Posted by: SUV111

SAN SEBASTIAN CATHEDRAL

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Taoist Temple

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Yuan Thong Temple

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(photo by Linguine)

posted by:thesugarfairy


RUINS

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CHURCH of the ANGRY CHRIST - Victorias

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Photos Courtesy of OYEN RODRIGUEZ[/CENTER]

Originally posted by bacolodchamp from Bacolod main thread...

‘Young Voices of Negros’ receives ‘Ani ng Dangal’ award
By Merlinda A. Pedrosa

THE pride of Bacolod, Young Voices of Negros, has received presidential awards “Ani ng Dangal Awards,” a national commission for culture and the arts, given by President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo last February 26, at the Rizal Hall, Malacañang, Manila.

The Young Voices of Negros members include the siblings Ma. Ana Katrina, (soprano), Ma. Ana Kristina (alto) and Kristopherson (high-tenor) Madrigal, the children of Maestro Art Madrigal and Joann Agsam-Madrigal, a professional singer, are truly products of Bacolod.


Recently, the Young Voices of Negros was awarded as the Grand World Champion group vocalist of the world, in a World Championships of Performing Arts (WCOPA) held in Los Angeles, California, last year, which the City Government of Bacolod also gives a special citation award.

Ma. Ana Katrina, 15, is currently studying at the St. Joseph-La Salle, while Ma. Ana Kristi, 13, and Kristopherson, 10, are students of La Consolacion College.

Maestro Madrigal said after the awarding ceremony of the Ani ng Dangal, the Young Voices of Negros also gain a standing ovation from the audience, after their performance at the Supreme Court.

Madrigal said this is the honor of Bacolod and the province of Negros Occidental that the Young Voices of Negros gained the national and international awards, “which this is the first time that the City of Bacolod is also recognized in terms of music.”

Madrigal noted that on March 10, the Young Voices of Negros is invited in the opening of Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) activity that composed of Asean countries, and they are also eyed in Manila to represent the Philippines in Sydney, Australia for the Summit Musical Festival. On March 23, they will also feature on the Panaad sa Negros Festival.

The Madrigal siblings have a recording studio at the 4th floor of Liman’s Building, Bacolod City.

Published in the Sun.Star Bacolod newspaper on March 8, 2010.

posted by:Linguine

San Sebastian Cathedral


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[QUOTE=Linguine;53737653]San Sebastian Cathedral


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POSTED BY proud_negrense (http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showpost.php?p=55808563&postcount=392)

NEGROS OCCIDENTAL PROVINCIAL CAPITOL COMPLEX

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(Photo courtesy by Linguine, from Bacolod main thread)

The Capitol
WITH MODESTO P. SA-ONOY
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source (http://www.negrosoccidentaltourism.com/?page_id=2)

Governor-elect Alfredo G. Marañon, Jr. will be inducted into office after a 3 p.m. Mass at the Provincial Capitol. Also to be inducted is his vice governor – Lim-ao Alvarez.

The setting is appropriate as this is the Capitol which name evokes the power of office.

Technically, the term means “citadel on top of a hill” (capo or head) and in Roman times was the seat of the legislature or the Senate which was the source of authority at the time when there were no popular elections.

The Roman standard is emblazoned with the words, “The Senate and the People of Rome” which equates the power of the Senate as that of the people whose representatives (or as indoctrinated) rests with the Senate.

The Capitol is then rightly the seat of the legislative branch of government, as in the United States where the Senate and the House of Representatives are housed.

The plan to construct a Capitol for Occidental Negros was decided in 1926 and the Provincial Board appropriated P255,000 for the project.

On June 2, 1927, the Director of Public Works approved the structural design and authorized its construction but there was a hitch because the land identified to be the site was owned by the Gonzaga family and they refused to sell.

The provincial government filed for expropriation and offered P1,200 per hectare, still the heirs refused.

Represented by former Bacolod capitan municipal Manuel Fernandez Yanson, the Gonzagas finally agreed to sell but rejected the offer of P1,200 per hectare. They wanted more but the provincial government refused citing the expropriation proceedings.

The Gonzagas relented and construction began immediately. However, the contractor, Manuel Concepcion was too slow and missed his target forcing the government to cancel the contract and confiscate his bond.

It was declared finally completed on October 21, 1933 but Governor Emilio Gaston formally accepted it only on January 11, 1935.

The construction of the Capitol spanned the terms of three governors – Jose Locsin, Isaac Lacson and Emilio Gaston.

But eight months after it was accepted, the Occidental Negros Court of First Instance (equivalent to our present Regional Trial Court) ordered the provincial government to pay the other Gonzaga heirs who were not parties to the expropriation proceedings but whose lands were included in the Capitol area, a higher price of P1,5521.40 plus 6 percent annual interest starting April 20, 1933 when the land was included after the Capitol was constructed.

Anyway, all’s well that ends well, as Shakespeare declares and the Capitol became the house of the Board (the legislative body of three at the time) and the Governor.

The Board’s office was with the Vice Governor who presided over the legislative body with the other two members. The father of the incoming Governor, Alfredo Sr., was a member of the Board.

During the Japanese time the Capitol was vacated by Gov. Antonio Lizares who preferred to stay in his house in Talisay so the Japanese Military Administration occupied it.

The Agricultural Building across the street (now the Negros Museum) was occupied by the Kempetai and where torture was the daily fare.

The Capitol was never bombed by the Japanese although the lagoon was strafed just to create fear, but Negros was spared because the Japanese wanted to insure that the sugar mills continue to operate to produce alcohol that Japan needed to fuel its war machine.

Gov. Alfredo Montelibano Jr., later abandoned the Capitol and constructed the Provincial Administration Building and under Gov. Bitay Lacson it was converted into a museum.

However, when Gov. Joseph G. Marañon took his oath at the Capitol steps in 2001, he decided to rehabilitate and renovate the Capitol and constructed the present Negros Museum out of the abandoned Agricultural Building. Now, Joseph’s younger brother Freddie takes his oath in this symbol of authority of the provincial government.*

[QUOTE=kyle@1008;12427637]The Araneta Family

One of the most famous and powerful filipino families

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THE FIRST PHILIPPINE ARANETAS

According to historical accounts and testimonies obtained from the elders in the family, the Philippine Aranetas originated from the Basque region of Northern Spain.

In 1723, during the Galleon Trade two brothers named Baltazar de Araneta and Don Jose de Araneta arrived in Manila aboard the Spanish Galeón,"La Sacra Familia". They came from the Basque region of Spain by way of Acapulco, Mexico. This was, however, not conclusive as some members of the family, disputed that the two are not brothers and Don Jose de Araneta must have been born in Gipuzkoa, but not Baltazar de Araneta, who was born in Mexico.

There are many conflicting testimonies about the beginning of the first Philippine Aranetas. Many of these stories were passed down verbally from one generations to another, it is more likely than not, that these stories have changed along the way. Some have it that Don Jose de Araneta was born in Zamboanga. If he was born in Zamboanga, therefore, he can not be the same person who arrived in Manila in 1723. Another stories has it that an Aranetas from the Basque region of Spain settled in Zamboanga. While others have their beginning with two brothers, who were priest, from Mexico. Until documentations to substantiate all these stories are found, the true facts remain unknown.

From articles written by Santiago Gomez [El Galeón de Manila en el siglo XVIII, Navios de la Carrera de Filipinas.] In reference to Baltazar de Araneta and Juan de Araneta. To wit; ''The Galeón Nuestra Senora del Pilar de Zaragosa", under the command of General Baltazar de Araneta and his master Captain Jose Antonio de la Madrid, sailed from Cavite on July 31, 1736, accompanied by the flagship N.S. Cavadonga, it arrived in Acapulco, Mexico, four months after. The same ship returned to Manila on August 20, 1739, (on board the ship was the newly appointed governor to the Philippines Gaspar Antonio de la Torre.)

Later, Baltazar de Araneta served the Spanish government as a Regidor of the Cabildo and Secretary of the Charitable Fraternity of the Mesericordia in Manila. He married Manuela de Aguirre. Baltazar died in Manila in 1750. "One line of the Araneta family descended from him."

Also there, was the Galeón Santisima Trinidad y Nuestra Senora del Buen Fin, familiarly known as El Pederoso (The mighty.) The governor, Jose Francisco Ovando y Solis ordered its construction, in the yards of Bagatao (island of Luzon), to replace the Nuestra Senora de Cavadonga, which was captured by British Admiral George Anson, commander of the frigate, HMS Centurion. Built in 1751, it was one of the largest ships in the islands. its first trip departed in mid - 1751, under the command of General D. Francisco Ustariz, with its master Captain Juan de Araneta. Without any setbacks, it returned to the Philippines in the spring of 1752.

A passage quoted from the book Islas Filipinas: Mindanao Vol. 11, by Benito Francia and Julian Gonzales Parrado which was translated in the Chabacano dialect by Datu Michael Mastura, establishes two facts: First, Don Jose de Araneta served the Spanish Politico-Military Government of Mindanao based at Zamboanga City. Second, he served as interpreter between the Spanish colonial government and the Sultan of Maguindanao, together with Placido Alberto de Saavedra. Another passage in the document revealed that in 1746, Don Jose Araneta was executed in Sulugan, Mindanao nowadays known as Anuling in Cotabato, Philippines. However, There are conflicting information drawn from translations of various documents pertaining to him.


Before the turn of the century, two of Don Jose's sons, Mathias Araneta and Vicente Araneta left Zamboanga province for Iloilo. They settled in Parian [Molo]. Don Jose's other son Benito, followed them afterwards. Years later, Vicente Araneta with his family moved and established their residence in the province of Negros Occidental starting the Negros branch of the family.

The Philippine Aranetas of today are descendants of Don Jose de Araneta and Baltazar de Araneta.

References:

Portal Archivos General de Indies (Por Santiago Gomez)
Islas Filipinas: Mindanao (Por Benito Francia and Julian G. Parredo)

Copyright 1997
All Rights Reserved:


Footnote: The Galleon, Nuestra Senora de Guia, arrived in Manila from Acapulco, Mexico six years later in August 9, 1729 and not 1723, as circulated from a leaflet during the Araneta grand reunion in Iloilo in 1993. (Source Archivo General de Indies, pp.32-33, Ruta Acapulco - Filipinas). The Galleon La Sacra Familia arrived in Manila in 1723. (See source Overview of Galleons to / from Philippines, 1565 - 1815.)



TRIVIA:



FAMILY NAME HISTORY & ORIGIN
The Araneta family dates back from earlier times when aristocracy was still prevalent. The family traces their ancestral roots back to ancient times in Aragon Spain.

According to the historians, "Baron de Cobos" of Belchite, Aragon, One branch of this family established their household in the province of Gipuzkoa, in Vasconia, now known as "Pais Vasco", or the Basque Country. Basques, first known to history as natives of modern - day Navarre and Aragon in the first century BC are now prodominanly found in an area known as the Basque Country. The Basques live on the western end of the Pyrenees Mountains on the Iberian Peninsula. down to the Bay of Biscay. For as long as anyone can remember, they have had seven provinces, the oldest is called Gipuzkoa ( Gu-iz-puzk-ko-ak ), which means "we whose language was broken".

The family dwelled mostly near the mountain, surrounded by valleys. Hence the name Araneta, with its etymology derived from the Basque term "aran", meaning valley, and in addition, the locative suffix "eta", which denotes a "place of". Thus, the initial bearer of the surname Araneta would have been someone who dwelled in a valley. There are very few towns in the Basque Country. People did not live in towns but in disperse farms, so most of the villages had not any "casco urbano". In the part of the Basque Country where the surname Araneta was originated, surnames are not usually names of villages or towns, but the name of the house or farm. Families took as surname the name of their house, that is the reason of why Basque surnames used the DE before them. For instance Fernando de Araneta means Fernando from the Araneta House.

During the Middle Ages, before the hereditary family name system was instituted, it was a practice to adopt a second name to be able to differentiate one individual from other with the same personal name. Surnames, as with languages in general, undergo spelling changes over time. This can be the result of exchanging letters which sound similar, or of scribes altering a name as it is recorded.

From the diverse unity which characterise Spain, came the distinguished Araneta family surname. Historians have studied available records to reveal the original family ancestral seat originated in Aragon, an ancient kingdom of Spain. One of the earliest records bearing the name Araneta is that of Martin de Araneta, who came from an aristocratic family of Basque origin. His name was recorded in the Castillian document dated 1227. Martin de Araneta was a Knight during the era of the Reconquest. He served and escorted Ferdinand III, king of Castile and Leon, in the conquest of Cordova, Murcia, Jean and Seville from the Moors in 1217. He was granted innumerable amounts of lands when Ferdinand divided the conquered territories between his Knights, the Church and the Nobility, whom he endowed with great latifundia. The era of the reconquest was completed in 1492, when the Moors lost Granada to King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella. Religion had an important role in this age of reconquest, serving as a rallying point for military and political efforts which were a part of recovering Arab occuppied terretories.

According to Garcia Garafa, a Basque scholar and historian from Vasco (Navarro), the Aranetas had ancestral homes in the valley of Gainza and Andoain in Gipuzkoa. A notable member of this household, Juan Francisco de Araneta, was ennobled in Gainza, circa 1683. While the use of hereditary family names began in the Iberian peninsula on the thirteenth century, it was not until the sixteenth century that the practice became firmly established among the general populace. The Basque Country is filled with the heritage of families from aristocratic and noble origins, who in the ancient times of shields and swords, earned their nobility by protecting their king and country from foreign invaders. The Spanish Crown, in granting the family a decree of the coat-of-arms, recognized the nobility of the Araneta family. It is found in the compilation of "The Land of "Basque and Navarres" and can be depicted by the " COAT-OF-ARMS " of the Hispanic Communities".

Reference:

Historical Research & Archives Center

Copyright 1997
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED


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COAT - OF - ARMS

Silver Lion, gold star, war body armor

SYMBOLISM AND EXPLANATION

Blue: Heraldic sense, loyalty and truth (Those who carry this color in their coat-of-arms or coat are obligated to help servants who are unjustly abandoned by their feudal lords.)

Silver or white: Peace and sincerity.

Gold or Yellow: Nobility, honor and courage

Red: strength

Seal: A ducal crown of gold

Crest: Three ostrich feathers

Motto: Nobleza Y Valor

It is not only during the ancient times that Aranetas showed their streak of heroism but also during the Philippine Revolution. Not only Juan Anacleto Araneta and Gregorio Araneta exemplified valor but also many of the Araneta family members such as; Don Felix Araneta y Militante, Agaton M. Araneta, Ceferina Araneta de Esteban, Pablo Soriano Araneta, Marciano Soriano Araneta, Jose Soriano Araneta, Eusebio Araneta, Casamiro Araneta, Emilio Araneta, Mariano Araneta, Faustino Araneta and so on and so forth. They bore within their hearts their family legacy of nationalism. Indeed, the family has proved that its regency rooting back from the distant past could never be erased by time.

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from Bacolod thread....



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courtesy underoath

Negrense entrepreneurs publish ‘Silver Tiangge’

Friday, 03 September 2010 01:49

A story that has been needed to be told for 25 years will now come in 152 pages of full color in a coffee table book published by the Association of Negros Producers (ANP) to be launched during its forthcoming annual Negros Trade Fair at Rockwell Tent, Makati on September 8 to 12. The Silver Tiangge, with Foreword by Carmen Guerrero Nakpil and photographs by Neal Oshima, features all the latest products of the Association of Negros Producers. It is written by 11 authors and design consultants, including furniture designer Debbie Palao and fashion iconoclast PJ Arañador. The food chapters are written by Margarita Forés of Cibo and Vince Groyon, scriptwriter of the indie film Namets.

In her Foreword, Nakpil calls the Association of Negros Producers “a world provider of masterpieces.” There are product chapters on weaving, wood furniture and lamination, lighting, fashion, souvenirs, gifts, and wellness and eco-friendly products. There are also two food chapters, one on Negrense cuisine, and another on desserts. ANP leaders have also contributed to the book in a chapter on the glorious past of Negros Occidental and another chronicling the growth of The Negros Trade Fair. It is edited by ANP’s first president, Gigi Mondonedo Campos.

The book will be launched during the Silver Edition Negros Trade Fair’s opening day, and book copies will be available for sale throughout the fair dates. For copy reservations and bulk orders, contact Kathleen Trebol, ANP Marketing & Sales Manager at 0915-3202031 or e-mail marketing@anp-philippines.com

Gaston Mansion
Manapla, Occidental Negros


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Chapel of the Cartwheels
Manapla, Occidental Negros



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Gaston Mansion
Manapla, Occidental Negros


side view....

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Hda. Rosalia
Manapla, Occ. Neg.


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wala pares ang sapatos....:D

Silay City: The Paris of Negros
by Benjamin Locsin Layug

www.biyahero.net
source (http://biyahero.net/index.php?option=com_k2&id=104:silay-city-the-paris-of-negros&view=item&Itemid=71)

Silay City, known as the “Paris of Negros Occidental,” was once the foremost cultural center in the region, and its Kahirup Theater was the center of these activities. The city is also the birthplace of noted artists including architect and 1990 National Artist Leandro Locsin (1928-1994) and 1920s Hiligaynon playwright Miguela Locsin Montelibano (1874-1969).

It is also the birthplace of my late mom and my maternal grandfather, the late governor (1925-1928), secretary of Health and Agriculture, and senator (1951-1957) Jose C. Locsin (1891-1977). I have always long wanted to visit my mom’s hometown, and an opportunity to do so came during the eighth Locsin family reunion. Bringing along my wife Grace and my children Jandy and Cheska, we easily got there via the New Bacolod-Silay International Airport, now conveniently located within the city.

Silay was founded in 1760. In 1846 the cultivation of sugar cane made the town prosperous. Silay’s newfound wealth from sugar cultivation translated into the construction of many opulent ancestral homes, located mostly along Rizal Street. A total of 29 (some well-preserved) have been identified by the National Historical Institute (NHI) as National Treasures, my grandfather’s house (built in the 1930s, it is locally called Balay Daku or “Big House”) being one of them.

Because of these, Silay is now one of the country’s top 25 tourist destinations. Three of these have been turned into museums. During breaks in the reunion, with my Silaynon first cousin Neil Solomon “Solo” Locsin as guide, we got to visit all three. Before doing so, we dropped by the beautiful domed San Diego Pro-Cathedral, built from 1925 to 1927 by Italian Architect Lucio Bernasconi. It was elevated to procathedral in December 1994, the second in the country to be so declared. Behind it are the ruins of the city’s original church, now a grotto.

