BATANES 2008

[izkariote]

With all the stuff that's happened between this year and now, my mom has been pushing the family into going on as many vacations as possible -- most of my older brothers have flown the coop, and it's only a matter of time before the rest of us follow. My latest family trip was to Batanes, otherwise known as the Storm Region of the Philippines. It was just me, my parents, my younger brother Peter and my Tita (aunt) Alen this time around -- Paolo didn't want to spend, and Petrik and Pio's sides of the family weren't available.

Frankly speaking, they all missed out on going to what is perhaps the most beautiful (or at least the most picturesque) area of our country.

WARNING: I COULD NOT STOP TAKING PICTURES OF THE SCENERY THROUGHOUT THE TRIP. I TOOK OVER 100 PHOTOS DURING MY STAY AND IT SHOWS IN THIS ENTRY. D: There are HUGE, and I mean, HUGE pictures under the cut in between TL;DR rambling and a lot of spazzing/silliness -- there are also even more photo entries under links throughout the blurbs. The photo quality isn't all that great either, since I took these shots with my camera phone. orz I DON'T HAVE A REAL CAMERA OKEY AND I DON'T WANT TO SPEND FOR ONE BECAUSE I'M SAVING UP FOR OTHER SHINY THINGS. B|

BATANES

APRIL 25, 2008 (DEPARTURE)

Didn't get much nearly as much sleep as I would've wanted to, because the travel agent who booked our trip is probably a machine our flight to Batanes was scheduled at 5:30 AM, and airport procedures require passengers to be around two hours before departure time. Hence, I was up at 1:30 in the morning. Hence, I was not happy. B|

We picked up Tita Alen on the way to the airport, and got there before the place was really awake -- as in, passengers were milling around, but none of the crew were around yet. There were roosters, though; some guys bound for Cebu were bringing their fighting cocks around. They crowed a lot. Anyway, we lined up and waited around for the booths to open: Dad made a couch out of our bags and the baggage trolley he borrowed, as the picture showed. Things only really started moving at around 3:30, and Mom got pissed at this lady who basically cut the line in front of us. Her and her twelve companions. What is WITH Filipinos and cutting lines? >_>

Flight was delayed (as expected), and I think the total lack of sleep was getting to me because Manila-Batanes/Batanes-Manila flights are a little over an hour long, so it's pretty much like riding to and from my own house, sans the "I'm 25,000 feet above ground" part. I felt sick during the plane ride though -- it's a good thing that I felt better after sleeping a bit.

Batanes is unique from the get-go; even its mountains look way different from up in the air, compared to most of the other places I've flown to in the Philippines.

APRIL 25, 2008 (DAY ONE)

We landed in a surprisingly nice provincial airport... I think the first thing I noticed about Batanes is that it's prolly one of the most well-maintained tourist spots in my country. And the breeze... I could go on and on about the breeze. *_* March to June is the perfect time to be in Batanes, and April/May is where things are the prettiest, I think. That was clear to my family and I from the start.

On another note, there were cows. Lots and lots of cows.




For more pictures of the resort grounds: 1 || 2 || 3


We stayed at Batanes Resort, which is around 5-10 minutes away from the capital city of Basco... it's in a secluded corner on the outskirts, overlooking the sea. Peter and I stayed in Room Basco-A, which was the west-side room of the cabin at the highest point of the resort, just beside the wall separating the resort grounds from this hill where a bunch of cows grazed day in and day out. ...Like I said, lots of cows. @_@





Here's the Mandatory Hotel Room shot. Note the orange curtains. Also note that our lamps did this weird alternating blue light-red light flashy thing at the borders beyond being able to dim itself. ...Porny, huh?

My family and the rest of the tour group dropped in long enough to eat breakfast, check in and cool our heels off just for a bit before we were tossed right back into the jeepney and taken on the first leg of our tour, which was a drive around the island we stayed on.





There's no other way of putting it: Batanes is unique. You've got mountain ranges, rolling hills, shorelines of all shapes and sizes and sandiness/stoniness... at some points, you think you're in the British Isles and in other points you think you're in New Zealand and then all of a sudden you're in Hawaii or maybe back in the Philippines. Our tour guide Anong says that things really get nasty when storms come in, but beyond that, Batanes is just heavenly.




Picture of a mountain range
Picture of a shoreline from up on a cliffside viewpoint
An empty street
Sto. Vicente Ferrer Church
An old Spanish bridge...
...And a really sucky picture of this cute mother hen and her chick scratching around beneath it.




Here's another angle


This is a picture of the oldest house in Batanes, located in another sleepy corner of the island. Mang Anong introduced us to its owner, and explained what the house was made of -- see, beyond stone and the thatched hut, the original builder made use of coral and limestone. Archaeologists figure that it might've been because he was very poor, and there were also a limited amount of resources that he could get a hold of at the time.





