Balay Negrense, Silay City's Open Ancestral Home

Supposedly, there are at least 30 ancestral homes in this area of Silay, with Balay Negrense, Jalandoni House and Hofilena House the only ones really open to the public (sorry, I cannot find my brochure that lists them all so I cannot verify the number).

Anyway, a trip to Bacolod is not complete without hightailing it to Silay City, the Paris of Negros, and visiting Balay Negrense.

I think we paid P50 or P60 each but the kids got to go in for free... and the guide was very friendly

Built by Victor Gaston (sugarcane royalty) to house his 12 children, there were 6 bedrooms downstairs and another 6 upstairs, and all had connecting doors to each other (as was the vogue) so the children can come and go without visitors noticing them.

How wonderful to have lived in such a house, no?

Everything about old Spanish homes say one thing: ventilation :) Look at all that space and how air/light flow through

since being taken over by the Negros Cultural Foundation, antiques and mementos from other homes in Negros have found their way to Balay Negrense... so that people can have an idea of how a lady's room might have looked like in olden times

nice, right?

where once carriages go through to load/unload cargo and people... the steps also lead to the kitchen and servants' quarters

the parking area for the carriages is now a curio shop

Hopefully, more homes in the district will be preserved so that this proud era in Negros' history won't be forgotten. And hello, architecture at its finest, really!