Batanes Day 4: In Basco

Basco Church

On this day, I have nothing to spend so much of my time except that I had the chance to jaunt and get to know a bit more about Basco. Since this is the capital of Batanes and is the biggest municipality of the province, every steps are closed when you get to walk from one place to another. No need to ride a tricycle because everthing is a walking distance. Just when you get to the plaza, the Municipal Hall can be seen right across the plaza and is the tallest building in town. The sports field is wide as it can accommodate almost all kind of sports - volleyball, basketball, football, etc. I went to Basco Church which is also a street away from the plaza.

Basco Municipal Hall

Trade



The pier is just a distance away from the plaza where most of the goods are transported from the main land of Luzon by sea. According to a restaurant owner, foods especially meat products are expensive since most of them are coming from Manila and the only way to ship all these goods are by sea. Except for small amounts which can be trasported by air. You can see a lot of sari-sari store from one street alone. Abad St, I belive is the center of trade where most of the goods are sold. This is also the main spot where you can see the small market place. Restaurants are not too


People

So far, of all the people I met in my own country, only the Ivatans proved to be much better. The people are respectful and if there is a visitor whether it's a foreigner or a pinoy, they greet you by bowing down their head and saying "good morning" or "good afternoon. I have authenticated that they won't touch the valuable that you leave in a place. Batanes, of all the places in the Philippines are considered as zero crime rate.

Transportation

The jeepneys travel twice a day and if you go to another town, it can be catched as early as 5a.m. for the first trip and around 12 noon for the second trip. In order to catch the last trip going back to Basco, sure that you keep an eye to the jeepney passing by as early as 3pm. Otherwise you might miss a ride and go an overnight stay to the town.

Culture

One culture I learned among its people is you can't buy a land unless you marry someone who is a resident.

My day 4 in Batanes did not involve any activities except that I did some photo walks in a small town where people brighten my day with their smiles.