Boracay – Paradise or Second Home? Miriam & Ardy Speak Out! 

Look, I ended up here in Greece.  Oh, so Greece.  We are just traveling .  Hello, I am here.  Oh my god. Look at this Miriam.  I knew, did you know that Miriam took extra after I left? What’s that?  He is not allowed on Oh guys.  Oh my god.  Taking on an extra challenge.  Sir, can we just go with you?   Was that a while ago on a tricycle?  It really coincided.

Can I? Oh my god.  Look at that. Oh my. You know what your life is like here? People save up for a whole year to spend a week in Boracay.  Yes. You live here.  It was really an answered prayer for me Karen because remember I ask for a man who will love me like Jesus loves me and his promise was not to give up on us because God knows we’re worth it and that’s how God loves us.

He will never give up on us because he knows we’re worth it. Hello everyone, welcome to my YouTube channel.  I’m Karen Davila and I’m here in one of the favorite islands of many Filipinos and foreigners all over the world.  Ah, this is the island of Boracay and it’s summer again.  So many people will be vacationing here again.  But did you know that many of us, celebrities or not, have chosen Boracay to be their second home?  So it’s interesting that we will visit here in Boracay with the one and only Miss Universe first runner-up, Miriam Kiambao.

He chose to live here on the island. So this is Miriam and Ardi’s house in Boracay. Let’s visit. Hello guys, welcome to our home. Hi Miriam.  Hiardy.  Look, I ended up here in Greece.  Oh, so Greece. We are just traveling.  Santa Rini.  Oh my god.  This is so wonderful.  What year did you move to Barakay? 2022.

But exactly 4 years ago. I had a prayer.  Lord um provide for us a place where the family the children can run free and God said beach. Okay. Yes.  And then I said beach where?  And the back Boracay is too expensive.  But later on something popped up.  Boracay long term rentals 50% off.  We just went uh in October 2021.

We did some oculars and then we chose a place and then in station 2 in 3 months we moved.  Was it difficult for you to move to Baracay considering you were in Manila the whole time? For me when he came and asked, “Babe, would it be crazy if you moved to Boracay’s go?”  No batting of an eyelash.  My dream was to really live by the beach and Boracay is the best beach.

One of the best beaches around the world.  So who would want to live here during the pandemic where hardly anyone was here. What was difficult was just packing, giving away choosing the items to keep and what not to keep.  Yes. And then transporting everything here. But once we landed, walked to the beach and saw the sunset, it was magical.

Immediately we said this is the best decision we ever made the kids were like running on the beach in their pajamas. Oh my god.  You know that was the dream of many people during the pandemic.  Either that they move to the beach or they move to a farm.  This is our living room.  Okay. That’s it.

This is where our friends come over for their Dgroup meeting.  We entertain our friends here. What does D group mean?  For those who don’t know, they are not familiar. It’s a small group of friends uh in the faith who are journeying also trying to discover and learn more about God and life with Christ.  So this is this furniture.  Was this your old furniture from your first house or from Manila?  Actually when the first house which was in a resort closed down because the lot the property was bought they were selling everything and we bought everything second hand.  Supercheap.

What do you mean at the resort? At the resort. From the first two houses that we’re living even the Capis Wall. Oh, [ __ ].  So those piece walls were sliding doors to the bathroom of the owner of the resort.  But since they were breaking everything down, I bought it.  I don’t know where to put it. Before there was no room here.

This is just DIY.  I bought all of them from Lazada. Really?  We just had the carpenter assemble it. I said, “This is extra space.”  The front door used to be there, we decided to make it into an extra dent. Yes.  Yes.  There, look.  So when they have guests, is that where they sleep ?  Yes.  What does this mean?  Ah, right.

We named all the rooms here after beaches on the island. Wait.  Didn’t you bring anything from your furniture in Manila?  This is from Manila.  This.  This is the only one from Manila. This is my breastfeeding chair. Yes. Right.  Okay. So, we bought my desk and the shelves. Those are hours from Manila yet.

But or but it’s just minimal.  It seems like our philosophy was less is more. Yes.  You were Miss Universe first runner up in 1999. You saw the world.  You saw the glam, everything.  What did living here teach you?  How did it change you? That the simple life is the best life because less stress. Uh in Manila there’s always pressure to, you know, uh to look good, to present yourself in a way that people will admire you.

