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Nothing can be more memorable than looking back at the the times of our distant past. Knowing that people long ago before we were born have lived very interesting lifestyle.
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Just like the Heritage Houses of Taal, Negros Occidental shares the same cultural significance, the famous one is the Balay Negrense.
A visit to one of our historical past. Balay Negrense is a museum in Silay City, Negros Occidental that showcases the lifestyle of one of the pioneer of sugar industry in the Philippines and considered as one of the biggest colonial homes in Silay City with 12 bedrooms and a basketball sized living room. Declared by National Historical Institute as the national heritage because it was delicately build with hardwood and carved wooden panels was the ancestral house of Victor Fernandez Gaston, the son of Yves Leopold Germain Gaston and Prudencia Fernandez.
Located at Cinco de Noviembre Street Silay, we walked passing by the Silay Church after riding a jeepney, fare of Php10.00 alighting in front of El Ideal Bakery.
My wife and our pal, Marina need to take some rest and pictures before going in Balay Negrense and discover some of the very interesting information of this national heritage.
We rung this bell several times, not knowing that the receptionist is just beside the window of that bell, ooops
. Entrance fee is Php50.00.
Built in 1897, this type of house is called bahay na bato, the basement is meter high to allow the circulation of the wind thereby preventing the deterioration of the house and has a four meter ceiling and a very large sliding window. A small window can be found beneath the large window that can also be opened to admit the wind.
The old piano, telephone, radio, motor bike, and the electric fan way back then .
The family’s descendants can be found on the circular table listing Gastons lineage.
The dining table made up of hard wood and with utensils that was still made of copper and ceramics.
The grand staircase that reminds me of James Cameron’s Titanic, but do you know that this is just one sample of grand staircase? In fact there are many others out there that you can see in most ancestral houses or heritage houses all over the Philippines
The basketball size living room located at the second floor with plenty of air to breathe because of the huge window that almost touches the ceiling aside from the small windows underneath it which touches the floor that slides side to side.
It is really worth visiting Balay Negrense. The impression is lasting and I appreciate the richness of our culture.
