City of Smiles: Footprints in Bacolod

Gong Xi Fa Cai! May you all have a peaceful and prosperous new year!

I know 2012 shall usher in more travels for me than in the previous 2 years, and I’m kicking it off with my first trip of the year to the Visayas. It has been more than a decade since my last visit to this quaint city. With hardly any memories of the City of Smiles, I felt like starting off with a clean slate as we made our way via fast craft from Iloilo (which had a direct Davao – Iloilo flight) to Bacolod. Although I could recall some old names of places we’ve visited back in the day, Bacolod still has a unique, laid back, Spanish colonial charm that I just couldn’t shake off. It was so stunning to see remarkable old structures preserved in all their glory from their prime years still standing to this day. Having that rustic, old world feel makes this city even more interesting knowing of its rich history of elite families, well preserved ancestral homes, rich colonial architecture (especially in Silay City as I was told, which sadly was no longer added to the itinerary due to time constraints), wide array of delicious local delicacies and their famous haciendas.

Of course, apart from experiencing the culture and seeing the sights of a new city, is having a fill of their most mouthwatering gastronomic delights, and I kicked off the Bacolod experience with the freshest seafood from Aboy’s. As it came HIGHLY recommended by a dear friend, I finally had the chance to eat diwal (angel wing clams) since my last visit to Iloilo brought bad news that it was not in season at that time in June last year, so I was feeling pretty lucky when they served this. I must say, I instantly got hooked! Loved how they served this in Aboy’s with some garlic and a dash of chicken oil I believe, that gives that distinct orange-y color, same stuff they put in some Inasal joints. It tastes absolutely divine! I love its creamy texture. I’m still hoping I could find some here in Davao but from the reactions of friends and family who heard my raves of this delightful dish, they were unfamiliar to this and could only relate my descriptions to our local imbao. That’ll be another reason for me to head back to Iloilo and Bacolod and have my fill of their native diwal!

Scallops and diwal for lunch, best paired with garlic rice. Happy tummy! Photo I took with my BlackBerry, since I was so ecstatic to eat these I totally forgot to take photos. Quality's not bad at all!

Next stop was another homegrown name, Cafe Bob’s along Lacson street, when my dad invited me for some coffee after a sumptuous chicken Inasal Sunday lunch. I absolutely love the homey interiors of Cafe Bob’s, and how they managed to put up the coffee shop, a gelato corner and a small restaurant area together without it looking forced. It had a harmonious, tranquil feel that really sets off the laid back Bacolod lifestyle. This should definitely be a stop over whenever you’re in town. My grandma swears by and constantly raves about the piyaya that we bought there, just because mum remembered that she asked for some while we were having coffee. Their take on piyaya I find is way better than the usual. Seemingly rolled flat to give a distinct crisp, with the typical muscovado filling that isn’t overpoweringly sweet at all. It’s a definite winner!

Having a taste of the sweet life in Bacolod, with Cafe Bob's Chocolate Peanutbutter Frappe and Double Chocolate cookies. Great way to cool down on a lazy Sunday.

Cafe Bob's Pizza Margherita. Delightfully light and flavorful.

Cafe Bob's best seller: Linguine with Chorizo Bilbao. I highly recommend this! Love the hint of spiciness of the chorizo sauteed with succulent tomatoes, garlic and herbs.

After a hearty carbo loaded feast of Pizza Margherita, Pesto Pasta (mum’s order) and Linguine with Chorizo Bilbao (which I personally recommend) at Cafe Bob’s, our host Jonah arrived to accompany us to our stops, which we had frugally minimized to only one from a list of about five landmarks due to time constraints and uncooperative weather. After making a quick stop at the Negros Showroom, which I kept begging my mom to include in our itinerary to check out their local handicrafts, furniture and trinkets, we made our way to the famous Ruins of Talisay.

Bacolod’s allure had captivated me immensely the moment we made our way through a labyrinth of residential areas and ended with vast lands of haciendas left and right that lead to the famous Ruins of Talisay City. Hidden among sugar plantations, a solitary structure stands, like an oasis in the dessert, beaming with so much history in its distinct Italian architecture amidst traditional Bacolod haciendas that still encapsulate the city’s rich Spanish colonial past. A land once “ruled” by sugar barons and elite families, the Ruins still stand as a testament of the grandeur of this era in Negros.

