We wanted our holiday home to be a place to relax near Manila so when we visit the Philippines our family could easily visit us  so we chose Mango Grove, Anvaya Cove – a scenic 20 minute drive from Subic Free Port through the jungle reserve. A great plan but we have been so busy recently our visits have become infrequent, leaving the house empty for too much of the time. If you want to know more about the house you can contact me on face-book with a message or e-mail me directly at sharlenedodd@hotmail.com.

So we could enjoy the beautiful surroundings we asked our architect to include a roof terrace and three balconies in the design. These have magnificent views across the surrounding savannah to jungle, sea and mountains. The spacious open plan living area with screened windows on all sides allows the fragrant sea air to be enjoyed rather than air conditioned city style air. A terrace from adjoining the living room leads onto a secluded courtyard garden across which is the maids quarters, kitchen and laundry area. We also have maids accommodation so when we retire we can live in comfort.

The three bedrooms are all air conditioned although we prefer the fresh sea breeze when it is blowing. We decided to have en-suite shower rooms for all the bedrooms and even the family room. To allow maximum enjoyment  of  the outdoor life the bedrooms, living room and study all have adjoining terraces or balconies. The master bedroom has a walk-through dressing room leading to a bathroom with a shower and Jacuzzi bath – we have got a small garden in the bathroom to give the tropical feel but still need to complete the planting.

Luckily my father Albert and my big brother Dennis agreed to project manage the build of our house. My father had the great idea of a ‘Jacuzzi balcony’ extending the roof terrace views to a stunning 270 degrees- we’ll add the Jacuzzi later on;  The view ranges from the mountains inland to the sea and the Zambales mountains over Subic Bay. The sun rises over the mountains inland illuminating the Zambales mountains and sets over the sea. In March the cashew nut trees have fruit and the smell is amazingly fragrant. If you watch quietly there are also some beautiful birds to watch.