Batanes: Hataw sa Mahatao
Sightseeing at Valugan Bay
When you’re in Batanes, always expect the unexpected. This small region is governed by the weather and the people’s strong belief. So whatever plans you’ve layout here, prepare to change it, as every turn on its winding roads, every change in the wind’s direction and the changes in the tide of the sea holds a few surprises. This we learned in extreme ways during our stay in the region.
Ivana Port to Sabtang
We were supposed to go to Sabtang Island this day, but when we got to the Port of Ivana, only a bleak and desolate atmosphere greeted us along with the pounding waves along the port. We waited for a while there but to no boat came. Judging by the strong wind and the seas, there won’t be any trips going there.
The Honesty Coffee Shop
At the Ivana Port, you’ll also find the infamous Honesty Coffee Shop. Why is it called “Honesty”? Because there’s no one manning the store. The the owner of the store drops by occasionally through out the day, the shop is open to everyone with all the goods laid out before you. Every item is properly tagged with its corresponding price so you would know how much to pay. Coffee and cups are also there with hot water thermos to go along with it. There is a drop box where you’ll drop in your money. Now it’s up to you if you pay you or not. Let’s leave it to your conscience. It’s only in Batanes where you can find a coffee shop like this. If someone would set-up something like this in Manila, it would have been looted in seconds.
The Church of Ivana
If you suddenly felt you needed to confess for your sins (for stealing that item at the coffee shop), there is the San Jose Church just across the street. You won’t miss the yellow facade. The foundation of this church dates back to 1785 but built in 1814. You can go at the back and climb the bell tower where you’ll have a nice view of the port and the sea.
Roadside and craggy hills
And since we won’t be able to go to Sabtang we had to change plans and instead, decided to go to Valugan Bay and the Crystal Cave in Mahatao. So back to the road again we rode a jeep to the nearby town. What I like about the roads here are they are all by the cliff side, giving you amazing views of the sea. Just don’t look down on how high your vehicle will drop if it veers of its path. But don’t you worry, driving here is quite safe. Bicycling here is very ideal, and if you’ve got lot’s of time just walk around end to end. For sure you won’t get lost in this sole highway.
Cliffy shores of Batan Island
At some points on the road you’ll be able to spot some view decks where you can alight and just enjoy the view. There are also stairs going down to the rocky shoreline. If by some reason you decide to commit suicide by death through waves pounding against sharp rocks this is a perfect place. So be careful if you have no intentions of dying while you enjoy the view.
The octagonal Mahatao Lighthouse
In Mahatao there is also another lighthouse. In contrast to Basco Lighthouse with its cylindrical shape, this one is octagonal. I don’t know what the advantages of an octagonal lighthouse is but it looks picturesque as well up that hill. I heard that the ground floor of this lighthouse would be turned into a coffee shop and bookstore as well. That would be cool. I wonder how it turned out.
The road to Valugan
While we were waiting for a ride on a nearby town, we ran into a guy named Tony Bobony, who we met at the Laoag Airport who was also stranded with us. It turns out he knows one of our travel buddy and now he saw us again. Small world huh. Well he is a native of the island and he was kind enough to give us direction going to Valugan Bay. Around 15-20 minutes of our trek two boys on a bike came by and told us they were asked by their uncle, Tony to accompany us. As if the world isn’t small enough, the owner of Dulce’s Canteen, the place where we regularly eat, is a sister-in-law of Tony’s sister.
Emerging from the Crystal Cave
Now with a guide in tack, we were able to find the fishing village of Valugan easily. This is where you’ll find the famous pebble beach you have seen in a lot of pictures of Batanes. Also here you’ll find the Crystal Cave. The cave is pretty small and can be hard squeeze into. Pretty ordinary aside from the crystalline walls. ANyways, it was a nice hike along the bay. Also surprising, that an eagle suddenly sprang out so close behind us with its gigantic wingspan. It was amazing and I was too slow to capture it on cam. It flew high up in the sky, then another eagle came by and they seem to be fighting. Protection of their territory I guess. That’s national geographic predators live for you.
By the end of the day we went back to the hill where the Basco lighthouse is located and enjoyed the sunset. Hoping by tomorrow, our plans to go to the remote island of Itbayat would push through.
