Architecture, history and more in Bacolod

We continue from last week’s article and a visit to Bacolod, the City of Smiles. My wife and I attended the opening of Straight Up, Seda Capitol Hotel’s rooftop bar. The food at the event was great, and the music, courtesy of the frenetic Boyet Sison, fantastic. Twink and I retired early, though, as we had a full day’s schedule ahead of us.

We started the morning with a brisk walk around the Capitol Complex’s expansive plaza. The open space is a heritage from the commonwealth period. The complex’s major elements were designed by Juan Arellano, with sculptural accents by Francesco Monti and Guillermo Tolentino.

After a satisfying breakfast at Seda’s Misto restaurant, Twink and I prepared for a full day’s tour. We visited three main sites focusing on architecture, history, and culinary delights.

The Alunan-Lizares Museum in Talisay gives you a glimpse of Negros life a century ago.

First on the agenda was Balay ni Tana Dicang in Talisay, a few kilometers north. This is the Alunan-Lizares ancestral home, a museum filled with not just a family’s history, but glimpses of life covering over a century of Negros life. If you visit, plan to spend at least an hour immersing yourself in the Negros of old.

From Talisay we motored further north past Silay to a hidden gem called Punong Gary’s Place. We arrived just in time for lunch.  What we thought would just be a culinary stop turned out to be a feast of architecture, too.

We entered a verdant sanctuary defined by a cluster of minimalist-modern villas. The geometric lines of the Spartan structures blended seamlessly with tall, mature balete and acacia trees. Beyond the central cluster, where we had lunch, was a network of dikes and fishponds, and even more surprises. Tucked into half a dozen nooks were more villas, all different permutations of the theme, but in a consistent language of concrete abstraction.

The Ruins is the Taj Mahal of Negros and one of the most photographed landmarks in the province.

I was pleasantly surprised to find out that all these were the work of Ed Francisco, a veteran architect and senior partner at Leandro V. Locsin and Partners. Ed apparently used the Negros landscape as inspiration for a series of experimentations in space, pattern and form.

Another surprise was finding out that our chef, and the place’s manager, was former Side A bassist and song writer Joey Benin. We managed to chat, compliment him on the food, and take a couple of pictures with him.

Punong Gary’s Place north of Silay contrasts modern form with idyllic landscapes.

Our final main stop was the Ruins of Bacolod, alternatively called the Taj Mahal of the province. Located in Talisay, just outside Bacolod City, the Italianate mansion has become a must-see destination for visitors.

People come to see what remains of this once majestic home of sugar baron Don Mariano Ledesma Lacson. He built it in memory of his wife, Maria Braga, a Macanese who had passed away while giving birth. Unfortunately the mansion was burned in the Second World War, then deteriorated to ruins and has been forgotten since the 1950s.

It is this story of love and war, loss and rediscovery that makes the place so interesting. Raymund Javellana, descendant of Don Mariano, took the time to tell this story as he walked us around the property and its two large, green spaces. Because of this backstory and the expansive spaces around it, the Ruins have become a preferred venue for weddings and outdoor events, with people coming from Manila and overseas.

The next morning we ventured on a longer walk from Seda Capitol Central to the old Bacolod Plaza. It rained on the way and we took shelter beside the Bacolod Museum. This turned out to be a blessing as we were able to glean the offerings of the Museum Café, and we made a note to return that noon.

Twink and author Paulo Alcazaren with chef and former Side-A bassist Joey Benin

We reached the plaza after the rain subsided and did one round to take in the place’s many fountains and monuments. Many, like in the capitol plaza, were also by Francesco Mont. The original gazebo with the names of famous composers carved around its parapet still anchor this wonderful public space. It is good to see that the city, like Iloilo across the water, has managed to conserve its open spaces.

While Twink rested, I went and spent the morning sketching the Monti sculptures in the Capitol plaza. We ended our Bacolod trip with a long and relaxing lunch at the Museum Café we had stopped by earlier. Run by Dutch chef Guido Nijssen and his wife, Gemma, the café specializes in farm-to-table dishes. Try their organic salads, green pea soup, Negros beef tenderloin with tuba garlic sauce or the grilled barracuda.

We left the City of Smiles with smiles on our faces and a promise to ourselves to try more Visayan adventures.

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Feedback is welcome. Please email the writer at paulo.alcazaren@gmail.com.