Bacolod

A land where friendly people abound, Bacolod is renowned as the Philippines’ City of Smiles. Bacolod is made famous by the much awaited Masskara Festival, a festival likened to that of Mardi Gras. In the year 2008, Bacolod was hailed as the “Best Place to Live in the Philippines” by Money Sense Magazine. So, be prepared to visit this place. You might like it so much you just might decide to stay for good.

Maskarra Festival (held yearly)

Bacolod for locals is synonymous to sugarcanes. Here, you can see hectares upon hectares of sugarcane plantations as far as the eye can see. Other agricultural products of the province include coconut, banana, corn, rice and other assorted vegetables. Also, much to the delight of golfers, Bacolod is also home to two major golf courses and that is the Bacolod Golf and Country Club and the Negros Occidental Golf and Country Club. There are many places of interest in this peaceful and green city like the Panaad Park and Stadium for example. This stadium is used for football games most of the time. It has a seating capacity of 15,000 people but it can hold as much as 20,000 people including the standing areas. If you want to have a leisurely walk, you can head on to Bacolod Public Plaza, Rizal Centennial Park or the Capitol Park and Lagoon. Other places of interest around the city are the Fountain of Justice, the New Government Center, Pope John Paul II Tower, Museu  Negrense de la Salle, Dizon-Ramos Museum, the Bell of San Sebastian, San Sebastian Cathedral, Barangay San Virgel Chapel, San Antonio Abad Church, Negros Forest Ecological Foundation and Biodiversity Center, Fort San Juan and the Provincial Building.

The old city hall

Avoid the rainy season in Bacolod and that is from May to January. It is better to visit here in the dry season of February until the last week of April. However, if you want to take part in the Masskara Festival, just brave the weather and visit Bacolod in October. Just before you go back to your home or go visit other province, make sure you drop by the ANP Showroom. It is arguably the country’s top trade house and “pasalubong” center. It is home to various gift items and local arts and crafts you can take home with you. It also has fashion accessories, garments for men, women and children and a lot of indigenous foods you can try.

Bacolod is located south of Manila. If you want to fly to Bacolod, you can take a direct flight from Manila. It will take about 55 minutes to get there. If you are not in a hurry and you have time to spare, you can take a cruise of about 20 hours on board a world class vessel.

History

The area of Bacolod was originally found in a stonehill area. The term “bakolod”, where the city’s name was derived, is an Ilonggo word for stonehill. Bacolod was declared as the capital of Negros Occidental in the year 1894 by then Governor General Claveria. The people of this area fought Spanish colonization led by Generals Aniceto and Juan Araneta. In November 17 1898, the locals won back their land and elected Anecito Lacson as their president. As the years passed, Bacolod experienced colonization by two more colonizers, the Americans and the Japanese. Finally, in the year 1938, the government of the independent Philippines created Commonwealth Act No. 326 creating the City of Bacolod.

Festivals

The most famous festival in Bacolod is undoubtedly the Masskara Festival celebrated every third week of October. It started out as just some random activity created to spice up a civic-military parade but then local tourism picked up the event and the rest, as they say, is history. Masskara Festival is repeatedly used to represent the country in major festivals in Asia. Masskara literally means many masks. Masks are a large part of the celebration. The performers use colorful and elaborate masks representing the happy faces of the locals giving thanks for a very bountiful year.

Here is the complete list of festivals in the city:

• Feast of San Sebastian (January 20)
• Panaad sa Negros Festival (April)
• Charter Anniversary & Masskara Festival (October 19)
• Bacolaodiat (Every Chinese New Year)
• Provincial Tourism Week (September 20-26)

Tips

Foreign currencies can be exchanges in banks, hotels, shopping malls and foreign exchange dealers. Major credit cards are also widely accepted. Electricity is mostly 220 volts with a plug of two flat prongs as the norm. Water in the area is potable and there is also bottled drinking water available in almost every store. There are a lot of taxis and jeepneys that will take you around the city so mobility is not a problem.