All language subtitles for Gaorr 5

[dramatic music]

[Narrator] Imagine
living in a home

that sits secluded in a forest,

on a 100-kilometer beach,

or on top of a mountain.

In this series, we
travel the globe

to explore some of the
world's most secret homes,

hidden away in truly
inspiring locations,

from jungle hideaways and
secluded mountain cabins.

This is what it's
all about. I love it.

[Narrator] To
coastal sanctuaries

and desert retreats.

It does something
to your soul.

[Narrator] We explore how

these spectacular
homes were built.

It was amazing because
it was lost for 70 years.

[Narrator] And meet the
people who live in them.

People come in and
say, "Oh, wow." [laughs]

No one's expecting it.

[Narrator] As we discover
the world's most secret homes.

[dramatic music]

Designated an area of
outstanding natural beauty,

the Cotswolds are a collection

of traditional English villages

covering an area of over
2,000 square kilometers.

These lakes were once quarries
that supplied the stone

that built both Windsor Castle
and the Houses of Parliament.

It's the perfect spot for
a secluded and secret home.

[dramatic music]

Hidden amongst luscious foliage

on the banks of one
of the lakes here

stands a home that looks as
though it's suspended on water.

This is the secret
villa on the lake.

[bright music]

The owner of this home
wanted it to be constructed

almost entirely out of glass

to reflect its
waterside surroundings.

The inspiration
for the glass house

goes back maybe 30-plus years.

I was a young man
watching a movie,

and there was a glass
house in there, on the sea,

and I was fascinated.

And I always had this
dream to actually

one day build a glass house.

I wanted to live outside.

I wanted to see water.
I wanted to hear water.

I wanted to hear nature.

It's a joy kind of
see the seasons.

When for example, the
autumn leaves are falling,

and the colors are changing,

it's there in front of you
pretty much wherever you go.

You can see the
change without even

stepping outside the door.

[bright music]

[Narrator] Built at
the edge of the water,

this house covers
200 square meters,

and has been designed
over three floors.

On the first floor is the
en suite master bedroom,

two guest bedroom
suites, and an office.

On the ground floor
is the formal lounge,

kitchen, and dining room,

a small sitting room, and
a further guest bedroom.

Below is a home spa
and leisure area.

[bright music]

This house makes the most of
the views in every direction.

[upbeat music]

So coming to the door,

you come into the
view straightaway.

There's no hall.

You just get hit with
this huge 16-meter facade

of lake view with
the central atrium.

[Narrator] The
panoramic windows

are 3 1/2 half meters high.

It's just so expansive.

You've got basically
sight lines everywhere,

sight lines to the right,
sight lines to the left,

so basically it's open
pretty much everywhere.

For most people that that come
through, including myself,

you actually just take a
little bit of a breath,

gasp at the view.

When you come into this
space, you just go, "Wow!"

This is the formal lounge.

It's one of my favorites, or
probably my favorite room.

It's a great room
to watch nature,

because this is much
more expansive in terms of lake views.

It's sitting almost on the lake

with the way that the
room is positioned.

The wall's been created
specifically for the fireplace

to house a chimney and a
bespoke fireplace design here.

The beauty of this whole
space, including this room,

is that it has these
massive three doors

that pull all the way open,

so you can let the
air in in the summer,

and just generally see
the fishes come up,

or the ducks and the
swans come to the house.

[Narrator] All the rooms in
the house have been designed

to make the most of the views,

from the master
bedroom, with en suite,

to the office,

and the dining room and kitchen.

The top floor of the house
conceals a surprising secret.

We have the
staircase which leads

what looks like to nowhere.

It's actually a door,
an automatic door,

which opens up onto
the roof terrace.

[Narrator] A secret
terrace with 360-degree views

of the surrounding
lake and countryside.

There are 32 solar
panels up here.

With a desire to make the house

as carbon neutral as possible,

they provide 80% of
the home's electricity.

[Raj] The view
coming up the stairs,

I mean, I never tire of it.

It's like stairway to
heaven in some respects.

It's the most amazing,
really, place to be

when you've got a
beautiful summer's day,

and the sun is about to set,

and you come out here
and have a little drink.

[upbeat music]

[Narrator] This
secret waterside home

was built by a Dutch team,

developer Leo de Winter and
architect Dick van Gameren,

who specialize in
constructing homes on water.

I was the first one
approached to do this project.

We looked for a Dutch engineer,

and that's how we
really contact Dick.

