I woke up with a queasy stomach and I couldn't get myself to eat breakfast, it definitely wasn't nervousness that was causing it since I felt like dry-heaving but as long as I was able to walk, I wouldn't miss the chance of going to Itbayat.
Trying to save my strength for the day's adventure...
We pushed through and waited at the dock with Miss Hilda, our tour guide since day 1 here in Batanes, who is also coincidentally from Itbayat so she has contacts there whom she made arrangements with for our Itbayat tour.
Here's a copy of Miss Hilda's calling card
Here's the deal, our original tour package with Wakay was 4 days & 3 nights but we had to add another day since we wanted to go to Itbayat, which required having us stay the night at the island. Since Wakay couldn't give us a final decision about our Itbayat tour, since they worried about the ever-changing weather at Batanes, it was like a divine intervention that we somehow mentioned it to Miss Hilda that got her to help us with our trip.
Early at the port.. No one in sight...
There are only 2 boats that make the trip to Itbayat once a day, Itranza and Veronica, and it mostly depends on the weather; with a fare of 450php/ea and 2 hours of travel ahead of you, it wasn't a surprise that the boat was mostly filled with locals and supplies to be delivered to the island.
Waves in the early morning
Rise and Shine!
Get your vitamin sea!
I suggest heading to your left side when deciding where to settle on the boat, aside from seeing the view of Itbayat from there, it's a good place as any to throw up. Twice.
...But the view is worth all the trouble...
Where's the ever-changing weather??
I can say that the port of Itbayat is very different from the ports of Sabtang and Batan with no signage of where you are, and miles of road ahead, you'd really need to have someone who knows the place. Luckily, this is where kuya Harold, the tour guide Miss Hilda referred us to, picked us up so off we went to our accommodation, in yet another tricycle.
We found out that the whole of Itbayat consists of five towns and with an approximate of only 3,000 residents, it was hard for people not to know each other when passing by the streets. Not long after the tricycle ride, we were given time to drop our bags off and freshen up a bit at the homestay before starting our adventure in the island.
Quaint little home...
....with just the right amount of comfort... (pardon the mess)
We started with a tour to the old PAGASA (Phil. Astronomical..) Headquarters here at Itbayat which still stands amongst the hilltops after it was ironically ruined by a previous storm.
Most of the foundation of the structure is still standing though...
Our tour guide, Kuya Harold, then showed us the airport being constructed in the area. It's mostly finished with a runway and all, so tourists at least have another option on getting to Itbayat other than boarding a 2-hour boat ride.
The airstrip in all its glory!
Next stop was Lake Kavaywan with the sun giving it a refreshing sparkle!
Sparkle, sparkle, sparkle!
With the weather agreeing with us, Mauyen Cliff provided an excellent view of the calm blue ocean, we also carefully took pictures near the edge where you could also see the old Chinapuliran Port in the distance.
Sitting on the edge...
...getting some nice shots...
On the way back, we passed through Barangay Raele where we found out it was the town's fiesta. Here in the Philippines, fiesta's are like local holidays where the people mostly start the festivities with a mass at the local church and gather around after to share in the food prepared by the locals. Though my mom and I just reached the near-end of the mass before we decided to go about the rest of our tour.
A gathering of the folks
I've also noticed some of the houses in this part of town are built in a certain way that aren't exactly stone, like the one's we've seen in Sabtang.
Who's a good boy?
Nearing the town where our homestay was at, we felt we weren't hungry for lunch yet so our tour guide made a little detour to Mt. Karaboboan's viewdeck, where you could see a couple of the uninhabited islands that make up Batanes from a distance.
To the top, for the view!
Since it was already noon at around that time, we wanted to cool down first before getting lunch, so Kuya Harold led us to Paganaman Port where a small treasure was hidden there.
Port of calm, blue waters
You can even catch a glimpse of the coral bottoms!
Just through these rocks...
...lies a glistening jewel!
The view was superb and luckily the waters surrounding the lagoon were calm enough that I got the chance to go down near the waters, mom stayed behind though since the rocks were a bit sharp on the way down, but the experience was worth the trouble!
Tempting to just dive in...
Cooling down for a bit...
I got tired on the way back to town though, but I partly blame it for not having a proper breakfast, and even when Kuya Harold dropped us off to have lunch at a small eatery I still couldn't take the sight of food. Mom insisted I eat to gain my strength, so I half-heartedly ate my lunch while mom made arrangements with the cook to have our dinner delivered at the homestay; on a side note, diners were hard to come by in Itbayat, but you can have meals cooked for you at a range of 250php per person. With that said, we were off to our last adventure for the day, but not before mom decided to buy some Gatorades.
