Negros Occidental Trip #2 ( The Ruins and Mangrove Trail, Weird Observations )

2/2 of Negros Occidental Trip Blog

Trip Highlights

First Breakfast at Silay City

It was weird walking in the streets hearing a dialect you've never known before. Since birth I have only known Tagalog and English language. A good thing in travelling to Negros, most negrenses can understand and speak tagalog and english.

Near our hotel, across the street, there is a place called " Kapehan Sang Silay". Since we've been itching for a good negrense breakfast, we've decided to give it a try. I ordered Tocino (Filipino cured meat), egg and rice and accompanied it with hot chocolate. I love their tocino, it is pretty much different from the usual sweet Pampanga's best-like tocino. Their hot chocolate tasted like the ones made with Tablea (Filipino chocolate).

We don't have a docket at the moment so we decided to go to The Ruins.  From Silay City, we rode a bus going to Bacolod City, when we have reached the Pepsi bottling plant there was a terminal, then we rode a tricycle which took us straight to The Ruins.

Bus ride to the terminal near Pepsi bottling plant

The Ruins, Talisay City

The owner of the mansion was Don Mariano Ledesma Lacson. It was built for his Portuguese wife Maria Braga. According to our tour guide, the architecture of the mansion was renaissance type. The mansion was burned down during World War II to prevent the Japanese conquerors from using it.The Ruins was listed one of the 12 most fascinating ruins in the world.

The place is so tranquil, the scenery is so grand. It's a perfect place for photo shoots, weddings, parties, etc.It's one of my trip's highlights. I wonder what it was like when it was not yet burned. I bet Maria Braga was such a beauty that Don Mariano longed to build such a wonderful place.

The restaurant inside serves Italian cuisine although there's a menu under Zone 15 Bistro which has Filipino dishes. 

Here's some links for their menu:

A Taste of Italy at The Ruins

Appetizers, Soup, Salad and Pasta

Main Course, Pizza, Dessert, Coffee

Zone 15 Bistro

Breakfast, Specials, Others

Balaring Mangrove Resort Trail

Balaring is a barangay in Silay City known for seafood restaurants. However it also homes a 50 hectare mangrove eco-tourism area. The Mangrove Resort Trail has a 500 meter bamboo bridge. A great way to see the view is through the 30 feet watch tower. At the end of the trail, there is a resort. Cottages are available. It's a great place for picnics.

Weird things that I have observed during the trip:

♣ When you eat on a restaurant and ask for a patis or fish sauce they will give you soy sauce instead.It's pretty weird because it happened more than two times. I'm not sure if they have misunderstood or there is just no fish sauce in Negros Occidental.

♠ I am nocturnal and I find it weird that at 7:00 in the evening the streets of Silay City is like a ghost town. The stores are already closed. My advice is: If you need to buy some stuff at the grocery, you need to buy it before 7:00 pm.

Food/ Delicacies

Sweets: The best place for grabbing some sweet delicacies is Merci. I have tried their piaya, barquillos, pinagsubo, baquiron and my favorite, their tarts! Merci is located near the Silay City Public Market.

Chicken Inasal is also a must-try since it's a specialty in Negros Occidental.

During the trip, I have also tried eating Cansi, it is a negrense soup dish made with beef, bone marrow, jack fruit and a souring agent.

My trip to Negros Occidental was great although I wasn't able to visit other cities like Victoria and Cadiz. I hope next time I would be able to visit more places and restaurants in Negros Occidental, God willing.

Negros Occidental Trip #1 (Arrival at Silay & Heritage Houses)

This is another one for the culture travelers out there. Negros Occidental, specifically Silay City will make you feel you are back to the old days. For some readers who cannot relate, Negros Occidental is a province in The Philippines located on Western Visayas, its capital is Bacolod City. Our guide said Negros was originally known as Buglas but during the Spanish regime, the Spaniards named it Negros because the natives were dark-skinned. 

Trip Highlights

Arriving at New Bacolod-Silay Airport

It took us 45 minutes from Manila to Silay City via Philippine Airlines. I enjoyed the flight because we made an advance seat reservation and I chose a window seat so that I can take some snapshots of the view. 

Arriving at Silay City was pretty nice the weather was great, it was neither hot nor too cold. A family friend, a local from Silay City, picked us up at the airport. 
Another thing I've noticed, there's a lot of sugar cane plantations, then  I remembered, Negros Occidental is the " Sugarbowl of the Philippines", it explains the numerous fields of sugar cane. 

People

People in Negros are called Negrense. Majority of the people in Negros Occidental speaks Hiligaynon, a dialect in Western Visayas, It is said that it is an Austronesian language. However most people I've been with in Negros Occidental are well conversant in English language. 
We visited Negros Occidental to visit a dear friend of my father, all throughout the trip, they have been hospitable and they smile and laugh a lot. I think Negrenses are way too happy people. Being with them feels light,no worries. They are the ones who gave us a tour to some well-known places in Negros Occidental.