For me it was really
a special project,

because I became involved

after the engineers
became involved.

And he said, well, I
also need a designer,

and I think also
looking for a designer

with a sensitivity to the
special context of water.

And yeah, for me, that was
a very challenging question.

[Narrator] With more
than half their country

below sea level, the
Dutch are experts

in building houses both
on and below water.

Leo and Dick's
expertise has created

one more secret
within this home,

tucked away where
you'd least expect it:

deep below the waterline.

Most people looking
outside don't understand

that this actually
house has a basement.

[Narrator] Submerged
under the water,

with windows that
peak out just above,

there's a leisure center
with wellness suite, spa,

sauna, and jacuzzi.

There is also space for a
full-size snooker table,

and a nine-seater
private cinema.

The basement, what we tried
to create is more space,

is more private area, too,
for his own cinema than ever,

and that makes it unique.

[Raj] Growing up, I always
wanted certain things.

So basically,
everything I ever wanted

has been built into the house.

[Narrator] Building
this underwater basement

was a huge
engineering challenge.

[upbeat music]

Workers first had to seal
off and pump the water out

of the section of the lake
where the house was being built.

They excavated four meters down

into the unstable
gravel lake bed

to create space for
the foundations,

and filled it with
clay to shore it up.

They drove 65 steel columns
down into the lake bed

to form the outer
shape of the basement.

They positioned
reinforced concrete walls,

fabricated offsite,
over the steel columns,

and drove them
down into the clay

to create a temporary base.

Once the four walls were
in place and sealed,

they dug out the clay and
pulled in concrete to stabilize

the foundations the house
could then be built on.

[bright music]

This home's clever
design means you feel

as if you are floating
and living on the water.

It's a project Raj
couldn't be happier with.

It's been 30 years
in the concept stage

and probably six or seven
years in the making,

but it's been it's
been worth it.

[bright music]

[Narrator] 7,800
Kilometers west,

in the shadow of
snow-capped Mount Hood,

lies Portland,
Oregon's largest city.

This place takes
much of its character

from its old
industrial heritage,

inspiring many of its dwellers
to be creative with design.

Just 15 minutes
west of the city,

a sleepy suburb blends into
its forest surroundings.

In this most traditional
of neighborhoods

hides this most
untraditional of homes.

Emerging through
the dense foliage

is this unusual yet
unassuming forest house.

[bright classical music]

The house was built by
retired software developer

and music lover, Roy Wilkinson,

as a sanctuary away
from city life.

When I first came to Portland,

I was determined to
build my own home.

I was not very excited about

the standard houses
that were going up.

They were all essentially
variations on a theme,

and then the themes were nice,

but they weren't really
that interesting.

I wanted something thing that
I could really be happy with.

Well, be proud of.

it needed to be wooded.

It needed to have green
and trees around it.

The way the house is sited,

I am not in a neighborhood,
I'm in the forest.

From the roadway, there's
something down there,

but you can't really
see the house.

And then, as you come
down the driveway,

bit by bit

the house is revealed.

You know, I think
it's a work of art.

I mean, that's what I
wanted. That's what I got.

[laid-back music]

[Narrator] The house is
built on a sloping plot.

It covers 393 square
meters across three floors.

On the ground level there's
a garage to the left, a den,

and beyond that, the
living accommodation,

kitchen, and reading room.

A private terrace extends
outwards from the rock face.

The terrace hangs nine
meters above the ground.

Downstairs are three bedrooms,

two bathrooms, and a
utility storage area.

Below that there's a cellar.

[tranquil music]

The structure of
this house is built

with a range of
unusual materials.

Local cedar forms the
curved arcs of the building.

Copper cladding that
will age over time

and blend with
nature tops the roof.

The timber shingles that
cover the outer facade

are irregular-shaped to give
the house a fairytale quality.

To one side of the house,

a discreet gate leads to
Roy's magical retreat.

And what lies behind this gate

is far from expected
in suburban Portland.

So this is

starting to enter my world

through a Japanese garden.

And the whole idea of
this was to come home

and leave the stress
of workaday life

into a more comfortable,
calm environment.

And with the garden
water feature,

you just have serene beauty
that you're looking at.

[Narrator] Making the most

of the spectacular surroundings,

the unconventional
design continues right to the front door.

This is a little
out of the ordinary.

Not your usual entryway.

[bright music]

You don't buy these at Costco.

