Bacolod: Ang Pagbabalik

TheHusband was asked to be a principal sponsor for a wedding (cue in the theme from The Godfather, hehehe), his first time to be one (now cue in the theme from Thundercats...joke lang, babe).

I was initially vacillating if I should go or not. I had a particularly bad case of flu, cough, cold, and may sumama pang hypersensitivity, and while I have already recovered, all I wanted to do was rest and sleep for a couple of days to fully recharge. But then, what kind of message am I sending if I let TheHusband go without me, him being a principal sponsor, i.e., a godfather, to the couple? I mean, shouldn't I, the wife, be there to support him? So after much internal debate, ayun, sumama ako, and of course, Sharkteeth.

Simula pa lang, sablay na. We specifically chose the 5:40 a.m. departure kasi aircon bus daw yun, according to the dispatcher TheHusband inquired from the night before. Turned out hindi aircon. TheHusband asked me if we should still go; huwag na lang daw kaya kaming tumuloy...nakita siguro na nakasimangot ako and isip nya eh malamang totopakin ako sa byahe. Naisip ko naman kasubuan na and I should just suck it up. So off we went.

Hahahahaha!

May restroom and food break when we reached Mabinay, kaso natagalan kami ni S sa restroom (gotta wipe our wet? pwet? hehe), and when TheHusband and I went to eat, nakaka-ilang subo pa lang kami ng food eh umandar na yung bus. Sayang, ang sarap pa naman nung beef nilaga na tinda dun sa canteen. I tried to stuff as much food as possible to my mouth without choking. Hahahaha!

 Bearable naman yung trip because it was so cold. Around 6 hours din yung byahe. Zigzag yung road dun sa mountainous area, but the driver was very careful.

We reached Bacolod around 12 noon. We went to the hotel, left our things, and went to the mall to eat.

We ate in The Pastry House of Bob's. Itatanong nyo, Bob's  whom or what exactly? Malay ko. Hehehe!

#Bitin

Yung mag-ama, they liked their respective orders (schublig and Hungarian sausage), pero I didn't like mine (chicken terriyaki). The dessert, however, was sooooo good -- it has two or three layers of chocolate cake with white mousse filling in a chocolate shell and topped with grapes, cherries, slices of kiwi, and other fruits. Sobrang sarap. I like it better than Conti's Mango Bravo or Purple Oven's chocolate cake. Hindi ko naubos kasi it was so filling. Too bad, I don't have a picture of the cake -- it was as delicious as it was pretty.


I fell asleep shortly after we went back to the hotel. Aba, pag-gising ko, alas-siete na ng gabi at wala na yung mag-ama. They went to Starbucks na pala. I followed them there, and after coffee, we went to SM. We looked for a gift for the couple and S went to look for some Moshi Monsters or Squinkies or something -- I swear, I have lost track of all the toys in the market now. Sandali lang kami sa SM, kasi halos closing time na nung dumating kami dun.

Trying on hats in SM. Bagay naman, diba?

 ♥♥♥

Sunday was very hectic. We woke up late -- what's new? Hahahaha! After we had our breakfast, we bought some wrappers and books for S, and when we got back to the hotel, 11:30 na! Eh 12 noon ang checkout. Jusko, we had to pack, shower, and dress up in 30 minutes. I was wailing, "pa'no ko na lang paplantsahin ang buhok ko?" Di ko naman nakita, but I assumed TheHusband and S rolled their eyes. Hahahaha! In fairness, photofinish naman kami! Saktong 12 noon, naka-checkout kami. I just did my makeup in the lobby restroom; wala nang plantsa-plantsa ng buhok. Wash and wear. Hahahaha! I was planning on going to the salon, but with a 2-pm call time, I didn't have time to go anymore. 

 

On our way home, hindi na naman aircon yun bus.  We couldn't wait for the 10-pm trip or postpone the trip the next day because TheHusband had to be in the office early for some visiting clients. Turned out the aircon (or lack of it) was the least of my worries. Grabe yung driver. "Fearless" is an understatement. Parang may death wish! He wasn't afraid of going fast over the zigzag roads and hairpin turns. I used all my reserves of self-control not to have a mental meltdown, 'cause I tell you, I was starting to freak out. I tried to sleep it off, rationalizing that should we fall into the ravine, I'd be asleep. To show you how fast our trip was, we were home in 5 hours.

Sadly, may pabaon pa ang Bacolod sa amin. S and I had a bad case of gastroenteritis. It was awful. At least I lost weight. Hehehe. I don't know what we ate, but TheHusband wasn't hit. S wasn't as badly hit either, but I was almost crawling from the weakness it brought. The sight of food made me nauseous. Turned out TheHusband's other officemates were hit as well, with one ending up being hospitalized. I'm okay now, thankfully.

Amazing Race Christmas 2013, Team KoKo: Bacolod

Warning: Long post, lots of pictures. If you are just piggybacking on your neighbor's WiFi, mahiya naman kayo. LOL!  

Hello, Bacolod!