But here there is no such price because people take you as you are.  There’s no such pressure.  I saw you here, you’re on a tricycle, it’s okay.  People like millionaires, they own resources.  They ride tricycles.  We just ride bikes. You’re wearing sandals and riding on a horse.  Okay. That’s acceptable here.  Yes.  So I guess it’s really freeing right?  You lose the pressure to perform and to keep impressing.

So, and then you can focus on the more important things in life, family, relationships. So, this is your dining area.  Yes. We also bought this from the owner of the resort when he sold his belongings.  And this is solid wood, huh? I just don’t know what kind of Boracay this is from.  This is it. I love this.

Yes, this is Boracay too.  He’s set.  This is on set.  Wow!  He, you know, it’s just my DIY . I bought the lights online.  Drift wood that we found on the beach. What is this hanger he’s wearing? Then we just bought it from Lazada.  Electrician please.  The beauty of Didn’t you ever consider having a career in interiors? Like what, it took more time for me to learn about interior design.

But I moved to Ries when we got married, I rented my apartment there on Airbnb. I’ve been a super host on Airbnb for about 15 years.  So it seems like I’m used to Airbnb, guys. But you and RD are businessmen, your brains are entrepreneurial. Yes.  So I had a Salt and Light Ventures which is a training and development company and we organized leadership events like Maxwell.

We held a license before and then we spun off another company called Inspired Leadership with Francis Cong, Anthony Pangilinan, Buimenez.  The key is to be content with what you have and not to strive for more and more and more.  And just enough, it’s like what the Lord said in Proverbs, right? Bless me not too much or I might forget you too little that I may hate you and that I may steal.

Yes, just give me enough. Look at this.  The Miriam I knew.  Did you know that Miriam went extra after I left?  It was Paulo and Miriam together right after you won. Right.  So do you still remember this life? Of course I remember that life but it seemed like a totally different person. I had a different head space.

I had a different spiritual space.  I was very proud and young and ambitious. What was the hardest thing about being a beauty queen? Pressure. Pressure.  Pressure to perform.  Pressure to always be at the top.  Pressure to always be beautiful.  Especially since we only had rain one year and then every year there are winners.

It’s getting to the point where we’re the husbands because we’re getting older.  Am I 50 years old? So if I remain to be vain and so full of myself, I’ll just be insecure forever.  Wow!  Yes, yes.  But have you ever been through the moment where you thought, ” Wow, I want to be like them?”  They go abroad.

They wear they’re so fashionista, luxurious.  Have you been there, Miriam?  I passed by there.  So my dreams are to go to New York, be a model, be a Hollywood actress.  That’s when I dream.  But when I married an Italian, I became an Italian princess, but that didn’t make me happy either.  So that’s when I realized that my worldly dreams weren’t what would fill me up.

And when I fell in every aspect of my life, spiritually, emotionally, relationally, financially, my career was on a dip.  That was when I really found the Lord at my lowest and my rock bottom rock.  That is Jesus Christ.  I found a new respect for myself. Beautiful.  And so when I came to know the Lord and grew deeper in my relationship with him, I realized that it was n’t these worldly things that truly made me happy.

And if he gives me a relationship, if he gives me a blessing, as long as I’m with him, there will be joy.  Rather than having wealth, I have a relationship, but I don’t have God.  Sad.  So it’s good that I found the Lord. And now do you cook? Oh no.  I have the nanny here cooking. That’s cooking. I like to cook but I don’t cook as much.

Yes.  But I know what works in a really good kitchen.  Imagine this space. Then I know that all those who love to cook want a clean look, complete with gadgets. So we really made sure that once we went out of this place, our guests would be able to cook too . Wow so you and RD have two boys.  Little boys. Two little boys meaning from your marriage.

Because when you married Ry, you already had a son from your first wife, right? Okay.  So, how old are your two boys now? Elijah is seven.  Ziki is 4 years old. But when we came here the first time, Zeki was only 7 months old. Yes.  What was it like being parents that you were here in Boracay? Everyday beach after waking up after breakfast, outside time.

They are not into gadgets.  They are not into gadgets. We are reducing gadgets.  We were very intentional with that because we know the effect on their brains, here on the beach they don’t look for the gadget.  Really?  Wow.  Or go outdoors. How delicious.  It is wonderful because I have the benefit of being with them everyday, teaching them, molding them in Christian values ​​which we believe in.  I won entrepreneur of the year.

