This year, I celebrate a decade of wanderlust rendezvous. Looking back, I often ask, does the journey make the person or does the person make the journey? The challenge lies in distinguishing between the two, each being a synergy, or rather, the destiny of each other.
One leaves this homeland in search of something better, more grandiose, more exotic, but in the end, one returns home to find exactly what one is searching for. In my search for the best luxury beach properties in the world, I realized the paradise I had been looking for was in my own country.
Yes, Amanpulo, nestled on its own 200-acre private island, Pamalican, part of the Cuyo Islands in Palawan, is the most salubrious jewel that commands the respect and revelry it deserves. English writer G.K. Chesterton was so right when he said, “The whole object of travel is not to set foot on foreign land; it is at last to set foot on one’s own country as a foreign land.”
Days and nights in Amanpulo, the isle of peace, are as precious as sparkling diamonds, rubies, emeralds and sapphires. This impeccable sanctuary is managed by the Aman Group of Resorts, led by the illustrious luxury resort maverick Indonesian Adrian Zecha, who believes in happenstance, the unanticipated event, simply stumbling onto something — so much of life is governed by chance.
On the occasion of Amanresorts’ 20th anniversary, Zecha admits that he wasn’t a hotel industry visionary when he created Amanpuri, his first property in Phuket, Thailand in 1988. Instead he was looking for a holiday home for his family. Today, with 23 other stunning properties in Bhutan, Cambodia, France, French Polynesia, Indonesia, India, Morocco, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Turks and Caicos Islands and the US — each Aman property has a uniquely defining location, exceptional service and just a small number of rooms for exclusivity and privacy.
Truly, quality precedes quantity. Here, the theme of family, love and life’s simple pleasures of togetherness and celebration are heralded. In the Philippines, Amanpulo is a property of Seven Seas Resort owned by the Sorianos. Proudly, the Andres Soriano Foundation has created corporate social responsibility projects to take care of the environment and the communities that thrive on it. Though I wish I had visited sooner, the long wait was well worth it.
Here, the sun takes its fiery farewell and leaves the moon amid a silvery shimmering canopy of stars while the morning mist playfully teases the horizon, blurring the boundaries between the sky and the sea. It is before sunrise, a flock of birds prepare for a dawn chorus as I walk the talcum-powdered sand to the north of the island.
I notice a few baby sharks frolicking just a few feet away from the shore. Several starfish glow like shiny gold and schools of eclectic tropical fish swim past. I say a little prayer and watch the sun rise. The vast expanse of the ocean and sky seems to be all mine.
My gregarious traveling companions — retired Supreme Court Justice Elo Santiago and Sonya Garcia, owner of the famed Sonya’s Garden in Tagaytay — and I retreat to one of the 40 luxurious casitas by the beach. There are also treetop and hillside casitas, all of superior indulgence, as exquisitely executed by architect par excellance Bobby Mañosa, whose Philippine-themed accommodations brilliantly beckon.
At Amanpulo, you are connected with all that matters. You realize nothing belongs to you except the most essential things — air, sleep, luxury lodging, dreams, the calm blue sea and the clear sky, the countless stars and the glorious full moon — all things tending towards the eternal or, at least, what we perceive of it.
Amanpulo defines luxury indulgence at its finest. Sublime landscape, silky sand, smooth stones that line the shore as if purposely landscaped by an unseen hand. Your view as you lay on the sun-kissed shore is a dramatic mountain range that punctures a sea of clouds. Shimmering aquamarine waters boast a teeming marina, a coral reef and an entire island purely dedicated to this 5.5-km. isle of Eden. The epitome of exclusivity, you hardly see anyone else while, like a mermaid, you bathe and sunbathe to your heart’s content. No other beach in the world has made me feel the exclusivity and tranquility of feeling like I had the ethereal paradise all to myself.