The trip from Iloilo to Bacolod was fairly short, and it started calmly enough, but it became choppy shortly before we got to Bacolod. Our GoHotel check-in time was 1 or 2 pm, so we just rode a cab going to Starbucks, which is in the corner of Lacson and 18th. Bacolod has relatively wider roads, compared with, say, Iloilo and Dumaguete. And the place seems very clean.

I couldn't remember where we ate our lunch, probably SM or Robinson's. After we checked in, we rested a bit and freshened up. Back in Iloilo, I've mentioned to Derdo that I was looking for some batwan, a souring fruit. She graciously offered me some and asked her friend, Lina, to meet me in GoHotel. I was in the bathroom when Lina came over, and I sent Sharkteeth to meet her; too bad, she immediately left, and S wasn't able to give her our letter of thanks. (Thanks, Ms. Lina!!! Thanks, Derdo!!!) Aside from the precious batwan, Derdo also sent some sweets. I was in sugar heaven! 

So off we went to The Ruins. It was a short ride from Robinson's.

1. Ride a jeepney going to Bata. Fare: ~12 pesos I think. I'm not sure.

2. Alight at the Pepsi bottling plant. There's a trike terminal going to The Ruins. Fare: 20 pesos. 

3. The Ruins entrance: 40 pesos, children; 80 pesos, adults.

Byahe pa lang ang ganda na

Brief history: The Ruins is what remains of the mansion built by Don Mariano Ledesma Lacson for his first wife, Maria Braga, a Portuguese. According to the very funny tour guide, Roger, most of the mansion's exquisite decors, furniture, and china were sourced from abroad, as Maria Braga's father, a ship captain, traveled across Europe and Asia and brought with him those finds. The mansion is by itself a beauty and an architectural and engineering marvel. The concrete walls were poured from a mixture of cement and egg whites. Tangent thought: Lagi sigurong yema and leche flan ang dessert nila and ang taas siguro ng cholesterol level nila. During the Second World War, USAFFE soldiers burned the mansion to prevent the Japanese Army from using it as a headquarter. It reportedly took many days before the roof and the floor burned completely. The concrete structure remains up to the present, which I think is a testament to the superb architecture of the time. Or perhaps the egg whites. Hmmm...must be the egg whites.

Facade of the mansion

It was smaller than I expected, but no less stunning. Its beauty stood the test of time and the ravages of war.

 

A wall of The Ruins is adorned by the framed paintings of Don Mariano Ledesma Lacson and Maria Braga.  Aminin...poging-pogi si Don Mariano, right? Aartistahin ang dating, bigote pa lang, ulam na. Hahahahaha! And not surprisingly, Maria Braga is a looker as well.

Plants were allowed to grow inside, which added to the beauty of the place. The mansion's columns and highly detailed arches and cornices are all well preserved. Arrrrggg...Art App and Humanities 101, please don't abandon me now!!!

  

 

 

It boasts of a belvedere on the second floor, facing west, which commands a beautiful and dramatic view of the sunset. Must be nice, watching the sunset, sipping drinks...

The garden and grounds are well tended as well. This four-tier fountain was reportedly brought in from abroad. It now houses a number of kois; they remind me of the ravenous kois in Nuvali. *shudder* There's a mini-golf course and a giant chess set. A covered well is decorated by Christmas knick-knacks.

 

 

We left around half past five. Our trike driver was supposed to wait for us, but he wasn't there. Okay lang naman because there are lots of trikes available, just that we wouldn't have rushed had we known na aalis pala sya.

♥♥♥

Aren't you wondering why S was furiously taking notes? Well, she was writing her her own account (but we did use the same pictures) of the visit to the Ruins. Oh, my little dork, how I love you and your quirks.

 

 ♥♥♥

 We ate in Manukan Country that evening. Syempre, chicken inasal. Naglakas-loob kaming mag-order ng oysters. Although the oysters were fresh and delicious, I only ate a few for fear of an upset stomach. I didn't wanna be traveling with an upset stomach, I mean, seriously, who does? I once ate oysters Rockefeller from a restaurant near NAIA, and it made me sick. It happened to me once when I was abroad, and calling it "awful" is an understatement -- I bet the cab driver deemed my behaviour suspicious. Anyhoo, back to the food. We ate in Pacita's (I think), and their chicken was delicious, way better than our local inasal/inato places here in Dumaguete. I was supposed to buy some napoleones, but like I mentioned earlier, Derdo gave me a box.

 ♥♥♥

We were supposed to leave for Dumaguete that night, but we weren't able to. I was quite thankful, actually, that we weren't able to -- otherwise, we would have traveled during the night. Traveling during the day was scary enough, with so many hairpin turns and long stretches of lonely solitary roads, I can't imagine how it would have been had we traveled during the night.

PopCake guarding our seats

Take me home, country road

We were so exhausted when we got home, which was around 2 pm of New Year's Eve. And TheDog was missing. Thank goodness, he was back before dark. So glad to see that white one again -- I missed him so much, akala ko napulutan na ng mga lasheng.

The Ruins

Talisay, Negros Occidental

E-mail: ruins@theruins.com.ph
Phone: +63-34-476-4334
Mobile: +63-917-832-6003