Balay Negrense, along Cinco de Noviembre Street, is one of the largest, if not the largest, ancestral houses in the city. It was built in the Neo-Renaissance style (1898-1912) by Yves Gaston, son of 19th-century sugar baron Yves Leopold Germain Gaston of Lisieux (France) who generated wide-scale interest in commercial-scale sugar cultivation with his horno econonmico, the precursor of today’s sugar mills. The 12-bedroom house, said to have been occupied by Japanese military officers during World War II, was later a venue for a ballet school run by one of the descendants until the early 1970s.

Abandoned shortly thereafter, it was later restored and opened as a lifestyle museum in 1987 by the Negros Cultural Foundation. Now a showcase of Negrense art and culture, it displays antique furniture and Gaston memorabilia. The museum boasts of a grand W-shaped stairway, calado, or carved, panels that served as ventilators between rooms, etched window glass, fancy-grilled ventanillas and sprawling gardens.

On the other hand, the two-story Bernardino-Ysabel Jalandoni Museum, at the corner of Rizal and Severino streets, is cared for by the Silay Heritage Foundation. Also called the Pink Museum, it was built from 1908 to 1912 and was declared, on November 6, 1993, as a National Historical Landmark by the NHI. Built with durable balayong, a hardwood coming all the way from Mindoro, it displays embossed steel trayed ceilings imported from Hamburg, Germany. It also features a fine collection of books, glassware and lace supplied by the Silay Heritage Foundation members.

The Ramon Hofilena Museum, a typical turn-of-the-century ancestral home near Balay Negrense (built in 1934), is our personal favorite. On hand to greet us was Solo’s friend, the 72-year old Ramon Hofilena himself. He personally gave us a two-hour guided tour of his collection of more than 1,000 works by Goya and Picasso, Dr. Jose Rizal and local artists Juan Luna and Felix Resurreccion Hidalgo, plus imported Chinese pottery, silver picture frames, antiques and a collection of small dolls (said to be the smallest in the world, you need a magnifying glass to appreciate them). The museum also houses the oldest printmaking workshop outside Manila, Silay Printmaking, founded in 1970.

On our last day, we visited Patag Valley, located in a valley 1,034 feet above sea level. Throughout the one-hour trip, we passed huge expanses of sugar fields. Sugar harvested here is processed at the Hawaiian-Philippine Sugar Co., the city’s lone sugar central. It has a 180-km rail network and some excellent old steam locomotives nicknamed the “Red Dragons” going back to the time when they were painted bright red (they are now blue-black in color). During World War II, they were hidden from the Japanese by running them on special rails into the forested mountains.

They include one 1920 Henschel 0-6-0 and six Baldwin 0-6-0s (built in 1919, 1920 and 1928). According to Solo, a whole-day ride on one of these would cost you P15,000.

During World War II, the valley was the last Japanese stronghold in the whole region. Here, 15,000 Japanese and hundreds of Filipino-American soldiers died. The Japanese surrendered after five months. Today a wide Japanese altar commemorates the last battle between the two forces, and underground, manmade Japanese tunnels can still be found. The valley is also ideal for ecotours. Dinky and Milou (our first cousin) von Einsiedel built a beautiful resthouse overlooking the verdant valley and mountains.

This was to be our base in exploring stretches of rain forest and some of its 300 waterfalls (which includes Pulang Tubig Waterfalls). The valley is also home to sulfataras (sulfur geysers) and endangered species of wildlife (including the Negros spotted deer). After lunch at Balay Daku and prior to our departure for Manila, we walked over to El Ideal Bakery for pasalubong shopping of Silay’s famous dulce gatas (Cheska’s favorite), sugar cookies, broas, guapple pie, pilarica, rosquillos and angel cookies.

Mods, can we please change the thread title of this thread to Negros Occidental Heritage Watch....thanks...

beautiful!!!! :cheers:

NEGROS OCCIDENTAL PROVINCIAL CAPITOL COMPLEX

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(Photo courtesy by Linguine, from Bacolod main thread)

^^

Thanks....:)

Pacete: Cultural Heritage Tour

By Ver F. Pacete

As I See It

Tuesday, September 28, 2010

SEPTEMBER is Tourism Month. The Association of Tourism Officers of Negros Occidental (Atono) has prepared a tour package where we blend drama, amusement, weird ideas, religious belief, culture shock and food tasting. Our tourist attractions are just there but we are offering a new game plan, a new twist and a new flavor for Negros which somehow will allow old timers to develop cephalalgia. Just the same, first timers will enjoy obfuscations of oracular utterances. Hey, what are those?

This familiar tour has been repaptized, "Finding What Is Best In Negros Culture, Heritage ang Sugar". We can start our tour at the historic Capitol Lagoon. We want you to know the love story of two carabaos. In the process you will find out that tilapias love pizza. You will further know that the Silaynon governor who had capitol as his obra maestra nearly became the president of the Republic of the Philippines. You will hear from us that Fort San Juan was the stronghold of the Spaniards but later on it became a cage for those who championed the cross for Christianity. Salve Maria!

La Consolacion College is not only best for Architecture and Tourism. Unearth what took place during its golden era. And, how many of you know Plaza 6 de Noviemdre in Bacolod? It was like Jerecho when trumpets sounded. When was that? Go beyond the secret. Dissect what lies beneath the Bishop's House. Ah, to you right is San Sebastian Cathedral. Marvel at the art of forced labor. Was your grandfather there during the breaking of the egg? In the heart of Bacolod, ask the question- "What is the genesis of Bacolod?" Your tour guide will become an instant prophet!

Enter Talisay. Identify the great houses that sugar built. Roll over to the first class luxury houses. Find out for your self the confusion over our heroes which enlarged the mole of former Pres. Gloria. Who is Tana Dikang? Get inside the kitchen of her house and listen to the pig story. Savor the sweet lanzones of Barangay Concepion. Can you recall the legend of lanzones? Hop like the Minuluan dancers. Focus at their pelvic gyrations. Hope to see the goat's horn there. We are not kidding! Pay attention to this. It's the Dos Marias Story, a kilig-to-the-bone urban legend.

Enter the Paris of Negros -- Silay. Meet the chimney of the maquina vapor de horno economico. Know the Legend of Sugar. It's the historia de un amor of Katam-is, Kaaslom and Kaaplod. Our tour guide will confuse you with his discombobulating circumlocutions. Pass Sitio Maninihon. "Sweet lovers, sweet potters." What's the story behind? And now, the mansions of Silay! Bring back the golden days of sugarbarons. Only in Silay! Fall into a maze with gustatory delights... lumpia and more, high-chin lifestyle, religiosity and feudalism.

Visit museum of your choice - Balay Negrense (know what's behind romance), Mon Hofeliña's House. By discovering Mon you will know Mon's juicy secrets. He is a man who lives with his art and by knowing his art you will appreciate what Mon lives for. Mon is specific, precise, and accurate. And, there's Jalandoni House, winner of Provincal Tourism Excellence Award. Be there to be there. Meet Jorge Po. He is a houseguide with several expressions and dispositions. Genuflect in the front of the tabernacle inside San Diego Pro-Cathedral, the only pro cathedral outside Metro Manila. Our guide will give you lecture on liturgical arts.

Have lunch at the Fisherman's Village in Balaring -- gambas, stuffed squid, grilled bangus, fisn kinilaw, sweet and sour St. Peter's fisn, sizzling sisig and pregnant talaba. Have a 600-meter walk at the bamboo bridge. See Guimaras sky at the end of the canopy by climbing the bamboo tower. If you are lucky you will be a witness in the mating of the fin lizards.

Zoom to Manapla. Visit the Chapel of Cartwheels constructed under the supervision of Msgr. Guillermo Gaston. See Christ in the person of a hacienda worker. What you see around are what could be found in the chapel. This is Creation. Our tour guide will explain what the Bible says. Don't leave Manapla without eating puto, or buying fresh fruits at the highway fruit stand. Make a left turn to Victorias Milling Company. Meet the psychedelic Christ at St. Joseph the Worker Church. Discover reality. Unfold mystery behind the controversy. No option! Breathe fresh air at VMC Golf and Country Club.

Retrace your path back to Silay. Catch up with the best delicacies of El Ideal -- apple pie, buko pie, lumpia, best delicacies, or blow your horn at the gate of Emma Lacson for her pili square (the favorite of VP Jojo Binay) and assorted Lacson pastries. View sunset at the Ruins in Talisay. The romantic landscape will take you to a land of make-believe. Have you dinner there and fill your heart with delight.

You see... this is one tour where we overfeed you with life. We would appreciate your comments at your earliest convenience. Join the tour and art with us. Show action and passion.

Published in the Sun.Star Bacolod newspaper on September 28, 2010.

Negrense home holds stunning collection

By Marge C. Enriquez
Philippine Daily Inquirer

DateFirst Posted 22:05:00 09/29/2010

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An elegant witness to history, the Hofileña ancestral home in Silay has the world’s first pocketbook for US soldiers in WWII and a 15-year-old Rizal’s sketch from Ateneo days
A COLLECTION grows out of personal discovery and the pleasure of appreciating beautiful things. If it remains intact, it sums up the owner’s passion through the decades.

What sparked off the collection of Negrense art proponent Ramon Hofileña, 76, was a visit to a friend nearly 50 years ago.

The friend offered him an artwork by Fernando Amorsolo for P5. This led to an interest in other artists and curios.

His collections are now displayed in the ancestral home, the Manuel Severino Hofileña Heritage House, which has become a tourist destination in Silay, Negros Occidental.

“To be a heritage house, it’s got to be at least 50 years old and the elements must be at least 75 percent original. This is 100 percent original. Most of the furniture are older than the house,” he explains.

Hofileña was born in 1934, the year the house was built. “I was born in my mother’s underwear. She didn’t feel any pain,” he reveals.

Art Deco and Art Nouveau

Back in the ’30s, local builders adopted Art Deco and Art Nouveau styles. The surface embellishments, says Hofileña, were culled from architectural details salvaged from other houses.

While American elements such as galvanized iron roofing, cement and light frame construction were becoming the architectural staple in Manila, this house kept the classic steep roof with wide eaves and a hardwood structure.

The American influence is seen in the wide steps leading to the portico. A carved door opens to the caida or special hall, which overlooks the garden.

The interior walls are made of balayong, using tongue-and-groove joinery.

Large doors open up the rooms, while above them, tracery cutwork or callado allows for ventilation and natural light.

The wide narra floor planks have a shine, for they are polished daily.

The period furniture, European in influence, was toned down, and used woven cane instead of heavy upholstery.

There are porcelain jars from the Ming Dynasty, dug from a burial site in Calatagan, Batangas. Pegs from a Spanish galleon are displayed in old cabinets.

Although the European influence lends a certain formality, the living room is not stiff, as it is furnished with butakas or recliners and friar chairs that entice the sitter to lounge.

Typical of the elite homes, the place is filled with statuettes, a sculpture of Quezon on a mountain by Guillermo Tolentino, marble-topped tables and ornate mirrors. A German Steinweig piano, harp, glass-enclosed violin and photos of Hofileña’s siblings in dance poses reveal that theirs is a family inclined to the arts.

Every ancestral home had carpenters individually carving the balustrades of the grand staircase as well as the doors. Tall glass-paneled cabinets display the plateras and silverware in the living room and comedor. Crystal chandeliers drop from the patterned ceiling in the living room and dining room.

“Before the war, all the items on display were the wedding gifts of my parents,” says Hofileña.

One of them was a pewter lady holding fruits, so tall she nearly touches the ceiling. When the family fled to the mountains in World War II, the Japanese occupied the house.

After the war, the Americans stayed in the house, and abandoned it when the family returned. “Many objects got lost. Some were saved, like the plates from Germany and Czechoslovakia, because they were buried under the house,” he says.

Library

After a merienda of angel cookies made from ostias or Communion hosts, he led us to the library. In those days, the library was a must, the way a multimedia den is today. “Negrenses were wide readers,” says Hofileña.

It also holds collections of similar objects: amulets, tektites, the world’s first pocket book for American soldiers in World War II, and curios such as the world’s smallest doll and rice grains with inscriptions, viewed through a magnifying glass.

The second floor used to be bedrooms. Before the war, there were curtains over heavily carved doors, allowing a measure of transparency instead of complete privacy. The cutwork transoms enabled the family members to hear the discussions in the next room.

Today, Hofileña’s collection of artworks takes up the entire second floor, which serves as the display area. Hundreds of paintings by Vicente Manansala, H.R. Ocampo, Romeo Tabuena, Manuel Rodriguez Sr., Lamberto Hechanova, Larry Ramos Tronco, Ricarte Puruganan, Lino Severino Jr., Eleazar Santiago, Ang Kiukok, Conrado Judith and J. Elizalde Navarro, as well as sketches by a then 15-year-old José Rizal from his Ateneo days, are arranged informally.

They all tend to be tied in to a historical period—largely 20th century modernism—and encompass various subjects.

These paintings share the space with Spanish artist Francisco Goya and Filipino masters Juan Luna, Fabian de la Rosa and Felix Resurreccion-Hidalgo. They create a general ambience instead of a focused point of interest.

The artworks are also grouped according to subjects and themes. Although there may seem like a lack of focus, the collections invariably create a sense of authenticity.

The gallery extends to Hofileña’s room. Like most period bedrooms, his space is furnished with the most elaborate piece of furniture, the four-poster bed. The antique crocheted bedspread and embroidered pillowcases, as well as the ceramic bowl under the bed, already revealed much about Hofileña, until he showed us drawings of himself in the buff by Bert Hechanova and Corky Trinidad.

“Cesar Legaspi said that your appeal is in being naked,” says Hofileña. However, a piece of paper conceals his manhood. “Not for children,” he explains.

Hofileña has made the ancestral home a repository of sorts, where the viewer learns about the past, the world and human nature.


http://lifestyle.inquirer.net/homeandentertaining/homeandentertaining/view/20100929-294863/Negrense-home-holds-stunning-collection

from Bacolod thread...

St. Mary Magdalene Church
Hinigaran, Negros Occidental

The Bell Tower
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The old church bells at the Church courtyard
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The renovated interior of the church
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Church Exterior
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Hanging out of a classroom window of Madeline Academy (right beside the church)
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Pulupandan
Municipal Hall


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Pulupandan
Municipal Hall


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Our Lady of Guadalupe Church
Valladolid, Neg. Occ.



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St. John the Baptist Church
Bago City, Neg. Occ.


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Our Lady of Guadalupe Church
Valladolid, Neg. Occ.


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-dp-

Today, Hofileña’s collection of artworks takes up the entire second floor, which serves as the display area. Hundreds of paintings by Vicente Manansala, H.R. Ocampo, Romeo Tabuena, Manuel Rodriguez Sr., Lamberto Hechanova, Larry Ramos Tronco, Ricarte Puruganan, Lino Severino Jr., Eleazar Santiago, Ang Kiukok, Conrado Judith and J. Elizalde Navarro, as well as sketches by a then 15-year-old José Rizal from his Ateneo days, are arranged informally.

That's my dad.

That's my dad.



:okay:.....:cheers:

Editorial: Where in Bacolod is Fort San Juan?
Tuesday, October 26, 2010

FORT Santiago, Manila. Fort San Pedro, Cebu City. Fort San Juan, Bacolod City.

Can anybody pinpoint where this old Spanish fort is in the City of Bacolod?

Google it and you won’t find this mysterious fort in the search engine.

According to Edwin Gatia, professional tour guide for 25 years and former officer-in-charge of the Department of Tourism in Bacolod who is now based in the United States, there were only two such forts ever constructed by the Spanish government in the province of Negros Occidental: Fort San Juan in Bacolod, and the Fort in Himamaylan, near the bank of the mouth of the Himamaylan River, where its ruins now rotting its way back to nature under the forces of a huge lunok tree holding on and strangling whatever is left of the Fort.

Incidentally, according to Gatia, Himamaylan was the second capital of the island of Negros before the capital was moved to the town of Bacolod in 1848 and remained as the capital of the Province until after the creation of the Oriental Negros in 1890 until Bacolod became a city in 1938.

He further narrated that it is from this old fort that prison labor was availed by the Spanish friars for the laying of the foundation and construction of the San Sebastian Cathedral.

Fort San Juan in Bacolod is still a very visible façade along Gatuslao Street, under a different identity, yet still serving the same purpose as a garrison for prisoners -- the Negros Occidental Provincial Jail.

It may not look as stately and awe-inspiring as the walled prison cells of Manila and Cebu, but we do have a Spanish heritage that is however sadly decaying in neglect.

Perhaps ignorance?

The proposed transfer to a new and bigger location at Barangay Tabunan, Bago City hopefully early next year may help ease stress and tension among the congested inmates.

In the meantime, let us hope that out of the ruinous state of the old provincial jail, the old Fort San Juan be restored for tourism and historic purposes. After all, isn’t Negros Occidental being repackaged as a major tourist destination in the Visayas?


http://www.sunstar.com.ph/bacolod/opinion/editorial-where-bacolod-fort-san-juan

Pacete: Patag Eco-Adventure Endurance Challenge

By Ver F. Pacete

As I See It

Tuesday, October 26, 2010


REBOLUSYONARYO Run! This is for history. This is for Negros. Negrenses are always reminded that our life is a celebration. Our struggle is going on. We are fighting for what we aspire. Whatever it is, we have to win!

Cinco de Noviembre commemoration is sacred for the Silaynons. It is a date in Negros history that time stopped. Our ancestors were so focused on how freedom could be regained. And, on that Saturday at two o’clock in the afternoon, the Spaniards surrendered to the Silaynon leaders. The surrender paper was signed by Lt. Maximiano Correa. Mabuhi ang Negros! That was Nov. 5, 1898.

To relive the challenge on another field of battle, Mayor Jose Montelibano and Dr. Bob Ledesma have come to think of fighting and winning another battle. This time it is for the environment. The 34K Patag Eco-Adventure Endurance Challenge is for everyone to join and conquer Patag in Silay. Patag was the battle ground when the Japanese Imperial Army made its last stand there against the joint US-Filipino Forces during the Second World War.

Now, Patag is fighting for survival. Its remaining flora and fauna must survive. We want the new revolutionaries to wage war for the protection of the environment. Let’s all run to Patag and find out what we can do for the survival of Mother Nature. The run will be on Nov. 5, 2010. It will start at 5 a.m. at Cinco de Noviembre Marker at Cinco de Noviembre St., Barangay Cinco de Noviembre. We are expecting 100 participants composed of doctors, lawyers, other professionals and professional road runners.

