Go Into Orbit and Make A Jumpshot! ;)

“To foretell a destiny of the nation, it is necessary to open the book that tells of her past,” –Dr. Jose P. Rizal.

Walking around Negros Occidental is like going back to their beautiful past.  “Buglas”(Negros Occidental’s old name) is a province in the Philippines that truly showcases Filipino heritage especially in terms of architectural design in their houses and other establishments.

This is my first time to go to Negros Occidental and in my first look to the province, sugarcanes first popped into my mind because that’s the only thing I knew that can be widely found in the province.

As part of the activity of the camp blog 1c, we visited different heritage sites in three of the 13 cities of the province which were Talisay, Silay, Victorias and the municipality of Manapla together with Mr. Ver F. Pacete, Silay City Tourism Officer who explained to us different things about Negros like the Tale of the Two Cities and about Anecito Ledesma Lacson, a revolutionary General during the Spanish rule and a member of Katipunan.

“HOUSE OF ROCK”

At around eight o’clock, we left Natures Village Resort and Hotel. Our first destination was Balay Negrense Museum which is located on Cinco de Noviembre st. Silay City, Negros Occidental. Balay Negrense is a 19th century house, built in 1898 and owned by Don Victor Leopold Gaston Y Fernandez.

As I entered the house, a pair of stairs caught my attention because it’s appearance is like an open arms welcoming me. Also in the first floor is the receiving area of the old residence. I thought that is t

heir living room but my guess is wrong. On the right side upon the entrance, three bedrooms can be seen and I was fascinated with the layout of the rooms.

On the left side, beside the receiving area, there’s a big classical piano. On the second floor of the museum, I finally saw the living room and there, master bedrooms are located. I can compare bedrooms of kids and adults. Also their stuffs as a child and as a grown up. Vintage kitchen and dining room also fascinated my eyes because of its antique things in cooking, utensils, and other kitchen stuffs.

Balay Negrense Museum gave me a lot of informations about the past life of the Negrenses.

“House of Collections”

After discovering some secretsof the Negrense, we proceed to another ancestral house in Silay City which is the Manuel Severino Hofileña Ancestral House maintained by Mr. Ramon Hofileña. This is different from other ancestral houses because this is still functional and fully inhabited. This is also the first house in Silay City open to the public.

Every detail of this house has a story. The wall, staircase, pictures, toys and many more. But the paintings and other work of art of different artists of the Philippines including our National Hero, Dr. Jose P. Rizal impressed me. The human sketch of Mr. Hofileña as a model with an exotic pose and shocked me too!

“Church of the Angry Christ”

After eating our lunch, we boarded the bus going to Victorias City and entered the Victorias Milling Corporation compound. We visited the St. Joseph the Worker Parish Church, popularily known as “Church of the Angry Christ”. This parish is very famous for its mural painting that harmonized every eye

because of its nice colors and the details are very clear. It is not yet repainted since Spanish-American creole artist Alfonso Ossorio created it with carbide carbon ethyl sylicate 40 on its paint.

Beside the church was a local sundial made by the students of Don Bosco Academy. The concept of sundial is different from any other sundial in the world because it is composed of a carabao: a man riding on it, holding a sugarcane standing for  Negros Occidental.

“Cartwheel Chapel”

Hacienda Sta. Rosalia, Manapla, Negros Occidental is our next destination wherein the Cartwheel Chapel was located. When I was outside the chapel, I was not so amazed by its structure but when I got into it I had a change of heart. The things inside were so indigenous! From the Crucifix to the walls. It is almost made up of cartwheels and has different symbolisms that reflect the life of the sugarcane workers.

Mr. Pacete makes further explanation about the chapel.

The Chapel of Cartwheels was built in 1967 by Architect Jerry S. Ascalon and conceptualized by Msgr. Guillermo Ma. “GG” Azcona Gaston

. It was Msgr. Gaston’s thesis”expressing the Catholic Faith in the language and context of the sugarcane workers.” that was implemented.

“Left Over”

After exploring Silay City, Victorias City, and town of Manapla, we went back to Talisay City.  When I got off the bus, I first noticed a very tall tower with a tree on the top of it and I discovered that it is a smokestacks or chimney which is needed for the mascovado mill of the sugar farm.

Then I discovered an Italianate-architectured structure with neo-Romanesque twin columns which they called “The Ruins”

There, we met Roger, a tour guide, and explained different features of the century old house.He said that The Ruins was built after the death of Maria Braga, wife of Don Mariano Ledesma Lacson. It was the largest residential structure ever built at that time.

The structure met its sad fate in the early part of the World War II when the USAFFE (United States Armed Forces in the Far East), then Guerilla fighters in the Philippines burned the mansion to prevent the Japanese Forces from utilizing it as their headquarters. Despite of what happened, the structure still stand and withstood the flow of time because of the things and grade-A concretes used in its construction.

“The Ruins” fascinates me a lot and if the house is not burned, I like to live there. Other features of the house are the following:

• Fountain
• Simborio
• Veranda Lighting
• wooden floors
• Beldevere
• small arched window
• tiles of the mansion
• rain gutters & down spouts
• septic tanks
• 18-hole mini golf course

Seeing all those things is one of my unforgettable moments in my life and in just one day it’s like I rode a time machine and went back to the significant times and already explored the Negrense’s past!

References:

The Ruins Catalog