Comments on: The Quema Residence, Vigan

By: MJ Quema

MJ Quema — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 11:48:20 +0000

Yeah Annaise I love the concept of this peephole. I want one of that! You can just look and not open the gate hehe =P

By: Stephanie M. Quema

Stephanie M. Quema — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 23:49:00 +0000

I thought my family and I were the only Quema’s I live in Phoenix AZ

By: Annaise

Annaise — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 06:19:23 +0000

I love the quema house. My cousins are the quema’s in blue ridge qc. That square in the floor is not exactly a peephole. You 1st peep through the sliding panel under the window…if you decide to let the visitor in, without having to go all the way downstairs…you simply open the square and pull a thick chain that’s connected to unlatch the bar of the dungeon style door/wooden gate.

By: Pip

Pip — Sun, 23 Sep 2007 08:15:31 +0000

It really touches our hearts to find people who appreciates our vigan ancestral home, the quema’s are super proud of..you going there at the time we decided to preserve and conserve the house and now reading favorable comments, makes us only do our very best to continue the grandeur of don enrique and dona teresa quema….thank you …

By: RoseJean Liberato Quiton Lanske

RoseJean Liberato Quiton Lanske — Fri, 21 Sep 2007 12:36:17 +0000

I grew up in this house from early 50’s until 1965 and remember polishing the staircase rails. The house looks great and very attractive. I am impressed with all the changes after 40 years. Seeing the pictures brings back many memories as a youngster. Thank you to all who worked so hard in making this happen. My husband and I, with some American friends plan on visiting Vigan in April/May 2008, and we are very anxious in meeting everyone and reliving old memories. Again many thanks to everyone.

By: marite tanjangco

marite tanjangco — Wed, 19 Sep 2007 23:37:56 +0000

I too am one of the descendants of Enrique and Teresa Quema. It is a pity that you were not shown one of the oldest Underwood typewriters which is almost as big as the desk where it is encased. For your information, this was “destroyed” by Tom Cruise when he shot a movie nearby many years back. I feel like sending him the bill when and if it still can be repaired. I was told that he was so fascinated by it, he began tinkering with it. The caretaker did not know who he was by was smitten by his good looks that she forgot to call his attention to touching the typewriter. The furniture are real Vienna chairs and the toys of my Father and his siblings are still preserved in a cabinet. These are all made in Europe. Thank you once again for featuring our ancestral home. Take care and God bless!

By: Apicio

Apicio — Wed, 19 Sep 2007 15:34:42 +0000

In the Chinese Domestic Furniture by Gustav Ecke (1944), there is a very good discussion of Chinese Cabinets woods in pages 22 to 25 and more extensive and up-to-date in the Connoisseurship of Chinese Furniture by Wang Shixiang (1989), Vol II, Materials, page 148 to 153. You would be surprised, jusi was even mentioned in the Jin Ping Mei.

By: Quema_Descendant

Quema_Descendant — Wed, 19 Sep 2007 15:15:45 +0000

Dear MarketMan,
Thank you very much for featuring our clan’s ancestral home in your blog! We are very proud of this house, and continue to maintain it through family contributions, careful to preserve the old.

There are four generations of Quemas who now enjoy this house as a year-round retreat from our hectic lives in Manila. Yes, we still live here which is why we prefer knowing when we will have visitors! We have to keep a schedule though, with the clan as big as it is.

It is funny what you and your astute readers notice. You really have an eye for finer things. You noticed the heladera – believe it or not, once when the president of Westinghouse visited the house he wanted to exchange it for the newest model they had! No way, of course!

As for the staircase, I have asked the more senior members of the clan: they are not sure where it came from. Our matriarch now says “I was born it was already there!” We will investigate further regarding the history and maybe have an answer for you. It is unique because of the greenish hue. Many houses reworked in Vigan have this replicated by local artisans.

The peephole is a favorite among the kids. I have pictures of mine crouching over that exact spot you photographed, looking down into the garage.

Again our apologies that the renovation was at its height during your visit. Please do come back early next year. By then, we can be sure that the house will be in order. And we can have our cook make some of the more esoteric Ilocano dishes for you.

Dios ti agngina! That’s our way of saying thank you and Godspeed.

By: ivan man dy

ivan man dy — Wed, 19 Sep 2007 12:14:45 +0000

Apicio,

Our local hardwoods being used in Imperial China (the Forbidden City..woohoo!?!)? Can I have your source on that? That sounds VERY interesting…

By: Mila

Mila — Tue, 18 Sep 2007 05:09:51 +0000

There’s an interesting post about the ice blocks on Senor Enrique’s blog Wish You Were Here. I’ll email you the link when I find it. It may have been an Ambeth Ocampo article originally, but the story of the ice trip is interesting. Would be a great movie don’t you think?