Since, this is sanctioned by the Silay City Government through the Silay Tourism Office, we are coordinating this event with the barangays involved in the area – Barangay Cinco de Noviembre, Barangay Rizal, Barangay E. Lopez, Barangay Captain Ramon and Barangay Patag. We are establishing water and food stations in strategic places. We know that barangay residents will be at the roadside to offer their buko juice and steamed root crops for the runners.

Dr. Bob Ledesma has made very good coordination with the organized road runners of Negros Occidental and he is still reaching out for the participation of Iloilo runners. Those coming to Silay are the groups of Dick Pison, Iloilo Oval Runners’ Club; Philip Chua, New Society Commercial Runners; Joemarie Layson, Iloilo Beauty and Handsome Runners’ Club; Boyet Rentoy, Pro-Sports Iloilo; and Mayor Patrick Jed Mabilog’s best runners from Iloilo City.

Hugyaw Silay Inc., a Silay-based NGO helping in the cultural and tourism program, will be there also to extend helping hands. Dr. Bob will be assisted by Bebing Gamboa in the preparation with proper coordination with PNP-Silay, City Health Office, and Liga Ng Mga Barangay. The event will be closely supervised by SPM Uldarico Penuela who heads the SP Committee on Tourism.

The Natalio G. Velez Sports and Cultural Center and the Tourism Center in Patag are now ready for the possible billeting of runners who may not be able to get early accommodation from Silay pension houses.

So, November 5 is not just Negros Day. As Silay is preparing for the cenotaph of the revolution – commemorative program, float presentation, street dance-drama and food festival – the leg breakers will ascend Patag and the organizers will bestow a “conqueror’s medal” to all finishers of the 34K run. In this event, everyone is a winner. “He has conquered himself. He has taken Patag. And, he won for the environment”. These runners will not just run for the sake of running. They will run and preach the value of the environment. They will conquer Patag and entice others to do their share for Patag. After all, Patag is a beauty to behold with its fresh Mt. Silay scent, bubbling brooks, enchanting fogs, cascading waterfalls and romantic panoramic view.

Be a rebel for a cause! Run and join the fun!


http://www.sunstar.com.ph/bacolod/opinion/pacete-patag-eco-adventure-endurance-challenge

Filipino Food Author Amy Besa at The Negros Museum

* Bacolod City News
* Negros Business

Museum friends, chefs, culinary students, food and cooking enthusiasts attended a very rare event last Wednesday hosted by The Negros Museum with the famous Filipino US food writer and New York-based restaurateur Amy Besa at the Museum.

Another food author, Chinese-American Grace Young, writer of Stir Frying to the Sky’s Edge researched about Filipino-Chinese food with the Filipino-Chinese family who owned Bacolod’s Mother’s Best, a local food caterer.

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Food writers Amy Besa (right) and Grace Young (left) with Negros Cultural Foundation president Lyn Gamboa.*

Besa, who owns and manages Purple Yam in Brooklyn, came all the way from the States to celebrate her birthday in Manila. She then told everyone at the lecture exchange how they prepared old Filipino dishes like Chicken Binakol, Piaya and Butuan’s deep sea blue crabs with fresh buko juice and tanglad and the works. She animatedly described every delicious detail of her feast and proudly added that Visayan food was well-presented in her party.

Bacolod’s respected Tiyay Reming Sugon of Reming’s Foods and Catering was even specially requested and flown to Manila to cook Chicken Binakol with the Enderun students.

Besa also shared her emotional journey when she and her husband Romy Dorotan wrote the book "Memories of Philippine Kitchens" travelling all over the Philippines to "knock on every door to ask how they cook THAT special dish." The book won the IACP Jane Grigson Award for Distinguished Scholarship in the Quality of Research Presentation.

Sonia Sarrosa and Tima Lacson bought copies of both Besa and Young’s books and were able to asked the authors to sign their copies. Several others also took this exceptional photo and book signing opportunity.

"Use it or lose it," she firmly reiterated her personal maxim and encouraged her Negrense audience to continue cooking authentic Filipino food.

Millie Kilayko of Casa Carmela and a very strong ally of Negrosanon cuisine also shared some of her own experiences with preserving original recipes of Piaya, Ukoy and other dishes so that the future generations will still enjoy how it was enjoyed by our ancestors.

Besa, who also owned the Filipino restaurant Cendrillon from 1996-2005, described how Filipino Food is fast being noticed in the United States now. "One reason that the Filipino food is deemed very delicious is because it is done in the Filipino home, cooked special, served with hospitality and generosity," she said with animated pride.

The Negros Museum is thankful to all the museum guests and friends who have attended this event and would like to invite everyone to come and visit the Museum from Mondays to Saturdays 9am-6pm, contact 4334764 or check our negrosmuseum.blogspot.com for workshops, exhibits and event updates.*


http://www.ndb-online.com/oct2910/negros-events-news/Filipino+Food+Author+Amy+Besa+at+The+Negros+Museum

NCF Highlights Food on Cinco de Noviembre

* Bacolod City News
* Silay City
* Negros Business

Negros Cultural Foundation (NCF) highlights food in every Cinco de Noviembre celebration in its 13th year of the Adobo Festival and the newer 5th Muscovado Cooking Competition this Friday, November 5, 9 AM at the Balay Negrense Museum, Silay City.

One of the big names who will join the event is famed restaurateur Margarita "Gaita" Forres who has expressed her excitement in coming to the long-running cooking competition of an old Filipino favorite dish, Adobo.

NCF President Lyn Gamboa, a strong ally of promoting Food Tourism, invites everyone to experience this year’s festival with the food booths, Gourmet Adobo demo and another added attraction Kitchen Art Exhibit. The exhibit will feature works of Negrense artists priced from P5 to P5,000.

The audience gets to taste the Adobo recipes prepared by the contestants and the Adobo Lunch will be served from 11AM to 1PM only. Tickets are at P 200.00 per person and are available at the Negros Museum.

For more information, please contact 09173007742 or 4334764 or email: negros_museum96@yahoo.com.*

　

Tan Juan
remembered in museum
BY CARLA GOMEZ

The home of Gen. Juan Anacleto Araneta, a hero of the revolution that led to the surrender of Spaniards in Negros on Nov. 5, 1898, has been turned into a museum that houses the legacies and heritage of the Bagonhons, its curator, Clem del Castillo, says.

The Gen. Juan Anacleto Araneta Residence and Landmark Museum also known as the “Balay ni Tan Juan”, located at the corner of Rizal and Matti streets in Bago City, is a reminder of the role residents of Bago played in the liberation of Negros from Spain.

A parade called the “Sigabong sang mga Kanyon” will be held in Bago City this morning to reenact the historic bluff that freed Negros from Spanish rule on Nov. 5, 112 years ago.

In Bacolod City, the Negros Occidental provincial will hold a program at the Capitol Lagoon Park to mark Cinco de Noviembre at 7:30 a.m. and at the Provincial Capitol main entrance at 4 p.m. to honor outstanding Negrenses today.

Similar celebrations will also be held in Talisay and Silay cities.

On October 1898, Araneta was elected chief of the Southern Zone of the province by the secretly organized local revolutionary forces.

After being informed by the north that Negros will rise in revolt on Nov. 5, 1898, Gen. Araneta sent a message on the evening of Nov. 4 addressed to all the presidents of the Revolutionary Committees of Southern Negros rallying the people to revolt against “those who had come to enslave us three centuries ago,” del Castillo says.

From Bago Gen. Araneta led about 2,000 men and from Matab-ang in Talisay, Gen. Aniceto Lacson led about 8,000 men who marched to Bacolod carrying nipa stalks with shiny knives attached to them to look like guns and rolled sawali mats painted black like cannons.

From the San Sebastian Cathedral in Bacolod the Spanish officials, through their telescopes, saw large formations of soldiers approaching from the north and south that appeared to be heavily armed with rifles and cannons.

Sensing his defeat, Spanish Governor Isidro de Castro surrendered to Araneta and Lacson in Bacolod City.

The “Balay ni Tan Juan”, which was established in memory of Gen. Araneta, was built in the late 1800s. It is a typical “Balay Bato, an architectural style prevalent in the Philippines during the Spanish Era, del Castillo says.

The house was owned by Natividad Sitchon Palacios, a niece of Tan Juan. In 1906, Gen. Araneta offered to buy the house from her but she chose to give it to him in gratitude for the house he gave her in Hda. Fermina, del Castillo adds.

Gen. Araneta, or Tan Juan as he is fondly known, occupied the house as he wanted to live within the poblacion for the reminder of his life.

He lived in the house until Oct. 3, 1924 when he died. However his family continued to live in it until after the World War II.

Later the house became a high school, an office for the Department of Public Works and Highways and the National Irrigation Administration, until 1979, when the house was donated to the City of Bago.

Before it was donated to the city, the National Historical Institute put a historical marker on the house in 1978. With the help of the National Historical Institute, the house was restored in 1982, del Castillo says.

The house was first opened as a lifestyle museum in 1996 during the 2nd Araneta Family Reunion. In 2002, it was first recognized as a museum internationally with the guidance of the Swedish African Museum Program.

In 2004, it was inaugurated as a community museum, and opened the Kabuhi sa Bago Exhibit, featuring the life in the barangays.*Carla P. Gomez


http://www.visayandailystar.com/2010/November/05/topstory4.htm

Gen. Lacson’s Casa Grande:
A home rich in Negros history
(FIRST OF 2 PARTS)
BY CARLA GOMEZ

If Casa Grande could speak, it could tell stories of a colorful past from the days when it became the seat of the Republica Cantonal de Negros in 1898, to the times it was occupied by Japanese and American conquerors, and played host to some of Negros’ grandest parties.

Casa Grande, an imposing stone house at the center of vast sugarcane fields in Hacienda Matab-ang, Talisay City, was built by Gen. Aniceto Ledesma Lacson in the 1880s.

Lacson, along with Gen. Juan Araneta, the cousin of his wife, Rosario, led the revolution that caused the Spanish conquerors in Negros to surrender to them on Nov. 5, 1898.

After the Spaniards surrendered, the revolutionary junta of Negros formed an independent government that they called Republica Cantonal de Negros and Lacson was elected its first and only president.

Lacson made Casa Grande the seat of his government. It was the Malacañang of Negros for a year and a half, Anna Balcells, Lacson’s great-great granddaughter and one of the current owners of Casa Grande, says.

Casa Grande is built on farmland bought from Nicolas Loney, a British national, who first introduced sugar farming in Negros.

The Casa Grande, which is of colonial-Spanish influence had an architect from Spain. The stone house has a balcony that runs around its entire second storey. It also had a third storey look-out tower at the back section that had a commanding view of Talisay, Silay and Bacolod cities and the surrounding farms Gen. Lacson owned, Balcells says.

The intricate woodcarving throughout the house from its grand staircase to its windows and furniture were done by woodcarvers from China, she adds.

A REFUGE

When the Spaniards surrendered to the Filipino forces, Gen. Araneta recommended that the friars be killed for their abuses, which Lacson prevented, invoking the treaty of Paris. And the Casa Grande served as refuge for many priests, Balcells says.

For saving the lives of the friars, Balcells says the Spanish King Alfonso Dose bequeathed on Gen. Lacson the title of marquess but he never bothered to pick it up.

When the American forces led by Col. James Smith arrived in Negros, Lacson is said to have been against surrendering to them but was outvoted by members of his Cabinet.

And when the Japanese arrived in the Philippine the guerilla fighters wanted to burn the Casa Grande so the invaders could not use it but because of the chapel at its ground floor and its being home to what is believed to be a miraculous Santo Entiero, they decided against setting the house on fire, fearing the wrath of God, Balcells says.

The chapel is still used to this day by residents of the area for Sunday mass.

The guerilla forces, however, torched the nearby mansion of Aniceto’s brother Mariano Lacson, which is now known as The Ruins, a famous tourist attraction in Negros.

JAPANESE HQ

The Japanese made the Casa Grande their headquarters from 1942 to 45. Bullet marks in the walls surrounding the garden are said to be from the numerous executions they carried out there.

In 1945, the Casa Grande was occupied by the US Army generals for a year, Balcells says.

Among the illustrious guests of the house through the years were Emilio Aguinaldo, Andres Bonifacio, Emilio Jacinto, Juan Luna, Manuel Quezon, Sergio Osmeña, Claro M. Recto.

One of Aniceto’s sons, Isaac, also became governor, congressman and senator and used the Casa Grande for entertaining all the famous people who came to Negros.

The second eldest daughter of Gen. Lacson, Carmen, who married Ricardo Claparols from Barcelona Spain, inherited the land where Casa Grande stands and bought the house for P80,000. The four children of the Claparols couple – Layette Rosello, Carmita Balcells, Eduardo Claparols and Jaime Claparols – and their 19 grandchildren are the present owners of the house.

The house became well known in Negros for its many grand luncheons, dinners and elegant long-gowned parties, Balcell says.

And she and her cousins spent many happy summers at Casa Grande.

Up until 1970 the house was lived in but was evacuated in July that year when it was hit by a very strong typhoon that ripped off its roof.

The house was repaired soon after and was made a tourist destination for about five years where people could admire all its beautiful antique jars, tapestries, carpets, marble tables and chairs, chandeliers, and paintings.

But in 1978, the heirs decided to remove and divide all its furniture and decorations for fear that they would get damaged or stolen.

The house was then left empty and abandoned.*Carla P. Gomez


http://www.visayandailystar.com/2010/November/05/topstory5.htm

The Good Life
with Eli F.J. Tajanlangit
OPINIONS

The taste of old Negros

This is the taste of old Negros: earthy and sweet, with whiffs of the bitter and the sour dancing in between. It is a taste that is at once organic and coquettish, difficult to pin down and always dramatic. It is the taste of muscovado sugar, the “virgin” sugar produced by heating cane juice to remove the water.

At the recent Muscovado Festival in Silay City, this taste fused with the flavors of the world, in the hands of upcoming chefs of Negros who used this sugar for flans, caramel fillings, cannolis, silvanas, snickerdoodles, pecan pies.

The future cooks are students from La Consolacion College in Bacolod, who swept all but one place in the top five of the muscovado cooking competition: Jason de Oca, first; Paul Benedict Castillo, 2nd; Victor Dumancas, 3rd and Ivy Fualve, 5th. The fourth place went to chef Robert Harland.

Muscovado is an exciting ingredient, says the students’ mentor, BJ Uy, chef of Planta hotel who himself loves to play with old ways of cooking to come up with new dishes. He points to muscovado as one such old element in the Negrense kitchen that may help propel our cuisine in the world. And with the bravado of the young, BJ emphasizes how the most ordinary of muscovado variants – the darker, the better, the one who usually find in our public markets – are the most exciting. This is the muscovado that has strong character and very pronounced texture, that puts an original stamp on the dishes where it is used, such as the desserts he and his students have developed.

In a world that is trying to go back to a simpler, healthier times, these students are on the right track. During the last years, muscovado has been enjoying aresurgence in the world that has rediscovered the value of organic chemical-free products. Given its simple process, muscovado is deemed healthy, as it had gone through a minimum of fuss. It is cane sugar in its purest form, and only lime has been added to produce. It has retained plenty of its minerals, as opposed for example to refined sugar that saw plenty of chemicals in its production, and plenty of its minerals taken away.

Just a tiny fly, though. There is now the question of what, exactly is muscovado sugar. Like the Piaya, I am afraid we already have lost the chance to establish the standard for muscovado. There is, for example, the so-called “reverse process” muscovado – which is refined sugar recooked to come up with brown and golden brown granules of muscovado. Should there be a muscovado police, perhaps a standard regulatory agency attached to SRA?

Unless we do something about this, we might find the muscovado going the way of our Piaya, another food icon that now has a million and one variants, the original ones are already losing out to aggressive marketing of the Johnny-come-lately versions.

Yet a lot is stake with muscovado. Using it in recipes that are already familiar to the world, as the LCC students have done, is the cheapest marketing strategy yet to exporting this sugar and establishing its foothold in the world market.

Italians I am sure will delight at the way their cannoli tastes with muscovado, the fluffy creaminess cut by the earthy character of the sweetness in it. Ditto the muscovado leche flan – how the Spanish must be intrigued, at the very least, at how their dulce de leche can taste like this while the French should be interested in custard that doesn’t taste all dairy.

The taste of old Negros may well be our ticket to the future.*


http://www.visayandailystar.com/2010/November/12/goodlife.htm

Circulo sets
induction tomorrow

The Circulo de Bacolod, an organization designed to promote History, Culture and Arts in Negros Occidental, will hold its induction of officers, Board of Directors and new members tomorrow, at 6:30 p.m., at the Bacolod Government Center, a press release from the group said.

Guest speaker will be the first lady of the province, Dr. Marilyn Marañon.

The affair will be honored with the presence of local government officials, guests from various sectors of society who support the objective of the organization.

Theme of the affair is, “Negrense Cultural Milestone Toward Nationalism and Progress.”

The new officers for 2011-2013 are headed by president Shirley Ledesma. Overall chairperson of the affair is outgoing president Mila Moya, the press release added.*


http://www.visayandailystar.com/2010/November/30/people.htm

‘Balay ni Tan Juan’

By Carla Gomez
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 20:50:00 12/03/2010

Filed Under: history

BAGO CITY, Philippines—The home of Gen. Juan Anacleto Araneta, a hero of the revolution that led to the surrender of Spaniards in Negros Island on Nov. 5, 1898, has been turned into a museum that houses the legacies and heritage of the Bagonhons, says its curator Clem del Castillo.

The Gen. Juan Anacleto Araneta Residence and Landmark Museum also known as the “Balay ni Tan Juan,” located at the corner of Rizal and Matti Streets in the city of Bago in Negros Occidental is a reminder of the role residents of Bago played in the liberation of Negros from Spain.

In October 1898, General Araneta, or Tan Juan as he was fondly known, was elected chief of the southern zone of the province by the secretly organized local revolutionary forces.

After being informed by the north that Negros will rise in revolt on Nov. 5, 1898, Araneta sent a message on the evening of Nov. 4 addressed to all the presidents of the revolutionary committees of Southern Negros rallying the people to revolt against “those who had come to enslave us three centuries ago,” Del Castillo says.