[Narrator] This D-shaped
wood-and-glass door

with a central swing
pivot is designed

to merge the house
with the garden.

The doorway blends seamlessly

with the sweeping
design of the home.

[Roy] When I have
people come to visit,

this is where I first
see their jaws drop.

But when I open this door,

their eyes bug out, their
jaws drop, because it's,

they don't know quite
like what to expect,

but most of 'em
aren't expecting this.

[Narrator] - Inside
is even more quirky.

[Roy] If the front
door hadn't already

dropped their jaw enough,
their eyes widen even more,

and it's just, they've never
seen anything like this.

As you come in the front
door, you enter space

that I find very physically
relaxing and calming,

and it almost lifts you
up in terms of your mood.

[Narrator] Large windows
and an open-plan living space

maximize natural light
inside the house.

These features allow Roy to feel

like he lives within
the forest self.

The theme continues throughout
the bedrooms, bathrooms,

And hallway.

[upbeat music]

To bring his dream home to life,

Roy worked with Robert
Oshatz, an architect known

for using unconventional
forms in his designs.

So these drawings
that I brought,

they're the equivalent
to the final drawings

that were used to
build the structure.

And it's just like
it looks today,

so you haven't changed a thing.

[both laughing]

My philosophy with this was
that I was hiring an artist,

and my belief is that
when you hire an artist,

you don't say, "Do this."

You let them do
their magic artistry.

[Robert] For me, the
important things was

how you wanted to
live in the house.

You wanted a spot to relax,

and being close to the trees
and close to the birds.

And then the
importance of music.

And you wanted to
have good acoustics.

Those were the things
that I tried to do.

[Narrator] The sweeping
curves of the wooden roof beams

play an instrumental
part in the acoustics

and aesthetics of the house.

[Robert] The ceiling was
really important, because,

being wood, it's like, when
a sound hits the violin,

it's the wood that
makes the sound

radiate out so beautifully.

And then, aesthetically,

the house just kinda
grows out of the site,

and the beams here are all
kind of like extensions

of the trees that
you're surrounded by.

They're just continuous
branches going out.

[upbeat music]

[Narrator] Another
advantage of using wood

is that it gave Robert great
flexibility to use bold,

irregular shapes
in the structure.

One of this home's most striking
features is this cylinder

that runs right through
the center of the home.

[Robert] It was
like the tying element

in a musical composition.

It was the melody that
ran through the house,

and everything else
worked off of it.

[Narrator] This
cylinder shape comes alive

in one of Roy's favorite
rooms in the house.

[Roy] This is my reading
room. I have here a cylinder.

Basically a soup
can on its side.

It's comfy. It's cozy.

It's a nice, snug little place
to cocoon, in some sense.

And I look out at more trees,

and just looking at
nature out there.

And it fits the house.

[Narrator] From
the reading room,

the indoor and outdoor
spaces merge together.

[Roy] This is out on my deck.

We're probably 20 or 30
feet up from the ground,

and pretty much
surrounded by trees.

[Narrator] The outside
deck launches into the air

to give the feeling of being
suspended in the tree tops.

This cantilevered deck
is an impressive feat

of structural engineering.

To build it, first a sloping
plot had to be excavated

to create a stable base.

Workers had to remove just
over 30,000 kilograms of earth.

They constructed a level,

heavily-reinforced
concrete foundation.

Steel posts rise
up from this base

to provide the
support for the deck.

This enabled the
wooden deck to overhang

the building's footprint
without any additional bracing.

There's one more hidden
secret that's tucked away

deep in the heart of the house.

It helps music lover Roy
hit all the right notes.

[Roy] Clearly one of my
favorite parts of the house,

which is the wine cellar.

[Narrator] This
Aladdin's cave of wine

has enough space for
over 2,500 bottles.

I got interested in
wine some decades back,

and I just sort of got
going, and kept going,

and eventually got, you know,

more wine than I could
drink in my lifetime.

[upbeat classical music]

[Narrator] Roy's sanctuary,

inspired by his love of nature,

comes alive when friends gather

to indulge his
other love, music.

The String quartet
occasionally play here.

[bright music]

This house is a work of art,
and I look at it in a sense

as a sculpture that
I get to live in.

And I don't think that
there are that many people

that can say that.

I think it's wonderful,

and my plan is to live here
for the rest of my life.

[Narrator] This house
unites Roy's passion

for music, nature, and
the finer things in life.

