The Ruins

The Ruins refer to the remains of a house located in what is now part of Talisay City that was burned during World War II. The story goes that the ancestral home of the Lacsons of Negros Occidental was burned by workers loyal to the family rather than for it and its contents to fall under the invading Japanese forces. What remains of the original structure of the house in the middle of sugarcane fields was developed into a tourist attraction and is accessible through residential roads including a gravel road between a subdivision and the property. The Ruins is a popular tourist attraction is also a venue for photo sessions including pre-nuptial events. The surrounding space and landscaping suggests that the area can accommodate garden weddings.

Pulling into the driveway, the facade of the building greets you along with a booth that manages entries. A meager entrance fee is charged for visitors. The fees go towards maintaining the area.

They say the best time to go to the Ruins was at dusk or during the sunset when the sun's rays play around with the opening throughout the building. I tried my best to get some so-called "artistic" shots with my BlackBerry. Here's a photo of some tables of a restaurant located within the ground floor of the house.

A few framed photos and news items and articles about the Ruins

We climbed to the Second Floor using what remained of what probably was a grand staircase. As there was no flooring, the caretakers installed a canvass on what used to be flooring for this level. I wanted to go to what used to be the main balcony in front of the house but I didn't dare cross over to the balcony, balancing along a concrete beam.

Many houses these days are designed so as to have a cathedral ceiling. I guess cathedral ceilings were also the rave back in the day but then these were probably applicable only to those with large or huge houses like what the Ruins was during its heyday. I can imagine these were palatial structures in the middle of sugarcane fields and a symbol of a medieval set-up in the Philippine countryside.

I like this photo because of the blues and yellows created by the separation of the blue sky and the sunset by the concrete beams and columns of the Ruins. It also helped that the lamps were already on so they contributed to the color scheme in the photo.

From the Ruins, you can see the expanse of the area and a small building that houses a souvenir shop and a restaurant. Diners may be seated inside or al fresco

View of the ruins from the restaurant showing the length of the structure and a side entrance via a stairway. Like many houses of old, there is also a basement to the house, probably used for storage.

Photo showing the ruins with the fountain constructed in the front lawn probably to provide some accent to the area. Visible in the photo is the remains of a tower or obelisk. The top has fallen or crumbled and was replaced by bushes that make it appear as if its just one of those tropical trees.

Door to the souvenir shop cum restaurant

The fountain and the tower as seen past sunset

Fountain with lights on and is a popular photo op spot

Fountain against the Ruins

I would have taken more photos but I only had my BlackBerry with me at the time. Unfortunately, the phone camera is not so dependable during these times of the day when light becomes an issue with photos. There is usually only a slim margin or opportunity to take good enough photos. Also, it was relatively crowded the time we visited so it was difficult to get shots with few or no people in the photos. I will look forward to another time to visit the place when perhaps there will be less people and one could really take in the ambiance of the place.

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