From Bago, Araneta led about 2,000 men from Matab-ang in Talisay while Gen. Aniceto Lacson led about 8,000 men who marched to Bacolod carrying nipa stalks with shiny knives attached to them to look like guns and rolled sawali mats painted black like cannons.

From the San Sebastian Cathedral in Bacolod the Spanish officials, through their telescopes, saw large formations of soldiers approaching from the north and south that appeared to be heavily armed with rifles and cannons.

Sensing his defeat, Spanish Governor Isidro de Castro surrendered to Araneta and Lacson in Bacolod City.

Because of this feat borne out of a bluff, Araneta and Lacson remained the all-time favorite heroes of most Negrenses.

The “Balay ni Tan Juan,” established in memory of Araneta, was built in the late 1800s. It is a typical “Balay Bato,” an architectural style prevalent in the Philippines during the Spanish Era, Del Castillo says.

The house was originally owned by Natividad Sitchon Palacios, a niece of Tan Juan. In 1906, General Araneta offered to buy the house from her but she chose to give it to him in gratitude for the house he gave her in Araneta’s property in Hacienda Fermina, del Castillo adds.

General Araneta occupied the house as he wanted to live within the poblacion for the remainder of his life.

He lived in the house until Oct. 3, 1924 when he died. However his family continued to live in it until after World War II.

The house later became a high school building, an office for the Department of Public Works and Highways and the National Irrigation Administration, until 1979, when it was donated to the City of Bago.

Before it was donated to the city, the National Historical Institute put a historical marker on the house in 1978. With the help of the National Historical Institute, the house was restored in 1982, Del Castillo says.

The house was first opened as a lifestyle museum in 1996 during the Second Araneta Family Reunion. In 2002, it was recognized as a museum internationally with the guidance of the Swedish African Museum Program. In 2004, it was inaugurated as a community museum, and opened the Kabuhi sa Bago Exhibit, featuring the life in the villages of Bago City.

The Good Life
with Eli F.J. Tajanlangit
OPINIONS

Tabagak et takway

I bet you smiled when you read the title – so this is going to be about tabagak and takway, the Negrense everyman’s foods if there was one, cheap dishes that you find mostly in carinderias and public market stalls. Slimy and fibrous, takway is usually prepared as adobo and therefore takes on the flavors of vinegar, garlic and laurel leaves. But it is also used in laswa, that iconic Negrense vegetable soup that is already finding its way to our restaurants. I also heard that in some towns in Panay, takway is used to top fish tinola.

Tabagak is herring, and this is about uga nga tabagak, or dried herring, an equally underrated Negrense plebeian food that is already hitting the global food table.

For those who must be introduced to takway, it is the runner of the gabi or taro plant that shoots from its base at certain times of the year. Farm folks collect these, scrape their top skin and cut them into three to four-inches long lengths. This is the takway we find in our public markets.

I think it’s time takway took its place in the table of global Negrense food. Perhaps our chefs can take a look at it and innovate? I’ve been having a love affair with takway for months now, and the range of possibilities is endless.

For instance, from plain and simple adobo, I have tried garnishing takway with garlic chips and dried herring fillets. The household help has innovated by using different vinegars , although after trying takway with balsamic, wine, and Vigan vinegar, I have decided it is cooked best with our native one from tuba the best.

Takway is usually a side dish or appetizer, abre gana as the old folks say, the way we serve our pickled green papayas. But it can be main dish as well, garnished with fish or chicken fillets.

The most fantastic I’ve tried was dusting takway adobo with freshly-ground spice mix given by Ronie B: black peppers with dried lemon rinds and Mediterranean sea salt. The “lowly” takway held its own beside these international flavors, which further convinced me that hey, there must be future place for takway in the global dining table. Think takway with caviar. Or maybe some strong cheese?

So here’s a fearless forecast: in the coming wave of creative tourism, when the world’s tourists will demand the opening of our lifestyles to them beyond the surface of museums and historical landmarks, takway will ride high along with our laswa and uga nga tabagak.

Because we have them almost everyday, and have them in abundance, we may have glossed over their potentials as dollar earner and even as tourism attractions, forgetting that the ham that we adore on our tables got to our shores and insinuated into our culture simply because they had these in abundance in Europe and was brought them to our shores. Of course that happened in over a century.

But that’s our point. Maybe this generation will finally make it happen: bring our everyday food up to global tastes. Already, Lelen Tabora has done that with the tabagak, with her Gourmet Tuyo that at one time was proudly served in international flights. She has also developed Romana, a versatile combine of tabagak fillets, olives, tomatoes and onions in corn oil that can be salad or pasta dressing, rice partner or fish and chicken garnish.

Prepared that way, tabagak has the world lapping at it; it will only be a matter of time before it hits the big league.

Somebody please do the same with takway.*

The writer can be reached at www.lifestylesbacolod.com


http://www.visayandailystar.com/2010/December/10/goodlife.htm

Caught In Bacolod
Wala Lang
By DR. JAIME C. LAYA
December 12, 2010, 1:39pm

Most Filipinos now alive are lucky not to have experienced the hardships, let alone the horrors, of war. Pearl Harbor was bombed early Sunday morning, December 7, 1941. That was 1:51 a.m. on December 8, Monday, Manila time.

Elizabeth Vaughan heard about it on the Bacolod radio’s 6:15 news. A journalist and sociologist, she had the foresight to start a diary that was published in 1985, The Ordeal of Elizabeth Vaughan: A Wartime Diary of the Philippines.

People realized war had come when telephone connections and then telegraph wires, were cut—no way of contacting family and friends, no way of transferring funds.

Everyone had the same idea—stock up on groceries (and in Mrs. Vaughan’s case, milk for her two small children), matches, soap, cigarettes—daily needs. With all the panic buying, both stocks and cash ran out. At first, stores continued to sell on credit, but soon they too wanted cash. People drew on their bank accounts but banks also started running short—Manila could not ship coin and paper money.

The Japanese sowed mines in Manila Bay and other ports and shot at ships, quickly halting travel and shipping.

Warehouses began to fill up with the sugar (Negros’ main crop) that could not be shipped out. No shipments meant no income, which also meant no production. Centrals stopped milling, planters were left with their cane harvest, workers were laid off.

Hawaiian-Pacific issued scrip money for payroll and supplies using their watermarked letterhead, redeemable for real money after the war (they had no idea it would last three years), but that soon became unacceptable.

The economy was grinding to a stop.

The radio reported the capture of city after city, the fate of Bataan and Corregidor. Oil depots and warehouses went up in flames. Rumors, many untrue, abounded. Frightened, people hid their valuables.

Mrs. Vaughan and her children sought shelter at the Hawaiian-Philippine compound in Silay. At first, food was great. They had pork, beef, turkey, chicken, temporarily—with feed running out, farm animals had to be slaughtered. No lights were allowed at night, but they had meat while it lasted.

With other expats, the Vaughans evacuated to a refuge called Binagsukan up in the hills but by June 1942 they were all interned at Bacolod North Elementary School. Nine months later, in March 1943, they were taken to the UST internment camp in Manila. The Vaughans were assigned to a one-story annex behind the Main Building, to a room occupied by nine mothers and twelve children in all. American troops liberated the internees in February 3, 1945, ahead of the atrocities visited on Southern Manila. The three sailed for San Francisco in March.

Mrs. Vaughan’s husband Jim was in Manila the day Pearl Harbor was bombed. He could not return to Bacolod and so joined the U.S. Quartermaster Corps. He was among those who surrendered at Bataan in April 1942. He survived the Death March but died of dysentery in a Cabanatuan prisoners’ camp a month later.



http://www.mb.com.ph/articles/292380/caught-in-bacolod

A Romantic Trek to the Middle of the Balaring Mangrove Forest in Silay

By Gil Alfredo B. Severino

The online Balikbayan Magazine quoted Mayor Jose "Oti" Montelibano, "Barangay Balaring is very important for Silay, not only because everything here began there...If not for the mangroves, it could have been wiped out by the yearly habagat." The "hanging habagat" (southwest monsoon) is a large mass of air rushing towards low-pressure area and when passing across the Philippines, becomes the prevailing strong winds in the country.

http://www.ndb-online.com/files/images/balaring.jpg

A portion of the 800 meter all bamboo footwalk meticulously made by hand cutting across the 50 hectare mangrove forest and plantation of Barangay ending into a three floor "tower" overlooking the awesome Guimaras Strait.* (H. James G. Toga/NDB)

Mayor Montelibano, likewise, was referring to the founding in 1997 of a Japanese Non-Government Organization "Ikaw-Ako Japan-Negros Partnership for Environmental Protection" mainly by Prof. Yorihisa Goto of Nihon Fukushi University, together with Lt. Junichuro Doi, a retired officer of the Japanese Imperial Army during World War 2 who retreated in Patag, Silay and the "marital partner" Silay City Government, Barangay Balaring Council and the 27 families comprising and directly benefiting from the 50 hectare replanted mangrove forest - the Balaring Mangrove Planters Association, Inc. (BAMPA).

Experts say that conservatively, a mangrove forest is able to produce 25 times more than the traditional man-made paddies, its thickets protect the coast line from the fury of the wind, floods, rising sea levels, wave action and coastal erosion. Also, mangrove swamps act as traps for the sediments and nutrients thus become the breeding ground for food fish lives and wild flora and fauna which offer an ecosystem comparable to a good agricultural land.

http://www.ndb-online.com/files/images/balaring2.jpg

The guardians of the Balaring Mangrove Eco Tourism Coasta Area. The males, from right to left, Barangay Balaring Kagawad Junvic Diamante, Rito Vergara and Abner Laureno. Main tour guide during the NDB visit was Nelly Barrientos together with two ladies from the Balaring Mangrove Planters Association, Inc. (BAMPA).* (H. James G. Toga/NDB)

This NDB reporter was there and lensman James Toga were there two days ago to complete our Sabbatical sojourns, Pagatpat, Bungalon, and Bakhaw. The trek deep into the 50 hectare forest enabled us to learn that except for Bakhaw, the roots of Pagatpat and Bungalon rise upwards and when seen, indicate that these species are ripe to function as protectors of lives.

http://www.ndb-online.com/files/images/balaring3.jpg

The forest offers places of respite for those who prefer to stay a bit longer right in the middle of the thickets. Imagine the amount of oxygen breathed as one stops into one of these open cottages.* (H. James G. Toga/NDB)

　

Feasting upon the silence and greenery of the mangroves is a great ecological reflection and the wind of the awesome Guimaras Strait is filtered into cool air. We can feel this while wishing that Bacolod City can experience and follow the example of Silay. Led by "Ikaw-Ako" Resident Officer, fluent in Hiligaynon young lady, Mari Kurata and funded by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), Bacolod City can follow the same rather than fixing those ceremonial sisterhood cities of the past which benefited no one.

[/IMG]http://www.ndb-online.com/files/images/tower.jpg[/IMG]

The view from the top of the "tower" where the intertwining twigs and roots of the Pagatpat, Bungalon, and Bakhaw turns into a scenic thicket so green and full of life. The sight of the 800 meter all bamboo footwalk entices the weary wanderer to explore and feast until he reaches the middle of the forest.* (JGToga/NDB)

Chatting with our guide, Nelly Barrientos and Nida Dequilla, I stopped for a moment feeling a cruel strike into our hearts. I question, how many percent of the Negros land disappeared forever due to erosion?

http://www.ndb-online.com/files/images/view.jpg

The three-floor "Tower" built for those who wish to see the entire Balaring mangrove plantation and face the awesome Guimaras Strait.* (JGToga/NDB)

Moreover, study shows the mangroves are sources of highly valued commercial products and fishery resources and also as sites for developing a burgeoning ecotourism (Kathiresan and Bingham, 2001). The mangrove forests have been shown to sustain more than 70 direct human activities, ranging from fuel wood collection to fisheries (Dixon, 1989; Lucy, 2006). Finally, the mangroves supply forestry products (firewood, charcoal, timber, honey) and fishery products (fish, prawn, crab, mollusk) - cited by Prof. K. Kathiresan, Centre of Advanced Study in Marine Biology, Annamalai University.*


http://www.ndb-online.com/jan0611/negros-events-news/A+Romantic+Trek+to+the+Middle+of+the+Balaring+Mangrove+Forest+in+Silay

pics by underoath...from Bacolod thread.


Instituto de Rizal built in 1903

http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_qgpx3P51lfs/TSdMIVhWy-I/AAAAAAAAATc/EACoqHt3weQ/s320/IMG_6523.JPG

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_qgpx3P51lfs/TSdMH3gDa2I/AAAAAAAAATM/3GV2GTGf7X4/s320/IMG_6407.JPG

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_qgpx3P51lfs/TSdMIGcIYEI/AAAAAAAAATU/khTD4cGDhT4/s320/IMG_6452.JPG
[/QUOTE]

old pic from my baul....


http://i1023.photobucket.com/albums/af351/linguine16/ONI.jpg

ONI

more....


http://i1023.photobucket.com/albums/af351/linguine16/ONI1946.jpg

ONI in 1946, located along present day Locsin St., now occupied by Gaisano parking, after ONI transferred to Lizares St., this bldg. was then made the Bacolod Police Hq. If I'm not mistaken, this was also the former Bacolod municipal Hall

more...


http://i1023.photobucket.com/albums/af351/linguine16/ONI1950.jpg


Old ONI in 1950 located along Lizares Ave., now the present day UNO-R

from Bacolod thread....



This was ONI, then became Negros Puericulture then in 1953 it became...THE DOCTORS' HOSPITAL...then later Bacolod City Police Headquarters

http://i269.photobucket.com/albums/jj75/abudominic/IMG_0021.jpg

more....


http://i1023.photobucket.com/albums/af351/linguine16/ONI1956.jpg


ONI in 1956

more....


http://i1023.photobucket.com/albums/af351/linguine16/UNO1961.jpg

University of Negros Occidental (UNO) in 1961 before it was bought by the Recollects.

more....


http://i1023.photobucket.com/albums/af351/linguine16/UNO-RTalisay.jpg

UNO-R Talisay in the early 70's.

more old pics...


Boy Scouts Jamboree 1970

http://i1023.photobucket.com/albums/af351/linguine16/BoyScoutsJamboree3.jpg

http://i1023.photobucket.com/albums/af351/linguine16/BoyScoutsJamboree.jpg

http://i1023.photobucket.com/albums/af351/linguine16/BoyScoutsjamboree1.jpg

The jamboree location was on the vacant lot across the SSS, now occupied by PVB, DBP, LTO, NFEFI, Hall of Justice. Note the under construction Regional Bldg of the PNB in the background, soon to be the tallest hereabouts...:)

UNO-R facade circa 1971


http://i1023.photobucket.com/albums/af351/linguine16/UNO-Rfacadecircaearly70s.jpg

San Sebastian Cathedral circa 1923 with the Bishop's House


http://i1023.photobucket.com/albums/af351/linguine16/SanSebastianCathedralandBishopsHousecirca1923.jpg

more...


http://i1023.photobucket.com/albums/af351/linguine16/presmarcosparadeinreview.jpg

President Marcos reviewing the UNO-R Corps of Cadets in downtown Bacolod circa 1969

http://i1023.photobucket.com/albums/af351/linguine16/Omegawatch.jpg

1969 Lopue's Dept. Store ad.

Bacolod is is a very nice place to visit because of their beautiful heritage and historical places.

------------
Women's Sandal (http://bettersandalsforyou.info/Drew_Desiree_Womens__Penny_CalfMesh.aspx)

Bacolod is is a very nice place to visit because of their beautiful heritage and historical places.


Thanks @ lizayuen for the nice words, you're welcome to Bacolod and Negros Occidental....:)

Bacolod City


http://i1023.photobucket.com/albums/af351/linguine16/aerialviewbacolodplaza.jpg

aerial view of the Bacolod public plaza and downtown area in the 60's, note the waterfront in what we used to call the seawall now occupied by the Bays Center gym, photo taken before the start of the Bredco reclamation.

San Sebastian Cathedral
Bacolod City

http://i1023.photobucket.com/albums/af351/linguine16/SanSebastianCathedral1972.jpg

San Sebastian Cathedral circa 1972

http://i1023.photobucket.com/albums/af351/linguine16/bacolodaerialwithpnbbldg.jpg

Bacolod aerial pic taken in the early 70's, visible is the PNB Regional Office.

http://i1023.photobucket.com/albums/af351/linguine16/aranetastreetcirca1972.jpg

Araneta st. in the early 70's with Real theater showing Green Berets

http://i1023.photobucket.com/albums/af351/linguine16/UNO-Rcirca1971-1.jpg

UNO-R aerial pic circa 1971

Baket nawala po yung mga photos?


http://bahalana-kunganoman.blogspot.com/

posted by:thesugarfairy


RUINS

http://photos-g.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs179.snc3/20635_324184057963_592457963_3443125_732089_n.jpg

http://photos-e.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs179.snc3/20635_324184062963_592457963_3443126_4896475_n.jpg

Photos Courtesy of OYEN RODRIGUEZ[/CENTER]

the Taj Mahal of Negros...:)

Bacolod is is a very nice place to visit because of their beautiful heritage and historical places.
nice and welcome...:lol:

For those who feel the need or who would want to write the Vatican regarding (ugly and unnecessary) renovations and alterations of heritage Roman Catholic churches the contact information is:



H.E. Msgr. Gianfranco Ravasi
President of the Pontifical Commission for the Cultural Heritage of the Church
Via della Conciliazione 5-7, Rome, Italy 00193
Fax no. +39 0669884621
E-mail pcbcc@pcchc.va



-------------------------------------------------

http://pinoyshooter.org/bogs/

Bacolod's sad state of old houses and buildings...:ohno::ohno::ohno:

Rosario Street

http://i269.photobucket.com/albums/jj75/abudominic/IMG_8123.jpg
http://i269.photobucket.com/albums/jj75/abudominic/IMG_8126.jpg
http://i269.photobucket.com/albums/jj75/abudominic/IMG_8127.jpg
http://i269.photobucket.com/albums/jj75/abudominic/IMG_8128.jpg
http://i269.photobucket.com/albums/jj75/abudominic/IMG_8130.jpg
http://i269.photobucket.com/albums/jj75/abudominic/IMG_8131.jpg
http://i269.photobucket.com/albums/jj75/abudominic/IMG_8132.jpg

A sad state of Bacolod's old houses:

Hernaez St. (Libertad St.)

http://i269.photobucket.com/albums/jj75/abudominic/IMG_8133-1.jpg
http://i269.photobucket.com/albums/jj75/abudominic/IMG_8134.jpg
http://i269.photobucket.com/albums/jj75/abudominic/IMG_8135.jpg

(originally posted by boy muscovado from bacolod main thread)

i'm really glad that you've posted pics of old structures which will soon disappear. please continue posting. :)

^^it looks like iglesia ni kristo church ang design

ancestral house near USLS-Bacolod...i forgot the name...it needs to rehabilitate
http://i161.photobucket.com/albums/t226/cosmosnegros/whitehousebacolod.jpg
http://i161.photobucket.com/albums/t226/cosmosnegros/whitehousebacolod2.jpg

Daw yan ni bala ka mga Mirasol mo. Mahilig guid na sila I think sa trucking thats why damo da truck which actually destroys the view. If I were them, they sell the house na lang to someone who can preserve it. They built a nice house just to destroy the view with trucks. :|

SM CITY BACOLOD

It is a mall of many new concepts; a bridgeway highlights the architectural structure which will bear a semblance to the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco that will connect the two buildings, unifying design of two buildings, making it the first of its kind among SM Malls. It welcome customers with a six-sided grand facade with 10 SM signages all around. The mall's interiors are equally compelling- high ceiling and colorful murals inspired by Bacolod's world famous Maskara Festival and designed by director Fritz Infante.
http://i161.photobucket.com/albums/t226/cosmosnegros/DSCN1256.jpg
http://i161.photobucket.com/albums/t226/cosmosnegros/smcitybacolodinteriormasskara.jpg


SAN AGUSTIN BACOLOD
From the year 2002 to 2003, the Student Center was renovated into a five-storey building and the CSA-B Park was unveiled in June 2003.
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TAY TUNG HIGH SCHOOL BACOLOD
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The new Pre-School Building.