Taking a cab on the way to the Ruins. Fare was not as bad as we expected it to be, but we had to ask the driver to stay and wait for us.

This tarp welcomes guests upon entering the vicinity. I found the first and second titles interesting, I just had to ask the tour guide about these. The third one, of course, is a given. 'Nuff said.

The mansion, owned by Don Mariano Ledesma Lacson, a sugar baron, and his wife Maria Braga, a Portugese from Macau, was built in the early 1900’s and took three years to construct. It was surrounded by a vast 400+ hectare land area, literally as far as your eyes can see, and a sugar mill within the vicinity still owned by the family where they manually processed muscovado. The pillars of the doorway had a noticeable sheen that mimics the look of a perfectly polished floor. Our tour guide Roger explained that this comes from the egg whites that were mixed with the concrete used to build the house, hence skipped the need to use water during the construction. Just like in the olden Spanish colonial age where churches used egg whites in the construction of their massive structures is actually the reason why some of these still stand in tact or in perfect condition to date. It was however burned during World War II with the consent of the family to prevent the Japanese from using the mansion as their headquarters. The inferno, which lasted three days, had totally consumed the roof and all wooden parts of the Lacson house.

No words could describe how beautiful this house is, or, what’s left of it I should say. One could only imagine it’s grandeur back in the day, complete with its 2-inch thick wooden floors, gardens and imported furnishings from around the world. Despite the unfortunate blaze that consumed this mansion, I feel that this adds more character and history. It probably was the best option at that time, rather than risking attacks on the family or possibly bombings that would threaten to totally destroy the house. Just a thought.

For the best photographs of this place, our friends highly recommended that this is best visited at dusk, when they slowly turn on the lights that gives an incredibly majestic look to the mansion. Sadly, because we anticipated rain as seen in the photos, we had to head back to the hotel early to catch our trip back to Iloilo the next day.

Breathtaking view of the Ruins. There's an amazing trick to this photo, and I'm sure photographers would be thrilled to get a similar shot. Clue: this is actually not a body of water, nor is this photo edited 😉

The quintessential tourist photo

Portraits of the Lacson family

Imported tiles from Portugal, the most expensive and most durable tiles at that time. Our tour guide Roger said that they once tried to smash those tiles and constantly failed. They're so durable they still retain their rich colors and designs amidst the massive fire.

More Portuguese tiles at the foyer.

The BEST tour guide, Roger! Lovingly referred to as Roger the Ruins by some (haha, because his shirt had both his name and "The Ruins" printed so close to each other that it could be read as his full name), this incredibly funny guy would explain everything in great detail while making you laugh your heart out at the same time. And he takes the best photos of guests with the stunning mansion in the background. Look for him whenever you decide to visit!

Bacolod is such a wonderful city to visit, even if we had too short a time to go sight seeing. The next time I come around, I’ll make sure that we’ll be able to visit Silay and see the other heritage houses and historical landmarks and of course, have my fill of diwal while I’m at it.

Here’s my first travel entry for the year. I hope this would inspire you to find your own adventure as 2012 starts to unfold. I wish you all safe, memorable, adventurous travels this year.

Here’s to more wanderlust and scattered footprints.

Waltzing Matilda

I love how this title refers to two things in my recent journey. Since I had only learned of this during the time I had spent there, allow me to share a brief background to those who are not aware. “Waltzing Matilda” is Australia’s most popular “bush ballad” or “country folk song”, and is widely known as the “unofficial national anthem of Australia”. However, it has nothing to do with dancing as waltzing would initially suggest. In Australian slang, it actually means travelling (waltzing) by foot with one’s possessions in a “Matilda” (bag) slung on the back. So in a nutshell, I was waltzing Matilda (but I used a trolley though hahaha) to the land of its origin, to the land down under!