Batanes kinda sorta clinched what I always tell friends and family: I am a mountain girl through and through. I even prefer my beaches nice and rocky -- I find it more romantic. And Batanes might've struck a special chord in me because the shorelines reminded me of Vancouver at some points, and following along that point, there were a lot of other points where I'd look at places and find myself thinking about all those small moments I had forgotten when I was a kid. Take tide pools, for one... I had a friend in Canada who lived by the seaside, and we'd spent hours just combing the beach, poking at the creatures and plants in the tide pools.





We dropped by another church before lunch... Sto. Domingo, if I'm getting my sites right. It was, for awhile, a church shared by all of the residents in three of the islands in Batanes. Now there are more than enough churches and chapels to go around for the 16,000 inhabitants of the region. Peter was tired of stopping over at churches, so he stayed in the jeepney to take a nap; I eventually joined him. The sea breeze was wonderful where he was.




A message from its owner


The rest of the tour group eventually came around, and we headed off to Honesty Cafe, which was located just a small ways down the road from the church. It's an unmanned store, and the concept is simple: customers come in, serve themselves/fetch what they need, and then drop the money in this slot on the counter. A place like this would only work in a beautiful place like Batanes, I think... everyone's so nice here, and it seems as though they don't get any of those stereotypical nasty/ill-tempered/unimpressed tourists down there.




Roadside and distant mountains
Shorline
Rocks and sand
More beach
From bottom up
Rock formations in the water
Cliff face
Wind carving on the hill
Another shoreline


We ate lunch in this open valley with nipa huts and this beautiful vista of the shoreline versus rolling hills. The hills had ripples etched into the stone by the wind; the maintainers of the rest place we stayed in were growing watermelons. This fascinated pretty much all of us -- it turns out that a lot of us actually haven't seen watermelons growing in the ground. o_o





The last stop for the day was a place that they call Marlboro Country, which is basically a HUEG property full of grassland and rolling hills that serves as the public pasture for the farmers in the area.




The view from that path
The closest rock formations from that point
More hills


I think Mom lost her heart to Batanes the moment we got to this site -- she just walked all over the place, enjoying the breeze and looking off towards the sea. My Tita Alen and I stayed at one of the points and talked about random stuff before we went down to join my Dad and my little brother, who were sitting on the grass and talking about their own small things. Peter and I then spent the rest of our time watching the swallows attempt to beat the roaring winds by flying low or boomeranging themselves over the hilltops.





The pictures above can't do justice to its prettiness.

I crashed as soon as we went back to the resort: just woke up in time for dinner. A LONG, SENSORY-OVERLOAD DAY IS LONG. =_=

Oh, before I forget: here's a Mandatory Carabao Shot:

APRIL 26, 2008 (DAY TWO)

I woke up a little past six -- the weather was pleasantly cool again, even though the sun was much brighter this time around. I had a bit of a cold during breakfast, but that thankfully cleared out the moment we were on our way: we were going to take a 30-minute bangka (boat) ride to Sabtang Island and absorb the sites there.

I think it was on this day that I really appreciated the tour group we ended up with -- a lot of people apparently canceled out on our machine travel agent, so there were only ten of us including my aunt and my family. We were with Sharon, this recent graduate of Ateneo Law, and her friend Chris; there was also Heidi, this veteran diver and businesswoman, and this nice young woman named Joni, who was dragging her boyfriend Gunther along for the ride.

I'll post up a group shot of us at a later date. o_o They're all in my Dad's camera.





Now, Sabtang Island is a LOT more "quaint" (as my Mom puts it) and isolated compared to the one we were staying on -- the scenery of the towns and such reminded me a lot of the kind of stuff I'd see in fantasy games, most especially the scenery that Square-Enix used for Final Fantasy 12.




Backstreets
Pathways
More ruins
Walking through the area
Deserted streets
The cutest stray pup in the whole island
Garlic by the window, to keep the aswang (monsters/demons) away
Ship building || 2


There was an author who lived in the first town we went to... his name escapes me, but the title of his book -- "Taming the Wind" -- couldn't have been more adequate, most especially since he was writing all about his home province. I can totally understand why anyone would want to write about Batanes: the wind, the sun and the ruins of older inhabitants sticks with you.




The town chapel and my Indiana Jones father
More small pathways
Mandatory Carabao Shot #2; this guy grinds sugar canes
Sky and mountain ranges
Making limestone from dead coral
A Sabtang Shoreline
Jungle


If I become rich and famous, I am traveling here and retiring to live out the rest of my days in this place. If I don't... well, maybe I'll just use the last of my money to get back here and start from scratch.