[dramatic music]

3,500 kilometers east

is Lake Ontario in Canada,

one of the largest bodies
of fresh water on earth.

It was carved out by glaciers
during the last ice age,

and has over 1,100 kilometers
of dramatic shoreline.

Vast open prairies dominate
the land around here.

This lakeside wilderness

is the perfect place
to build a secret home.

[calm music]

Perched on a clifftop

only visible from out
on the lake itself

is a house that swoops
towards the water

like an ocean liner.

[dramatic music]

This incredible
wedge-shaped home

appears to push itself
up, out of the landscape.

It's called Port Hope House.

[bright music]

The owners are Louise
and Peter Bletcher.

After living in
Toronto for many years,

they went in search of
somewhere secluded and spacious

to bring up their two
sons, Thomas and Oliver.

One of the appeals
of this property

is that it genuinely is hidden.

It's legitimately
hidden from view.

We like the fact that the
house is not in-your-face.

As the crow flies
across the water,

we're 30, 40 miles from
Rochester, New York.

We're a seven-hour drive
from New York City.

We're 50 minutes from Toronto.

We're a mile and a half from
milk and bread and shopping,

yet we have 100 acres right
on the shores of Lake Ontario,

which is really what
makes it unique.

[bright music]

[Narrator] The house is
built on a 100-acre plot

overlooking Lake Ontario.

It's constructed
over two floors,

and covers 413 square meters.

On the first floor
is the master bedroom

and en suite bathroom,

the office,

and roof garden.

On the ground floor is the
living and dining space,

kitchen and utility room,

three bedrooms with
en suite bathrooms,

television room,

garage,

and swimming pool.

[calm music]

The house is built
from steel and glass,

with a distinctive zinc roof.

We kind of had an idea of
how much space we needed,

in terms of, you know,
we wanted basically

three bedroom home
and a guest bedroom,

and then enough
space to entertain.

The intent was to
make the house look

like it had always been here

and that it was part of
the natural elements.

We really wanted it to look
like it had, it belonged here,

and that it wasn't

something that wasn't
part of the environment.

I think that we've really
succeeded with that.

[Narrator] The
home's swooping shape

allows all rooms
inside this house

to have spectacular views
out across the water.

[upbeat music]

So when you come in,
although you're looking

out to the garden to the east,

your view's really
forced towards the water.

And going in the other
direction, around the curve,

it follows the area down
towards the living quarters,

where the boys' rooms are.

The house opens up, obviously
in this end of the house,

which is the common
living space.

The idea was to create a
very open concept area.

Louise loves to cook.

This is really where
she loves to spend

her time when
we're entertaining.

People still wanna
hang out in the kitchen

when you're having
friends or over,

so we decided to build this
area really around the kitchen.

The house opens up
towards the water,

and you get that massive,
expansive view of the lake.

And the knuckle of
this room, if you will,

is the fireplace, which is
open to all three sides.

I think this is a
really important part of the house to us,

and certainly where we've done

a lot of entertaining
over the years.

[bright music]

[Narrator] But there's
one internal feature

that wasn't on Louise's
original wishlist.

So initially this was just
supposed to be an open space.

The stairwell wasn't
contemplated here,

and during one of
our site visits,

and while we were
constructing it,

Peter thought that, wouldn't
it be great if we could access

the deck area instead of
having to go up around

through our bedroom to
get out onto the deck?

And quite frankly, it
really is a great feature.

We do use it a lot,

and eventually we'll have a
nice seating area up there,

and it really is
a beautiful access

out to the exterior
of the house.

Well, you wouldn't know when
you come in where it goes.

It's not obvious
until you actually

go through the house
and see the flow.

So it actually connects
the kitchen to the decking,

and from the decking we can get
to the pool, and from there,

we can also get up to our
bedroom on the second floor.

So it really is a
connecting point

to the flow through the house.

[bright music]

[Narrator] Peter and Louise
wanted a cozy family home

that was at the same
time unconventional.

The master bedroom suite is
their own private retreat

within this secret house.

This would have to be my
favorite area of the house.

Floor to ceiling glass,
incredible view over the lake.

We can hear the bird life
when the windows are open.

In the summers, often we
sleep with the blinds open.

It feels like we're
camping under the stars.

So this is really
Louise's and my sanctuary.

We have the en suite bathroom
with our own steam room.

[Louise] This view is
really unique to this,

because we're quite high up,

and we're in the middle of
the trees, it feels like.

