Travelling to Batanes?

Batanes I think is one of the most sought vacation spots here in the Philippines. Apart from the fact that it has weathered centuries of fierce typhoons while maintaining and preserving its historical reputation, the province of Batanes has been featured so many times on TV prompting viewers to ponder whether they should head on to Batanes on their next vacation or not. So to help you more on your decision making, here are some tips that will help you ease the jitters of flying to Batanes.

Tips and Cheapskates for those who are on a budget:

• As of posting, there are two airlines that cater flights to Batanes. PALExpress and SkyJet airlines.  You can check their websites here for rates and promos.  flypalexpress.com & skyjetair.com
• If you’re in for some hot and nice weather, the best time to visit Batanes is from April – May. Although summer can be felt as early as March and as far as June, the province is also known for its bad weather which may occur June onwards.
• Unlike before and with two airlines catering flights to Batanes now, you can search online for promos as low as P4,000 roundtrip. Compared to previous price of 7,000++ one way, you may want to wait a while or book early for you to land that sweet, glorious promo.
• Board and lodging is not a problem in Batanes. As tourism expands, so is the construction of more bed and breakfast inns at an affordable price which I only not assume but learned that there are more than enough to cater tourists coming to Batanes.
• You can tour Batan Island in one day.
• If you want to really experience Batanes, give yourself at least 5 days to stay there. However, the typical 3 day period will pretty much cover everything.
• If you’re on a budget trip, you can ask a friend from Batanes if they can accommodate you for the duration of your stay there, if you’re not much of the hotel type person, it wouldn’t be hard to entertain you and your friends. (Make sure to spend on your food though)
• Unless you’re spending your vacation there on December, April and May is the peak of summer so you may want to bring shorts and sandals, cotton shirt and a cap. No need for bulky clothing – it’s nice to travel light. Bring lots of sunblock and a thin long sleeve shirt if you’re afraid of getting sun burnt.
• Travel with your friends to get group discount on your accommodation.
• Generally speaking, people in Batanes are friendly so if you’re new there and you can’t seem to find your way through, THEY WILL HELP YOU THROUGH 🙂

Some things never change.. or Do They?

Some things never change… or do they?

When my mom retired from teaching on August of 2013, my brother and I went home to join the celebration of her retirement and also took it as an opportunity to visit and tour our small province. Much as we wanted to visit everything including the two islands, time wasn’t in our hands so we opted to tour the mainland. Although sparse and not all the tourist spots were visited, I was very happy and fulfilled with how our day went.

I thought in time, things will get modernized.. I was wrong, they went GREENER… 🙂

Stone House..

The lone fisherman

rock formation? 🙂

Infinity..

Free Spirit

Weekly Photo Challenge: Juxtaposition

It was a warm afternoon at the beach when out of nowhere, this scenery started to form outside the small hut where I was trying to doze off. I had to point my camera at it before it disappears 😀

Batanes 2013.. The sun setting, the diamonds it created on the water, the curtain and the door framing the beautiful scene outside.. my entry for the Weekly Photo Challenge: Juxtaposition

I bet you’ve never seen this Coffee Shop

For those of you who are coffee aficionados, this is a shout out for you. “I bet you’ve never seen these Coffee Shop!”

If you haven’t been in this place, you’re missing a great piece in the world of coffee shops..

This magnificent coffee shop is located in the northern most part of the Philippines, Batanes. The stealth serenity of the place was not spared from the invasion of nice, warm and homey coffee shops – a standard way of living in the busy urban place. I can’t promise they have the best coffee, come on people it’s a historical country place they don’t import the best coffee beans but.. IT IS COFFEE.

Honesty Coffee Shop: Because of its name and  its own unique standard of service that made this ever so popular coffee shop buzzing. Here, there are no staff to cater your needs, not even a cashier so you have to make do with your own. You buy your choice of “merchandise” inside the shop (coffee, pastries, and even souvenir stuff) and pay it by dropping your money in the money box. There’s nobody there to attend to you so you may need to give the exact amount, if not “the box” is going to keep the change.

This coffee shop has been around the corner for years now so customers must have been really honest about their payments 🙂

You need to write down what you bought from the store

The place is partly sandwiched by one of the oldest church in the province and the magnificent pacific ocean making it rather a beachfront coffee shop.

Can they be more clearer? It’s a must!

Photos available on yahoo search – they aren’t my copyright