An active lifestyle

With temperatures spiking up to 37.5°, everyone’s rushing to escape the city. Baguio, Boracay, and the beaches north and south of Manila beckon. However, the airports, roads and expressways to these destinations are crowded and travel times are often excruciatingly long. One destination that does not have this downside, yet provides a cool setting for chilling out, is Lipa in Batangas, specifically Mount Malarayat Golf and Country Club. It is the site of next week’s Philippine Open Golf Championship. It took us less than two hours to get there via the SLEX and the convenient Southern Tagalog Arterial Road (STAR). Far enough to escape the pollution and mess of Metropolitan Manila but near enough for quick escapes that don’t need passports or butt-flattening rides.

But, my golf is as good as my French so needless to say we stayed out of the club’s world-class, lushly-landscaped 27 holes (rated one of the country’s best and with select holes that have made it to world rankings in golf-course design). Out of town did not mean out of sight as the weekend meant being pampered in the club’s newly opened hotel. The commodious suites in contemporary Filipino design here are blessed with picturesque views of the golf course and a recreational lake (where you can sail… remote controlled sailboats that is – a really cool thing to do with your kids).

Though we did not bring our two sons (one was with his grandmother in Cavite and the other was at a Mowelfund workshop for cinematography), we did enjoy daily massages, badminton, good wine and great meals. Resort-style swimming pools and the Jacuzzis beside the Sports Club complex invite those wishing to soak. There’s a kiddie pool and nearby a children’s club house with game rooms, jungle gyms and sand lots.

The Malarayat Club was built by the Active Group, which recently celebrated its 35th anniversary. Tony and Tina Turalba, architect/developers both, have been the driving force in this real estate company. Their guiding principle: Excellence. Active spared no expense designing and building this golf course designed by the world-renowned firm of JM Poellet, and providing it with a landscape setting by IPSantos and PDAA Partners, the country’s two top landscape architectural firms.

The 7,000-yard golf course is surrounded by choice residential lots. Homes worthy of glossy magazines are sprouting up in the sprawling 185 hectares of Mt. Malarayat. The future looks even rosier for weekenders and permanent residents. An equestrian center is in the works (the main building is already complete) along with the addition of even more sports facilities. Meanwhile, the landscape is maturing very well (which is more than I can say for other developments that do not invest in good landscape architectural design, plant selection and maintenance).

But that’s not all. Aside from being under the shadow of mesmerizing Mt. Malarayat, this destination is actually within the territorial boundaries of lovely Lipa City. Equally lovely Mayor Ate Vi (Vilma Santos-Recto) has turned her metropolis into a booming place for agri-business, religious centers and trade. Lipa is also known for its churches, convents and retreat houses (like the stately San Sebastian Cathedral and pilgrim-favorite Mt. Carmel Church, site of a religious miracle in 1948). Because of this, the city is also known as the "Little Rome" of the Philippines.

The city retains an interesting trove of architectural heritage with examples from different eras – from Spanish to American to post-war modern. For those with the common disease of shoppingmallitis, there’s a Robinsons nearby and enough fast-food restaurants to calm any burger, fries or fried chicken craving. Cinemas offer the latest movies while pizza parlors and KTV establishments are also popular.

Back to Mt. Malarayat. The whole place was gearing up excitedly for the 89th Philippine Open championship. The blue skies above the recreational complex were filled with colorful kites and the sound of families on picnics. The evening before we left, a new corner of the complex was inaugurated: The Suites at Mount Malarayat. This new cluster of mid-rise structures comfortably house vacation units with cozy inner courtyards and views from individual balconies. All of this is walking distance from the major sports facilities and clubs and in addition all units are provided with trellis-covered parking nearby.

It’s great that there are options to billboard-infested, traffic-ridden, sizzling Metro Manila. Mt. Malarayat proves that active lifestyles need not be cramped by weather or inaccessibility. Cool Malarayat is fun for families as well as corporate events, training programs and launches. With its new hotel, suites and inns, this destination will come up number one on Manilans’ list of places to visit and enjoy.

Now, I think now I’ll learn golf.

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Feedback is welcome. Please e-mail the writer at paulo.alcazaren@gmail.com. For inquiries and reservations at Mt. Malarayat, call the Active Group, Inc. at 8937024 to 28 or log on to their website at www.malarayat.com.