It's a good thing that the Gatorade seemed to do its thing, since there weren't many drugstores around where you could buy medicine from, so I soon found the idea of food appealing as I decided to snack on some soda crackers we brought along for the trip whilst enjoying the refreshing view of Torongan Hills.
Just a short trek through the hills...
A mysterious island in the distance... #DinemIsland
Somewhere near the edges...
...I find myself taking pictures...
Soon we were walking down further into the hills to get to Torongan Cave:
Reaching the cave, mom decided to wait by the benches near the edge instead so it was just me and my little adventures for now.
Personally, going down the cave wasn't really hard for an amateur like me, so I deem it safe for young first timers, and if you'll notice some "stone walls" seemingly stacked upon together, it's because the cave was once a settlement for the earlier settlers who came upon the island.
Amazed at how these rocks are stacked so neatly...
Pic under some natural spotlight!
The only thing icky about it is that the cave is littered with the three C's (creepy crawly carcasses), mostly just centipedes here and there that makes me think it was a really good thing that my mom and I decided to make this trip during the really dry summer months since moist areas make them.. you knoooww.. On a different note, they put up a bench at the end of the cave where you can enjoy the view!
Just through this cavern...
...is an amazing view of the ocean!
Perfect spot for silhouette shots!
How far? Not by much...
Turns out my mom made friends with the other tourists we came upon and they shared some of the food they brought with them from the fiesta in Raele, which was suman (sticky rice), with some meat and other stuff wrapped in banana leaves. It tasted similarly to a local rice dish we have here in Chinatown, and I would have ate more if my stomach wasn't still doing its own somersaults though.
We ended the day with a picture near the town's church on the way back:
Turns out there was a signage afterall...
Have you been keeping track of the churches so far?
Reaching the homestay at around 4pm, we paid for our dinner that was already there, and for the room which was 300php per person a night. Another good thing was that we decided to have an early dinner and freshen up for bed since the water here in Itbayat usually gets interrupted during the night and early mornings.
Not much of sunsets in this part of town... #viewfromthehomestaybalcony
No nightcap for tonight as there's not much to do at Itbayat when it gets dark, and going to bed at 7pm was good enough if we had to be ready by 3AM to trek and catch the sunrise at the top of Rapang Cliff.
Front row seats this high up!
Stay tuned for my next post: trekking in the dark, living on the edge and a hidden archway near the ocean!
Rise and shine, it's time for another day of adventure! Today we will be taking a boat to another island here in Batanes, called Sabtang, it's only less than an hour away so maybe I can have a little nap on the way there.
Waiting at the port...
... with the people...
... by the beach...
A little trivia about Batanes is that it consists of 10 islands, but only 3 of them are inhabited by man, we toured the main island of Batan yesterday and now we will be headed to Sabtang!
On the way to Sabtang!
Sabtang Lighthouse in the distance
Port of people
Sabtang Lighthouse as seen from the port
The boat ride was a lot shorter than I expected and we soon found ourselves on the Port of Sabtang where our jeepney transport was waiting for us, first stop: Barangay Savidug.
One thing I've noticed in the island of Sabtang, is that most of the houses were still vernacular and made out of stone, unlike the ones in the main island of Batan, where they've taken a more "townhouse" appeal.
Batanes' iconic stone houses
Didn't miss the chance to wear their grass-made headgears, the "vakul"
Trying to fit right in...
Further on our walking at the town of Savidug, we came across a quaint little chapel beside a stone house made for picture-taking.
In a quaint little area...
Just edited together these pics...
After a couple of pictures here and there, we were off to another part of the island.
If I thought the view I was getting outside our jeepney was amazing, Chamantad View Point was a sight to behold!
Where the land...
... meets the ocean...
Lets's go to the top!
Just getting started...
We also didn't miss the chance to get to the highest point and take some videos and pictures near the edge:
Also, I highly recommend trying their "kamote" (sweet potato) donut, which I found to be really tasty, and partner it with some fresh buko, and you'll feel refreshed after the trek from the viewpoint. With that said, we're now off to the next town of Chavayan!
Here in Barangay Chavayan is where we met the Sabtang Weavers Association, and they gave us a brief insight on how they craft certain pieces of clothing with the usage of their local flora and some materials gathered near the coast.