Slope and jeepney
Mom, at the helm
More of the cove || 2
Greenery



The cove
A miniscule shot of Peter



We stopped over at this really, REALLY picturesque hilly area cradling this gorge that led down into an extremely tempting-looking cove. I was content with just sitting up high and pretty for a good thirty minutes before the call of the cove became too strong for me to resist -- when Mang Anong offered to take Peter down to the cove, I decided to follow them.





It was worth the trip. Yes, even the exhausting, butt-clenching trip back up. I have nothing else to say.




More nearly deserted streets
A truly empty street
Back street against shoreline
And even MORE deserted streets




We stopped over at a small town right after The Cove & Climb -- I drank up a whole coconut while everyone else took refuge form the heat with their own coconuts, kamote chips and banana q's. We had lunch by a charming shoreline, and splashed around for a while (or rather, everyone else did the splashing and I nestled in this shady pseudo-cave beside my little brother as he pigged out on crabs while I wrote this ridiculously long oneshot for Bloodsport) before we had to head back to the main town.

The bangka ride back to the main island was a lot rougher, and we weren't really expecting that -- I got splashed, like, a lot. ;_; Sharon was hoping that dolphins would come and follow our boats, as they reportedly do that sometimes. We ended up seeing lots of flying fish instead.

Chilled out at the resort until dinner time -- and then the Brownout happened. Seems like I just can't escape that no matter where I go. XD It's just a good thing that it didn't last the whole night.

APRIL 27, 2008 (DAY THREE)

The original itinerary for our last full day in Batanes was to go around the beaches early in the morning, shop, take lunch at the resort and take in the last round of sites on the main island before retiring for the evening and preparing for the flight back home. If that had been the case, I would've stayed behind in the resort until they got back and snuck in a cigarette/prepared my things/caught up on the drabbles I owe yukitsu for her birthday, but Mang Anong decided to flip the schedule around, so I went with the group.

You'll note a significant lack of pictures in this section compared to the other days. I was running out of space on my camera phone, see. ;_;




A windmill from where I was standing

We stopped by the windmills first... these things supply the island with 30% of its electricity. I'm not sure whether they're planning to build any more in the future; they probably will, once the funds come in.




More scenery, this time from the roadside


The view from up top was spectacular -- nothing can do the site justice, much like Marlboro Country from the first day. And I can still go on and on about the breeze.




The small shed
View from the west
View from the back || 2 || 3


We stopped by the lighthouse close to Marlboro Country property, where the view was just as great as it was from the windmills. We took some group photos here; some of us went up to the top of the lighthouse to see how far we could look on the horizon. I wandered around at the bottom and kept thinking about how pretty everything's been since I arrived.





There was a writing desk behind the lighthouse, right where the wind was best. The temptation to go over there, sit down and scribble the rest of my stay away was very, very strong.




Fishing boats (viewpoint: cove) || Fishing boats (viewpoint: mountain)


We stopped by a fishing village next, which was the gateway for Batanes' so called Fountain of Youth -- you have to go up this long, meandering trail cradling the mountain, overlooking the shoreline and passing through the ruins of this very old Ivatan settlement that hasn't been occupied since the Spanish times before going down 275 steps to this small-ish spring the townsfolk set up by a creep five years ago.

*takes a deep breath*

Here: the spring.











There's a picture of put a SMALL part of the long length we walked. It was worth it though: the spring was cute, and it was nice writing to the sound of the wind and running water.





I felt a lot like that dog after I got back. It was just a good thing that it was about time for lunch, so we all headed back to the resort to eat.

The first stop after lunch was this new church under construction -- the interior was pretty nice -- and then we headed back up into the hills. We even dropped by this radar-less PAGASA radar station (they lost the equipment during a really bad typhoon): the view from its location was really nice. The thing, however, that really caught our attention was the World War II-era shelter built by the Japanese (click here for the sign). Here's one of the entrances by the road we took:





Going into the tunnel technically wasn't part of the tour, but all of us insisted on going inside to check it out -- only two of us had flashlights (my Dad because he's a boy scout and my brother because the cellular phone he's currently using has one built in), so it was hell of dark in there. Dad took some blind shots of the group, and they all turned out pretty nice.




A closer look

The next major stop was Boulder Beach, which was one of the many protected marine sanctuary areas on the island -- prior to the government act that sealed it off, this area was used for quarrying stones. Of course, I fell in love with the shoreline instantly; it was as though I had flown all the way from Canada all these years to come to a little spot in the Philippines and find a shoreline just as pretty as the Vancouver coast of my childhood.

We swung back to "civilization" and then went down to Basco's town proper so that some of the members of the tour group (my mother included) could get some shopping done. Dad's eyes bugged out at all the stuff Mom got, but once we packed it we realized that it really wasn't much at all. I mean, it could've been much, much worse, given all the shiny stuff in the market. @_@

Peter and I wandered down the street while everyone else was off in the stores. Spotted one shop selling gadgets and computer accessories for cheap -- found that a bit surprising, given the surroundings and utter isolation of most of Batanes.