Tags: Batan Island, Batanes, Bay, Beach, Caves, Churches, Heritage, Lighthouses
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Saturday, March 3rd, 2007 at 8:09 am 
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March 3rd, 2007 at 11:02 am
wow.. ang galing naman nung coffee shop.. talagang walang bantay kuya? oo nga, konsensya mo na lang kung di ka magbabayad.. hehehe..
mukhang enjoy ka talaga sa Batanes ah..
March 3rd, 2007 at 11:53 am
woow. i always wanted to travel and see new places. i hope after i graduate college makakatravel na rin ako.
and btw, the coffee shop, cool.
March 3rd, 2007 at 12:27 pm
Looks like a wild and unspoild place! I love the first picture!
March 3rd, 2007 at 2:19 pm
bro! love the batanes posts. syempre, favorite place ko ksi. u’ll be happy to know that honesty store is now a cafe
o, minsan, photo-op naman tayo nila cruise!
March 3rd, 2007 at 2:21 pm
addendum lang: the honesty cafe is now more than a pawid affair. honest-to-goodness cafe & store na siya made from concrete & wood
March 3rd, 2007 at 3:07 pm
Ganda ng Batanes, thanks for sharing those photos to us… I love that Honesty coffee shop
March 3rd, 2007 at 4:09 pm
Your photos are absolutely fantastic Ferdz. Hahaha… I love that Honesty Coffee Shop. That is one of a kind.
March 3rd, 2007 at 4:52 pm
Shit…gusto ko na din pumunta sa Batanes
Regarding the message you left in my blog, I visited blurb.com and yup, they do offer making a book out of your posts but for a fee. The bookmaking software is free, though.
March 3rd, 2007 at 6:15 pm
I like the second picture … The person in the photo looked like he is admiring the crashing of the waves.
Ang galing, photos, di ba?
(:
March 3rd, 2007 at 6:31 pm
alam mo… naiinggit ako.
March 3rd, 2007 at 9:08 pm
sa rizal high? palagi ka ba doon? dapat nilalapitan mo ako!
March 3rd, 2007 at 11:41 pm
Hahaha! The Honesty Coffee Shop sure won’t work in Manila. Batanes sounds like a very safe place to live in
The architecture of Ivana Church is amazing, has it been repainted?
Parang ang sarap mag-rapel dun sa cliff
March 4th, 2007 at 12:30 am
Thanks for taking me along onto another picturesque journey. The scenery is beautiful and so are the words.
March 4th, 2007 at 11:50 am
C’mon now, you gotta give the people of Manila some credit. They wouldn’t loot that coffee shop in seconds…..maybe minutes, but not seconds. hehe.
Batanes looks like a peaceful place.
March 4th, 2007 at 3:20 pm
Ganda talaga… sana makapunta din ako dun.
March 4th, 2007 at 11:14 pm
Ganda naman ng idea ng honesty shop. Ma-te-test ang conviction mo. Apparently, pati dito sa amin marami-rami rin yung walang conviction… malulugi yung may ari kung sakali. Eheheh… Have a good week!
March 5th, 2007 at 1:22 am
Pwede ko ba gawan ng stories and poems ang mga pictures. Kagaya nito:
http://sawariko.wordpress.com/tag/glance-over-tribute/
Please let me know.
March 5th, 2007 at 1:23 am
Email mo ko sa 17th.of.april+tribute@gmail.com ty.
March 5th, 2007 at 11:37 am
that place is “go with the weather.”
hehe
wow ha.. ang unique ng concept sa honesty coffee shop. and i really like the view … looks so different from places in the Pinas….
I like the lighthouse… neat.
I like the cliffs…. soo nice..
March 5th, 2007 at 11:48 am
at wala akong masabi! bow talaga ako
hehe
batanes.. mararating din kita hehe..
i like the honesty coffee shop
i just hope we could do that here no.. well
March 5th, 2007 at 3:05 pm
Sobrang inggit ako..Hay, kailan kaya ako makakapunta ng Batanes …
Love the first pic
March 5th, 2007 at 3:31 pm
yung thrid pic, napanood ko sa tv yung honestly store, lupet sa integrity ng mga tao dyan, sana mahawa taga manila.
