Bahay Tsinoy

Bahay Tsinoy occupies the Kaisa Heritage Center in Intramuros and covers a subject most Philippine museums touch only in passing: the Chinese presence in the archipelago, from pre-colonial trade in ceramics and iron through the Spanish period - when Chinese residents were confined to the Parián outside the walls, taxed, periodically expelled and, on several occasions in the seventeenth century, massacred in numbers - to the mestizo families who became part of the national elite, the wartime resistance, and the Tsinoy communities of today. The displays use dioramas, artefacts, ceramics recovered from trade sites, documents and photographs, with a gallery of Chinese-Filipino figures in national life. It is a small institution with a clear argument, run by the Kaisa Para Sa Kaunlaran foundation, and it fills a gap that the walk between San Agustin and Fort Santiago otherwise leaves open.

What you actually see

• The trade ceramics - pre-colonial goods from the China trade.
• The Parián dioramas - life in the Chinese quarter outside the walls.
• The documentary record - the expulsions, taxes and massacres.
• The Tsinoy gallery - Chinese-Filipino figures in national life.

When to go

Year-round; weekday mornings are quiet. It keeps museum hours and closes on Mondays - check before going.

Honest expectations

It is small and text-heavy - the interest is the history rather than spectacle. Entry is charged. Photography is restricted in parts of the museum.

Nearby

Casa Manila, San Agustin Church and Fort Santiago are all within Intramuros; Binondo is across the river.