Interesting Dwellings During My Mountain Trip

Here are some pics of interesting dwellings during my mountain trip last Saturday. We went up Baguio City and then farther up to the highest place in Benguet--Tuba and Ampucao. Along the way I saw some interesting dwelling places and took pictures of them. 

The pic above is a model of a typical Igorot dwelling in the Mountain Province--well, actually it's more a leisure hut than a typical Igorot dwelling. You will probably find improvised huts like this in rice fields or on the corners of rustic roads. I'm standing with an Igorot wooden image. We were there during the Pinagbenga Flower Festival for an official business presentation and Session Road in the heart of the city was closed to traffic so that tourists can enjoy walking along it freely. 

Look at the earthen clay pot behind me, which is a real typical earthen jar made manually by a native. Igorots are natives of the Mountain Province, which Baguio City--the summer capital of the Philippines--is a major part of. I enjoyed seeing a lot of manual carvings on hard wood.

Hut roofing material is called "Kugon" which is made of piles of dried rice stalks stitched to the roof. It makes for a cool roofing material that allows for free air circulation and makes a great relief from the sun's heat. You never feel hot under a kugon roof. Well, getting your skinned burned by the hot sun is another story altogether. Most Igorots have rosy chicks and fair skin but those who work in the fields have golden grown complexion. 

I saw lots of beautiful, colorful flower arrangements ideal for indoor house gardens and orchards. Along the road I got glimpses of interesting dwellings during my mountain trip, plus a curious small building with lots of mezzanine floors with low ceilings and extremely narrow stairwells. You won't believe how they forced small spaces to become office spaces. 

The building above has many narrow corridors going to this and that direction. On the second floor, a corridor leads to an alley near the Baguio Cathedral. Amazing how they can connect narrow passages together and create a functional small building. 

Oh, by the way, they say that all buildings and hotels in Baguio have their ghost stories. Haha! This building on the left probably has one. I'd love to go back to Baguio to have more pics taken. We were on official business so there was not enough time for pic taking.

Here on the right are makeshift dwellings of the miners' families. Finally, we reached the top of the Tuba, Benguet area. After seeing no human on the way up, we finally saw people. I did a business presentation for the women's organization in the area and it was a lively one, thank God! 

Native and Modern Designs

Though they say we're in "modern times" now, a lot of us can't help but look appreciatively and admiringly back to the past and marvel at how our ancestors were able to devise conveniences using artfully handcrafted design elements. Such creativity, resourcefulness, and artistry! Thus, it always makes us stop and stare in appreciation each time we see native and modern designs mixed into furnishings and especially in architecture. 

Native and modern designs keep us updated with present trends and at the same time in touch with the past. It also reflects our mindsets, being in the NOW, looking ahead, and nostalgic of the past, all at the same time. That's a healthy personality. And moreover, it's always an eye-relaxer to see varnished wood, concrete, and polished metal all incorporated artfully in design. I always love seeing bricks or adobe tiles mixed in with polished wood or topped with rustic lumber to resemble mountain cabins. Imagine mountain-cabin designs for your city dwelling right in the heart of a modern community. It's not just unique--it's refreshing to the eyes and refreshing for the soul. That's always how Pinoy architecture ideas are.

And native and modern designs are not just for HOUSEpinoy or Philippine dwellings. They're equally superb for offices, clinics, cafes, restaurants, hotels, etc. I saw this pizza parlor in Guimba, Nueva Ecija where the owner decided to get rid of some of the usual fast food modern design features and replace them with rustic wood furnishings, polished but retaining their rugged quality. I wish I had a cam then so I could take pictures. I told the owner how I appreciated the whole thing, and she was greatly encouraged and would do the same thing to the rest of her eateries. The native and modern designs seemed to have added refreshment while I and my group ate our lunch there.

Many so-called "developers" (who are just businessmen dealing in housing and knows nothing about architecture) just cut up all the trees and place a solid, rigid concrete dwelling all over Manila and make everything ugly. Yeah, the townhouses and condos they build look so modern and imposing, but lacking the semblance of nature and rustic elements, they eventually become an eye sore. All-concrete structures add to global warming and make the place seem so hot especially in summer. We always need native and modern designs in our architecture plus a few elements of nature, like trees and plants and shrubberies and some water form.

That's what HOUSEpinoy stands for--a striking balance in architecture and in life for the comfort of Filipinos. Godwilling, when I have the money to renovate our house, I'd incorporate contemporary and native design features. This works well especially for limited spaces, which is often the case here in Deep Asia. Remember to always consider Pinoy architecture ideas!

Crazy About Indigenous Dwellings!

