Tuesday, May 4, 2010

Batanes 03: Happy Ivatan

More than the beauty of Batanes, I think what struck me most about this place are the people, the Ivatan. They are the most heartwarming, friendly, and honest people I have ever met.

Before this trip, I've only met and knew one Ivatan, that's Crim. After this trip, I am happy to announce that the number increased. I had the chance to walk and converse with everyone of them. I adore children so most of my subjects are kids whom I've met while strolling around every corner of Batan and Sabtang Islands. I always found an excuse to stop by and chit chat. I have nothing but happy memories in this place all because of these happy Ivatan. :-)

I was telling one of my friends. "It's not bad to find someone here and get married!" The place is stunning, the food is great ...what else to ask for?

firewood girl

FIREWOOD GIRL. I met her in Sabtang while going inside one of the houses in Chavayan. I was actually aiming for the firewood against the stone houses (nice contrast I thought) but then I found a more interesting subject.

against the window

PEEPING BOY. I also met him in Sabtang. He was following me, I reckoned. But everytime I aim the camera at him, he would walk away. Finally after chasing him a few times, he granted me a shot. What a nice looking boy.

bestfriends

BESTFRIENDS. One of them was eating an ice cream, the other, green Indian mango. What could be better? And yes, I think they are best friends. I met them in Basco.

Sabtang kids

SABTANG KIDS. No, they are not the new kids on the block but you can call them that. They like to pose and pose behind the walls. The other kid (in blue short) was the one who was following me around.

store keeper

STORE KEEPER. In front of the DDD Habitat, our residence in Batanes, there's this store which we kept on visiting for coffee, candies, or just about anything that we needed. And in this store is a kid who acted as a store keeper for his mom. He looked bored when I passed by for some packs of 3-in-1.

boy bonnet

BONNET BOY. I met him at the back of the Basco lighthouse. I had no idea what he was doing there but I guess he likes observing the tourists. He seems like a nice kid.

window boy

WINDOW BOYS. They were watching a bunch of tourists who were passing by their house. I love how the window framed them. Yes, there were two of them.

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[Postscript]

This could be the very minute
I'm aware I'm alive
All these places feel like home
With a name I'd never chosen
I can make my first steps....

~ chocolate/snowpatrol


****

i felt his skin and got burnt. i touched his temples and for a few minutes i revived every lost verve. spiteful words make meaning, slowly weaving into something that makes sense. somehow, it's making sense. but the story was never revealed to me so i never knew what to expect. i lull at the moment that one day, our story will have an ending. hopefully, even though it's bitter, it will be better. and yes, i still long for the rain.

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

dpat pla kasama ako sa mga pix ng happy ivatan. :D



Crim The Freaked Out

my gulch said...

crim!
kasama ka talaga. may second batch pa 'to. anuka ha. :-D

pieterbie said...

Wow, those kids are beautiful!
I can understand you taking all those pictures of them.
Sounds like paradise!
Is Crim a pretty person as well?
How 'bout getting Crim in front of the lens and letting us judge?
:-)

Andrea said...

Love this photos, pareho kayo ni Oggie meron din sya photos ng mga tao sa Banawe. Ako mga dahon na lang, hindi mga mukha!

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