Some of the Ancestral Houses

Balay Negrense, Silay City

Negros Occidental is the home of more than 50 heritage houses. One of those is Balay Negrense , balay is the hiligaynon word for house, it is also called as the Victor Fernandez Gaston Ancestral House. Victor Gaston is the son of Yves  Leopold Gaston, a french pioneer of the sugarcane industry in Philippines. 
My favorite part of the Balay Negrense tour is the mini gallery which has plentiful dose of art. You can also buy souvenirs from the gallery. I liked the art made from wires, I never thought it can be admirable.
Here's their website: www.balaynegrense.com

Admission fees for Balay Negrense:

Adults ____________Php 40.00
Senior Citizen ______Php 35.00
Children & Students _Php 20.00

Location:
5 de Noviembre St., Silay City, 6116 
Contact no: (034) 714-7676

Bernardino Jalandoni Heritage House, Silay City

Some Negrense called it the Pink House because it is painted pale pink. It used to be the residence of Don Bernardino and Doña Ysabel Jalandoni. On November of year 1993, the National Historical Institute declared the Bernardino-Jalandoni House as National Historical Landmark. It is said that the Silay Heritage Foundation Inc., maintains the heritage house.

There's also a doll museum, it's like the mini version of some famed people we've known. Some are Cory Aquino, Lapu- lapu, there's also a Maria Clara doll, etc. 

Admission fees: 
Php 50.00 per head
Location: 
Rizal St., Silay City, 6116
Contact no: 
(034) 495-5093
Museum is open Tuesdays to Sundays 9am to 5pm

We would like to visit some other heritage sites but some are only open by appointment. I truly admire the streets of Silay City, it somehow reminds me of Vigan although both are incomparable.I loved that it is so clean and away from earsplitting noises and pollution. 

I've decided to post the other half of my trip on the next blog.. Check it out too! It'll be my trip to The Ruins in Talisay City and the Mangrove Trail in Balaring, Silay City. 

Travelling to Cebu City

Trip Highlights

Travelling in Cebu City is perfect for travelers who's into History. Cebu is one of the oldest settlement site established by the Spaniards, in line with this, Cebu offers some historical sites that depicts some of Philippines' cultural heritage.

Magellan's Cross

It is a giant cross planted by the spanish and portuguese conquerors; It was ordered by Ferdinand Magellan, a Portuguese explorer who arranged the Spanish expedition to East Indies (South East Asia), including The Philippines.

The Magellan's Cross is located in Sto. Niño Church in downtown Cebu City. It was planted on April 21, 1521. 

Mactan Shrine

Mactan Shrine is located in Punta Engaño, Mactan Island Cebu. It is the location where the historical Battle of Mactan took place in year 1521.  A 100 year-old  monument of Lapu-lapu is located in the shrine. Lapu- lapu is a legendary Cebuano hero who fought for freedom against the Spanish and Portuguese conquerors. 

I personally liked the Shrine, though I think it is better to stroll the shrine in the morning or late afternoon because it was too hot.  For someone who likes to shop for some random items, there are souvenir shops within the premises.

Aside from the historical sites, as part of our tour, we went to the Taoist Temple. One thing that I admire was the architecture of the place. Have you guys seen the Disney movie, Mulan?, the temple premises was a lot like the structures in that movie. It was so amazing. 

Taoist Temple, Beverly Hills, Cebu City

There's an area inside the temple where you can wish your heart's desire, as they say. However I'm not into Taoist beliefs but to give you a picture, it is like praying to their gods, they will instruct you to go to their altar, get some incense sticks and bow down, they said that gesture is to ask permission to their gods. After asking permission you will be instructed to take two kidney bean shaped wood and wish, after wishing you have to throw the wood, in order for you to know if the answer is yes or no. 

Restaurants

During the tour we ate breakfasts at Sugbahan restaurant, it is near our hotel, it is located in Mandaue Cebu. Because it's breakfast they have breakfast buffet which has sinangag (fried rice), danggit (dried fish), eggs , tocino, pretty much the typical filipino breakfast. For more details about their menu CLICK HERE. 

We also dined in to an eat-all-you-can restaurant named Royal Concourse, the food was so delicious. I loved it because they've got everything from asian dishes to mexican dishes and a whole lot more.  Just having a thought of it right now makes me crave for their delish food. It's a total thumbs up for me. Check out their Facebook page CLICK HERE

Where to buy delicacies in Cebu City?

There is a market called Tabo-an Market, where you can find various delicacies. Delicacies that you can find from the market are: 

Ocean Jet Ferry

Chorizo de Cebu, It's a longganisa (Filipino sausage), Cebu's version of longganisa was sweet unlike the one from Lucban, Quezon and the one from Vigan City. 

dried fishes like danggit and fish tocino, otap ( it is an oval shaped pastry, it's good accompaniment to coffee) , their famous dried mango and chicharon.

If given a chance to return to Cebu, I want to try the sky walk at Crown Regency Hotel and I want to taste a legit spicy lechon!

Cebu is near Bohol Province, I would recommend extending your adventures to Bohol. From Cebu, the fastest way to get to Bohol is by riding a ferry it's either Super Cat, Ocean Jet, Kinswell or Starcraft ferries.