As marketing director of an organic fertilizer and Purple Corn Juice in a company in Quezon City, I sometimes get to travel in the countryside. It's just frustrating that I don't have a good camera to take pictures of native houses I see on the way. I'm crazy about indigenous dwellings, especially nipa huts I see in rice fields and remote rural towns. 

This job of mine took me to Isabela, Nueva Viscaya, Cagayan, Cavite, Tagaytay, Pangasinan, and Nueva Ecija. I saw a lot of old and rustic houses I was just itching to take pictures of. But I didn't have any camera, not even a cell phone cam. I wish I had one. It's going to be one of my projects--to buy a good camera and video for taking pictures while I'm on travel, and upload them into my blogs, like HOUSEpinoy, among my favorite blogs. I'm really crazy about indigenous dwellings.

Since I was a kid I've always been fascinated by old and archaic houses. They stir up my imagination. I'm transported back to the days when such houses were the "modern" houses. At Sta. Mesa Heights in Quezon City, along Mayon street, you'd see houses that look like the ones you'd see in old movies back in the 1960s. They're old style American mansions with simple facades, mostly white in color. I hope to take pictures of some of them someday. That is, if they don't get renovated or taken down and replaced with a townhouse or condo.

When I went to Guimba, Nueva Ecija there were several very old houses which seemed to date back to the Spanish era. I really regretted not having a cam around. And also, when I and my wife went to Alaminos, Laguna last December 2011 for a meeting with a scientist, we saw this old and mysterious house which the caretaker said dated back to the Japanese times and which had some mysteries happening in it from time to time. 

Oh, the photos I posted on this article are Ifugao houses and others I saw on the net. The modern Ifugao house is amusing. Though I'm crazy about indigenous dwellings, I appreciate something like this--a derivative of a native architecture. That's what HOUSEpinoy is all about. And I hope to be able to post more articles here from now on. My job keeps getting in the way. And I hope to get a new cam soon...God please...plus a video, hopefully.

Because I'm crazy about indigenous dwellings! Really!

Rustic Appeal of Bricks and Wood

Recently we went out for a swim in Calamba, Laguna and then tried this posh eatery before going home. I thought it would be boring to have dinner here, but I was excited about some of its interior design details.

I've always been excited about bricks and wood when it comes to Pinoy architecture ideas. Again, it gives you a mountain cabin feeling even while you're in the midst of the hassle and bustle of the metropolis. And it's perfect for a touch and effect of antiquity and archaic eras. With the right blend and rendition, seeing bricks and woods in design takes you back centuries ago, with an air of the good old days when lolo and lola used to be young people.

Recently we went to this classy restaurant along C5 road where I thought old-style spaghetti alone was served. I was wrong and shocked. I saw various delectable food items in the menu lineup. And the place was terrific! The interior managed to lend the place a measure of royalty. I took time to appreciate the wall antique decors on the corners of the ceiling, and together with the bricks and wood and the subdued lighting, everything looked elegant.

For HOUSEpinoy, there is subtle beauty and attraction in the right mix of bricks and wood and lighting. If you add to that the display of other antique furnishings--like the archaic steel chairs I saw in this restaurant--there suddenly comes an atmosphere of palatial wonder, like a flash of mansion scenes from the Spanish era. I also took notice of the sword, hatchets, shield, and the mosaic lamps--nice touches for a total medieval look.

I love bricks and wood in houses, too. There's always a rustic appeal created by the combination of the two elements. There's a fresh ambiance and the place seems cooler. And quite amazingly, there's always a touch of mystery about. I would love to line up my wood planked wall with my favorite books on an attached shelf. Then, perhaps, a fire place below where fresh meat can be grilled? Of course, this is in the vicinity of the kitchen and dining room. I love reading while cooking or eating.

My grandmother used to have those antique steel chairs with twisted steel bars for supports. I don't know what happened to them, but when I was a kid I used to enjoy sitting on them. My uncles would pile them one over the other and step on the topmost to reach something up the ceiling. They were handy antique chairs. This restaurant applied some upholstery on the sitting surface and that added to its elegance. I couldn't help but take pictures of them.

Bricks and wood and lighting and antiques. I'd consider them the next time I design an interior. The concept is not just for restaurants. I think it's also perfect for living and dining rooms, small lobbies, and vacation houses.

Showcase in Wood

Relishing the enchanting sight of wood, especially natural and polished wood! I'd always go for wooden furnishings and interior design elements, more than steel or plastic. Wood connects your inner urge for things natural and feeds the yearning for nature within.