I remember the time sang kinder pa ko sa Tay Tung. It used to be a one floor series of connecting buildings. Now asenso na due to the supportive rich alumni. :D

ANCESTRAL HOUSES ALONG BURGOS STREET

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City Hall of Bacolod..

The Old Gran -

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ARANETA STREET THEN..

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Olympia Alijis..

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Plaza

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As described..

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Theater IRIS

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Our home at 6, 6th st. Is still intact and so too are the Executive house and Compound at San Carlos City Center and the Ancestral Manor at La Fortuna also in San Carlos. La Fortunas Centennial starts in Oct. See my pls Graceland Album at Facebook.
JulesLedesma
Julio A. Ledesma IV Facebook.
Mabuhay

Yung Tho Temple
Burgos Street, Bacolod City, Negros Occidental

http://i161.photobucket.com/albums/t226/cosmosnegros/BacolodChurchNegros/YuanThongTempleBacolodNegros-1.jpg

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http://i161.photobucket.com/albums/t226/cosmosnegros/BacolodChurchNegros/YuanThongTempleBacolodNegros2.jpg

(Pics courtesy from bliabacolod.multiply.com)

Our home at 6, 6th st. Is still intact and so too are the Executive house and Compound at San Carlos City Center and the Ancestral Manor at La Fortuna also in San Carlos. La Fortunas Centennial starts in Oct. See my pls Graceland Album at Facebook.
JulesLedesma
Julio A. Ledesma IV Facebook.
Mabuhay

Thank you Congressman for posting your inputs about some ancestral houses. We sure appreciate and will be posting here soon from your Facebook album. Kudos! :cheers:

Salamat Guid...Your Id is more apochrypal than you think. In fact the TRUE REASON for my seemingly discordant attendance at the Batasan may be revealed and once Published it becomes at least Our Compact, my wife and children w/ and amongst our area of stewardship & Negros. I truly hope that I get to Launch on or before 30.Oct.11. What is it? For one it should be the largest Social Enterprise as organized. Why?
Why not. Its final component is a financial and legal audit that it can be executed as concieved.

Salamat Guid...Your Id is more apochrypal than you think. In fact the TRUE REASON for my seemingly discordant attendance at the Batasan may be revealed and once Published it becomes at least Our Compact, my wife and children w/ and amongst our area of stewardship & Negros. I truly hope that I get to Launch on or before 30.Oct.11. What is it? For one it should be the largest Social Enterprise as organized. Why?
Why not. Its final component is a financial and legal audit that it can be executed as concieved.

Wow! Welcome to Skyscrapercity Forums Mr. Congressman! :)

Salamat Guid...Your Id is more apochrypal than you think. In fact the TRUE REASON for my seemingly discordant attendance at the Batasan may be revealed and once Published it becomes at least Our Compact, my wife and children w/ and amongst our area of stewardship & Negros. I truly hope that I get to Launch on or before 30.Oct.11. What is it? For one it should be the largest Social Enterprise as organized. Why?
Why not. Its final component is a financial and legal audit that it can be executed as concieved.

Good Morning Sir.. I journeyed the North last week, from Bacolod to San Carlos Via DSB, then from San Carlos to Bacolod Via Escalante and so on.. The Road project is doing well. Sir, is there a way we highlight the Environment Gains of your District? This is a good example of managing the environment and industries. Maybe I will try the DSB to Calatrava Road sometime in the 2nd week of August.. I was looking for something to write up..

We must to preserved our historical architecture

TIGHT ROPE
WITH MODESTO P. SA-ONOY

Save the sugar mills


When I was writing “Against the Rising Sun” one of the information given to me was that the American pilots were ordered not to bomb Victorias Milling Company. The order was said to come from General Douglas MacArthur himself because he was rumored to own a large part of the mill. The other version was that the owners of VMC offered MacArthur large sums of money to preserve the mill.

This kind of talk is among so many others, some preposterous. Indeed research did not show that the general was a stockholder and there is no basis to suggest the Ossorios offered a bribe.

But what is documented was the effort of the sugar millers in Manila to save their mills here in Negros. Manila was declared an open city in January 1942 to prevent its destruction and the American and Filipino officials left for Corregidor. The Japanese had established the puppet government headed by Jorge Vargas erstwhile Executive Secretary of President Manuel Quezon who escaped to Corregidor. I have the list of the documents in my book on how the millers attempted to save their mills to the point of collaboration with the Japanese.

There were emissaries who came to Bácolod with permission of the Japanese High Command to convince the guerrilla leadership to give up the fight so that when there is “peace” in Negros the sugar mills could operate to serve the fuel needs of the Japanese war machine.

The battle cry of the Japanese emissaries was peace and prosperity under the Empire. Three important personalities of the pre-war Commonwealth came to Negros and spoke at the public plaza with appeals for an end to the opposition to the Japanese. It is funny but the AFP message to the NPA is cunningly similar – peace so that there will be prosperity, except that during those times we would be a puppet of Japan while today the AFP is our own. The Japanese emissaries said that opposition was futile because the Americans had been defeated and would never be able to come back. Their message was clear – give up the fight and collaborate as these once top officials of the Commonwealth government had done.

The three personalities were Jorge Vargas who became the head of the Executive Commission which ran the government under Japanese dictation; Rafael Alunan who was the Secretary of Agriculture and Natural Resources and who was the president of the Philippine Sugar Millers Association; and Jose Yulo, the Secretary of Justice under Quezon but was made Chief Justice under the Japanese.

Alunan worked out a meeting with Alfredo Montelibano, Sr. who headed the civil government fighting the Japanese. Montelibano at first refused to talk but through the efforts of Ciro Locsin and clearance from Major Jesus Villamor, Montelibano agreed because he wanted to know the thinking of these officials. A panel was set up so when Alunan and Montelibano talked the guerrillas would be listening at the other side without Alunan knowing it.

The agreement was that their meeting would be secret, just between the two of them. Villamor, however, was apprehensive that Montelibano might be swayed because as it turned out later, Alunan relayed the Japanese offer for Montelibano to be mayor of Bacolod and governor of the island of Negros. It was a juicy offer.

Alunan arrived in Murcia with a Japanese escort and was picked up by the guerrillas for a meeting near Mambukal. Alunan tried to convince Montelibano to surrender and presented the Japanese offer, but Montelibano refused.

This meeting has no date but the circumstances indicate that it could have happened sometime in December of 1943 because, by then, Montelibano was able to show Alunan the supplies and armaments that were smuggled into the Philippines by submarine – fresh apples and grapes, chocolates, cigarets and the latest issue of Life magazine, among others.

It is said that after this meeting Alunan was convinced the Americans were on their way back to the Philippines in full force and Alunan jumped the Japanese ship to join the Allied Intelligence Bureau. After the war, however, he and the other two were still charged before the People’s Tribunal for collaboration.

The Alunan-Yulo-Vargas mission failed, but what was the real intent? Why did the three agree to become Japanese emissaries?

Sometime in 1975, Montelibano told Aurelio Locsin and me that the real purpose of the mission was to save the sugar mills because the Japanese needed them to continue their operation, not to produce sugar, but alcohol that the Japanese needed for fuel. This was the last attempt. I’ll write later of the earlier attempts.*

visayan daily star (http://www.visayandailystar.com/2011/August/27/tightrope.htm)

^^interesting:)

^^ they should!!!


Mt. Kanlaon National Park (sorry medyo malabo... pero worth posting, I guess :lol: )

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This probably an impossible request but I am trying to trace photographs of the Bacolod victory parade after the war. I am particularly keen to find evidence that an American Auburn motor car took part. There may be a General MacArthur connection, when he visited Bacolod in June 1945.

Good Morning Sir.. I journeyed the North last week, from Bacolod to San Carlos Via DSB, then from San Carlos to Bacolod Via Escalante and so on.. The Road project is doing well. Sir, is there a way we highlight the Environment Gains of your District? This is a good example of managing the environment and industries. Maybe I will try the DSB to Calatrava Road sometime in the 2nd week of August.. I was looking for something to write up..

This road is whats budgetted for this year. I was apparently on PGMA's S^%t list for reasons still that behoove me. Then Speaker Nograles had it mega for me because I supported Speaker JDV and since im not nor have to be a butterfly grasshopper or any such inclined organism he SAT ON MY 09 HARD INFRA all of it. The ruse on my complaining about my paywas/is fodder but this isnt the right place. Im about to redevelop our Ancestral manor and make it an Aman 'standard' home. La Fortuna the Estate im Primary steward of is in the San Carlos City MDevPlan already zoned and landuse rated as a Heritage and Wellness Estate. Fyi as to its size; its thrice the size of Hda. Escudero who are family friends, and in fact the estate is larger than Boracay Island. The other estate I also am steward of is the Gamboa Hermanos Estate wherein SanCarlos Bio Energy is sited. It too is larger than Boracay a bit lesser size than La Fortuna. I need help in that my concept for La Fortuna is 8 Miniaturas (1/3) villas arrayed behind the ancestral home set along a central courtyard in the traditional vernacular. The Pep image on a shoot they did with assunta I have permission to use in forums only http://www.pep.ph/images/gallery/21-December-2006-113ecd347d/c20a683fd.jpg

This road is whats budgetted for this year. I was apparently on PGMA's S^%t list for reasons still that behoove me. Then Speaker Nograles had it mega for me because I supported Speaker JDV and since im not nor have to be a butterfly grasshopper or any such inclined organism he SAT ON MY 09 HARD INFRA all of it. The ruse on my complaining about my paywas/is fodder but this isnt the right place. Im about to redevelop our Ancestral manor and make it an Aman 'standard' home. La Fortuna the Estate im Primary steward of is in the San Carlos City MDevPlan already zoned and landuse rated as a Heritage and Wellness Estate. Fyi as to its size; its thrice the size of Hda. Escudero who are family friends, and in fact the estate is larger than Boracay Island. The other estate I also am steward of is the Gamboa Hermanos Estate wherein SanCarlos Bio Energy is sited. It too is larger than Boracay a bit lesser size than La Fortuna. I need help in that my concept for La Fortuna is 8 Miniaturas (1/3) villas arrayed behind the ancestral home set along a central courtyard in the traditional vernacular. The Pep image on a shoot they did with assunta I have permission to use in forums only.
http://www.pep.ph/images/gallery/21-December-2006-113ecd347d/c20a683fd.jpg
Good project Sir! I hope you received our letter from Negros Bloggers. We would be of service to promote this new tourist spot once the development project is completed. We are encouraging more Negrénses to blog and promote Negros Occidental Tourism. Since our province is often left out in Philippine Tourism promotions, we bloggers would want to fill in the gap with our extensive blogging network. :D

Bacolod San Sebastian Cathedral.


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Hi everyone,

Working on short documentary film and looking for personal photos of the Kahirup Ball/Manila Hotel during the 50s/60s/70s.

Email shasha[at]squireentertainment[dot]com if you have photos and would like to help with this exciting project. We would thank you in the film credits.

Thanks!

Hi everyone,

Working on short documentary film and looking for personal photos of the Kahirup Ball/Manila Hotel during the 50s/60s/70s.

Email shasha[at]squireentertainment[dot]com if you have photos and would like to help with this exciting project. We would thank you in the film credits.

Thanks!

maybe you could contact to these following person and organization as @Boy_Muscovado said:

Mr.Modesto Sa-onoy
Mr. Ramon Hofilena
curators of Negros Museum, Bernardino Jalandoni Museum and Dizon-Ramos Museum
Asosacion Hacienderos de Silay y Saravia
Casa Maria (a Catholic Organization for Negrense Women)

I do not fear the unknown because I believe that JESUS IS CHRIST OUR SAVIOR BEGOTTEN NOT MADE, by and through HIS CRUCIFIXION AND BY SAYING IT WITHOUR LIPS AND BELIEVING IN OUR HEARTS- we are already VICTORS ALL! What remains is to further THE GOOD NEWS and to help thy neighbor. Its really simple and not paradoxical. Life is simple its people all of us- flawed who complicate it.

Bgr13lVa2q8

-dTPyRc3g_s

Eduardo Sicangco is one of our most gifted artists, he is a scene designer for Broadway and Opera and has led the Art Department for the Jackie Chan and Jet Li Film " Forbidden Kingdom".

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Old houses of Bacolod City (Commonwealth Era)
Rosario Street, Gatuslao Street, Hernaez (Libertad) St.

http://i269.photobucket.com/albums/jj75/abudominic/IMG_8135.jpg

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Old houses of Bacolod City (Commonwealth Era)
Rosario Street, Gatuslao Street, Hernaez (Libertad) St.

http://i269.photobucket.com/albums/jj75/abudominic/IMG_8130.jpg

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Bago City Catholic Cemetery

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7028/6446651599_98bc8eef90_z.jpg

ancestral house of my late friend in Bago City...


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A duplicate copy of Cathedral de San Sebastian in Denostia San Sebastian, Guipuzkoa, norther Spain.
Bacolod Public Plaza and San Sebastian Cathedral

http://i19.photobucket.com/albums/b198/kyle_Lark/sansebastaincathedral1.jpg

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The Cathedral


Built in 1876, the San Sebastian church become the nucleus of a new settlement which eventually became the present day City of Bacolod. The church was built upon the initiative of Fr. Mauricio Ferrero, a Recollect friar, and it become a cathedral in 1933. The San Sebastian Cathedral is today one of the century-old churches found in Negros Occidental. Located near Bacolod Public Plaza



The Plaza

The Bacolod Public Plaza was constructed in 1927 to complement the weekend cultural activities of the early Bacolodnons.

The Plaza has a rectangular shape land area with a forest type ambience, its north boundary is the San Sebastian Cathedral, Bishop Palace and La Consolacion College (LCC) along the street of Rizal, its south boundary is the Plaza Mart City Mall and various commercial buildings along the street of Gonzaga, to the west is the Reclaimation area the location of SM City Mall, BREDCO, Manokan Country and Bay Center, and to the east you will see the State Theater and various commercial establishments.

Inside the Plaza you will see beautiful fountains, monuments dedicated to heroes of World War II, a tree that was planted by famous Philippine President Manuel Quezon and many others.

If you have a good understanding about the Bible and believed that your religion is the right one, the only way to salvation, then exchange your idea or belief to the people of Public Plaza because in here you can find great bible debaters and philosophers.

A duplicate copy of Cathedral DE SAN SEBASTIAN in Denostia San Sebastian, Guipuzkoa. northern Spain.

The Araneta Family

One of the most famous and powerful filipino families



THE FIRST PHILIPPINE ARANETAS
According to historical accounts and testimonies obtained from the elders in the family, the Philippine Aranetas originated from the Basque region of Northern Spain.

In 1723, during the Galleon Trade two brothers named Baltazar de Araneta and Don Jose de Araneta arrived in Manila aboard the Spanish Galeón,"La Sacra Familia". They came from the Basque region of Spain by way of Acapulco, Mexico. This was, however, not conclusive as some members of the family, disputed that the two are not brothers and Don Jose de Araneta must have been born in Gipuzkoa, but not Baltazar de Araneta, who was born in Mexico.

There are many conflicting testimonies about the beginning of the first Philippine Aranetas. Many of these stories were passed down verbally from one generations to another, it is more likely than not, that these stories have changed along the way. Some have it that Don Jose de Araneta was born in Zamboanga. If he was born in Zamboanga, therefore, he can not be the same person who arrived in Manila in 1723. Another stories has it that an Aranetas from the Basque region of Spain settled in Zamboanga. While others have their beginning with two brothers, who were priest, from Mexico. Until documentations to substantiate all these stories are found, the true facts remain unknown.

From articles written by Santiago Gomez [El Galeón de Manila en el siglo XVIII, Navios de la Carrera de Filipinas.] In reference to Baltazar de Araneta and Juan de Araneta. To wit; ''The Galeón Nuestra Senora del Pilar de Zaragosa", under the command of General Baltazar de Araneta and his master Captain Jose Antonio de la Madrid, sailed from Cavite on July 31, 1736, accompanied by the flagship N.S. Cavadonga, it arrived in Acapulco, Mexico, four months after. The same ship returned to Manila on August 20, 1739, (on board the ship was the newly appointed governor to the Philippines Gaspar Antonio de la Torre.)

Later, Baltazar de Araneta served the Spanish government as a Regidor of the Cabildo and Secretary of the Charitable Fraternity of the Mesericordia in Manila. He married Manuela de Aguirre. Baltazar died in Manila in 1750. "One line of the Araneta family descended from him."

Also there, was the Galeón Santisima Trinidad y Nuestra Senora del Buen Fin, familiarly known as El Pederoso (The mighty.) The governor, Jose Francisco Ovando y Solis ordered its construction, in the yards of Bagatao (island of Luzon), to replace the Nuestra Senora de Cavadonga, which was captured by British Admiral George Anson, commander of the frigate, HMS Centurion. Built in 1751, it was one of the largest ships in the islands. its first trip departed in mid - 1751, under the command of General D. Francisco Ustariz, with its master Captain Juan de Araneta. Without any setbacks, it returned to the Philippines in the spring of 1752.

