This article appeared in the April 2010 issue of MABUHAY, the in-flight

magazine of Philippine Airlines

SMILE……You Are in Bacolod

By Imogene S. Kana-an

Great food, great cuisine coming mostly from family heirloom recipes and the now food icon
of the city – the Bacolod chicken “inasal” (chicken marinated in native spices and herbs and
then grilled to perfection). Great Ilonggos the people of Bacolod are, in their mellifluous lilting
Hiligaynon accent and in their warm friendship, innate hospitality and sweet charm breathed
from their long –term romance with the sugar industry which for centuries had been the lifeblood
of her economy.

The City of Bacolod lies in the northwestern part of Negros Island in Western Visayas ,
heart of the Philippine archipelago. . Bacolod’s charm as a destination is in her half a million
Bacoleňos exuding a genuine love for people. Their hospitality is legendary while the smile is
some kind of a brand - from the porters you first meet at the bus, seaport or airport terminals; taxi
drivers, bellboys, receptionists and even the street vendors. Tourists find it a relief as English is
widely understood, with the more literate ones speak the language fluently while the broken
English of the man of the streets is spiced up with a smile. This smiling nature of her people has
earned for Bacolod the moniker City of Smiles.

The Bacoleno’s propensity to smile stems from a happy disposition towards life and this gave
birth to the 31-year old MassKara Festival, now a world-class event held every 3rd weekend of
October. Local and foreign tourists alike flock to the city to see or be part of a parade frenzy, a
riot of colors, stomping and gyrations of brightly-costumed street dancers wearing those smiling
masks. MassKara is coined from two words, mass to mean “many” and the Spanish word kara
for the English word “face,” in short, a mass or multitude of smiling faces. For Bacolod, the
festival is a celebration and an expression of thanks for the abundance and never-ending
surprises life brings, be they good or bad, like the crippling sugar industry crisis in the late
l970’s.

Bacolod is also known as a city of contrast. Her rural ambiguity lends a certain mystique to
her stylish modern urbanity. The Bacoleno is uptrend in his ways, as Bacolod has almost all the
conveniences you look for in a growing modern metropolis. Visitors can have a choice of a
modern first class hotel, several standard and economy class hotels or other types of
accommodations giving the city a total of 2,639 rooms, the highest room capacity in Western
Visayas excluding Boracay Uppity restaurants, coffee shops and fast food joints for the budget
conscious dot the city’s major thoroughfares. Malls and big department stores, boutiques and
souvenir or handicraft shops are for limitless shopping while at the market stalls are for
amazing bargains.

Yet the rustic ambiance is felt all over. The Bacoleno way is familial, almost laid back even,
as everybody seems to know everyone who is either a relative or a nodding acquaintance.
Traffic is tolerable as one can be in his business appointment or with his romantic or family
date in a matter of minutes. The lush greenery in many parts of the city, particularly in the
public plaza, known to be the most shady and most pro-active plaza in the country, gives her
that rural touch and the award as the Cleanest and Greenest Highly Urbanized City in the
Philippines

The city is only 55 minutes from Manila, the country’s major port of entry. Philippine
Air Lines fly to and from 6 times daily and two 30-minute flights daily to and from Cebu City,
the alternative entry point. Her myriad “must-see” places are truly tourist’s attractions – A
130-year old cathedral and modern aesthetically designed churches for devotees and liturgical
art enthusiasts; the Negros Museum, city plaza and old mansions for a trip back to the past; art
galleries for the artistic souls; and modern markers such as the New Government Center which
fuses government official functions with a breath taking view of a vast expanse of green sugar
cane fields against a backdrop of mountains and coastal areas of the many towns and cities in the
province. Precisely, Bacolod is also known as Gateway to Adventure Negros for one can blaze
nature trails or simply laze on fine white sand beaches if the adventure seeker has the time to
travel two to three hours north or south of the city.

Amenities abound - malls, and boutiques for high end shopping; the “tiangue” or market
for great bargains; first class restaurants for the discriminating palate and the gourmet; food
joints for the budget-conscious; a casino for the risk taker; , entertainment centers and bars for
the night habitués; a golf course and various sports centers; communication service providers
that links a visitor to any part of the world and sports centers for the physically fit. Peace, order
and security is Bacolod City’s great accountability to her guests. Unquestionably, the city’s
tourism industry is vibrant and dynamic, with the fast growth rate of accommodation
establishments, picking up from 1,612 hotel rooms in 2004 to 2,639 rooms in 2009.

Proud of her heritage of the time when sugar barons known as “hacenderos” ruled the land,
Bacolod City today is prouder still of the massive dramatic landscape transformation and
economic regeneration brought about by the present pro-active and dynamic governance of
Mayor Evelio R. Leonardia. Since he assumed the stewardship of Bacolod, he has practically
changed the scenario of this southern city with all those infrastructures, rehabilitation of
important historical markers and constructions of landmarks such as the New Government
Center considered today as the icon of every Bacoleño’s dignity and any visitor’s time and
admiration.
Now in the line of the few billionaire cities in the country, Bacolod beams with the
various acclamations she reaps from the many award-giving bodies of the Philippines for
excellent practices in local governance. Foremost among these is her being chosen out of the 122
cities in the country as Pilot City for the European Union “Partnership for Democratic Local
Governance for Southeast Asia.” Previous awards include being the Most Business Friendly
City in the Philippines given by the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry; an award
for Best Compliance for Government- Mandated Plans from the Asian Institute of Management
in collaboration with the United States Agency for International Development or USAID. This is
in recognition of Bacolod as a new growth center based on a scientific tool measuring the
capacity of the city to generate local income against its population.
 The city’s business climate is consistently moving into high positive grounds as investments
continue to pour in. Some major Manila businesses have established base in Bacolod as land, air
or sea transport offer the
conveniences of modern travel. There are at least 8 roundtrip flights Bacolod-Manila, with the
three major airlines of the country servicing the modern Bacolod-Silay Airport of international
standard.
The biggest investments in the city is seen in the dynamic explosion of the business process
outsourcing, and now with eleven call centers, four of them major players, Bacolod rightly
claims as the call center hub of Western Visayas. The BPO’s and the ICT business has already
employed thousands, giving the city its minimum unemployment and underemployment rate.
The presence of the call centers has also radically changed the city’s scenario and have
established growth centers in non-traditional business areas and where these call centers are,
nightlife in the city has also become active and exciting.

May this BACOLOD GUIDE give the information you need and bring you to where you
want to go and help you in what you want to do – be it official or personal. So, whatever is
your reason and whatever you look for in a place, Bacolod City has it. When you leave the city
after a memorable time,, you leave with a smile in your face and heart, for the last Bacoleño you
see sends you off with a smile that is larger than life.

SMILE….You are now in Bacolod!!!

By: Imogene s. Kana-an

City Tourism Officer