The Ruins: The Legendary Princess of Negros

From afar, I can already see her crown glistening in the middle of the sugarcane field. My heart is jumping with happiness. It's like there's another ineffable feeling rising within me again. My heart is pounding as I draw closer to her. An overflow of excitement suddenly made my knees weak as I took off from the tricycle who brought me here.

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Oops! I forgot. I am writing a travel post not a cheesy love story. I must have been carried away by my emotions!

To give you a clearer picture, I am currently standing at the facade of the ruins of this beautiful mansion located in Talisay, Negros Occidental.

I know it's odd, but for me, this structure stands like a beautiful lady. It would have been like a sophisticated, classic and a grandiose princess that even decades couldn't make her look old. She remained timeless and magnificent throughout the decades. Her beauty would be constant and it could stand any weather. She might had a tragic past but her elegance remained and unforgotten.

This is how I describe The Ruins—The Legendary Princess of Negros.

The first floor of the mansion is now converted into a casual restaurant, which is very suitable for some tired guest who might be looking for good food after a tour here.

The Belvedere: Where the family usually gathers to see the beautiful afternoon sunset 

The Rich but Tragic History

While enjoying my cold coconut shake, I got a chance to talk with one of the tour guides in this place. His name is Roger—a very hospitable, bubbly but very sensible guy. I enjoyed listening to him while my emotions were slowly drowned by The Ruins' heart-breaking history.

"During the war in the 1940's the Javellana family, the residence of this mansion, was advised by the US forces to evacuate. The mansion should be burned down so the Japanese imperial forces can not utilize the house as a headquarter.", Roger started.

So in 1942, the United States Armed Forces of the Far East (Usaffe) guerrilla initiated the burning of the mansion. The first three drums of gasoline used were not enough to burn down the house due to its thick walls and columns which are made with A-grade mixture of concrete and egg whites for stronger bonding. Because of this, the troop then made use of a mixture of used oil and another drum of gasoline for the second attempt. Successfully, they were able to demolish almost everything. The burning lasted for three days until the only thing left was the well-constructed skeletal frame of the house, which became the magnificent Ruins today.

"This place really had a very sad history. However, I am thankful enough because without The Ruins, I might don't have a job today.", Roger smiled.

I agree. I admire Raymund Heredia Javellana, one of the great grandsons of the owners of the mansion: Don Mariano Ledesma Lacson (1865-1948) and her first wife Maria Braga, for exerting all his efforts to revive this long lost piece of art. His courage and perseverance to bring back this piece to life not just landed some job to the people of Negros but it also opened up a new window for the whole world to see how rich our country heritage is.

So in case you find your way down to Negros someday, try to visit The Ruins. I guess, you wouldn't feel ripped off with the 60 pesos entrance fee because just getting the chance to see it is priceless.

Reference: 


The Ruins: Mirage in the Negros fields 
By Abe Florendo
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 08/16/2008