A passage quoted from the book Islas Filipinas: Mindanao Vol. 11, by Benito Francia and Julian Gonzales Parrado which was translated in the Chabacano dialect by Datu Michael Mastura, establishes two facts: First, Don Jose de Araneta served the Spanish Politico-Military Government of Mindanao based at Zamboanga City. Second, he served as interpreter between the Spanish colonial government and the Sultan of Maguindanao, together with Placido Alberto de Saavedra. Another passage in the document revealed that in 1746, Don Jose Araneta was executed in Sulugan, Mindanao nowadays known as Anuling in Cotabato, Philippines. However, There are conflicting information drawn from translations of various documents pertaining to him.


Before the turn of the century, two of Don Jose's sons, Mathias Araneta and Vicente Araneta left Zamboanga province for Iloilo. They settled in Parian [Molo]. Don Jose's other son Benito, followed them afterwards. Years later, Vicente Araneta with his family moved and established their residence in the province of Negros Occidental starting the Negros branch of the family.

The Philippine Aranetas of today are descendants of Don Jose de Araneta and Baltazar de Araneta.

References:

Portal Archivos General de Indies (Por Santiago Gomez)
Islas Filipinas: Mindanao (Por Benito Francia and Julian G. Parredo)

Copyright 1997
All Rights Reserved:


Footnote: The Galleon, Nuestra Senora de Guia, arrived in Manila from Acapulco, Mexico six years later in August 9, 1729 and not 1723, as circulated from a leaflet during the Araneta grand reunion in Iloilo in 1993. (Source Archivo General de Indies, pp.32-33, Ruta Acapulco - Filipinas). The Galleon La Sacra Familia arrived in Manila in 1723. (See source Overview of Galleons to / from Philippines, 1565 - 1815.)



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TRIVIA:

THE ARANETA FAMILY HISTORY & ORIGIN

The Araneta family dates back from the early times, where aristocracy was still prevalent. The Araneta Family came from Aragon, Spain and from there scattered all over the country. The Family usually lived near mountains, surrounded by valleys in which their name came from. The word “Araneta” came from two Basque words; "aran" which means valley and “eta” (a suffix), which signifies someone who dwelled in a valley, thus, making “Araneta” mean as someone who dwelled in valleys. One of the earliest records of a person bearing the surname, Araneta is Martin de Araneta of Aragon, an ancient kingdom of Spain. He was a Knight during the era of the Reconquest. He accompanied Ferdinand III, king of Castile and Leon, in the conquest of Cordova, Murcia, Jaen, and Seville from the Moors in 1217. Subsequently, he was honored with numerous lands. The nobility of the Araneta Family can be depicted by the "Coat-of-Arms of the Hispanic Communities” below.

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IMAGES:

Silver Lion, gold star, war body armor

SYMBOLISM AND EXPLANATION

Blue: Heraldic sense, loyalty and truth (Those who carry this color in their coat-of-arms or coat are obligated to help servants who are unjustly abandoned by their feudal lords.)

Silver or white: Peace and sincerity.

Gold or Yellow: Nobility, honor and courage

Red: strength

Seal: A ducal crown of gold

Crest: Three ostrich feathers

Motto: Nobleza Y Valor

It is not only during the ancient times that Aranetas showed their streak of heroism but also during the Philippine Revolution. Not only Gregorio Araneta exemplified valor but also many of the Araneta family members such as; Don Felix Araneta y Militante, Agaton M. Araneta, Ceferina Araneta de Estebanm, Pablo Araneta y Soriano, Jose Araneta y Soriano, Eusebio Araneta, Casamiro Araneta, Emilio Araneta, Mariano Araneta, Faustino Araneta and so on and so forth. They bore within their hearts their family legacy of nationalism. Indeed, the family has proved that its regency rooting back from the distant past could never be erased by time.

the Araneta Family still exudes power today....

In their hometown of Bago, their relatives the Toress, the javellanas are still in political positions...

The current mayor, Janet Torres an araneta is Mayor.

Mikey Arroyo, the first gentleman is an Araneta..

Manuel Araneta Roxas is a Senator..

The Aranetas own Cubao.. their cousins the Yulos own half of Laguna..

Famous beauties , former miss International Gemma Cruz Araneta, and model Bianca Araneta hail from this clan....

BongBong Marcos and Irene Marcos are both married to Aranetas...

These are just examples, the list goes on...

PHILIPPINE POLITICS AND ITS GENEALOGY
By Todd Lucero Sales


In fact in a complicated and Byzantine manner. almost all of our former leaders, prominent families and many of our current were and are related to one another, in one way or the other, other many times over. Most of all, these political leaders have paved the way for the perpetuation of kinship based politics. Politics in the Philippines was, is, and has always been, like the interrelated Rajahs and Datus and Sultans of pre - Hispanic Philippines, a birthright. To start off, one of President Emilio Famy Aguinaldo’s granddaughters, Ameurfina Melencio Herrera, served as an associate justice of the Supreme Court and was the second Filipina elevated to the high court. Two grandsons, Reynaldo Aguinaldo and Federico Aguinaldo Poblete, served as Mayors of Kawit, Cavite while two great-grandsons, Joseph Emilio Abaya and Emilio Aguinaldo IV served, respectively, as Cavite first district congressional representative and Kawit, Cavite councilor. President Aguinaldo's first cousin’s, General Baldomero Aguinaldo, great-grandson was Cesar E.A. Virata, a Prime Minster of the Philippines under President Marcos (click here to see Aguinaldo Family Tree).


The Virata family, through marriage, is connected with the Acuña family. One Acuña member married into the prominent and rich Roxas family of Capiz, which is a branch of the Roxas family of Manila. The product of this marriage was former President Manuel A. Roxas, whose son Gerardo “Gerry” Roxas was a former Senator and whose grandson, Mar Roxas II is a Senator of the Republic. Also, due to his dalliance with Juanita McIlvain, former Miss Universe Margarita "Margie" Moran Floirendo just happens to be President Roxas' granddaughter. Margie Moran is also married to Representative Antonio “Tonyboy” Floirendo. President Manuel Roxas' wife, Trinidad de Leon, was the daughter of former Senator Ceferino de Leon. Senator de Leon's brother, Jose, married Doña Narcisa "Sisang" Buencamino, who became one of the most successful movie magnates of her time when she chartered her family-owned LVN Pictures into a dominant position in post-World War II Philippine cinema.. Narcisa's first cousin’s son was Philip Buencamino, who married Nene Quezon, daughter of President Manuel Luis Quezon.

Further, another scion of the Roxas family was Margarita Roxas, who was the first cousin of President Roxas’s great-great-grandfather and whose marriage to Antonio de Ayala produced Trinidad de Ayala. Trinidad later married Jacobo Zobel and started the legendary Zobel De Ayala family.

Some of the branches of the Roxas family married into the other aristocratic families of Manila: the Aranetas (Senator Gerry Roxas married Judy Araneta y Araneta), Ayalas, Elizaldes, Prietos, and more. One Roxas descendant is Enrique Zobel, head of the Ayala Group of companies; two others are the brothers Jose and Andres Soriano, current heads of San Miguel Corporation which their father started. Through the Roxas family's connection with the Aranetas, former Tourism Secretary and first Filipina Miss International titleholder Gemma Teressa Cruz-Araneta is also related by marriage to Pres. Roxas (click here to see the Roxas-Zobel-Soriano Family Tree) Gemma Cruz-Araneta’s husband’s cousin, Jorge L. Araneta, married the first Miss International, Maria Stella Marquez, who now runs the Binibining Pilipinas Pageant. It must also be remembered that Gemma Cruz's paternal great-grandmother was Doña Maria Rizal, the sister of Philippine national hero, Jose P. Rizal. Furthermore, Gemma Cruz's mother, Carmen, married twice. Her second husband was Angel Nakpil, the nephew of Julio Nakpil, composer of a second version of the Philippine National Anthem, who in turn was the second husband of Gregoria De Jesus, the “Muse of the Katipunan”. Gregoria de Jesus was also the widow of Katipunan founder Andres Bonifacio, who, some historians claim, was murdered upon the orders of Emilio Aguinaldo. Similarly, two of Gemma's first cousins, Paz and Maria Cruz Banaad, married Bienvenido and Roberto Laurel, respectively, relatives of President Jose P. Laurel. President Laurel’s own father, Sotero Laurel, was a member of the Malolos Congress of 1898 and his pedigree claims descent from Gat Masungit, allegedly a son of a Sultan of Brunei in the 1500s. Several of President Laurel's children became famous politicians in their own right. His eldest son, Jose Bayani, Jr., became Speaker of the House of Representatives and a candidate for vice-president in 1957 (Jose Macario Laurel, the eldest son of Jose B. Laurel, was a former Batangas Representative). His younger son, Salvador Roman "Doy" Laurel, was Vice-President from 1986 to 1992. Three other of Laurel's children also became prominent in politics and business. Sotero Cosme was elected to the Senate from 1987 to 1992; Jose Sotero Laurel III became Ambassador to Japan; and Mariano H. Laurel became president of the Philippine Banking Corporation (click here to see the Laurel-Rizal-Bonifacio connection).


Further into the Araneta family, two more of its members married presidential daughters; the first one being Juan Miguel Arroyo (of Binalbagan, Negros Occidental and a great-grandson of Negros Island Revolutionary leader Gen. Aniceto Ledesma Lacson and Rosario Emilia Araneta). He married then Ex President Ms. Gloria M. Macapagal, daughter of President Diosdado Macapagal. Former First Gentleman Mike Arroyo’s grandfather, Senator Jose Maria Pidal Arroyo, married Jesusa Araneta -Lacson, thus lining him to Senator Panfilo Lacson. Also, because the Macapagals have always maintained that they are direct descendants of Lakandula, the last King of Tondo, they can also claim to be related, albeit very distantly, from the royal family of Brunei. Thus, not only are GMA and President Laurel related many times over by marriage, they are also blood relatives because of their claimed descent from the royal house of Brunei.

The second Araneta to marry a presidential daughter was Gregorio Maria "Greggy" Araneta, who married Irene Romualdez Marcos, the youngest child of Ferdinand Edralin Marcos and Imelda Romualdez. (click here to see the Araneta connections). This Araneta-Marcos marriage further stretches these already complicated family connections, because Congressman Ferdinand Marcos, Jr. is married to New York educated lawyer Mary Louise “Liza” Araneta-Marcos who is a grandniece of business tycoon J. Amado Araneta.

Ferdinand Marcos' grandfather's sister, Crispina Marcos, married Hilario Valdez. Their daughter, Angela Marcos Valdez, married Ambassador Narciso Ramos, who was also a district representative of Pangasinan from 1934 to 1946 and was the father of Fidel V. Ramos, also a President of the Republic, and Leticia Ramos-Shahani, a former Senator. Two nephews of President Ramos, Ranjit R. Shahani and Hernani Braganza, served as Governor of Pangasinan and Mayor of Alaminos City, Pangasinan, respectively. Narciso Ramos, after becoming a widower, married Alfonsita Lucero, whose father's maternal family, the Birondos of Argao, Cebu, married into the Almendras family of Cebu and Davao.

One of Alfonsita's cousins, William Birondo, married Kukit Tecala, whose uncle, Pedro Tecala Sr., married Sofronia Almendras. Two of Sofronia's siblings married into political families. Her brother, Paulo Almendras, married Elisea Durano, the daughter of Demetrio Durano and progenitor of the Durano family that has ruled Danao and Sogod, Cebu for many years. Its most popular member is Ace Durano, the present Tourism Secretary.

A son of Paulo Almendras was Senator Alejandro Almendras, whose marriage to a Bendigo of Davao City connected them to the ruling families of Davao: the Banggoys, Palma Gils, Lizadas, Nograleses, and many others. The current Speaker of the Philippine House of Representatives is Davao City congressman Prospero “Boy” Nograles. The current mayor of Davao, Rodrigo Duterte, is also of the Duterte family of Danao, a rival political clan of the Duranos but one allied to them maritally, many times over. Senator Almendras' brother, Josefino, married Rosita Dimataga, the sister of Leonila Dimataga, who in turn was the wife of President Carlos P. Garcia. President Garcia’s father, Policronio, served as a mayor of Talibon, Bohol (click here to see the Ramos-Garcia-Durano connections).

Several other cousins of Narciso Ramos’s second wife Alfonsita, married into other political families or were themselves personalities in the Philippines: one cousin is Hilario G. Davide, Jr., former Chief Justice of the Philippine Supreme Court and now the country’s permanent ambassador to the United Nations; another, Simeon L. Kintanar, served as Cebu’s second district representative to Congress; still another, James Lucero, married Nazarena Soon, whose sister, Nerissa Soon-Ruiz, is currently a member of the House of Representatives; still another cousin, Procopio C. Lucero, Jr. married Gliseria Gullas, the daughter Paulino Gullas and sister of Eduardo and Jose Gullas, all of whom served as members of the House of Representatives; still another cousin was Januaria Taguenca Cabrera, who married Don Victoriano Osmeña, an uncle of President Sergio Osmeña. Among all the Philippine presidential families, the Osmeñas of Cebu have had the most number of members who served in the government to date. Excluding Sergio Sr., the family has had four senators and four members of the House of Representatives. The clan has also produced a governor, a vice governor, a provincial board member, mayors, vice mayor, and several councilors. The Osmeña family remains the premier political dynasty of Cebu, and one of the most enduring dynasties in the country (click here to see the Ramos-Osmena-Cebu Reps. connections).

President Osmeña's half-sister was Doña Modesto Singson-Gaisano, the matriarch of the affluent Gaisano family of Cebu City. Modesta was a progeny of Don Pedro Gotiaoco, whose other descendants include Atty. Agusto Go, President of the University of Cebu and Honorary South Korean Consul; John Gokongwei, Jr., a great-grandson of Don Pedro Gotiaoco and the owner of Cebu Pacific, Robinson’s Mall, JG Summit, and many more; and the Sy-Gaisano family, who operate chains of shopping malls all over Visayas and Mindanao. A grandson of the brother of Don Pedro is Andrew Gotianun, who owns the FILINVEST Group and the East West Bank (click here to see the tycoons of Cebu).

Imelda Romualdez's marriage to Marcos also brought in many famous personalities. Imelda’s son, Ferdinand Marcos, Jr., has served as Governor of Batac, Ilocos Norte while a daughter, Imee, currently a member of the House of Representatives, married Tommy Manotoc, whose mother was related to the wife of Eugenio “Genny” Lopez, whose family owns ABS-CBN, MERALCO, Sky Cable, and other major corporations in the country. A son of Imee Marcos and Tommy Manotoc is Borgie Manotoc, a model.

Aside from being a capitalist clan, the Lopezes are also into politics: one member, Fernando Lopez, was a former senator and served as Vice-President under President Elpidio Quirino and Ferdinand Marcos; all in all, six members of the Lopez clan have served as Vice-President, Senator, and House Representatives. A great-nephew, Manuel “Beaver” Lopez, Jr., married Jacqueline “Jackie” Estrada, daughter of President Joseph Ejercito “Erap” Estrada, whose own wife, Dr. Loi P. Estrada, and son, Jinggoy, have served as Senators of the Philippines.

Imelda’s own niece, Marean Romualdez, daughter of her brother Leyte Governor Alfredo Romualdez, married Thomas Pompidou, the grandson of former French President Georges Pompidou (click here to see the Ramos-Marcos-Estrada connections).

Imelda's first cousin, Senator Danieling Romualdez, married Pacita Gueco of Tarlac. In an ironic twist of fate, Pacita Gueco happened to be the first cousin of Senator Benigno “Ninoy” Aquino Jr. Of course, the Aquinos themselves are one of the premier political clans of the country and a scion of the Aquino clan was Senator Eva Estrada Kalaw, one of the Philippines' very first female senators. Ninoy Aquino’s own grandfather, Don Servillano Aquino, was a member of the Malolos Congress while his father, Benigno Aquino, Sr., also served as Philippine Senator. A sister of Ninoy, Tessie A. Oreta, also became senator of the Philippines while uncles Agapito and Herminio and nephew Jesli A. Lapus, served as members of the House of Representatives. Ninoy’s own son, Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III, currently sits as a Philippine Senator and, as already mentioned, is a presidential hopeful for the 2010 elections.

Ninoy's marriage to the heiress Corazon Cojuanco also allied his family to another political dynasty. Corazon Aquino, after her husband's heroic death in 1983, later became the country's first female Chief Executive. Her maternal family, the Sumulongs, have also produced several lawmakers: her grandfather, Juan Marquez Sumulong, was a three-term senator while an unlce, Lorenzo Sumulong, and cousins, Victor Sumulong and Emigdio S. Tanjuanco, Jr., served as members of the House of Representatives. The Cojuangco family, on the other hand, owns one of the oldest-existing haciendas in the country today, and the Cojuangcos control many of the country's business enterprises. Cory Aquino’s eldest brother and the acknowledged patriarch of the clan, Don Pedro Cojuangco, is married to Sari Cacho-Cojuangco. Sari Cojuangco’s sister Maria Milagros Cacho-Araneta is the mother of Liza Araneta-Marcos (Bongbong Marcos’ wife). In fact, Liza Araneta-Marcos’ sister was one the personal secretaries of Cory Aquino when she was President! They have also done very well in politics: Cory’s own grandfather, Melecio, was a member of the HOR. Her brother Jose “Peping” Jr., cousins Eduardo “Danding” Jr., Mercedes, Carlos, and Marcos, and nephew Gilbert C. Teodoro, have all served as representatives to congress. Gilbert C. Teodoro, as mentioned above, is another 2010 elections presidential hopeful.

Further, two Cojuangcos, sons of Cory's cousins Ramon and Eduardo, respectively, married Rio Diaz (Charlie Cojuangco), sister of former Miss Universe Gloria Diaz and Gretchen Baretto (Tony Boy Cojuangco). Gretchen's sisters are Claudine and Marjorie, themselves married to actors. Cory's niece, equestrienne Mikee Cojuangco, married Dodot Jaworski, son of basketball legend and Sen. Robert Jaworski. Senator Jaworski, on the other hand, married Susan Bautista Revilla, daughter of Sen. Ramon Revilla Sr., whose son Bong Revilla was a former governor and Senator. This connection, no doubt, extends this family tree to most of the country's movie personalities (click here to see the Aquino-Cojuangco connections).