And when the foliages fills in,

you literally feel like
you're in the forest.

And, of course in the
winter, we have chunks of ice

and small little icebergs
floating out there.

- Every season is different.
- Every season really

looks very different.

[bright music]

[Narrator] The design
of this dramatic house,

that digs into the
land at one end

and soars out onto
the lake at the other

was conceived by
architect Stephen Teeple.

It's very exciting to do

a project where you can
be inspired by the owner.

Once you understand
Peter and Louise's

needs and wishes,

like, for instance, Peter
wanted every principal room

to have a view of the
lake, but not every room,

so once we understood that,
it's up to us to create an idea

that works with what Peter
and Louise are looking for.

It immediately struck us as
like a plant, a natural form,

so that it grew out of
the ground like a flower,

opening out to the
sun and the view.

So that was the
analogy, and from that,

everything flows, in a way.

[Narrator] The curved
shape of the house

also means that,
from the inside,

whatever is happening
at one end of the home

is shielded from the other.

The far end of the house is a
perfect place for a hideaway.

[upbeat music]

It's meant to sort of be
its own self-contained pod.

Built this very much also
with the boys in mind.

This is a media room and it's
meant to it be self-contained.

so that if they wanna
have friends over,

the whole thing slides shut.

That's kind of the
beauty of the house.

You can sanction off this area

and just have this be our space,

and our parents can be
upstairs working in the office,

and we'd have no idea that
they were up there, right?

I think they they kind of
intended that separation,

that degree of separation
between themselves

and us and our friends.

The media room is
set up so that, again,

everything truly is hidden.

We've got speakers hidden
in behind the screen,

speakers in the ceiling.

[Narrator] The
whole house is filled

with hidden technology.

[Peter] So the only thing
really that runs all of this

is just this one remote.

You can control the lighting.

We can actually turn
the hot tub on and off,

close and open the pool
cover, turn the fire bowls on.

It's very nice to have this
technology at our fingertips.

[Narrator] An innovative
geothermal system

heats both the pool and hot tub.

A series of looped
pipes under the ground

are pumped with a type of
antifreeze called glycol.

As the liquid travels
through this loop,

it picks up heat from the
surrounding soil and rock.

This heat passes through an
exchanger, into a heat pump,

which concentrates the
heat to warm the water.

[tranquil music]

The house was designed
as a family home.

It offers the perfect place
for everyone to come together,

but have their own space.

[upbeat music]

I think we've created a
really wonderful, warm home.

People often think of
modern architecture

as being very
sterile and severe.

We really enjoy
having this space

that really is inviting
for family and friends.

I think this house
is great to have

as an escape and a
getaway from the city.

I look forward to weekends
where I can just come

and get some peace of
mind, come out here,

do absolutely nothing.

You know, I mean, I
really feel this is a place

that I could see our grandkids,
and certainly our kids,

enjoying for many,
many years to come,

even after we're gone.

[tranquil music]

[Narrator] 5,600 Kilometers
southeast is the Algarve,

Portugal's
southernmost province.

This part of the world
is a holiday hotspot

renowned for its soaring
cliffs and golden beaches.

Surrounded on two
sides by the Atlantic,

it is a paradise for surfers.

more than seven million people
visit the Algarve each year.

The population of this
beautiful corner of the country

triples over the summer months,

so finding a secret site for
a home here is a challenge.

[tranquil music]

20 minutes inland,

a world away from the
bustling, tourist-filled coast,

concealed by cork oak
trees and fruit orchards,

nestled into the landscape,

is the spectacular Pool House.

This house gets its name
from its hidden rooftop pool.

This dramatic hilltop
home was built

for horticulturalist
Nick Henley-Welch,

and designed by
architect Vitor Vilhena,

who had free reign to
create the perfect home.

Oh, cheers.

OK.

The idea was creating
something unique.

Nick found me because he
would like to talk with me.

Nick says he likes our work,
and it was a reflection,

the work that probably
will doing for himself.

That's more or less,
that's how it's happened.

The main things was
creating three rooms,

that's one of the most
important things, en suite.

Of course, having an open plan,

open plan that he can lives,

dining, laughing, dinner,
and all that stuff.

Creating a house that
to be a connection

between inside and outside.

Creating a nice relation
and direct relation

between the house and
all the environment,

all the surroundings.

And we together, we
make this amazing place.

That's the most important thing.

