OF ALL the historic houses in the country, the one I?ve visited so many times is the Emilio Aguinaldo House in Kawit, Cavite. It?s a visible landmark as one goes through the many towns in the province, especially when the houses in front of it were relocated.

The most famous area of the house is the balcony where General Aguinaldo proclaimed the independence of the Philippines on June 12, 1898, to a crowd of about 6,000 people, according to one eyewitness account (Trumbull White, American journalist).

One of those visits was with Russian guests, the poet Robert Rozhdestvensky and his lady minder (who we presumed was KGB). She told me that we don?t make houses to last. Not for centuries, for sure, but the Aguinaldo house seems to have survived quite beautifully through our revolutions and is more than a century old.

Another visit was to witness the inauguration of the exhibition hall at the ground level, where the bowling alley is part of, a curiosity item. Someone summoned me to the second floor to see the food laid out just before the guests were asked to eat.

Traditional Caviteño food were laid out although those I remember were mainly pancit Henoy (named after its inventor) and the pancit estacion or what was sold at train or bus stops made of mongo sprouts instead of the usual noodles. That added to the sum of my knowledge then of Cavite cooking, which included the oysters and mussels, the food of Josephine?s Restaurant, and the Digman halo-halo.

The dining table is bigger than usual, 2.8 meters or more than nine feet in diameter. It can comfortably sit 12 people and, because it is made of hardwood, one can imagine how difficult it must be to move it come cleaning-under-the-table time.

Another table nearer the kitchen was for the everyday meals of the family. The wonder of it was that the tabletop, a huge heavy slab of wood, can be moved to reveal a hollow concrete base used as the entrance to a hidden chamber below. Considering that this was the home of a revolutionary head, that was logical and necessary.

On another food trip to Cavite, our guide insisted on going to both the church and the Aguinaldo house before even taking our first bite of the cuisine. At the house, he went to one wall at the corridor where the pictures of heroes of the revolution were hung, and pointed to a small panel, which he pulled down to reveal a ledge. He said it was a great idea for cocktail parties, where drinks can be held there while one munched on the hors d?oeuvres. Actually, it was used to place potted plants as décor during parties, or to put busts on as was the fashion at the time.

Specialties

The last time I was there was to photograph Cavite cooking at this place most identified with the province. Ige Ramos, award-winning book designer, did some of the cooking such as the bacalao, and ordered as well from restaurants known for their specialties, such as Nana Helen?s Original Pancit Palabok and Asiong?s Carinderia and Café, as well as those who produce products such as the tamales (Robinson?s), quesillo (from General Trias and Tanza), tinapa (Carmfoods), bibingkoy from Aling Ika and bibingka samala from Pat & Sam?s Delicacies and Pasalubong. Ramos even had coffee brewing from one of the farms in the cooler climes of Amadeo.

While waiting for some of the food to be set up, there was time to go through the place again. The kitchen was the favorite of one friend, our mambubulok who collects antique items. He couldn?t take his eyes off the small refrigerator, which at the time was called an ice box. I like the old stove encased in bricks that had a metal door where the rice husks used as fuel were put in. On the door?s face was Emilio Aguinaldo?s name.

One of General Aguinaldo?s grandchildren, Alice Aguinaldo Dizon, came bringing very good kutsinta from the place. She told me that her lolo was conscious of what he ate (no wonder he was so slim), and that his favorite dish was chicken adobo cooked in dilaw (turmeric). Food also was always served formally during meals.

My favorite area is the balcony or the patio area with its Art-Deco grills and tiled floor. It?s called Galeria de los Pecadores or Hall of Sinners because this was where many of the revolutionary plans were supposedly hatched, although it was also the ?courtship? area. Although very open on three sides, the place was considered secret, probably because of the many fruit trees that hid it from view.

For one of the photographs, we borrowed a beautiful vase that was bought by the General while exiled in Hong Kong. We placed flowers in it and set it among a buffet of desserts. A sudden gust of wind made it fall to the tiled floor and I heard a crash. My reaction was to close my eyes hoping that by not seeing it, the accident didn?t happen. When I had the courage to open my eyes, I saw the vase still whole. What broke was one of the small plates holding a piece of cake. I picked up the vase and brought it back to its proper place in the house. I think it was the General?s way of telling me to do exactly that.

The Emilio Aguinaldo house is open to the public Tuesdays to Saturdays, 8 a.m.-12 noon, and 1-4 p.m. Call (046) 434-5983.

E-mail pinoyfood04@yahoo.com.