Adto na 'ta

Almost midway from Silay City to Bacolod , is a secret kept for over 50 years. In a clearing in the middle of a wide sugarcane plantation stands the remains of the old mansion of the sugar baron Don Mariano Ledesma Lacson. It was abandoned after the American forces during WW2 burned it down so that Japanese Imperial army could not camp in it. It was a secret well-kept and was partially restored and opened to the public only last year (one of the gods must have whispered to the local officials to share this to the visitors of the town). Built by the sugar baron for his unmarried children and his wife, Maria Braga, who was a Portuguese from the Macau peninsula, the Ruins is inspired by Italianate and Romanesque architecture which was the fashion in Europe at that period. The structure remained grandiose and majestic despite the ravages of war and the inferno due to the oversized steel bars and the good quality of concrete that was used in the construction. It is believed that it took...

While enjoying my breakfast of adobong baboy and hot beef soup in Mam and Sir Diner located along the high way in Silay City, I noticed that most of the people around me were mestizas and mestizos so the curiouser I got about the history, not only of Silay but also of Negros Occidental. Silay City is also known as the Paris of Negros because of the well-preserved old haciendas , about 30 of them, that provide a glimpse of life back when it was the leading sugar-producer in the country, examples of these are the Balay Negrense and the Bernardino-Ysabel Jalandoni Home which have been turned into museums for guests to appreciate the history and the culture of the town especially during when hacienderos were the leading figures of society. The Balay Negrense boasts of memorabilia and architectural features dating back 1897 when it was built by Victor F. Gaston, son of Yves Leopold Germain Gaston, a Frenchman who married a Batanguena and later on relocated to Negros. Balay Neg...

Bacolod is the City of Smiles and a place that I would always associate with sugarcane (I did see oceans of them) and the famous Maskarra festival. Incidentally, it is the Maskarra month so the city is probably experiencing a shortage in hotel rooms now (it was a good thing for us to have come before visitors started arriving to witness the annual festivity). Thanks to Cebu Pacific's travel promo, coming to Bacolod became really, really affordable for just the sum of P600. (Enough reason to smile, indeed) One look at the newly-opened Bacolod-Silay International Airport, which is just over 30 minutes away from Bacolod City, and you'd be smiling again. A sprawling structure of modernity, this airport is already something that each Negrense ought to be proud of. Arrivals and departures were easy as "napoleones" pies. One of the never to miss experiences is the chicken inasal at Manukan Country. It is inasal at its best, native chicken without the tons of seasoning in...

Villa Escudero is located along the boundary of Batangas and Quezon, a good two hour drive to the south west part of Metro Manila. A visit here is to experience the cultural heritage of the Philippines. Every square inch of the former coconut plantation is a depiction of the Philippines' rural setting: from these lifesize statues that dot the wide grounds where one can imagine the simple life of 'ol ... ...to the waterfalls that bring back memories of some Sundays of family picnics along riverbanks and white-sand beaches... ...and to the picnic menu of rice, inihaw na baboy (pork), manok (chicken), isda (fish, e.g. tilapia), kalderetang baka, kare-kare and native condiments of kamatis (tomatoes) and bagoong, (yum...) served in banana leaf. For a more authentic feel, visitors can eat by their hands, utensils are provided if they prefer otherwise. The vast plantation area is best explored by these carabao-drawn carts, the traditional mode of transportation in farms. While v...