[upbeat music]

[Narrator] The Pool House
is built into a hilltop.

It stands on the footprint
of a previous structure.

The structure covers 300 square
meters over one main floor.

On the roof is the
terrace and swimming pool.

On the ground floor
there's an open carport.

Inside there are three bedrooms,

each with en suite bathroom,

and the living space, with
dining area and kitchen.

[bright music]

Building this unique home

did not come without
its challenges.

Local planning laws restricted

the footprint of the new house.

It could not exceed the
300-square-meter footprint

of the ruined building
that occupied the site.

Vitor's original design
covered 350 square meters,

so he devised a unique
feature for the house

to overcome this problem.

A cantilevered wing
hangs above the land

at one end of the house.

This gives the house
the extra space,

but still fits onto
the original footprint.

And the suspended carport
provides shade for vehicles.

[upbeat music]

The pool house combines clean
design with practical living.

The 70-square-meter main space

answers Nick's
minimalist desires.

One of conditions to the
house was having a huge living,

as bigger as possible.

And, of course, we have
a huge living area.

I think it's amazing.

We didn't know what kind of
fireplace we're gonna have it,

but for me, it's one
of the amazing areas,

because we can switch it for
the place that you can be,

from the dining area
or in the living area.

It's a nice element, and
it's nice static element,

that cuts the living area
with the dining area.

[bright music]

[Narrator] The Pool House's
hilltop perch gives the home

breathtaking views over
the Portuguese landscape.

The building's
picture windows create

the perfect gateway
to soak them up.

We will open completely

the windows, you see?

[dramatic music]

The idea is creating a corner
that will be a compliment

of the outside and the inside.

We have a different
house, you see?

We are still inside,
but we are also outside.

It is amazing because you
can sit in the dining area,

even you can cook there, and
you can lay down on the sofa,

and you don't have anything
that obstructs your view.

[Narrator] But that
isn't the only surprise

in this open-air living room.

[bright music]

[Vitor] We have a secret
door that hides completely

the relation between the dining
area and the kitchen area,

because we can slide the door

and change it to
a different place.

[Narrator] What an
ingenious way of hiding

the washing up from
your dinner guests.

[bright music]

In this home, the master bedroom

and two further guest
rooms sit on the same floor

as the main living space.

[Vitor] All the
rooms are en suite.

It was a requirement
from the client,

because it was something that
he wanted from the beginning.

We have a sliding door.

Of course, it's a
compliment to have it

as simple as possible,
not losing space having an open door.

When we are inside the bathroom,

we tried to use
it a natural stone

with the same color of
the outside surroundings.

We find a stone that
give us more or less

the look of the mountains.

[Narrator] In the
internal corridor,

a unique staircase leads
up to the roof level

that conceals this home's
most secret feature.

It's a massive block of
stone fitted in the wall,

then provide us to a secret,

we can call it
like a secret area,

with the secret stairs
that go in a secret place,

because no one realize that
we have these kind of stairs.

[Narrator] The home's
defining secret feature

has extraordinary views
of the surrounding hills

and this spectacular
rooftop pool.

[upbeat music]

It's

the best area of the house,

because no one realize
that we're having

this kind of area here.

In the beginning, it wasn't
so easy to explain to Dick

that we're gonna have a
swimming pool on the roof.

He said, "Vitor,
what you gonna do?"

And I said, "Nick, don't worry."

[Narrator] And what an
innovative idea it is.

The pool appears
suspended in midair.

It's an exceptional
piece of engineering.

[bright music]

The pool sits in the
section of the house

that overhangs the landscape.

It is built very much like
a cantilevered bridge,

a structure that is
supported from one end

and projects horizontally
into free space.

The weight that anchors the
main house to the ground

allows the pool to
extend out into the air.

All the pressure pushes
back into the house

and down into the foundations.

Tensioned cables within
the walls of the pool

provide extra strength.

All this enables
the pool to overhang

the building's footprint
without any visible support.

[bright music]

Vitor was tasked with building
a new home for someone else.

What he didn't expect
was how he would feel

at the end of the process.

I feel the house
like it was mine.

I feel it like part of me,

and I like to be sitting
on the living area.

The living area is
an amazing place.

Everything happens here.

And that's a secret
place for me.

For me, it's an amazing place.

[Narrator] Vitor and
Nick have created a bold,

contemporary house on
the site of an old ruin.

With panoramic views

and an incredible design,

it's an ingenious secret home.

[dramatic music]