Walking tour starts from here
Where the eco-wearable "vakul", and other goods are made
More stone houses are seen here and some even leave their goods out to dry in the sun.
Stone steps amidst stone houses
Just some the materials used by the locals
Passing by more stone houses...
Of course the town of Chavayan wouldn't be complete without their local chapel, Sta. Rosa de Lima, with its roof sewn into the foundation like most of the stone houses here in Sabtang.
Maybe just in need of a little repainting though...
Before leaving for our next destination, we took a picture of this house which was built by the locals for their congresswoman, unfortunately she passed away before its completion so even though it remains unused, it's still being maintained for aesthetic reasons.
Would probably make a nice Airbnb...
Morong Beach with its natural stone arch would be our last stop in Sabtang before heading to the port, and since lunch was still being prepared by the kitchen nearby, we decided to head down the beach.
Lunch in the house
Beyond the arch...
... lies the beach...
Again, we were cautioned not to swim the beach, less we want to be dragged out into the Pacific Ocean, so video-taking it is then:
Staying close to the rocks...
We had a speedy lunch since we lost track of time, and if we wanted to reach the port in time, we needed to get a move on. Though I'm glad to say we got there in the nick of time and soon we found ourselves back at Katuvang with most of the afternoon to ourselves. But why lay around the bedroom when there are still places that need to be explored?
Since my mom wanted to see the gallery at Fundacion Pacita, we decided to make a reservation and go there; it's worth noting that you don't need to have a reservation when wanting to visit the gallery alone, you only need one when you plan to eat at the cafe.
Getting around Batanes is either by motorcycle or by pedicab (which we call tricycles here in the Philippines), and since neither us had any driving experience, the latter was the obvious choice. Tricycles are booked here in Batanes much like how Grab and Uber works, you just need to ask for the number at the place you're staying at.
Hanging out at the cottages outside Katuvang, waiting for our tricycle
The fare was 150php and we were dropped off just outside the walkway which was a little ways down towards Fundacion, reaching what looked to me was the main foyer, we decide to take pictures while also looking for the gallery.
Signage at the start of the walkway
Walking down this path...
Main foyer of the Fundacion
We took a random walkway thinking it was headed towards the gallery, but soon found out it actually led to the main accommodations of Fundacion. There weren't any people around who we could ask so we just took photos before heading back to the main foyer.
That must be the gallery over there...
Turns out it was the Fundacion...
Might as well ask for directions inside...
Nobody here???
Deciding to just ask the staff inside the cafe where the gallery was, we found out it was actually located below the establishment all along, like they have this circular set of stairs that I first thought led to the stockroom or something.
It helps to have a signage somewhere outside too, you know...
Finally found the door to the gallery... which actually faces a cliff...
Time to enjoy the interior
Beauty amidst the chaos
Life imitates art
Time for some postcards!
After my mom bought some postcards from the front office (which is actually located outside the cafe, hidden near an alcove), we got a hungry and decided to have an early dinner at the cafe.
Cafe entrance, which you actually see from the main walkway...
Some nice fountain heads off to the right...
The usual cafe ambiance...
Window view, which the gallery entrance faces as well...
Divang a.k.a. Flying Fish, partnered with Tubho Tea, which is naturally sweet fern tea
We went back to the Fundacion's garden near sunset since I read somewhere it provided a nice view of the sky's changing color, but since it was starting to get foggy with some slight drizzle, we only managed to see a few rays of the sun.
Fundacion Garden
With cell signals being weak in some lower parts of Batanes, mountains and hilltops were as good as any to get better connection, so we called a tricycle from Fundacion's garden and decided to wait up the walkway where we were first dropped off at.
Fundacion Pacita in the distance
With dinner done, we decided to have an early nightcap at the local coffee shop a couple of blocks away, at Phil's Brew:
Still closed when we passed by, Store hours: 4pm-9pm
Nothing beats a good old latte with some homemade Cacao Cake!
Don't worry about me not getting sleep 'cuz of the caffeine, in fact coffee gets me a good night's sleep on most nights or maybe it was just the day's events that also got me tired, but I found sleeping early to my advantage that night since we were expected at the port as early as 6AM the next morning. Remember when I mentioned that Batanes has 3 inhabited islands? Well this is the island not usually traveled and would be considered for the extreme adventurers, welcome to the island of Itbayat.
The northernmost inhabited island of the Philippines!
