Rain or Shine, Bacolod.. Here We Come!

For two consecutive weeks, Manila was always having rainfall. We were not even sure if our Bacolod trip would be postponed and re-scheduled due to LPA. But a few days before our flight, the weather has become better and it seemed that Mr. Sunny wanted us to be happy and explore Bacolod! Yey! Hubby and I left the house at half past two in the morning and took a cab to Terminal 3. The total amount we spent for the ride was P190. We got at the airport at three quarter and waited for my mom, sister and pamangkins. As soon as they came, hubby and I queued at the Express Counter of Cebu Pacific. Little did we know that tripod and umbrella should be checked in. If not, we had to pay P495/way for check in baggage. Oh boy, making a decision that time was not so hard for I decided to throw my tripod instead but kept my umbrella hoping that the scanner would not notice it. Whew, we were able to go to the boarding area with our umbrellas! Teehee! Thanks Fibrella! 😉

Nyala Tours at Silay Airport

A heavy rain welcomed us as we reached Silay airport. We were planning to take a trike to Silay before going straight to Bacolod but since we were too lucky to catch a glimpse of Nyala Tours table, we immediately took the van to Bacolod. It only cost us P35/pax compared to P100-150 vans. The airconditioned  jeepney (that’s how they call it ~ an L300) was too small for people with big bags and heavy pieces of baggage. But with its very cheap fare, we don’t have any reason to complain. 😀 Taking the airconditioned vans of Nyala Tours is the most affordable way in going to Bacolod from Silay airport and vice versa.

airconditioned jeepney with silay airport to bacolod and vice versa route

Since we asked the driver to drop us to the pension house we booked, which is 11th Bed & Breakfast, we were asked to add P15. So we paid P50/pax. Nyala Vans can be seen at Robinson’s Mall along Lacson Street. If you need to go to Silay Airport and catch a flight, go to the mall entrance/exit where KFC is and you would find these vans picking up passengers.

Pension House on 11th Street, near Lacson Street

It was still raining hard when we reached the Pension House. After payment of 1 night deposit, we headed to our room at the second floor. I booked two rooms, a family (P600/night) and a double room (P500/night), both fan rooms. Since I requested to have the rooms on the same floor, we got two adjacent rooms. That was great! 🙂 We all stayed the whole morning in the family room because the double room was not yet available. The kids watched the television and started to munch some cookies and candies while me, hubby and sissy rest our tired bodies. There was nothing else that we can do for it was raining cats and dogs outside. 😥

the first timer kiddos ~ first time to ride a plane 🙂

As soon as the rain stopped, we immediately left the pension house and headed to Manokan Country to have lunch since it was already past twelve then. Chicken Inasal, here we come! 🙂 We took a Liberatad – Bata jeepney and asked the driver to drop us off at the Manokan Country. The place was just across SM Bacolod. There were row of eateries where “ihawan” or grill can be found outside with some chicken and pork barbeque on display. We decided to go to Aida’s since there was a good number of customers that time. We ordered pa-a, which was bigger than what I expected for it has the leg and the thigh unlike here in Manila. And it was soo good ~ tastier and juicer! The best! 🙂 We ate with our bare hands… but you can ask for the utensils if you want.

sissy and mom

Pa-a Chicken Inasal at P65 (rice not included) and Pork bbq at P25

After lunch, we just walked our way to the Public Plaza. The place where Masskara Festival ceremony is being held. The gazebo got my attention because the names of popular artists could be seen there. Aside from that, it was a great place for the photo op. 🙂 Then, we went to the cathedral which can be found just across the plaza. San Sebastian Cathedral is the biggest church in the province of Negros. The materials used for building the church was taken from Palawan while the coral stones were cut from the deposits of Guimaras. It was Fr. Ferrero’s idea to build a bigger church with that kind of structure.

The Gazebo at the Public Plaza

Centennial Bellfry

The large bell of the Cathedral

From the Cathedral, we took a Libertad-Bata jeepney again in going to the Capitol City Park & Lagoon, where the Provincial Capitol of Negros Occidental can be found. It is along Lacson Street and across the 6th Street where Dunkin Donuts can be seen. Upon seeing the see-saw, slide, monkey bars and swing, the kids excitedly ran over the wet ground and started to play and had fun. The presence of some rugby kiddos in the area made us moved to the lagoon where we had seen countless of tilapia which is being raised by the provincial government of Bacolod. If we only had some pieces of bread that time, we could have feed them. Of course, the kids enjoyed watching the tilapia as they swim in the lagoon.

Capitol Lagoon

Provincial Capitol of Negros Occidental ©Maia

Paghimud-os monument

From the Capitol Park & Lagoon, we went to ANP Showroom which is also situated along Lacson Street and a few meters away from the lagoon. At the ANP Showroom, you can find different kinds of souvenirs and delicacies that can be brought home. Picture taking was not allowed. Bakit kaya? Hubby bought a baller ID, a key chain and a coffee mug while sissy and mom bought ref magnets, bracelets and meringue. After shopping, we took Libertad-Bata jeepney again in going to Robinsons Mall to have merienda. From there, we went to Bascon Cafe to try the cakes and coffee but we ended up ordering rice, dinuguan and adobo flakes for our dinner.I was so lazy to take some pictures of the food for they were so simple and plain. No presentation. The dinuguan was okay but the adobo flakes was kinda dry and rubbery. And the drinks? Freshly taken from the cans and bottles. 😦

at Bascon Cafe

cakes of Bascon Cafe

cakes and cakes and cakes….. so sweet! 😉

other pastries that can be tried at Bascon Cafe

The iced tea (P30) and Pineapple Juice (P35)