down pre-war mansion dedicated to a wife who passed away untimely.

Leaving quite late from the heritage City of Silay, we arrived in the Bacólod Northbound Terminal almost sunset. Not wanting to get late for the spectacle, we hurriedly walk to the side of the Pepsi Plant in Brgy. Bata, commonly called Bangga Pepsi. we contracted a tricycle to take us to The Ruins. The road to The Ruins was already dark but the sun is still visible at the horizon. Through the skills in maneuvering of the tricycle driver, we were able to make it in time. Passing by the sugarcane fields for minutes more, the sight of The Ruins welcomed us. Even if it was Tuesday, there were numerous visitors roaming around this picturesque mansion.

This was my second time visiting the famed mansion, I have been here on the day of my birthday last July 3, 2011. My coming back is a fulfillment of a birthday wish to see the sunset and the lighting up of The Ruins at night. While it was already dark in the fields we passed by, there was strangely sunlight still in The Ruins when we arrived. We instructed the tricyle driver to wait for us behind the structure where he left us. The parking area behind was full of blackberries, not the smartphones of course but those tasty black cluster fruits. I used to pick a lot of these in the campus of PSHS Western Visayas in Iloilo when visiting my brother then.

This mansion was by Don Mariano Lacson with an Italianate design in tribute to his late wife, a Portugues-Macanese by the name of Maria Braga. No wonder why this structure was called the Taj Mahal of Negros. The mansion was built in the middle of the field owned by his family and in fact the house of his older brother, Negros Republic President Aniceto Lacson, is just nearby. Though it is also a famous heritage house dubbed Malacañang of Negros for being the Negros President’s residence, access is limited to those joining scheduled tours. Anyway, that will be my next subject for another round of tours in Negros for summer very soon.

During the onset of the Second World War, the Japanese were advancing towards Negros and the troops were tasked to raze down structures of tactical advantage to the enemy. Don Mariano Lacson’s mansion was tagged as one of those structures since it had a wide unobstructed view of the surrounding areas. Despite the protest of the family, they yielded tearfully to the authorities while the soldiers poured in kerosene on the structure. The mansion burned for three days because of the amount of woodwork once covering the interiors. The place was virtually abandoned for many decades until the family realized The Ruin’s tourism potentials.

As the sun finally sunk in the horizon, the place finally lit up in a golden glow. The Ruins was already beautiful under sunlight but it’s full beauty was shown when lit up at night coupled with piped piano music you can hear inside. No wonder why this place also has a café since the mood was romantic for a random date. Have I mentioned that you can rent the place for wedding and function for a good price? For a mansion dedicated to a husband’s eternal love, this is certainly the place where couples can exchange vows of eternal love for one another. If God in His grace gives for me a girl after His heart, I would consider bringing her here.

We took shots all possible shots of the place until we exhausted all possibilities. If there were not much people who visited that day, we would have taken even nicer shots of the place. While I would have loved to stay longer, my guest was hungry from our long trip.  Looking behind, I thought of how far I would go for someone special in my life but that is too early to think of. We eventually found the tricycle driver and he promptly brought us back to the terminal where we came from earlier. If visiting The Ruins, the best times to go are early mornings for sunrise and late afternoons for sunset. The Ruins is a must visit for tourists and locals alike.

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For more photos of The Ruins, check out the Photo Blog Entries I and II. The Ruins also has a website for more information on functions, weddings or other events.

2 comments   |  tags: , , , , , , , | posted in Negros Occidental, The Bread Rolls, Travel

November 14, 2011

The Hacienda Correspondent: Mga Huring Huring

By Mark Mayo - Magallanes

The Bacólod North Highway is one of the most majestic highways in the country especially in the parts between Bacólod City to Silay City. Picturesque with a nice view of the seashore, mountains and sugarcane fields, it is one of the most traversed since it serves those who use Bacólod-Silay International Airport. Sugarcane trucks are a usual sight too since up North, you have the sugar refineries of Hawaiian-Philippine Company and Victorias Milling Company just close by. Some say it is Negros’ equivalent of North Luzon Expressway minus your toll fees and other tollway perks. More than being the equivalent of NLEX, it is also a way equal to Commonwealth Avenue with a notorious nickname, The Killer Highway. On the average for the previous years, the highway took away lives by the hundred every year including a close relative because of road mishaps. Overturned overloaded sugarcane trucks are a common sight too like what we passed by on our Silay tour. These accidents have bred “huring-huring” or hearsay about the mystery that lies on this picturesque highway. As some people say, the killer behind the beauty.

One such mystery are the twin giant breadfruit frees that grow by the highway. These two trees are a significant distance from the highway yet have attracted attention. It has been suggested that these two trees are more than a hundred years old which makes it a tree of heritage value too. Just like the famous lunok or giant rubber tree in Canlaon City, Negros Oriental, no one dared cut this tree lest experience the fury of who may live in its foliage. Legends have developed from why this tree is there in the first place. Some say that once upon a time, there lived two sisters there who has been promised to marriage to gentlemen from Guimaras. The two gentlemen promised to return after their journey to Guimaras but never returned. One version says they were buried there from which sprouted these two trees and another version says an ancestor spirit had mercy on their affliction so they were turned to trees. It has been said that the spirit of these two sisters haunt the highway in which sector have seen accidents. No one even dared to build a structure or a house nearby until a Baptist Mission College built its campus near the towering trees.