Clearly, this Byzantine illustration of family connections is proof of the intricacies of Philippine politics. In this short presentation, we have already linked no less than 12 of our 14 Presidents (click here to view diagram), one Prime Minister, two former Ms. Universe and two Ms. International titleholders (click here to view diagram), several senators, and many other personalities, political or otherwise. We have even connected our "Philippine Family Tree" to a former French President and the Royal family of Brunei! Imagine what further research into the other family trees could reveal?

Philippine politics, undoubtedly, is still a family affair.

Author’s note: (1) The original title of this article was RP Politics: Family Affair. I have, since then, made a lot of improvements to the original article and now have actual charts to show how these people are related. (2) All the abovementioned facts can be checked. To give the readers an idea of where these information came from, I have collated genealogical data from several internet sites (GMA7’s research during the SONA2007 really helped a lot), from books such as the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism’s “The Rulemakers”, and Alfred C. McCoy’s “An Anarchy of Families”. Many of the information here were collected over many years of research, and, just like an actual tree, this article will continue to expand as more genealogical data will come to light. Of course, corrections or additions to this article will be appreciated! Thanks also to Roland Oscar Araneta for sharing the Araneta Family website and for the many information I got that helped connect many personalities here. (Todd Lucero Sales).

Author’s request: The writing of this article was a laborious process. While I am not asking for any payment for every reposting of this article, I would like to request all those who wish to cite or repost this article to please, please cite my name as a source. Thanks!

A duplicate copy of Cathedral DE SAN SEBASTIAN in Denostia San Sebastian, Guipuzkoa. northern Spain.

Please compare the San Sebastian Church in Donostia, Spain and the San Sebastian Cathedral in Bacolod and gauge if it's a duplicate. Both are beautiful churches by the way.

San Sebastian Donostia, Spain

http://photos.igougo.com/photos/journal/pref/ss-8_prefRes.jpg

San Sebastian Bacolod, Philippines

http://www.lifestylesbacolod.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/cover1-Copy.jpg

AN ANCESTRAL HOUSE IN BRGY. PAYAO, BINALBAGAN


Then...
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Now
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Brgy. Payao is home to the family of former first gentleman mike arroyo:)

AN ANCESTRAL HOUSE IN BRGY. PAYAO, BINALBAGAN


Then...
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Now
http://a6.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/395961_181561501941918_100002642086093_316534_2089507380_n.jpg

Brgy. Payao is home to the family of former first gentleman mike arroyo:)
Gin-utod nila gali into a single storey ang balay? Tani i-restore man nila to it original two-storey structure. :ohno:

Re: THE FIRST PHILIPPINE ARANETAS - Please edit and update what you posted about the first Philippine Aranetas.... Here is the correct one that I posted.

According to historical accounts and testimonies obtained from the elders in the family, the Philippine Aranetas originated from the Basque region of Northern Spain.

In 1723, during the Galleon Trade two brothers named Baltazar de Araneta and Don Jose de Araneta arrived in Manila aboard the Spanish Galeón,"La Sacra Familia". They came from the Basque region of Spain by way of Acapulco, Mexico. This was, however, not conclusive as some members of the family, disputed that the two are not brothers and Don Jose de Araneta must have been born in Gipuzkoa, but not Baltazar de Araneta, who was born in Mexico.

There are many conflicting testimonies about the beginning of the first Philippine Aranetas. Many of these stories were passed down verbally from one generations to another, it is more likely than not, that these stories have changed along the way. Some have it that Don Jose de Araneta was born in Zamboanga. If he was born in Zamboanga, therefore, he can not be the same person who arrived in Manila in 1723. Another stories has it that an Aranetas from the Basque region of Spain settled in Zamboanga. While others have their beginning with two brothers, who were priest, from Mexico. Until documentations to substantiate all these stories are found, the true facts remain unknown.

From articles written by Santiago Gomez [El Galeón de Manila en el siglo XVIII, Navios de la Carrera de Filipinas.] In reference to Baltazar de Araneta and Juan de Araneta. To wit; ''The Galeón Nuestra Senora del Pilar de Zaragosa", under the command of General Baltazar de Araneta and his master Captain Jose Antonio de la Madrid, sailed from Cavite on July 31, 1736, accompanied by the flagship N.S. Cavadonga, it arrived in Acapulco, Mexico, four months after. The same ship returned to Manila on August 20, 1739, (on board the ship was the newly appointed governor to the Philippines Gaspar Antonio de la Torre.)

Later, Baltazar de Araneta served the Spanish government as a Regidor of the Cabildo and Secretary of the Charitable Fraternity of the Mesericordia in Manila. He married Manuela de Aguirre. Baltazar died in Manila in 1750. "One line of the Araneta family descended from him."

Also there, was the Galeón Santisima Trinidad y Nuestra Senora del Buen Fin, familiarly known as El Pederoso (The mighty.) The governor, Jose Francisco Ovando y Solis ordered its construction, in the yards of Bagatao (island of Luzon), to replace the Nuestra Senora de Cavadonga, which was captured by British Admiral George Anson, commander of the frigate, HMS Centurion. Built in 1751, it was one of the largest ships in the islands. its first trip departed in mid - 1751, under the command of General D. Francisco Ustariz, with its master Captain Juan de Araneta. Without any setbacks, it returned to the Philippines in the spring of 1752.

A passage quoted from the book Islas Filipinas: Mindanao Vol. 11, by Benito Francia and Julian Gonzales Parrado which was translated in the Chabacano dialect by Datu Michael Mastura, establishes two facts: First, Don Jose de Araneta served the Spanish Politico-Military Government of Mindanao based at Zamboanga City. Second, he served as interpreter between the Spanish colonial government and the Sultan of Maguindanao, together with Placido Alberto de Saavedra. Another passage in the document revealed that in 1746, Don Jose Araneta was executed in Sulugan, Mindanao nowadays known as Anuling in Cotabato, Philippines. However, There are conflicting information drawn from translations of various documents pertaining to him.


Before the turn of the century, two of Don Jose's sons, Mathias Araneta and Vicente Araneta left Zamboanga province for Iloilo. They settled in Parian [Molo]. Don Jose's other son Benito, followed them afterwards. Years later, Vicente Araneta with his family moved and established their residence in the province of Negros Occidental starting the Negros branch of the family.

The Philippine Aranetas of today are descendants of Don Jose de Araneta and Baltazar de Araneta.

References:

Portal Archivos General de Indies (Por Santiago Gomez)
Islas Filipinas: Mindanao (Por Benito Francia and Julian G. Parredo)

Copyright 1997
All Rights Reserved:


Footnote: The Galleon, Nuestra Senora de Guia, arrived in Manila from Acapulco, Mexico six years later in August 9, 1729 and not 1723, as circulated from a leaflet during the Araneta grand reunion in Iloilo in 1993. (Source Archivo General de Indies, pp.32-33, Ruta Acapulco - Filipinas). The Galleon La Sacra Familia arrived in Manila in 1723. (See source Overview of Galleons to / from Philippines, 1565 - 1815.)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Also please note under Trivia Araneta family that Bianca Araneta, Judy Araneta Mar Araneta Roxas and the rest of the clan descended from Gregorio S. Araneta. This information is wrong. Judy Araneta and Mar Roxas descended from Marciano Yulo Araneta a distant cousin of Gregorio S. Araneta and the great grandfather of Boanca Araneta.

Thank you...

Roland Araneta

PLEASE EDIT AND UPDATE THIS ARTICLE - SEE THE NEW VERSION AT PAGE 13 # 269

Kyle@1008,

Is this the Balay ni Tan Juan Community Museum?

BALAY NI TAN JUAN - His Bago home, has been turned into a museum. It houses a collections of family memorabilia, furnishings, and the family tree
for all the branches of the Araneta family.

piaya story...

http://www.tumblr.com/photo/1280/15524066575/1/tumblr_lxhi0k3GzA1qcbca4
Freshly made artisan piaya available at Fresh Start Organic and Natural Store

http://www.tumblr.com/photo/1280/15538045609/1/tumblr_lxhi460NfN1qcbca4
Watching them make piaya at Fresh Start Organic and Natural Store

http://www.tumblr.com/photo/1280/15550712275/1/tumblr_lxhi8gHFHP1qcbca4
Artisan Piaya, Organic Native Robusta Brewed Coffee and Mascovado Sugar at Fresh Start Organic and Natural Store


source: (http://discovernegros.tumblr.com/)

I <3 BCD

DIZON-RAMOS MUSEUM
The newest museum in Negros,,,located in Burgos Street, Bacolod^^

http://i29.photobucket.com/albums/c284/tidzybitterbeauty/IMG_0366.jpg

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and there's the house beside it..:)

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http://i29.photobucket.com/albums/c284/tidzybitterbeauty/IMG_0372.jpg
(Photos Courtesy by PosterGirl of SSC-Bacolod)


familiar ang ikaduha nga balay a :lol:

^^your ancestral house?

one of bacolod landmarks

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familiar ang ikaduha nga balay a :lol:
:lol: Kanugon that I wasn't there when a tour was done inside the famed mansion. :D
^^your ancestral house?

one of bacolod landmarks

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http://a3.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc6/205070_216651495016633_100000153514647_996323_1840332_n.jpg
We know that is an open secret. :lol:

A piece of history from National Museum..

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^^the occidental negros provincial capitol is one, if not the only one built by juan arellano outside of manila

^^the occidental negros provincial capitol is one, if not the only one built by juan arellano outside of manila
I think the Cebú Provincial Capitol and Misamis Occidental Provincial Capitol are also works of Architect Juan Arelláno. :)

^^yeah..i stand corrected. both the cebu and negros occ capitols stand to the testament of the great works of juan arellano because to this day, their beauty remain to be a subject of awe.

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-U0ItCIf4a-A/T0YbHJpcLaI/AAAAAAAACtI/UrKwpw559I8/s719/image

TREASURES IN SILAY

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The Armin Jalandoni Ancestral home became Silay's Sanggunian Panglungsod Office almost a decade ago.

With all the political discourse and public service associated with the building we often fail to notice a heritage and artistic treasure in its walls - murals with Filipiniana, rural and mythical themes. These features in this turn of the century house survived time, thus it is imperative that we show appreciation and preserve these truly Silaynon jewels.

Last Thursday, world renowned photographer Luca Tettoni (http://www.tettoni.com/bio/luca.html) together with writer Elizabeth Reyes (http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/444689.Elizabeth_V_Reyes) took time to admire the murals. It will be part of their exciting new coffee-table book, "Philippine Style".

A Silay icon, the horno economico.
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silay city (http://www.facebook.com/pages/Silay-City/60433317352)

Silay Plaza Band Stand,

This was ordered to be Destroyed by Imelda.

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Silay Pro-Cathedral and Convent.

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Old Plaza Fountain.

Please compare the San Sebastian Church in Donostia, Spain and the San Sebastian Cathedral in Bacolod and gauge if it's a duplicate. Both are beautiful churches by the way.

San Sebastian Donostia, Spain

http://photos.igougo.com/photos/journal/pref/ss-8_prefRes.jpg

San Sebastian Bacolod, Philippines

http://www.lifestylesbacolod.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/cover1-Copy.jpg

The way I see it, its not a duplicate...only a similarity in design :)


I think the Cebú Provincial Capitol and Misamis Occidental Provincial Capitol are also works of Architect Juan Arelláno. :)

How about the Leyte Capitol? It also looks similar to our Capitol

A shared heritage, a López company
http://sphotos.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash4/418486_10150822444984488_772454487_12495566_940797507_n.jpg

The way I see it, its not a duplicate...only a similarity in design :)



How about the Leyte Capitol? It also looks similar to our Capitol

Maybe this is what they are referring to.

Looks more similar to me.

http://i.telegraph.co.uk/multimedia/archive/02130/san-sebastian2_2130579b.jpg

How about the Leyte Capitol? It also looks similar to our Capitol
The Leyte Provincial Capitol or Ang Pamunuan san Lalawigan sa Leyte is the work of another famous architect, Tomas Mapua. :)

The way I see it, its not a duplicate...only a similarity in design :)



How about the Leyte Capitol? It also looks similar to our Capitol

^^mayve he's referring to the old church before the renovation. hope i can get an old photo of that.:)

Silay Plaza Band Stand,

This was ordered to be Destroyed by Imelda.

http://a5.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash2/66352_452975862352_60433317352_5720711_7448782_n.jpg

nice pic, wish they would bring back the old plaza of Silay.

I am doing my reaserch about Fabrica. I am so Amazed how life is so sweet in this side of Negros Occidental.

http://***************/503_aiken/Negros%20-%20Phase%20IV.html

Balay Negrense, Silay City
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Negros museum
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cont..
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^^amazing...this is actually a wealth of artifacts that is a testament to negros' glorious past.and its good tht they preserved some of them. thanks again @goldfish for the wonderful, clean and clear shots.

Will post the old Buildings Later. Whew. or Soon.

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8022/7245914704_994054e371_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/64980591@N08/7245914704/)
IMGP5569.1 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/64980591@N08/7245914704/) by rickremus (http://www.flickr.com/people/64980591@N08/), on Flickr

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IMGP6043.1 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/64980591@N08/7245927052/) by rickremus (http://www.flickr.com/people/64980591@N08/), on Flickr

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7220/7238689720_4f37ace868_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/64980591@N08/7238689720/)
IMGP6036.1 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/64980591@N08/7238689720/) by rickremus (http://www.flickr.com/people/64980591@N08/), on Flickr

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7098/7238710842_239d69fb4e_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/64980591@N08/7238710842/)
IMGP6033.1 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/64980591@N08/7238710842/) by rickremus (http://www.flickr.com/people/64980591@N08/), on Flickr

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7221/7238695562_eb6e557fed_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/64980591@N08/7238695562/)
IMGP6035.1 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/64980591@N08/7238695562/) by rickremus (http://www.flickr.com/people/64980591@N08/), on Flickr

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7216/7238702936_5e786bed9a_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/64980591@N08/7238702936/)
IMGP6034.1 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/64980591@N08/7238702936/) by rickremus (http://www.flickr.com/people/64980591@N08/), on Flickr

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7089/7238716786_57f0703fa7_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/64980591@N08/7238716786/)
IMGP6029.1 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/64980591@N08/7238716786/) by rickremus (http://www.flickr.com/people/64980591@N08/), on Flickr

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7074/7238723122_1ce85bb75a_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/64980591@N08/7238723122/)
IMGP6026.1 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/64980591@N08/7238723122/) by rickremus (http://www.flickr.com/people/64980591@N08/), on Flickr

Silay Heritage List


List of Heritage Houses (Registered with NHI)


Level 1 - Declared

1. Carlos Arceo Ledesma Heritage House
2. Jose Benedicto Gamboa Heritage House
3. Leandro de la Rama Locsin Ancestral House
4. Angel Araneta Ledesma Heritage House (Culture and Arts Office of Silay - 5. commonly called The Green House)
6. Delfin Ledesma Ledesma Heritage House
7. Teodoro Morada Heritage House
8. Digna Locsin Consing Heritage House
9. Generoso Reyes Gamboa Heritage House (Twin houses)
10. Modesto Ramirez Hojilla (Carlos Javelosa Jalandoni) Ancestral House
11. German Lacson Gaston Ancestral House
12. Juana Coloso Ledesma House
13. Amelia Hilado Flores House (owned by Jison-Alano)
14. Severino Building / Lino Lope Severino Ancestral House
15. German Locsin Unson Ancestral House
16. Arsenio Lopez Jison Ancestral house
17. Antonio Novela Sian House
18. Manuel de la Rama Locsin Ancestral House
19. Josefita Tionko Lacson Ancestral House
20. El Ideal Bakery (Cesar Lacson Locsin Ancestral House)
21. Soledad and Maria Montelibano Lacson Heritage House

Level 2 - with Marker

1. Victor Fernandez Gaston Heritage House (Balay Negrense)
2. Alejandro Amechazura Heritage House
3. Jose Corteza Locsin Heritage House
4. Manuel Severino Hofileña Heritage House
5. Bernardino and Ysabel Lopez-Jalandoni Ancestral House (a lifestyle museum, commonly called The Pink House)
6. Jose "Pitong" Ledesma Heritage House
7. Kapitan Marciano Montelibano Lacson Heritage House
8. Vicente Conlu Montelibano Heritage House
9. Maria Ledesma Golez Heritage House (now RCBC Silay branch)

Declared (Level 1) Demolished by owners

1. Augusto Hilado Severino House (bought by Iglesia Ni Cristo)
2. Claudio Hilado Akol Heritage House (bought by the Locsin Genealogy Foundation - balcony has been retained)
3. Felix Tad-y Lacson Ancestral House (not declared)

Not Declared

1. Armin Jalandoni Ancestral House (now Sangguniang Panlungsod Building)
2. Antonia de la Rama Locsin Ancestral House
3. Aguinaldo Gamboa House (house where Gen. Douglas MacArthur stayed)
4. St. Theresita's Academy

Gabaldon Schools

1. Silay North Elementary School
2. Silay South Elementary School

SOURCE (http://www.silayheritage.com/p/silay-heritage-list.html)

BACOLOD IS A PICTURE OF PEACEFULNESS AND CLEANLINESS, THEN AND NOW

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Credits to the owner of the pic

BALAY NI TANA DICANG LIFESTYLE MUSEUM
Talisay City, Negros Occidental

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FAT TZANG TEMPLE - BACOLOD


(photos courtesy from Gab Lim (http://www.panoramio.com/user/6570223?with_photo_id=64180265))
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TALISAY CITY AS A MODEL FOR HERITAGE TOURISM

8vAg9y6TQQo

^^move the video to 2:52:)

Cultural Mapping and Consultative Meeting Held at the 4th District
Submitted by webmaster on Mon, 07/09/2012 - 07:25 Bago City La Carlota City Local News Pulupandan Valladolid

The Negros Occidental Tourism Center in cooperation with the 4th District of Negros Occidental composed of the cities of La Carlota and Bago and the Municipalities of Pulupandan, Pontevedra, San Enrique and Valladolid held a Cultural Mapping and Consultative Meeting at the Balay ni Tan Juan Community Museum in Bago City.

Cultural mapping involves a community identifying and documenting local cultural resources which makes a community unique, initiating a range of activities to record and conserve. The fundamental goal of cultural mapping is to help communities celebrate, and support diversity for economic, social and regional development.

