A trip to Silay City should not be missed. Why? Silay boasts of their grand ancestral houses here. Some are open to the public but majority are not. For those who are open, thank you for sharing to the general public a bit of history of Silay as well as their family. It's like a trip back in time. Imagining yourself what it felt like back in the old days.
Coming from our 3-hr trip from Escalante City, the bumpy ride and the 3 hours bathing in the crystal clear beach of Jomabo Island made us tired so we slept fitfully during the drive back to Silay City. We are in a race against time, and sunlight, for us to complete the itinerary set for Day 1. Even if we don't get inside all the ancestral houses, it's ok, as long as we can get in at least one then take photos of the facade of the rest. That would be good.
The driver woke us up upon arrival at the
Bernardino-Ysabel Jalandoni Ancestral House. We paid for a fee of P50 (if I'm not mistaken) then the guide took us upstairs for a slice of history based on this house's background. Check these out:
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| Feeling tired but still eager to see everything |
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| I think these are gas lamps.. |
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| One of the bedrooms, it's a surreal feeling because when you see stuff like these, you remember Pinoy horror movies and your imagination will run wild (mine did, haha!)that there might be ghosts, etc lurking around but at the same time, imagining yourself occupying this room back in the days and what it feels like to be one of those people. My mind is overreacting, I know. =) |
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| The Jalandoni family |
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| It's a very grand living room. The guide mentioned that one can measure the affluence of a family just by looking at the wooden floorboards of their home. The more longer and wider in expanse it is without cuts, it means that the wood was taken from a very big tree which is of course, expensive. In this house, that was the case. See, piece of history unraveling. =) |
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| That is one old piano. The keys should be black and white only but this one has a third color already. Sign of the times that has passed. |
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| I think this is the master's bedroom |
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| The altar back in the days is a marvel when you compare it to altars that you usually see at houses now. They really give importance to religion before compared to the present time. |
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| Look at all the details surrounding the interiors of the house..wonderful! |
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| A granddaddy of a clock |
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| fine China in display at the dining table |
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| Just imagine how old these are |
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| At the terrace at the second floor. The guide mentioned that back in the days, rich families wanted their houses to be near the church so they could hear the church bell tolling loudly. Why, so they can be closer to the presence of God and be blessed |
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| The 2nd ancestral house: Hofileña Heritage House. Unfortunately, we cannot spend time to go inside as we are in a rush to go to the other places in our itinerary.. and besides, they were already close for the day. Nice timing, haha! |
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| Just to have a picture with the Hofileña House in the background is good enough. Next time, I will definitely take the time to go inside |
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| The 3rd ancestral house: Balay Negrense. Just like at Hofileña, no chance to go inside but happy to have a pic. This is a beautiful piece of structure and the brown color in contract with the greens is an eye candy. |
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| Beautiful! Enough said. |
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| Thanks to Ryan Reyes for a lot of beautiful photos |
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| The San Diego Pro-Cathedral |
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| At first glance, it might surprise you but you see Jesus Christ's face then the fear will be gone |
Overall take on Silay's ancestral houses.. FASCINATING! History is contained everywhere in this city. Considered to be the "Paris of Negros". It truly lives up to that tag. Next time, those other ancestral houses will have my 1 day of exploration. It's all worth it, I know.
For more posts on this trip, check these out:
