23km beyond Jarabacoa, Manabao is about as close to Pico Duarte as one can get on paved roads in the Cordillera Central. Mountanous, cool and very hilly, most houses are made of wood since there is a plentiful supply close by. We ride motorcycles there on tour often because it's such an incredible place.
We had a meeting with a project sponsor at his Manabao get-away yesterday. I was told the location was unusual-but that's a difficult term to define within the Dominican vernacular. We weren't prepared for what we experienced.
His "getaway" from Santo Domingo is a 12-year work-in-progress straight from the Mediterranean Renaissance, inspired by Altos de Chavon. Not surprising because he sold his Casa de Campo place for this.
Take a look. Good thing I had a cellphone with camera/video.
Coming up his 1.5km driveway, almost straight up:
The back, which is really the main area. This will eventually be the guest house:
Where his 1-cyl diesel powerplant lives. Between the solar panels & planta (1gal=10hrs) and mountain water, he's totally off the grid.
The terraces, looking up an the main house he's been building, literally a church recreation:
Overlooking from the upper terraces at Alida:
Tough place to meet with wine, cheese & coffee:cheeky::
[video=youtube;k7cYkAbwLto]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k7cYkAbwLto&feature=youtu.be[/video]
Except for the kitchen-which is completely modern industrial kitchen since cooking is a passion, there isn't one piece of "modern" construction I could find. The house is furnished with nothing but large, very old antiques. He had some old church bells that are destined for the main residence.
It would fit right in with Altos de Chavon.
Very interesting and unexpected, indeed...
We had a meeting with a project sponsor at his Manabao get-away yesterday. I was told the location was unusual-but that's a difficult term to define within the Dominican vernacular. We weren't prepared for what we experienced.
His "getaway" from Santo Domingo is a 12-year work-in-progress straight from the Mediterranean Renaissance, inspired by Altos de Chavon. Not surprising because he sold his Casa de Campo place for this.
Take a look. Good thing I had a cellphone with camera/video.
Coming up his 1.5km driveway, almost straight up:
The back, which is really the main area. This will eventually be the guest house:
Where his 1-cyl diesel powerplant lives. Between the solar panels & planta (1gal=10hrs) and mountain water, he's totally off the grid.
The terraces, looking up an the main house he's been building, literally a church recreation:
Overlooking from the upper terraces at Alida:
Tough place to meet with wine, cheese & coffee:cheeky::
[video=youtube;k7cYkAbwLto]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k7cYkAbwLto&feature=youtu.be[/video]
Except for the kitchen-which is completely modern industrial kitchen since cooking is a passion, there isn't one piece of "modern" construction I could find. The house is furnished with nothing but large, very old antiques. He had some old church bells that are destined for the main residence.
It would fit right in with Altos de Chavon.
Very interesting and unexpected, indeed...