March 5th, 2007 at 7:35 pm
wow breathtaking ang mga shots!
pati yung honesty store!
March 5th, 2007 at 8:36 pm
I love all the photos. Ang ganda dito very peaceful.
March 6th, 2007 at 1:06 pm
whooaa… ang gaganda na naman ng shots mo dre… bow..
ok ung honesty coffee shop hehehe… baka di ka magbayad masisira ata tiyan mo at LBM abutin mo.. sgurado ako hapdi ng pwet mo hehhehe
March 6th, 2007 at 7:13 pm
Hope you didn’t encounter a typhoon when you were there
Heard the houses in Batanes don’t have windows facing north ! Great pics though 
March 7th, 2007 at 2:45 am
Batanes. Wow! If I remember it right, that’s where the typhoon, and all sorts of natural calamities pass through on it’s way to China right? I could be wrong. But you can see from the wild and rugged landscape. You’ve really captured it’s breathtaking beauty. That little coffee shop is an excellent idea. I also doubt if that will work in a big city though… Well. There’s always that vending machine with camera and a laser beam that could vaporize a runner in an instant.
March 7th, 2007 at 3:44 pm
ayos! ang gganda lahat ng pictures… wala akong tulak kabigin… great seriesferdz…
March 8th, 2007 at 3:02 am
The cliff and cave r beautiful- u got great photos from there. The coffee shop-interesting place to stop by……great story as always thanks for sharing a fun trip:-)
March 8th, 2007 at 9:05 am
this is amazing. wow. you have the best adventures. keep documenting them for us to see.
March 9th, 2007 at 12:17 am
Fantastic photos! How lucky you are to be visiting all these places only few of us ever even heard of. Natawa ako dun sa unintentioned suicide comment mo because I was just thinking the same thing when I saw those cliffs. lol!
That light house looks almost like it could be European. If you didn’t tell me where it is, I would say Ireland or UK. It just has that feel to it.
And what about that honesty cafe. What a concept! Wouldn’t it be wonderful if you could put something like that up anywhere and trust the integrity of men?
Sad to think that it wouldn’t work everywhere.
March 9th, 2007 at 8:18 pm
Mahatao lighthouse is typical Pinoy fusion. Thanks for the share.
Dave too has his “Batanes.” http://ialman.livejournal.com/
March 18th, 2007 at 9:25 pm
anu po ung greenie stuff sa “Cliffy shores of Batan Island”
kakaiba.. corals na buhay?
March 19th, 2007 at 10:31 am
I like your humorous narration here, Ferdz…
As for the Honesty Coffee Shop, maybe the system will work in Makati where people are sensitive enough to fall in line at the bus and jeepney stops (that shows discipline). Try this system in Quiapo and that’s what you’re saying this will be looted in seconds..
I have heard of similar “honesty stores” in the farmlands in Korea where farmers would sell their produce along the road where nobody is watching. Price tags are supplied so when you buy, you’ll also leave your money.
Yes, this kind of system is cool. It’s like living heaven here on earth…
August 2nd, 2007 at 3:53 am
ang tagal ko na palang hindi nakauwi ng Mahatao kaya hindi ko na alam ang Octagonal Lighthouse, thanks for sharing the pic.
May 11th, 2008 at 11:18 am
i envy u..u’ve been to a lot of places here in the Philippines.. =) This place is the one ive been waiting to see… coming soon!
May 15th, 2008 at 6:56 pm
[...] HONESTY CAFE (that was the store name back in 2002… I heard it’s now called “Honesty Coffee Shop:). Quite famous among tourists as they find the concept quite radical. You go in there, take [...]
May 16th, 2008 at 11:01 pm
BATANES…one of my dream destinations… great entry here…
May 20th, 2008 at 12:05 am
ah.. aus tlga npanoud q sa tv yan.. hahaha.. g2wa aq ng magazineat ksma yan a topic q. kung ang buong pilipinas may gnyan t2wagin taung most honest country.. srrap pkinggan db? haizt.. oh guys.. join na kau dto http://www.bestpinoytambayan.tk tnx.