This summer 2011, I went to different provinces in the Philippines. I was amused by the various interior designs in wood with the amazing unique imagination of their designers. Wood is really a great relaxing sight in edifices and a great break from the usual tiring sights of the city concrete jungle. I hope you enjoy this short showcase in wood. By the way, the photo above is a wooden dining set in a posh restaurant in Tagaytay.

The beauty of wood is that it reminds you of nature, and thus of the goodness of God. And all that amounts in one's soul refreshment. Concrete reminds you of man's technology. Well, sometimes, that's also nice to remember, but then you also think of how man's technology has been destroying ecology and nature and how an all-concrete city landscape has turned our metropolis into a huge oven.

Then you see wood in a design, and it immediately refreshes your mind like you get a good splash of cool mountain spring water on your face. The beauty of wood really evokes mental relaxation in you. Thus, when I see a sightful showcase in wood I have the tendency to give it a good look and even turn my head to look at it more. Like when we were in Tagaytay and there were these makeshift shops of wooden furniture along the road. Simply fascinating!

An amazing showcase in wood backgrounded in a scene of nature is even better. I was captivated by the scene above and had it taken--a wooden mountain cabin overlooking a background scene of Taal lake and adjacent hills. The sight helped you quickly switch to a pensive mood.

There was this rest room in one of Tagaytay's businesses we saw that featured a small manual water pump on its lavatory instead of a usual modern faucet. It was simply amazing. I wish to have something like that in my kitchen and bathroom. The lavatory itself was like one of those China wares my mom and grandma used to keep in their China cabinet. All around the room were wood designs reminding you of rustic settings.

And then there was this ceiling design made of rough but varnished tree branches placed horizontally like grills covering the ceiling. It was simple and yet it easily suggested an exotic ambiance. The side railings were also of rough but varnished branches, and the whole place overlooked some mountains in Tagaytay.

If you'd look at the dining table and chairs in the picture above, they are heavy, thick planks of wooden timber, polished and varnished. The effect was a wonderful appetite for grilled native food menus and natural fruit drinks, although the latter was not available. So we settled on bottled mineral water.

But this is not to say that wood is only good for a rustic and rural look. Wood also goes well with modern design, as we enjoyed it in our stay in one of Tagaytay's posh conference hotels--what I call Confetels. One look and the overall design made us feel at ease, ready to plunge on the cushioned beds. The darkly varnished wood furnishings matched with the light colors of the room. It created a light ambiance suggesting that you forget about the job you left behind in the city for a while.

Umm, that's my Word disciple, Toots, wondering why I was taking pictures of the toilet entrance. The rest room was comfy enough and the inserted study nook in the picture was perfect for conference delegates. Oh, and yes, I was delighted to see the wooden cabinet that smelled of mountain pines.

Wood is charming, more so when treated with artistic finesse. We should appreciate its quality more and apply it in Pinoy architecture designs, of course with a mind to continually preserving our forests. With structural members embedded in concrete or in ceilings and which are hidden from our sights, we need to opt for steel design. But with design elements naked to the eyes, we need to consider more the elegance of solid, polished wood.

Bamboo's Refreshing Appeal

Whenever I see bamboo--tree, furnishing, or house--it has a refreshing appeal. There's an inner urge to go closer  to see it or try it if it's something built or constructed. Like a bamboo house. Bamboo houses are considered more an entertainment than an actual human abode in most places, but I think more bamboo human habitats ought to be built. Bamboo's refreshing appeal ought to change lots of moods for the better. And that means a better community.

It is observed that bamboo's refreshing appeal creates an atmosphere of:

• Relaxation. At a glance, it powerfully suggests easement of activities, if not utter cessation. It quickly develops an atmosphere of resting, releasing positive energy and enhancing mental de-stressing. 
• Putting defenses down. We're often alert about intellectual and emotional aggression against us, so more people have developed an always-ready defense mechanism wherever they are. But seeing bamboo furnishings or houses like the ones in the pictures sometimes can make us put down our guards for a while in appreciation. It is advisable to get some attractive bamboo furnishings in your areas of leisure  study, or where you meet clients.
• Nationalism. Bamboos in the tropics can begin to cultivate a sense of nationalism in you, a quick pride in your heritage and culture, especially in Pinoy architecture ideas. And the good news is, it often brings out a positive kind of Filipinism.
• Meditation. I note most people, when they step into a livable bamboo house or try a bamboo furniture, they immediately assume a pensive mood and then say, "Beautiful!" In that short moment of time they transform from being too mundane or material to being spiritual. At that short interval, they become artists appreciating intangible values.
• Play. Even adults become children with their children.

