Aby's Warm Hugs: Casa De Segunda

Casa de Segunda is one of the very few bahay na bato in Lipa City, Batangas that remained intact during the World War II. It is a National Heritage house, declared in 1996 by the National Historical Commission, and now houses a lot of memorabilia of Segunda Katigbak and her family.

Segunda Katigbak played a very interesting part in Jose Rizal’s life as his very first love when he was just sixteen years old and then studying in a college in Manila. It was a love-at-first-sight kind of love story. However, their love story ended in silence, when Rizal bid Segunda goodbye with a promise to meet in Binan, Laguna. They, indeed, met in Laguna while Segunda was riding the train and Rizal was in his horse. But, Rizal backed his horse instead of following her whilst she’s on the train. Segunda then married another man, which was her close relative, in Lipa City, Batangas. The rest for Rizal is, of course, history.

The Casa is open everyday for viewing. You just have to ring the bell at the right side of the gate. The entrance fee is only fifty pesos per person. You can call them in advance if you want to make sure that they are open, or if you want to secure a private tour inside the Casa. You can visit their facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/pages/Casa-de-Segunda/588201861282092) for more information or for bookings.

I really love old houses and this house holds a lot of treasures from the past. Please pay your respect by being careful to everything inside because they are centuries old, and you can literally touch everything inside with your bare hands if you want.

Going there is easy, from SM Lipa, ride a tricycle and tell the driver to drop you off at Casa de Segunda. As I can remember, we paid only fifty pesos for the ride.

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THE ENTRANCE HALL

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