I had waited for this trip for so long, since it was my first time to go to this part of the world. Naturally, I had spent quite some time researching on places to see, food to eat, the weather during our stay, and the like. I had actually planned clothes months prior, bought a pair of travel friendly shoes that took quite a good beating during the trip, and bought all the necessities such as travel adaptors, cereal bars, and so on.

Upon arriving at Sydney on October 14, at 6am (local Sydney time +11 GMT) we were pleasantly greeted by a wonderfully cool 15 degree weather. It has actually been 10 years since I last experienced spring, so it was nice to feel the cold once again. For weeks prior to the trip, I had been pondering whether or not to bring my leather boots along. Part of me wished to finally use them (got them in October in Hong Kong 3 years ago, so I actually haven’t taken them out for a spin in the appropriate climate) and a bigger part of me wanted to travel frugally since we would be spending 5 days in Singapore after. In the end, let’s just say I’ve been kicking myself in the behind since then for not following my natural instinct. I wish I brought them there, especially on those nights in Sydney when we experienced walking around in about 9 degrees and being clad in leggings and ballet flats wasn’t exactly the most “brilliant” idea I’ve had to date. So I learned my lesson the HARD way folks. Note to self: NEVER ask friends or locals if it’s already “hot” or “still cold” at your destination, since our thresholds for temperature varies on location and experience. Ask for the TEMPERATURE. So next year, I’ve learned my lesson and I shall be first packing my leather boots for our trip to Canada and the US (God willing) in June. So who cares if it’s going to summer then (that’s what they said in Sydney and I was still on the brink of freezing my ass off) I’m packing my boots just in case. Plus, dresses and boots worn together look totally awesome.

So to illustrate how utterly fantastic this trip was, allow me to share some random photos from the trip:

Seeing the sights

Let me start off with a photo of me (allow me the luxury of posting my face for once) at the famous Bondi Beach. I find it funny how we decided to crash the beach wearing jeans and jackets, while everyone there wore bikinis and board shorts. Well, being the tropical creatures that we are, we actually still found it to be a cold day in Sydney and since the sun decided to shine brightly that day, Aussies started hitting the beach once again. Funny how the contrast is evident in my photo (but oh thank God, that guy in the left is wearing jeans). We were having our Sydney adventure this day, after concluding a very enriching Gawad Kalinga Global Summit and when we found ourselves wandering around the city to Bondi beach, we couldn’t resist running out to sea and just dipping our feet in the cool water, just to say we experienced heading out in Australian waters. The moment we removed our shoes and ran in the sand, my toes started curling up because it was still cold, and then instantly turned numb the moment the tide came in and submerged my feet in about an inch of sea water. It felt as if I spilled iced drinking water on my feet. Naturally we had to take the quintessential jumping shots, and then walked back to shore where my folks were waiting then continued with our tour around the city. Oh, and just before alighting to the stairs, a guy passed by me and he sounded exactly like Chris Hemsworth (a.k.a. the hot Aussie who played Thor). I could not even begin to explain how I felt then. My heart just started racing since I’ve had a crush on him for quite some time now. As I turned around, to my dismay, the guy who passed by did not have any resemblance to him based on his physique. Oh well, the guy was pretty hot though. ha ha!

Beautiful Bondi Beach on a lazy Sunday

Of course, the mere mention of “Sydney” would immediately be associated to its picturesque Opera House. I took this shot while commuting via a ferry to Watson’s Bay from Circular Quay. No words could describe how beautiful this structure is. Being a fan of culture and architecture, I find that this breathtaking landmark can perfectly encapsulate what Australia is all about. The design was said to be inspired by sails and since the ocean is an integral part of Australian culture, it is just wonderful seeing how such an exceptional piece of architecture just stands out in the Sydney Harbor, and the Central Business District behind it. It’s not just about the color and design just popping out amidst the highly urbanized metropolis behind it, but I just couldn’t put my finger on it. Judging by aesthetics alone, there is just something incredibly majestic about it that makes it so beautiful when I finally saw it right before me in all its grandeur. The sense of culture, history, design, architecture, the ergonomics of it all just fascinates me. What thrilled me even more was knowing that this is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

A part of my bucket list (which I have yet to write down) would be to see as many UNESCO World Heritage Sites as I could, apart from the Baroque Churches that I visit here around the Philippines. My dream would be to see at least 1 in every country, or continent I visit, the least. Contented, I can confidently cross out the Sydney Opera House in the Oceania region. Hopefully, I could see the Uluru or Ayer’s Rock in the near future, while my VISA is still valid. haha! Sadly, I wasn’t able to take a photo of its marker. I was busy braving the 9 degree cold while doing a prenup photo shoot then. Oh well, seeing it and being that close to it was definitely worth braving the cold in leggings and ballet flats.