Throughout nature’s finest treasures, there is also an expansive 30-meter swimming pool, restaurants serving only the freshest catch from the sea and more; yoga and water sports activities as well as tennis courts, health spa and cruising facilities. While on the snorkeling cruise in the coral gardens, it was a special treat to join the group of my schoolmate from Colegio San Agustin. Leah Rodriquez Rollom with her kids Jed, Hazel and Patricia. Capt. Edwin Rollom, her husband, is chief pilot for Island Aviation Inc., the official carrier of all Amanpulo guests. He has been expertly flying the Dornier 228 turbo-prop, twin-engine plane for the Amanpulo route for the last seven years.
Villa manager Duarte Cunha showed us the two private holiday villas for rent just a few meters from the glorious sea. The 4,140-sqm. villa estate is ideal for families as it features four private bedroom casitas replete with a kitchen and dining pavilion. You also have your own chef who can whip up your favorite cuisine with only the freshest ingredients.
The kindred spirit of Amanpulo lingers long after you have left the island. This is the experience that stems from the excellent service and the loving kindness of its general managers, Christine and Nick Juett, and their competent staff. Charming and friendly, attentive but discreet, each and every one of them offers superb service and individual pampering to the highest degree. They remember preferences, they notice moods. Sometimes, wishes are fulfilled without a word having been spoken. Their chefs are masters of culinary seduction and every staff views impeccable service as a personal mission. They are in touch.
The only residents of the island are Amanpulo staff and guests. No other people are allowed access to the island. Amanpulo has an excellent security team with equipment that includes a marine radar station to monitor all boat traffic up to 12 miles from Pamalican. Geographically, the towering mountain range of crimson and gold ablaze in all its glory stands as sentinels that secure you and embrace you in its safe terrain or anchor.
Nowhere else are colors so luminous — the sea and sky are so intensely blue that it seems impossible to tell where one begins and the other ends. As you stroll along the white beach, the sun illumines the azure water and eclectic fish of blue, yellow and gold welcome you to their paradise which you now share with them. Celebrities and the well-heeled gravitate towards Amanpulo to enjoy the simple things in life. GM Nick shared that what is most gratifying for him is “When I see couples, families who are very busy, taking time out to enjoy sand castles, watch the sunset, savor the peace and freedom from the crowd and the city chaos.”
Epicurean moments are created in Amanpulo. Top on the list is the resort’s pizza margherita with creamy mozzarella, basil and succulent tomatoes; and pizza marinara topped with deep-red tomato puree and wildly fragrant oregano. Try also the Asian barbecue, which starts with a warm salad of slipper lobster and tamarind dressing, succulent barbecued prawns with green chili sauce, chili squid with sweet chili and mint and coconut sauce and Cambodian grilled chicken with pepper lime dip.
You are spoilt for choice as you can also have Filipino barbeque replete with lechon de leche (spit-roasted suckling pig with liver sauce) and halaya ube for dessert if you wish. Culinary excellence is hard to beat as dinners or lunches can be served anywhere you wish — whether on the stylish yacht, the pristine sandbar, the dramatic shark’s point, outside your villa under the stars. This is definitely savoir vivre.
The spa treatment that takes place on the treetop casitas is a dreamy experience. Your tired muscles surrender to the loving kneading of the masseuse as fragrant aromatherapy oil wafts in the air. The duality of firm and gentle strokes instantly becomes like a concerto, and the treatment keeps you warm and loved within. The experience leaves you spellbound.
Either to the manor born or having earned your own manor, we equate Amanpulo to only the most delightful blessings one can experience. In this isle of peace, nothing will disturb or disrupt your serenity. No obtrusive factors will trespass upon your space. You can be who you want to be; it is not only smiled upon but sanctioned by the gods.
Life is short and we deserve only the best. Why compromise and settle for anything less? Peace, joy, and well-being are priceless. It’s not anymore a question of whether you can afford to, but rather whether you can afford not to.
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For reservations, call (94) 11-774-3500 or e-mail reservations@amanresorts.com.
E-mail the author at miladay.star@gmail.com.