"Pagandahan ng emote," Bong jokes as this picture is taken. Boy says that he once spent a night in the lower lanai, which also has a mini-bar: "It's like you're in a distant country."

Posing for the camera is "all about presence," Boy quips. "It's all about attitude. I know that's all I have." As he and Bong try different poses for this shot, Boy explains the design of the staircase: "This is the most suwerte." But he admits he doesn't follow everything that feng shui dictates: "Gusto ko lang the things that make me comfortable."

Boy's living room is described by Cynthia Almario, his interior designer, as having the California-San Francisco look, made famous by American interior designer Michael Taylor. Incidentally, the centralized air conditioner installed in the house, Boy tells YES!, was a gift from his good friend and "The Buzz" co-host, Kris Aquino.

"Everything in this house is new," Boy points out. That includes the stylish pieces found in the dining area. The arranged flowers in the room, he adds, are "all real flowers, some colored and dried, because I don't like plastic flowers, and all my flowers are done by Biboy Arboleda."

Asked if guests have been to this well-designed mini-bar, located just on the other side of the lanai, Boy admits: "We haven't entertained yet."

Cynthia Almario describes the master bedroom—dominated by a four-poster bed, with matching green silk coverlet, draperies, and numerous pillows—as a plush and romantic sanctuary. She says one of Boy's requests was to have the bedroom fashioned like a hotel suite: "Because he said that he spends most of his time there, doing his research, watching TV, and just really cocooning."

This veranda on the second floor, with its varied pieces of furniture and books and magazines, is another cozy area for Boy. "I live on books. That's my life. I've reached the point where I read everything. I used to be so condescending about books, but now I read everything."

Diaphanous fabrics, subdued lights, and an assortment of oriental pieces make this bathroom in the master bedroom perfect for relaxing.

 

The happy couple, here clowning for the camera, still can't believe that their dreams have finally come true. Says Boy: "Ang pangarap mo talaga ay nangyayari pala. Totoo 'yon, it happens."

This room, specifically planned for Boy's Nanay Lesing, was done in shades of black and white. But Boy says his mother hasn't had the chance to use this room since she's so busy taking care of her son's other properties.

Matching floral patterns were used for the walls, curtains, and twin beds in this room, reserved for Boy's other female relatives.

 

Imported bamboos have been placed in front of the house because "Boy loves bamboo," according to landscape engineer Boy Quililan. And believe it: this house has been blessed three times in the year 2004—on November 22, December 15, and December 22. Wow, that's a lot of goodwill blowing into the home!

"This house doesn't sleep," Boy says. He often gets the urge to clean the house in the wee hours of the morning. At night, the house lights take on the hues of different areas of the property. Outside, the lights produced by the Swarovski crystal chandelier can be seen way across the street.

This Balinese-inspired upper lanai, which runs along one side of the house, was created by interior designer Cynthia Gaerlan, who declares she had the whole place done just in time for the Christmas in 2004. "I went shopping for 10 days!" she laughs, adding that "Boy brought out a lot of his old stuff and he said, 'Bahala ka na how to use them.'"

This is the only part of the house where there is a mix and match of old and new items. It has become one of Boy's two favorite places in the house; the other is the lower lanai. Boy and Bong hang out here until the wee hours. Says Boy: "Karamihan ng mga ginamit ni Cynthia, regalo nina Manay Gina [de Venecia] at Ai-Ai [delas Alas]. Lahat ng mga tela, niregalo sa akin."