More of the hills
And some more...
And more...
And more again...
And one time time.
Sea view, for a change.
The last lighthouse, where we took some zany group shots

Our last major stop was Naide Hills, where this local film company shot a movie whose title escapes me... it's something-or-the-other with the word langit (heaven) in it. o_o After that, we went down to the public beach near the town -- I didn't really swim, but the sand and water was nice.





This was the last shot I managed to get in Batanes -- one of my feet close to sunset. I felt sad taking that picture and writing all the stuff I managed to write on the beach; it's always hard, knowing that you're flying out the next morning and leaving something as spectacular as all of this behind.

APRIL 28, 2008 (HOMEWARD BOUND)

Even though we ate dinner quickly and settled down for the night, Peter and I ended up spending our last night in Batanes up and awake and talking about nothing -- I'd blame it on the movie that was one right before we turned off the lights (Step it Up; campy-ish, but the dancing was awesome), but that wouldn't really be right. ANYWAY, we slept at 2 and got up 3 hours later to take breakfast and go back to the airport.

I did better on the plane ride home than I did on the plane ride going to Batanes -- Tita Alen and I were seated together, so we chatted a bit in between my writing and her reading the newspaper. Mom and Dad wanted to run some errands, so we didn't go straight home: we visited my cousin Raya in the hospital (she's really sick right now; it's kind of worrisome), dropped by a dive shop (Dad's weight belt went missing), dropped Peter off at Tiendesitas (he had a date with his master girlfriend), dropped my Mom off at Greenhills (she wanted to get her hair dyed) and then swung by Ateneo for my recommendation letter before we finally got home.





This was the site that greeted my Dad and I the moment we got off the car. I couldn't have asked for a nicer "welcome home".

Comments

[khursten.livejournal.com]

iwannagosopretty!

[izkariote.livejournal.com]

Then let's save up for it and go. :o Batanes is the perfect place for a small group of friends to fly over and spazz out.

[lonelybusiness.livejournal.com]

:O It looks spectacular! And did you say breezy? *o*

I'm clicking pictures like a fiend. XDDD

[izkariote.livejournal.com]

EXTREMELY BREEZY. *A*

Lulz. I was taking pictures like a fiend down there.

[anothermiyaw.livejournal.com]

Ohhhhhhh *_* I want to go!

[izkariote.livejournal.com]

You should~ bring a small group of friends or your family with you. It's best enjoyed with great company. ♥

[girl-blunder.livejournal.com]

Damn, lovely pics. Did you take all of those with your phone? o_o

Your post has singlehandedly convinced me to want to go to Batanes too. It looks so peaceful! :O

Raya's out of the hospital now, btw. Thank goodness. :3

[izkariote.livejournal.com]

Yep~ @ my phone. My dad has even nicer ones with his camera. And you should definitely go to Batanes! :o

Oh, is she? Phew! @_@

[omnicresence.livejournal.com]

Although I have cultivated an intense loathing for all things sun, surf, sand and scenery as of late, your posts are most enticing. Oh, nice feet, by the way.

[izkariote.livejournal.com]

They're very... white. *staring at her feet* And look! *points* The nail polish was still pretty much intact! D:

[gzep.livejournal.com]

Nice shots :D

[izkariote.livejournal.com]

Thanks. They turned out pretty good given the fact that I was using a camera phone, didn't they?

*envy*

[magnetic_rose.livejournal.com]

woe -- i am from tuguegarao (cagayan) and i've never been to batanes TAT;;

Re: *envy*

[izkariote.livejournal.com]

You should go if you have the cash. It's worth the trip.

[yukitsu.livejournal.com]

I saw the pics. ALL OF THEM! It's such a pretty place. @_@ I want to see the field with all the agriculture and the cows and the shore and boulder beach and--- breeze? MFY.

[izkariote.livejournal.com]

It'll prolly become your favorite place in the country, if you go. :o *tugs* Maybe we can make a trip when both of us actually have money of our own.

[yukitsu.livejournal.com]

Yes, we must! D:

[izkariote.livejournal.com]

Ahurhur. We can drag special people along too. ♥

[yukitsu.livejournal.com]

B| Very special people.

[lisan.livejournal.com]

What travel agency did you use? I want in if you're organizing a trip! ::puppy eyes::

[izkariote.livejournal.com]

Aaaah, I don't know with my Mom. o_o I'll have to get back to you with the contact info.

[udon-in-osaka.livejournal.com]

Wow. Batanes looks gorgeous. I've only ever thought of Batanes as Signal # 3 Storm City, but WOW. Now I wanna go! @.@


xXx: *GLOMP* Missed you, Pam! I haven't been on Lj for a couple of months and I've missed your rambling and fan girling. :3

[izkariote.livejournal.com]

I've missed you too! ;A;