I have many awards for being an author.  But the most accomplished I felt was when I spent time with my boy.  Or is it? Yes.  It was that it seemed like it beats all worldly accomplishments. That’s it.  Okay.  So when you go out the back door. Okay.  Wow.  There is more. There is more.  Separate entrance.

Or is there something else upstairs? Yes.  Separate entrance for our tenants in our two studios. You and RD really thought a bit. So this is bulabog room and this is white beach room.  So we currently have long-term guests there. And this is the roof I was telling you about.  It had no roof.  It had no tiling, no furniture.

We renovated it and uh these Moroccan tiles.  We got that super cheap only from Calibo. Do you guys miss living in Boracay your life?  Because now they live in the south in Manila.  Right.  Of course.  So, do you miss that old life? Yes, I do. Yes, we miss. Yes. Especially honestly when it’s holidays or Christmas, I prefer staying here in Boracay because you get to escape all the invitations.

Yes, that’s so true. Plus the traffic.  Yes.  Is it Christmas?  Yes. Say, would you believe it?  We have many friends we want to meet up with, but we only see them when they go to Boracay because there’s no traffic here in Manila.  It’s hard to meet here.  5 minutes, 10 minutes. Your life has changed a lot, Miriam, from the first time I met you.

When we were in GMA 7 together and then when you won Miss Universe first runner up and you got married and then now you are remarried.  How do you describe the change? It’s a beautiful change in a sense that when we first met I was a new winner of Miss Universe, as I mentioned earlier, I was on a in a totally different head space, spiritual space.

Because back then I was such an ambitious young girl. I had dreams of you know uh taking advantage of the wave of the Miss Universe, right?  So show after show, lots of shows.  But at some point, you know, my income might be big. Maybe my shows were beating the competition. But even though I was very famous and had a lot of money from showbiz, it seemed dark in the limelight.

Mm.  It seems so empty and I was needing uh for something more meaningful than show business.  Yes.  But why?  You know why you think? During that time I didn’t have the Lord. So my life was empty.  Even though it was shining, shimmering, splendid because I was becoming famous in show business. Mm. Life was empty and I know in my heart there’s so much more than what life has to offer.

So much more than fame and fortune.  You are the one who really shattered the mistake of saying that princesses are happy. You got married to an Italian and everyone felt Miriam’s luck.  Mm. What went wrong there? I thought it was the dream I wanted.  And then when I finally got it, I discovered that it wasn’t what I thought it was.

It wasn’t the bed of roses I expected it to be. So it was a lot of expectation that was unmet.  I had everything.  I had money.  I had this beautiful, expensive house, beautiful, expensive things.  I was traveling the world, the Italian princess that I had dreamed of being. But it was lonely in the castle.  We didn’t have God in the relationship.

So our level of relating is shallow.   It’s all about shopping here, traveling here, that’s all .  Business, we’re talking about it. But the purpose is gone.  It seems all dreamy like Cinderella style or snow white.  Is that where we grew up in fairy tale stories? But the problem with that is little girls are conditioned by these fair stories to think that this is what they need to dream about.

This is what will make you happy.  But in reality, when you get married, there are problems.  Because imagine two people coming from two different backgrounds getting together.  Of course there is a conflict there.  Yes.  If it’s true love .  Yes.  But because we are human, it is difficult to be selfless.  Mm.  Mm.   It is our nature to be selfish.

So in a relationship, there is and will be conflict .  And you don’t know how to communicate, if you don’t have the skill of communicating, if God isn’t there in your relationship, it’s down the drain from there. Yes.  What was the breakup like then?  Was it shocking to you? In the first year, everything is new, everything is hopeful.

Isn’t it travel here, travel there?  The house is beautiful.   The car he gave me was beautiful.  Lots of new stuff to buy.  But I realized that it’s not like I’m happy either.  So I got depressed.  In our second year, I battled with depression.   This has affected our marriage. We are not talking about it.

I’m looking for a connection now.  So I search for meaning and peace in yoga, in spiritual healing, in um different shamanisms, different rituals. I’m just asking for a fortune teller to tell me what to do.  But my husband doesn’t understand what I’m going through, that I’m so homesick that I don’t have It’s so hard to pluck myself out of my country and relocate in this country that I have no friends, I don’t have a job.

I’m so bored I haven’t been able to connect with my husband yet.  And the language the language.  I had to study Italian but since we were based in Hong Kong a lot more, the energy of Hong Kong is also different.  Is it all about money, all about business, there aren’t many meaningful relationships, everything is shallow.  So I had a hard time there.