Carcar Cebu, located more than 40 kilometers south of Cebu City, is considered as one of the oldest towns in Cebu. Up to this day, the town is still evident of its Spanish influence which dated back for more than 300 years ago. One of them is the great ancestral house of Don Sarmiento, called Balay na Tisa, built during the Spanish rule on 1859.
Balay na Tisa is named after
tisa, or limestone blocks, which is the material used for its construction. Not only is the house decades old, it also contains priceless antique furnitures, ceramics, silverware and paintings, used by generations of the Sarmiento family.
From ancient grinding stones to an antique grandfather clock and four-poster beds, one can really experience a taste of ancient Philippines as he enters Balay na Tisa.
Balay na Tisa is situated along Sta. Catalina St. (the street right across St. Catherine of Alexandria, church of Carcar), where several other ancestral houses such as the Sanchez’ House and Noel’s Dakung Balay (or The Big House) can be found.
I wish I had taken pictures of the Sanchez House and the Dakung Balay as well but we we're in a hurry back then. Hopefully next time ;)
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