The Mansion at Filoli was built by the owner of California’s largest gold mine, William Bowers Bourn, also the owner of Spring Valley Water Company.
Construction began in 1915 and the owners moved in after two years. Wow that’s fast. Hindi arawan yung workers.
Both Mr. and Mrs. Bourn died in 1936. The estate was sold in 1937 to Mr. and Mrs. William P. Roth, owner of the Matson Navigation Company.
Many Hollywood films were shot here, such as The Wedding Planner starring Jennifer Lopez and Matthew McConaughey, The Game starring Michael Douglas, Heaven Can Wait. And for a long time this was the Carrington Mansion in the TV series Dynasty.
And for this photo, I imagined this is my mansion.
We bumped into Ramon Regala several times in this trip. While checking in at NAIA, at the Mabuhay Lounge, flight to SFO, at Filoli’s cafe, and again here at the mansion.
Past president and director of Manila Golf and Country Club, Ramon Regala, his wife, and their friends were also touring the estate.
Avid golfers: Carlos Alfonso Ocampo, Edmund, Ramon Regala. Ang mga golfers kasi magkaka-kilala.
Their group finished the tour ahead of us.
The mansion’s foyer is full of hydrangeas and other potted flowers.
Every corner is adorned with fresh flowers.
Access to the mansion is only limited to the ground floor.
The formal dining hall.
I couldn’t get any closer to the china. The dinner plates on display are rotated every season according to the female volunteer watching that hall.
The wooden panelings made the room formal and stately.
Original furniture and furnishings are still there like this antique piano.
Another compact piano. This size is a lot more practical than the sizes we have available in our generation.
This is the poker table. Notice that each player has his own candelabra. Maybe they didn’t have electricity yet in those days. Mahirap may kandila sa gilid, baka matabig mo pa, masunog yung bahay.
The men’s library or study
It’s nice to have a big garden full of flowers. Every vase is filled with freshly cut and arranged flowers.
When my daughter was one year old, Edmund and I thought of starting a flower delivery business. We would supply fresh floral arrangements to residences every week. We would call our business, Flowers for Julienne. It remained just an idea. Ganun naman, we always have ideas but we never pursued them.
Ayleen
Trophy room.
A———“Tart, dapat pala meron tayong trophy room para sa mga trophy mo sa golf”.
E———“Puro plastic at mumurahin lang naman yun, hindi ganyan”.
Long time ago, rich people have ballrooms inside their homes. When I was little, my parents visited the house of Senator Jose Roy in New Manila. I will never forget that day. When our vehicle reached their tall gate, a security guard peeped and asked “sino ho kayo?”. When my father said “paki sabi si Felicing at Cardo”. Ang bilis lang, the gate opened and we entered the compound. The house was on the left side. It was Senator Roy himself who received us. Akay-akay pa nya ako. We crossed a huge living room, into another huge room called the ballroom with a stage and a grand piano. For a little girl, everything looked towering. My next memory was we were having lunch at a long table and I had the privilege of sitting beside Senator Roy. There were many food on the table but the only dish I could remember was big plump tomatoes, filled with ground pork cooked with alamang (binagoongang baboy). I was so amazed that tomatoes could be used as a container. Sa amin kasi ang kamatis eh hinihiwa lang at sinasawsawan.
I would like to have a ballroom too. Hi hi hi ganyan ako, puro “I like this one too”. “I want to have something like this too”. Everything starts with a dream.
The second owner of Filoli owned cruise ships that sailed to and from Honolulu.
This small room was originally the breakfast room. It’s now used as a display for their Goyard luggage, photos of their yachts, ships, etc. Ayleen commented that there was no Louis Vuitton, all Goyard.
Next to the breakfast room is the kitchen
They kept some old copies of the ship’s Parisian Night Dinner menu.
I was surprised to see a walk-in Hermann Safe for their sterling silverware and more expensive dinner wares. I can’t copy this, I will just forget the safe’s combination.
E———–“O kahit nuon meron na ring magnanakaw ng gamit”.
The china cabinets still have some original dinner wares and decor like this Limoges fruit bowls or stands.
E———-“Tart, oh, bilhin mo”.
E———-“Tanungin mo baka mag-ga-garage sale sila”.
E———-“Bilhin mo”.
A———-“Hindi yan for sale”.
E———-“Tanungin mo, baka i garage sale”.
Baka nga i-garage sale itong Limoges, ano ako sinuswerte?
Calling-calling one two three
Mrs. Roth lived here until 1975 after which she donated 125 acres, which included the House and formal garden, to the National Trust for Historic Preservation for the enjoyment and inspiration of future generations. The remaining acreage was given to Filoli Center. The 654-acre estate is a California State Historic Landmark and listed on the National Registry of Historic Places.
to be continued
