Bacolod City is famous for its MassKara Festival held every third week of October. Dancers don masks and colorful costumes and dance to lively samba beat in the streets of Bacolod. But after the revelry, what else is there to visit? A lot, actually.
If it’s your first time to visit Bacolod City, I have listed here some interesting sites you shouldn’t miss while you’re in the City of Smiles for the MassKara Festival. Some of these sites are located in nearby places which you can reach in less than an hour from Bacolod City. If you have a day to spare, you can actually visit several of these sites.
Below are our recommended Top 5 Sidetrips you can make during MassKara Festival, in no particular order.
1. Silay City Ancestral Houses – Silay City has 31 ancestral houses, three of which are museums. Silay City used to be the center of arts and culture in Negros Occidental thus it was called the Paris of Negros. It is one of the few remaining places in the country where there is a high concentration of heritage houses in a small area. Three notable ancestral houses turned into museums are the Balay Negrense (Gaston House), Pink House (Bernardo Jalandoni House) and the Hofileña Ancestral House. The various native delicacies that can be sampled in Silay City also make it a gastronomical treat for any visitor.
2. Talisay City Ancetral Houses – Talisay City may not have as many ancestral houses as Silay, but they have the ancestral houses of two of the most colorful and most influential families in Negros Occidental, the Lizares and Lacson families.
- Balay ni Tana Dicang – if there is an epitome of a Negrense woman of substance, then that would be Enrica Alunan-Lizares or Capitana Dicang. When her husband Efigenio Lizares died, she raised her 17 children single-handedly while at the same time taking care of flourishing haciendas. The house located in nearby Talisay City is now a lifestyle museum and a tribute to the matriarch of the Lizares clan.
- The Ruins – It’s been called the “Taj Mahal” of Negros Occidental for a reason. Aside from its interesting structure, the story behind The Ruins is what makes it more interesting. Just like Taj Mahal, The Ruins was built by Mariano Lacson in memory of his wife Maria Braga. It may not be as grand as the Taj Mahal but the enduring structure and the stories from one of Negros’ prominent clans make it one of the top sites to visit in Negros Occidental.
3. The Negros Museum – housed in a Neo-Cassical former Agricultural Building, the museum itself is a reflection of Negros rich and colorful history. Nine large paintings of local artists depicting life in the island in pre-Spanish period adorned the lobby. Considered as a sugar museum, displays such as the replica of the Iron Dinosaur or steam locomotive, a sugar laboratory, and life sized mannequins depicting life in the haciendas show the different facets of the sugar industry.
The Negros Museum also houses a replica of a 40-foot batil which was used by Ilonggo migrants from Panay to travel and exchange goods to their second home in Negros. The Cinco de Noviembre room tells the story how Negros gained independence from the Spanish. If you only have time for one place as your sidetrip during MassKara, you should visit the Negros Museum. Visitors can sample delicious food at the Museum Cafe and buy pasalubong from the Meseum Shop.
4. NFEFI Biodiversity Conservation Center – at the back of the Negros Museum and just a stone’s throw away from the Provincial Capitol, the NFEFI Biodiversity Conservation Center breeds in captivity some of the rarest animals in the Philippines and endemic species of Negros. For a minimal fee, one can take a glimpse of the rich biodiversity of Negros Island and help spread the word on preserving our rainforests so that these animals can roam freely in their natural habitats.
5. Mambukal Resort – located in the town of Murcia, Mambukal Resort is less than an hour away from Bacolod City. There, you can trek up to the 7th falls, go boating, take a dip at the hot spring pool or try the slide for life. If you are a nature lover, you should not miss Mambukal Resort.
