Silay City: Vigan of the South and The Paris of Negros

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 Negrense was officially inaugurated as museum by the Department of Tourism in 1990.




If you want to see a real Stradivarius violin, that world-renowned and rare brand of this stringed instrument, then you should visit the Bernardino-Jalandoni Museum. A glass-encased of probably the only one of its kind in the Philippines is one of the major collection of this museum which houses the furniture and century-old memorabilia of the Ysabel Jalandoni and Bernardino clan.



Touring inside the ancestral homes of the "royal families" of Silay, enriched my knowledge of the history of this town which was declared museum city next to Vigan of Ilocos. It also made me appreciate the legacy of the old-families and thankful for keeping and opening their homes so that the coming generations will be able to vicariously experience the golden days of the hacienderos.

How to get here:

By Air:

Cebu Pacific Air and Philippine Airlines have scheduled flights to Bacolod City, but actually, it should be Silay City (considering that the airport is in Silay). You may check flight schedules at:

http://www.cebupacificair.com/
http://www.philippineairlines.com/home/home.jsp

By Ship:

http://www.superferry.com.ph/

photo from: heritageconservation