Bamboo creates a sense of lightness in you and transfers that to your life experience in a glimpse. If you have a heavy heart and come in touch with bamboo, the heaviness often lifts up. I remember the cluster of bamboo in our school premise near a creek when I was a pupil. We'd often go there to refresh after a hectic class. Chemistry was a daunted subjected, and we wished we had it there by the bamboo cluster.

If you can't get along with your spouse, I suggest you both stay in a bamboo house built right beside your house. Spend your nights there. If your kid seems to have problems you cannot understand, get him a bamboo play house. If you have teens you have difficulty understanding, spend overnight camp outs with them in your bamboo house within your property. 

However, problems or no problems, bamboo is among God's gifts to make life happily simpler.

Rich Design Variations
It has lots of varying possible designs you can experiment with. You may render it arched, diagonal, vertical, horizontal, raw, polished, varnished, stripped, logged, matted, or treated with fire for durability and permanence. Some bamboo experts bend, arch and form bamboo in certain forms and make it stay permanently like that by treating with fire.

Some imaginative designers subtly combine bamboo with modern embroidery or upholstery, and the result is a more relaxing and beguiling look raised to the tenth power. I love a bamboo bed or sofa with thick white cushions on them. And if you render the pillows in native tropical design patterns, you have a superb relaxer home furnishing.

Every boy and girl loves bamboo play houses, and I plan to have one in my yard one day--for my boys and their future boys, Godwilling. And I can imagine a huge bamboo house with a large veranda a perfect place for holding my bible studies with my disciples.

It's also advisable to grow bamboo trees in your yard. Having a small cluster would do. It's perfect for relaxing the mind and meditating especially when there's a gentle breeze blowing. Bamboo trees in harmony with the wind creates soothing chuckles.

Here in the Philippines, I think more people should have these houses in their yards. They're perfect not just for relaxation but also for all occasions. And I think interiors should have more of this wood as design feature. In an age of bolstering nationalism in Filipinos, this wood can greatly contribute to this end. If you have growing kids, it's good to expose them to things Filipino, even in the furnishing designs they see around them. We cannot under estimate the power of recall in kids' minds. The more they see native crafts and design elements, the better for their patriotism. These are Pinoy architecture ideas we should consider more.

Bamboo and Wood in Design

Luring you to relax to the max.

I so love bamboo incorporated in architectural design. In fact, I prefer bamboo sofa sets to urban modern ones. I love bamboo anywhere in the house, even in toilet and bath, and especially in the kitchen. I also love it in bedrooms, especially mixed with modern furnishings. Bamboo and wood design are excellent accents for heavy-concrete architecture.

Architectural philosophy encourages balance and symmetry with contrast. This makes the overall impression stick to the mind and the recall effect impresses on people and makes them repeat the design in their own home projects. Contrast eliminates boredom and puts spice and life to the composition. Here, bamboo and wood in design proves very effective.

All-concrete is always an eye sore for me. When mixed with metal, it becomes a bit tolerable, especially if the metal is colored strikingly contrasting. But a triad mix of concrete, wood, and metal is altogether something else. It makes me want to rush into the edifice to see what's inside. It sparks up active interest.

Bamboo creates a vacation mood, an idea of rustic relaxation even if one is amid the hassle and bustle of city life. Better if the hardness of bamboo is made pliant by the sight of soft cushions or its simpler rendition to lengthy strips. Bamboo and wood in design lends life to the coldness and rigidity of concrete and metal.

A mix of concrete, metal, and wood is often the spice of design.

I would like to have my city house retain an out-of-town atmosphere, always having the air of a resort. To attain this, I would consider the presence of bamboo and wood in design, no matter how they are susceptible to termite attacks. I would even have an actual bamboo tree in a corner of my property, as well as other partially wooded corners. Bamboo trees create whispers of sounds indicative of rural breeze gently passing by. And I definitely would like to enjoy that in my city habitat all year round.

I believe city architects should well consider the above when designing urban abodes for the busy and stressed urbanite. To lessen the toll of work pressure and tension, architects have the duty to re-produce the peace and calm of the countryside in the work place and at home, or at least recommend the same to their clients, stressing their importance.

And in this task, bamboo and wood in design would prove invaluable. In Deep Asia, bamboo always brings back time to the simple old days of our ancestors at the same time that we realize the needs of the present. Seeing bamboo puts us somewhat in a meditative mode. Deep Asians find the sight of bamboo and wood in design quite conducive to healthy and beneficial rumination of what is real, needful, and soul-satiating.

That's my ideal HOUSEpinoy--always putting hints of the province in your daily routine. Thus, I like gathering Pinoy architectural ideas I see around and composing them into a blog.