uno noche en la casa

with such a rare chance to explore ancestral houses at night, my two day stay at Las Casas Filipinas de Acuzar revealed that these houses are as majestic by night. our room was at third floor of Casa Escolta whose balcony gave us an overlooking view of the houses that surrounded Plaza Belmonte.though not all the houses are with lights and open to visitors by night, Casa Mexico and Casa Jaen alone can boast its beauty. the intricate ceilings and its chandelier kindles these empty rooms. outdoor dining experience at the resort was a great add to those staying there for an overnight. a night filled with Filipino cultural dances at Plaza Belmonte's ground. the highly applauded Tinikling, which is also the country's national dance, was the night's favorite.
though the resort gives one the experience of staying at some of these houses, there's nothing better than the idea of diffuse hotels or is more known as albergo diffuso in Italy. this was in the mountains of Abruzzi of a town called Santo Stefano.
i read about this in one of Arthur Frommer's magazine featuring an old forgotten village turned into a hotel. Daniele Kihlgren gave the idea of turning the entire ancient village into a hotel retaining it in its original site. same hope that could have done with the ancestral houses in the Philippines. thus, giving Vigan still the best reputation for heritage value.
how to get there:
Take a bus from Manila to Bagac Bataan.
From town center, you can take a tricycle entering a small almost one way street to the resort. It will just be few minutes from the bus drop off point.

location:
island: mainland Luzon
province: Bataan (Southwest)
gateway: Bagac

GPS location:
14^ 35" 60' N
120^ 23" 13' E