Alan and Marissa Sycip’s Island hideaway

To get away from it all, the more blessed ones drive to getaways, rented or owned, whenever their busy schedules allow it. Some build to their heart’s content while others simply buy shares or memberships to clubs where casitas or houses are rented out to bonafide members. Talking Design has just been to one and my head is still reeling from the glorious experience.

Punta Fuego – the very exclusive and tony resort commune founded by Pedro Roxas, Freddie Xeres Burgos and company – stands on a promontory of such tremendous altitude that most residents, while sitting inside their homes, can see it forever on a clear day. As you know, the trek from the juncture of Tagaytay to this gated place in Nasugbu, Batangas is a mere hour and a half at most. Save for a short stretch of unasphalted road, the entire drive is but a breeze.

With reluctance, Alan and Marissa Sycip allowed our cameras to capture these breathtaking panoramas from the different rooms of their contemporary weekend hideaway. Alan recently concluded his well-attended and almost sold-out one-man exhibit of contemporary paintings at the Crucible Gallery. He must have been inspired to let us spend some time in his very private place if only to prove to his guests, like this writer and wife Gli, that his oeuvre can look compatibly at home in his out-of-the-ordinary abode by the sea.

A graduate of the famed Carnegie Mellon, where he finished a bachelor’s degree in art, Alan designed their weekend retreat by himself. He knew just how he wanted it. So with technical support from a civil engineer, he went ahead and the resulting no-nonsense edifice is proof that, yes, artists, not only architects, can design and build houses, too.

Compared to the elaborately-designed Mediterranean-inspired houses all over Punta Fuego, the Sycip’s is a mere boxlike edifice overlooking the sea. The sea and mountains in the distance can be viewed from all parts of this modern structure. To conform to the required Mediterranean design style for all builders to follow, tegulas were added to the roofs and some eaves in the Sycip house.

Its main tour de force is the specially-designed beam that spans the whole stretch of the house for an uninterrupted panoramic view. This single deep beam allowed Alan to do away with posts so the view remains seamless no matter where one may happen to sit in the living/dining area of the house.

Sliding doors and windows come in their widest spans, making it imperative to use tempered glass panes again for unobstructed panoramic views. Ensconced in a peninsula that juts out into the sea, special care and consideration were paid to the doors and windows of the house since storms in areas like these can be real awesome. Special rolled canvas or trapal becomes a must here – they can be lowered to cushion the glass panes as the storm rages.

As an artist, Alan paid premium attention to the enjoyment of the available view. He’s lucky to have purchased a lot situated on a high altitude, so a 360-degree view is available. Fact is, when you’re inside one of the different bathrooms in the house, you get a fabulous view. An attic leads to a deck where the main clubhouse, in all its majestic beauty, can be seen. I thought to myself, this is the best way to spy on who enters and leaves the clubhouse with all its modern and sumptuous amenities.

An ambassador’s daughter, the former Marissa Barrera spent a great part of her life in many parts of the world. She is at present involved in real estate. She has added some feminine touches to this very contemporary retreat. A woman’s touch definitely smoothens some of the rough edges in any place. So as the handsome paintings of Alan reek with modern sensibilities, Marissa’s favorite things – like candles and fresh flowers in vases – provide perfect contrasts.

The furnishings of the entire house do not follow any period or style. Wood, bamboo and rattan pieces abound. The trunk of a fallen acacia tree, from the village where the Sycips reside, has been cut into sections and they now reign as coffee tables in the living room and the lanai. A unique swing made of sturdy bamboo and comfortably cushioned hangs through several strands of native rope that are connected to rings embedded on the deep beam that we mentioned earlier. I tried the swing for a few minutes and experienced a different kind of high while swaying and looking at the water and the mountains in the distance.

Not a few have commented that some of the houses in Punta Fuego put houses in ritzy villages to shame. One even took note of the fact that one or two have high-tech features such as elevators connecting all the floors. I noticed that some of them are so stately while others resemble penthouses one sees in cities abroad. When you get down to it, getting away from it all does not mean giving up all the conveniences you savor at home. Agree?

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For comments and suggestions,write xtnsprit@mydesiny.net.