There also goes a story that at the end of World War II, there were American troops passing by the area. They stopped near the trees, probably where the Baptist Mission College is now, to rest. Quite hungry, they asked the old lady passing by if they can have some food from her basket. The Americans thanked her and asked where they can return her belongings to which she pointed to a mansion behind the tall trees. The next morning, the Americans were confused in trying to find this said mansion for they swore to have seen it. They ask a boy if he knows where the mansion is and with a confused face said that there was never any mansion there for he was born in the place and has not seen it at all. There was another incident where an old lady called an American luxury car company in the United States if she can buy a car. The old lady paid and gave an address but as they were about to deliver the car, they discovered that it pointed to the two tall trees without a single house whatsoever. In another story, some have suggested that spirits regularly cross the street going to the trees which causes the accidents on sight of one. Because of all these myths and legends, people have traditionally sounded a horn whenever their car passed by the place in a way of saying “tabi-tabi po”. These might be scary or outrageous stories but these defines the artistry related to the culture by which they try to explain every phenomenon.

4 comments   |  tags: , , , , , , , , , | posted in Negros Occidental, The Bread Rolls, Travel

November 11, 2011

Bacolod On A Low Budget

By Mark Mayo - Magallanes

Yesterday evening, my parents told me that I will be on a minimum budget on my trip to Bacólod for we just payed a lot of dues and payments recently. For a person who loves the fanciest of food and places, this is a big dilemma. Rather than be discouraged and turn the trip sour, I took this as a challenge rather than as a disappointment. After all, I should already be earning my own trip budget, right? My Dad accompanied me to NAIA Terminal 3 for my early morning flight to Bacólod. A lot of changes have been in place since I last took Cebú Pacific with domestic check ins are regardless of the place of arrival. My last encounter with Terminal 3 was last year when I took AirPhil Express back from Christmas vacation. What I like about Terminal 3 is that it is a fulfillment of my one wish for the Philippines, a mall-like terminal.

From a handful of shops, the terminal is beginning to be filled with more stores. I’ve seen Nike, Sanük, Crocs and even Jollibee on the fastfood side. The looks of the terminal reminds me more of a mall than a airport terminal complex with people sleeping on the floor. One good feedback about this terminal is that it is completely “sleepable” with a number of comfortable corners for one to sleep on. For me though, I did sleep but talked with my Dad and took pictures until it was time for me to enter for boarding. I am a frequent air traveler and for the language of some, a jetsetter who is knowledgeable of a flight’s twist and turns. However, being a writer and traveler, one should be open to new experiences. It is only now that I appreciate an early morning flight with a wonderful window scenery just before sunrise.

I arrived in Bacólod-Silay International Airport with the sun high up in the sky. What I love about this airport is the scenery of sugarcane fields around the airport vicinity,with fresh air blowing on my face. Spoiler though is the fact that Cebú Pacific did not use the aerobridge even if it was available. The only advantage of actually going down on the tarmac is that you’d have a chance to take a picture of the terminal from the frontside. This terminal is one of the newest and most picturesque of all airports recently upgraded. Even when built in over a million capacity, the terminal has already exceeded capacity. In just under three years of operation, the terminal already needs to be expanded. News has it recently that the 2,000m runway will have a 500m extension to accomodate larger aircraft. What for? Bacólod-Silay International Airport is the closest alternative gateway in an event of mishaps in Mactan-Cebú International Airport, the main international gateway in the Visayas. Could it be possible that this is also in the prelude of welcoming international flights? Very much possible especially that foreigners are streaming to the province by the thousands and the tourist rates exceeding a million visitors yearly.

My Low Budget challenge starts here as I wait for a ride going to Bacólod City. I had two options: spend P35 with an airconditioned commuter; or ride a tricycle down to the City Center of Silay (P10), take a jeep to the Bacólod North Terminal (P15) and another jeep to the Mansilingan jeepney waiting area (P8). Thinking that it would be cost and time saving with the aircon one, I went for it but to my surprise that they charged us P50 for going out of the airport even if they picked passengers to the brim on the way near the airport. Even with some setbacks, I love being in my hometown with its calm atmosphere and a sense of being laid back. In the words of a friend who has fallen in love with the metropolitan city, Bacólod is laidback but very much modern with modern facilities and amenities just within arms’ reach.

The Provincial Capitol of Occidental Negros is a welcome sight to behold in the middle of a busy business center. This historical structure has been tagged as the most beautiful provincial capitol of its time that inspired other structures. Even at present, the provincial capitol is an enduring symbol of Negrénses’ culture of artistic beauty and sophistication. Months ago, Ayala Land, Inc. bared plans on building a mall, hotel and convention complex just behind the historic provincial capitol. Also included in the list is revitalizing the Provincial Lagoon from its inspiring state to a mix of historical heritage and modern twists. Whatever thoughts I have on this, it is best to think 0r talk about it in a coffee shop, where the social media in the province had its first roots. I left Manila without having to eat breakfast so I thought of going to a nice coffee shop.

Before being tempted of going to Starbucks in Lacson Street, I reminded myself of my challenge, should be a low budget but good place to feature. I just had something on my mind and so I headed directly to Libertad Market. Along the way, I took a snap of the Bacólod Cathedral, also known as the San Sebastian Cathedral, the spiritual seat of the Roman Catholic Church in Bacólod with the prevailing areas of the Third and Fourth Legislative Districts included. The streets were clear of people except in the areas where schools, colleges and universities are. In fact, most restaurants I know are still closed at that moment. I arrived at my destination. Where it is? Stay tuned for my next article on the weekend-long Bacólod On Low Budget series here in RepúblicaNegrénse.com.

2 comments   |  tags: , , , , , , | posted in Negros Occidental, The Bread Rolls, Travel