The glorious past gets ‘high tech’

Casa Gorordo is a historic house built in the 1950s by businessman Alejandro Reynes and later brought by Juan Isidro de Gorordo in 1863. The house, which has been converted into museum, is now owned and managed by the Ramon Aboitiz Foundation, Inc.

Briton tourist Jeff Reed had been frolicking in the beach in Cebu with his girlfriend for three days when he decided to check out the “small museum with character” visited by his father last year.

He booked a cab through a ride-hailing app and went to Casa Gorordo Museum on Eduardo Aboitiz Street in Parian, an old district where the wealthy families used to live.

And he was not disappointed.

“Before coming here, I only knew of Cebu as the place of pristine beaches. This is a different side to Cebu and I am learning a lot about this heritage area,” he said.

Reed said he decided to check out the museum after his father, Matheu, who visited last December, told him that it gave a glimpse of life in old Cebu.

What makes Casa Gorordo Museum more interesting is it is now interactive, perfectively weaving together the memories and reminders of the past and the marvels of present technology.

When it reopened to the public in November 2016, two years after a massive enhancement project, Casa Gorordo Museum ceased to be just another old house built in the 1850s by businessman Alejandro Reynes and later brought by Juan Isidro de Gorordo in 1863.

It has been transformed into an interactive museum to make it more interesting and engaging to those who wanted to know what Cebu was like during those times.

Museum fee is P120 or P150 depending on package inclusions which consist of a tour guide, a tablet, souvenir items and drinks at the café.
The guest is given a tablet to scan the QR codes found in the house which give more detailed information.

While Casa Gorordo is just a small house that can be visited within 15 minutes, it is best experienced with a tour guide who can help out in explaining the rooms and the artifacts.

To the left of the reception desk are boards which gives a brief history of the museum. Turning right, the guest is brought to the zaguan, a former storage area of crops and livestock.

This part of the museum is where a three-dimensional virtual map is located which depicted Cebu from 1614 to 1945.

“It has been quite a challenge to look for historical sites in Cebu which are interesting and interactive at the same time. This is the only one here in thecity that has this map,” said Reed.

Reed said the map gave him a picture as to how the Parian district in Cebu looks like in the old times.

To the left of the virtual map is a diorama of Cebu’s social life.

This interactive exhibit are also affixed with QR codes which can be scanned using the tablet.

On the same floor is an interesting listing of families originally from or linked to the Parian district.

Still located on the ground floor is an exhibit of agricultural products in Cebu especially when it opened to world trade in the 1860s.

Completing the ground floor experience is the mini-theatre, which can accommodate 30 to 40 individuals.

In the theatre, a video that ran for 10 minutes and 26 seconds traces the development of the payag or bahay kubo (native house) to become the Balay nga Tisa or a house made of clay tile roof.

Casa Gorordo is in Parian, an old district where the first settlers were Chinese traders and craftsmen who mostly came from the Fujian province.

Four generations of the Gorordo family lived in the house, according to the research conducted by historian Resil Mojares who authored the book,

“Casa Gorordo in Cebu: Urban Residence in a Philippine Province 1860-1920.”

The house survived two turbulent revolutionary conflicts and the Second World War.

The house was acquired by the Ramon Aboitiz Foundation Inc. (RAFI) in the late 1970s and was opened as a public museum in 1983.

In 1991, the National Historical Institute accorded Casa Gorordo the status of a National Historical landmark for its historical and social significance.
Mojares’ book aptly described the current layout of Casa Gorordo.

From the theatre, guests go up a short flight of four stone steps that ends in a descanso (landing). To the left is a higher flight of wooden stairs with a banister leading to the upper floor.

The stairs lead to a caida or anteroom. At the left of the head of the stairs, the anteroom leads to a sala fronting the street and flanked by two bedrooms. The second floor has a chapel, noting that the Juan Perfecto Gorordo, served as the first Filipino Bishop of Cebu.

There is a library which has an interesting old globe with former names of the countries we know of today. A photo studio, obviously an addition from the enhancement project, offers the chance to take “period photos” in costume.

There is a long dining hall (comedor) adorned with utensils and cutlery owned by a well-to-do family.

A kitchen on the second floor has American-period fixtures, which were added when the museum was upgraded.

Ending the museum experience is the azotea where book launchings and lectures have been held in recent times. The azotea overlooks the garden, where a deep well still exists, albeit non-functioning because of issues on flooding in the area.

Connected to the azotea is the museum shop where shop assistant Maybellane Sanchez presented several limited edition items from suppliers all over Visayas and Mindanao.

The shop also has a book corner where titles consisting of Cebu’s culture and heritage are sold. Below the shop is a café, an addition to the museum features as part of the two-year enhancement project.

Museum curator Florencio Moreño III said RAFI continued the house traditions of the Gorordo family which include the Sinug sa Casa Gorordo (the orginal Sinulog steps done a day after the Grand Parade), Kuwaresma Procession, Pista ni San Juan and the display of the Gorordo Belen.

“Museums, like ours, have to continue to stay relevant. With these upgrades, we can ensure that we can keep up with the changing times,” said Moreño.