Asphalt Lake in Trinidad

The Pitch Lake located in Trinidad is one of the most unusual lakes in the world. People can walk on its surface because this lake is the world's biggest natural deposit of asphalt.

Luxury House Villa Sow, Senegal

 

This luxury dream house has been designed by Cape Town based  Stefan Antoni Olmesdahl Truen Architects (SAOTA).

The contemporary residence was finished in 2011 and can be found in Dakar, Senegal. The two-storey residence sits on a cliff top overlooking the Atlantic Ocean. With dramatic cantilevered concrete roofs and double volumes results in a very powerful and dramatic building.

The main feature of this luxury home has to be the spiral staircase, clad in stainless steel with threads  of white granite. To add to the effect, there are 20mm in diameter stainless steel rods running from the handrail to the ground floor, making the staircase look like a sculptural steel tube.

The study sits in a separate block joined to the main house by a hallway. Under the study you can find a fully contained guest room, sitting on the very edge of the cliff, alongside which sits a private gym and meditating pond. The main building has a lounge with extra volume space, a designer kitchen, barbecue and pool terrace, as well as a playing room.

On the first floor you can find the master bedroom and children's bedroom. The master suite opens up into a terrace with views of the ocean, and a private garden with an outdoor shower. The result is a charming  and sophisticated use of space, each room is located to take full advantage of indoor-outdoor living. Images courtesy of SAOTA