Forty Eight councilors, educators, planning officers and barangay captains from different local government units attended the one-day cultural mapping. Speakers for the said activity were Clemente del Castillo- Presidnet of the Western Visayas Association of Museums and Mr. Roque Hofileña-Executive Director of the Negros Occidental Historical Council.

Topics were: History and Culture as Bases for Tourism and other Socio-economic Aspects- A Brief Overview of the Historical Roots of Negros Occidental from the Pre-Spanish to Present times. Heritage , Culture and Philippines Laws . This activity further introduced RA 10066- the Act providing for the protection and conservation of the national Cultural heritage, Strengthening the National Commission for the Culture and the Arts and Its Affiliated Cultural Agencies. Provincial Board Member Pedro Zayco-Chair for the Committee on Culture and Education supports the conduct of the cultural mapping in the whole province. This activity was held in the same district to bring the Provincial Government closer to the people according to Jennylind Cordero-District 4 Coordinator for Tourism.*

source (http://www.ndb-online.com/070912/local-news/events-cultural-mapping-and-consultative-meeting-held-4th-district)

http://ppp.gov.ph/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/Talisay-Market-Sounding-1024x731.jpg

PPP Center
03 July 2012

Major retail operators have expressed strong interest to take part in Talisay City’s Plaza Complex Heritage Restoration and Redevelopment project.
Mall giants Ayala Land Sales Inc and SM Prime Holdings of the SM Super Malls, alongside Negros Occidental-based retail players 888 China Square, Lopues Department Store, and Carmella Valley Corp recently attended the market sounding session conducted by the local government of Talisay in Negros Occidental led by Talisay City Mayor Eric Saratan and the Public Private partnership Center.

The heritage and restoration project is Talisay City’s first PPP project that will restore, develop and transform the 13,757 square meter Talisay City Complex, which includes the old Central Public Market and City Hall, into a mix-use commercial complex at the same time conserving and restoring the City’s century-old structures. The PPP heritage and restoration project is set to generate interest as a major tourist attraction in Talisay City. It is also the country’s first heritage restoration project to be undertaken as a PPP project.
PPP Center Executive Director Cosette V. Canilao said that heritage restoration projects like the one in Talisay are deemed highly viable specifically in the light of a growing tourism industry.

“We consider the Talisay heritage project as a clear example of the scope and breadth that public-private partnerships can be tapped. Traditionally, PPP focused mostly on hard infrastructure like roads. This time around, government is using PPP for social infra like our school buildings and hospitals. With Talisay, we are exploring heritage and tourism. The recent market sounding made it clear to us that there is much interest from the private sector for this type of PPP project. We are hopeful that will be the start of more partnerships and projects on heritage and restoration with the private sector,” the PPP Center chief explained.

The market sounding session brought together the local government of Talisay and interested investors and stakeholders to level off expectations and discuss issues that can positively benefit the structuring of the project.

source (http://ppp.gov.ph/?p=8991)

http://i1253.photobucket.com/albums/hh588/ninyaaar/The%20Ruins/DSC_0286.jpg

You can visit my blog to see the rest of the photos:
http://ninyaaar.wordpress.com

The post I made for The Ruins
http://ninyaaar.wordpress.com/2012/07/25/for-the-love-of-maria-braga-the-ruins-in-talisay-negros-occidental/

^^thanks @ninyaaar for posting...such a lovely sight.:)

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The Silay Stonehenge (built in 1826)

You don't have to travel thousands of miles to Salisbury, England to see the Stonehenge. These ruins of the Old Hispanic Port of Silay City are located just about 16 kms from Bacolod City.

thanks to atty ralph

http://youtu.be/Mva2-NdHNjA

Hello everybody, Ballesteros family traces its roots to Negros too. My grandfather , Joaquin Perez Ballesteros who is originally from Cartagena Spain married Rosa Pullicar Azcona, a spanish mestiza from Manapla Negros Occidental.

I don't know if this is the right way to post a video from you tube but this contains our Genealogy. My father, Alfonso (Ytoy) Ballesteros (1914-1991)was the youngest son (13th). He too had many children but as a tradition, there never was bickering and sibling rivalry just doesn't exist in our family. I'm the youngest among 17 brothers and the youngest 3rd generation member of our clan.

Among notable members of our family are, Sen Gregorio Ballesteros Honasan, whose grandfather, Enrique Azcona Ballesteros (older brother of Papa) was once the mayor of Escalante City. But he was killed while in office during world war II. Fermin Azcona Ballesteros (1911-1975 )was among the first aministrator of DDC (Danao Development corp., one of the first sugar mills in Negros but now ceased operation) and many others from the 4th and 5th generation. Most of us grew up in Toboso, Escalante, Himamaylan, Bacolod city and San Carlos city where the family used to run La Suerte Hotel, the most luxurious hotel in the city in the 60's.

We had our grand reunion in Bacolod city last July 14 where relatives from all over the world converged in a remarkable reminiscing of the past. We have all the pictures in FB including that of our ancestral house in Stop Aguinaldo, Toboso.

What we don't know exactly is the manner of Joaquin's arrival in Negros, who was with him and other circumstances. We are trying to collate certain facts for a book that is going to be published soon. Any information that might be helpful is welcome. Muchas gracias.

Viva la Raza!

http://youtu.be/Mva2-NdHNjA

Hello everybody, Ballesteros family traces its roots to Negros too. My grandfather , Joaquin Perez Ballesteros who is originally from Cartagena Spain married Rosa Pullicar Azcona, a spanish mestiza from Manapla Negros Occidental.

I don't know if this is the right way to post a video from you tube but this contains our Genealogy. My father, Alfonso (Ytoy) Ballesteros (1914-1991)was the youngest son (13th). He too had many children but as a tradition, there never was bickering and sibling rivalry just doesn't exist in our family. I'm the youngest among 17 brothers and the youngest 3rd generation member of our clan.

Among notable members of our family are, Sen Gregorio Ballesteros Honasan, whose grandfather, Enrique Azcona Ballesteros (older brother of Papa) was once the mayor of Escalante City. But he was killed while in office during world war II. Fermin Azcona Ballesteros (1911-1975 )was among the first aministrator of DDC (Danao Development corp., one of the first sugar mills in Negros but now ceased operation) and many others from the 4th and 5th generation. Most of us grew up in Toboso, Escalante, Himamaylan, Bacolod city and San Carlos city where the family used to run La Suerte Hotel, the most luxurious hotel in the city in the 60's.

We had our grand reunion in Bacolod city last July 14 where relatives from all over the world converged in a remarkable reminiscing of the past. We have all the pictures in FB including that of our ancestral house in Stop Aguinaldo, Toboso.

What we don't know exactly is the manner of Joaquin's arrival in Negros, who was with him and other circumstances. We are trying to collate certain facts for a book that is going to be published soon. Any information that might be helpful is welcome. Muchas gracias.

Viva la Raza!

I will help you

Mva2-NdHNjA

http://i1067.photobucket.com/albums/u435/Rick_Remus/Suroy/Ladyandthecarabao.jpg

thanks @juicy.

wow! what a wonderful place!

SILAY CITY; CENTER OF CULTURE, ARTS AND ECOTOURISM IN WV

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Dizon Ramos Museum
City of Bacolod

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(photos courtesy from Dizon Ramos Meseum FB)

A fairy tale of a Negros dream house
(http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/11794/a-fairy-tale-of-a-negros-dream-house)

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{GARBANZOS’ HOUSE AND RESORT Garbanzos’ house is located between the resort buildings (on the left) and the entrance to the resort (at the extreme right). Contributed photo}

BACOLOD CITY—He found a perfect place to build his dream house. But architect Albert Garbanzos had to hurdle several obstacles before he could buy the 24-hectare farmland nestled on a hill in San Carlos, Negros Occidental, and overlooking two majestic mountains—Marapara and Kanlaon.
He must get permission from a diwata (forest nymph) and tap a water diviner to find the underground spring that he now uses to fill two swimming pools in his resort called “La Vista Highlands” beside his dream house.
Garbanzos believes he was destined to own the property along Kilometer 67 in Barangay Prosperidad.

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Elderly owners
At least 90 people had earlier offered to buy the estate from an elderly couple. But every time they were about to sell, they would dream that the buyers had bad intentions for the property or something bad would happen.
In December 2008, Garbanzos was driving his car to Bacolod City when he decided to stop along Kilometer 67. “I had to answer the call of nature, climbed a hill to smoke and, to my surprise, I saw a view that was to die for,” he said.

“It was a chilly December morning and the wind blew on my face. The clouds had gathered at the base of Mt. Marapara and it looked like Mt. Fuji, and when I turned around, I saw Mt. Kanlaon. It was such a breathtaking view!” he added.

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Entire 24 hectares
Garbanzos found himself talking to himself as he explored the land. “I said this is my dream place. This is where I will build my rest home and I started rattling off how I would design it,” he said.

He then saw a woman, hunched over but tilling the land. She turned out to be the owner.

When he broached the idea of buying the property, the woman told him that she and her husband would only sell if he would take the entire 24 hectares.
Garbanzos told her that he would think about it and left.

Garbanzos is the son of the late businessman journalist Rodolfo Garbanzos of Bago City and Fidela Benitez, who instilled in him the love for making beautiful homes.

He studied fine arts and architecture at La Consolacion in Bacolod before transferring to Cebu Institute of Technology in Cebu City.

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High end
He is also into interior design and garden landscaping.
Garbanzos, president and chief executive officer of ABG and Associates Construction and Development Corp. in Cebu, has found his niche in building high-end homes.

He could not stop thinking about the property in San Carlos, so he went back. The owners were about to sell the place to someone who wanted to start a piggery and farm there.

After Garbanzos told them that he planned to develop a resort and to plant trees, vegetables and flowers, the couple decided to sell the land to him.
“They told me they had a good feeling about me. It was as if the diwata had finally given them permission to sell, perhaps because she had heard what I had said to myself on my first visit and liked what I wanted to do with the place,” Garbanzos said.

The next challenge was to find water after a surveyor told Garbanzos that the place was dry. Residents advised him to seek help from a siruhana (healer in contact with the spirits).

A 70-year-old woman from La Castellana town was brought to the property. She walked around and repeatedly said: “Albert Garbanzos, our friend, is asking for water.”

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‘Balete’ tree
After three days, the chanting woman approached a huge balete tree. She later told Garbanzos: “Sir, the diwata said she will give you water. She likes you.”

A water diviner, this time, went near the tree and indicated the location of an underground river. True enough, the water body was unearthed at the spot.

In seven months, Garbanzos built his house on the hill.
When the first room was finished, he felt like someone woke him up at 2:30 a.m. He was amazed to see hundreds of colorful butterflies on the glass window panel.

The butterflies were accompanied by two large mariposas that looked like king and queen, Garbanzos said.

“It was definitely not the time of day when butterflies appear. It was as if they came to welcome me to my new home,” he said.

La Vista Highlands was completed in nine months, with two swimming pools. Nearby lots are being sold to those who want to build their own dream houses.

In keeping with his promise, Garbanzos said his contract with the lot owners called for the planting of trees in at least one-tenth of the property.
Now that his dream house has been built, Garbanzos loves sitting on the veranda: The view of Mt. Mandalagan and Mt. Kanlaon is breath-taking while the cool mountain breeze is relaxing.

“It is so beautiful. It feels like I was meant to find the place,” he said.
Of course, he was able to do so with help from the Diwata of Kilometer 67, he adds. SOURCE (http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/11794/a-fairy-tale-of-a-negros-dream-house)

SILAY CITY; CENTER OF CULTURE, ARTS AND ECOTOURISM IN WV

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nice low light photography :D

Bun Su Chosi Temple

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Glass museum adds sparkle to Bacolod

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BACOLOD CITY—Enthusiasts and tourists in Bacolod City will be enthralled by this latest attraction in Negros Occidental’s capital city, which is probably the first of its kind in the country.

Vintage Glasses Museum displays a collection of over 2,000 glass pieces, including dinnerware, Victorian lamps, decorative objects, decanters and commemorative plates of different hues and intricate designs.

About 95 percent of the collection of Tomas Claridad Casiano, a floral designer for the rich and famous in Beverly Hills, Los Angeles, came from the United States and were acquired in a span of 20 years.

These include depression glasses, which are colored glassware made primarily during the depression years in the United States from 1904 to 1940—green, pink, red, yellow, amber, ruby and fire, cobalt blue, aquamarine and delphite (opaque blue glass).
Casiano, 66, who is known to his clients as Tomiko, also has opalescent glasses, which are actually two layers of glass—one colored and the other clear—and carnival glasses (iridescent glasses usually pattern-molded and treated with metallic salts).

The Vaseline glasses are no longer being produced, he says, because the uranium content was used to achieve the transparent yellow to yellow-green colors.

His collection also includes Jadite, a type of uranium glass that appears in shades of pale green, and Milk, an opaque or translucent, or milky white colored glass, blown or pressed into a wide variety of shapes.
Also in his collection are pressed glass pieces and crystals with sterling silver overlays.

Source: inquirer.net (http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/351099/glass-museum-adds-sparkle-to-bacolod)

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Governor General Frank Murphy Visiting Negros.

Nice..

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Lacson Ruin - Talisay City, Negros Occidental
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(photo courtesy by Lik Baton Boot)

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Restoration of Gen. Lacson’s house starts

GALAH Foundation(General Aniceto Lacson Ancestral Home Foundation) has begun the much-needed restoration of the Aniceto Lacson Mansion.

The ancestral home is now owned by the heirs of Carmen Lacson and Ricardo Claparols in Talisay City, that is also known as the former Malacañang of Negros.

One of the grandest homes in the Philippines, the house was built in the 1880s by General Aniceto Lacson for his wife, Rosario Araneta, and their family, GALAH president Anna Balcells said yesterday.

Today, it is co-owned by fourth-generation descendants of the General (Claparols/Balcells/Rossellos) and most of them joined forces to establish the Foundation, whose main function is to restore their ancestral home.

Lacson was a nationalist and member of the Katipunan, who was among those who successfully led a province-wide revolt against the Spaniards that started Nov. 5, 1898 and ended the following day with Spanish surrender, Balcells added.

He was installed as President of the short-lived Cantonal Republic of Negros that ended after surrendering to the American regime in 1899, she said.

A yearly province-wide celebration in Negros, the “Cinco de Noviembre”, commemorates the Republic of Negros and Don Aniceto Lacson.

During his short tenure as the only president of the Cantonal Republic of Negros, Lacson maintained his offices at the General Aniceto Lacson Ancestral Home that was also the venue for ceremonial occasions, Balcells said.

In recognition of its historic significance, the National Historical Commission of the Philippines declared the house a “National Historical Landmark” in 2002, she added.

Architecturally, the house is one of the most outstanding among the small group of elite heritage houses in the Philippines. It could be said that it is the only one of its type anywhere in the country, Balcells said.

Built in the late 19th century “Floral Style” as defined by author Fernando Zialcita, the ground floor is constructed of bricks and of coral stone that is common construction material in the Visayas. The upper floor is entirely of the best Philippine hardwood available at the time, she added.

“Exquisite architectural details carved by Chinese craftsmen embellish the interior of the house, where carved panels allow air to flow freely. Casa Grande, as the house is also known, is the perfect hacienda house that dominates the landscape due to its prominent location,” Balcells said.

However, today the house suffers the fate of many old houses that badly need conservation. With the degraded condition of the structure, the conservation is timely and will prevent further deterioration, she said.

Supervising conservation work is a team headed by architects Augusto Villalon and Melvin Patawaran, both heritage architecture specialists.

GALAH Foundation is grateful to the PSF (President’s Social Fund) for part of the budget required to start the restoration, although much more is needed to complete the restoration that is budgeted to cost P4 million that the Foundation is raising from public and private sources, Balcells said.

Lacson descendant and co-owner of the house, Miguel Rosselló, says, “the hope of the family is that this ancestral house be restored to its former grandeur and for it to last for generations to come.”

source (http://www.visayandailystar.com/2013/May/11/people.htm)

Bacoleño green activist models green house
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(photo courtesy by Rusty Binas)

CONSISTENT with his advocacy of restoring ecological balance, green activist Rusty Binas has started to erect his own model of green house in Bacolod City.

Binas, a global advisor of Holland-based development funding agency CORDAID, is erecting a house in his small lot in Marapara Heights.

The house is a combination of the basic elements of green architecture and stone-age architectural concept that evolved during the late Neolithic period in Greece.

Binas’ own concept of green house is not really new but offers a lot of unique systems. For one, it reduces construction costs by introducing the use of volcanic rocks, clay, mud and pebbles, and it utilizes its rooftop as rain water catchment and for potable water storage.

Natural aesthetics is another unique feature of the house’s design, employing the concept of stones and rocks for the house columns, foundations and ceilings, making it appear like a stone house in the Neolithic period around 4000 BC.

Each main column has a built-in drip water system, complement of gravitational water pressure from the rooftop water catchment to keep the column wet, develop moss on it and further harden it overtime.

To maximize a natural cooling system, Binas employed the concept of a house design that has less walls and covers for its rooms, kitchen and living room to allow free flowing of fresh air in any part of the house and the maximum utilization of daylight, with automatic closure system during wind and rain surge. Even its comfort room is without roofing to allow maximum light and fresh air, but with automatic canopy system during rainy times. With it, the house needs no air conditioning units and fans, and needs no artificial lights during daytime.

Another feature of this house is the utilization of green energy through solar power for its lightings, water system, few AC facilities, and for power charging needs. So even with long brownouts in the neighborhood, Binas house will be worry-free for light and house temperature because nature will provide.

Like any green architect, Binas believes that his green house model that provides fresh air, adequate natural light, and health energy flows will ensure the well-being of his family and all those who will have time to stay in their house.

When asked for the price of his house, Binas did not disclose the total budget but stressed, “Doing away with lots of expensive materials and unnecessary conventional designs, one need not have the technical knowledge of engineers and architects to guess the cost of the house.”

Binas, who travels the world regularly, especially in Asia, India and Africa helping governments and non-government organizations in modeling and developing sustainable and resilient communities, also said that being in the environmental advocacy and disaster risks reduction program, “one must simply walk his talk,” a euphemism for being true to what one preaches.

Binas is also one of the founding members of the green activist movement Green Alert Negros and mentors dozens of government and non-government leaders involved in green projects.

“What I am doing is simply promoting healthy lifestyle, convincing every living being to live in harmony with nature, protecting and managing natural resources, and helping the most-at-risk communities overcome their problems and become resilient,” Binas said.