While riding the ferry to Watson's Bay. Incredibly picturesque Sydney.

The Gap in Eastern Sydney is a breathtaking ocean cliff overlooking the Pacific Ocean. It is also notoriously known to be a famous suicide hotspot, with over 50 recorded deaths annually. Hence the high fences that were surrounding the perimeter, along with other high tech devices such as security cameras, counseling phone booths and the like.

Blue Mountains. It is said that the name comes from the blue color of the eucalyptus trees around the area

Stunning architecture of the Australian Parliament House in Canberra, Australian Capital Territory

Meeting the “locals”

Apart from seeing the sights, another thing that hyped me up about visiting Australia was seeing their endemic animals up close. I really just wanted to cuddle up to a koala or feed the roos, and I was lucky to be able to do both when our hosts brought us to Featherdale Wildlife Park after our road trip to the Blue Mountains. We arrived in the late afternoon, but still managed to thoroughly tour the whole zoo.

I was pleasantly surprised to be greeted by wallabies carelessly wandering around in the open upon entering the zoo. Seeing these little guys made me remember Rocko of Rocko's Modern Life (one of the famous 90's Nickelodeon cartoons I grew up with). They seemed to be "fighting" but as I started taking photos of them, they slowly stopped on cue and the one on the right kept looking at my camera. Caught in the act, gotcha mate! haha

I was told that compared to the other famous zoo in Sydney, Featherdale focuses more on the endemic Australian animals. While moving around, we were thrilled to know that you could actually cuddle up to a koala and have your photo taken with them for free. Here’s a photo of me obviously giddy when I finally came closer:

Photo by my mom

zzzzzzzzz. SOOO adorable! I thought it was a plushie the first time I saw this cute koala asleep on it's own little tree

One of the zoo keepers shared a fun fact: koalas actually sleep 18 – 20 hours a day, and the rest is spent eating. Obviously we weren’t lucky enough to catch them in their productive hours, but they actually looked a lot more huggable while they’re asleep. Too cute! On a lighter note, I was actually relieved to know as to which species I actually belong to. HA HA!

And finally, I felt incredibly giddy the moment we entered the kangaroo den. For just Aus$1, you can feed the roos with a cone with some grass and pellets inside, which they really love. While taking photos of myself, my parents and taking turns feeding the roos, this adorable little boy really caught my eye. Apart from his adorably cute curly locks, this sweet little boy was so eager to feed the roos. The first roo he fed accidentally spilled the grass and pellets from the cone onto the ground. Instead of just standing up and leaving or crying about it, he lovingly gathered what he could in his hands and moved on to the next roo he could feed. It was so heart warming to see how a little boy could have so much love and so much compassion in his young heart, tears actually started wielding up in my eyes. His entire family simply looked on and smiled behind him as they watched their little boy so lovingly feeding the roos.

Sweet, sweet little boy who made my heart melt

Chilling in the sun, like a boss

Kookaburras!!

And so finally, after almost 2 months and 16 revisions later, I can somehow summarize this trip in one entry. No words could describe how much I enjoyed Oz, and now that I’m back in the Philippines, I’m terribly missing every minute I spent there. Looking forward to returning to the land down under soon, and not just saying “someday”. I claim that the opportunity would return again SOON. For now, I am looking forward to more trips in the near future. Here’s to Waltzing Matilda, wherever your heart and your dreams would lead you.

Here’s to more of wanderlust and more scattered footprints.

Waltzing Matilda, Waltzing Matilda
“You’ll come a-Waltzing Matilda, with me”