This post by Filomeno St. Ana III on Vicky Abad Kerblat’s book, Jawid sawen nu Vatan!, brings me back to one of my best Philippine holidays ever, in the practically untouched yet progressive province called Batanes. Allow me to share with you this retro post, published exactly a year ago, about the group of islands that I believe every Filipino should visit at least once in their lifetime.

Fundacion Pacita, the bed & breakfast that used to be the artist's workshop of author Vicky Abad Kerblat's late sister, the renowned visual artist Pacita Abad | Photo by NTZ, January 2011

Untouched, Unspoiled Batanes

Originally published in Manila Bulletin on January 30, 2011

It was going to be a different year, I told myself. For starters, I would do away with the usual loud and head-cracking New Year revelry and stay where my husband and I could breathe clean air, fall asleep to the sound of crickets and the crashing waves, and have 360-degree views of Mother Nature at her best. We would figuratively and literally unplug ourselves from my gadgets and from the toxicity of a frenetic urban life, and begin 2011 in a place that is pristine and virginal, removed from the excesses of the life that we had gotten accustomed to in chaotic, cacophonic Metro Manila.

For that purpose, there was no other place on our mind but Batanes, that almost-mystical group of islands that has been likened to Scotland or New Zealand but which remains very much in touch with its Ivatan roots. Years ago, people scoffed at the thought of flying to Batanes because of the impression that it was too “backward.” (“We hated flying there,” I had been told by a former flight attendant. “There was nothing to do!”)

"Nothing much to do" in Batanes except admire its unrivaled beauty and serenity | Photo by NTZ, January 2011

Now, however, with sustainability on everyone’s minds, and with a collective call to reimagine the way we live and adopt a back-to-basics approach in our lifestyles, people are training their eyes on Batanes not only as a superb getaway destination where they could (quite literally) throw their cares away, but also—and more importantly—as a model for a sustainable, reimagined Philippines.

Cows graze freely on "Racuh a Payaman", also known as "Marlboro Hills" or "Marlboro Country" | Photo by NTZ, January 2011

An "honesty" coffee shop? Only in Batanes! | Photo by NTZ (January 2011)

Proud of their culture

Imagine this: Even from thousands of feet above the sea, the sights that will greet your eyes will already be enough to declare the majesty of the Batanes Isles deep-green mountainous islands stand proudly against the azure waters of the South China Sea and the Pacific Ocean, their lush mountaintops showing no signs of erosion or human intervention. Only three (Batan, Sabtang, and Itbayat) out of the eleven islands comprising Batanes are inhabited by some 17,000 people, leaving plenty of space for vegetation to grow, for cows to graze lazily, and for Mother Nature to unfurl her virtuous best. The rest of the islands remain untouched and unspoiled by human hands.

A tour around the islands shows how the Ivatans take pride in their collective history and culture. Centuries-old churches remain preserved and stand proudly in the middle of the town, their clean exteriors belying the fact that they had borne witness to the wars, disasters, and struggles that have helped to define a people. In Savidug and Chavayan villages in Sabtang Island, even the ruins of the old stone houses bore the marks of quiet dignity and pride. I wondered about the stories behind these walls and the secrets that they kept, observing that even in the chilly winter weather and in the pregnant silence of the tour, the villages were not eerie at all but seemed to exude the quiet elegance of a grand old matriarch.

Century-old stone houses like this are common across Batanes' different islands | Photo by NTZ (January 2011)

Chavayan Village in Sabtang Island is a UNESCO-nominated village, owing to the preservation of its stone houses and the Ivatans' traditional way of life | Photo by NTZ (January 2011)

Imagine if more towns in the Philippines could show this much respect for history and culture: What would Intramuros or Binondo look like today?

Read the rest of the post HERE.

What language is that?  Esperanto?  Jejemon?  Bekimon?

Jawid sawen nu Vatan! is Ivatan. It means: How beautiful is Batanes!

Without a doubt, Batanes is beautiful.  Together with Palawan or Siargao, Batanes is the poster image of the natural beauty of the Philippines.  In my book, Batanes has one of the most scenic landscapes and among the friendliest people on earth. In Southeast Asia, it edges out Bali or Krabi.

So many adjectives with long and short syllables describe Batanes:  breathtaking, panoramic, picturesque, stunning and spectacular, beguiling, charming, unspoiled, quaint, cool and fresh, rugged and stormy but also serene, relaxing and dreamy.

Batanes, we must emphasize, is not just about beautiful sceneries and hospitable people. Although rural and lacking in high-value economic activities, Batanes’s development is impressive.

It is one of the provinces that consistently ranks among the top provinces with a high quality of life, measured by the United Nations’ Human Development Index (HDI).  The HDI consists of variables on health, education, and income. Illiteracy and dropout for basic education are naught.  If there’s something disturbing about health, the Ivatans are alcoholic, resulting in non-communicable diseases that could have been prevented.

Jawid sawen nu Vatan! is also the title of the book authored by Victoria Abad Kerblat.  Kerblat is not an Ivatan name; it’s French. Vicky is married to a French national. But Abad is a famous name.  Vicky happens to be the sister of Butch Abad, the progressive public official and close adviser of PNoy.  Some know Vicky as the younger sister of the late Pacita Abad, recognized as one of Asia’s outstanding modern artists.

Vicky does not mind being in the shadow of her brother, the prominent politician, or of her older sister, the celebrated contemporary artist.  A natural comedian armed with self-deprecating humor, she boasts that she’s handsomer than Butch.  And she’d furtively but good-humoredly nod if someone suggests that she might be a better artist than Pacita.

It is hard to classify Vicky’s Jawid sawen nu Vatan! An art book?  Yes, for it features the paintings portraying Batanes, done not only by Vicky but by other Ivatan artists.  A collaborating artist for the book is the London-based Pio Abad, Butch and Dina Abad’s son.

It can also be a tourist book, for it depicts through illustrations and words the attraction of the different towns and islands of Batanes.  The book can be used as a promotion material to entice foreign tourists, arguably more effective than shouting the slogan that “it is more fun in the Philippines.”

Some might describe Jawid sawen nu Vatan! as a coffee-table book.  But I will disagree to that if a coffee-table book is only meant for display in the living room of a mansion in one of Makati’s gated villages.

The book is not for decoration. It is for reading, learning, and vicariously enjoying the way of life in Batanes.  It is refreshingly educational. It gives insights into the sturdiness and resilience of the Ivatans, their collective spirit, called payuwhan, their traditional homes that resemble the stone houses in bucolic France, their produce from the blue sea and the rolling hills, their food and kitchen, their clothing (the vacul, for example, which is the head and back covering for women made from the palm tree).  The book thus offers an anthropological and sociological perspective.

Yet, the book is not dense.  It is easy reading and is in fact appealing to children for its art and story-telling style.

Although Vicky is now gaining prominence as an artist, she is a biologist by training.  The biologist’s attributes of being curious and being meticulous define the quality of her paintings—for example, her exquisite strokes and her eye for detail.

These attributes influenced her writing —clear, specific, and colorful. As an example, take this lively phrase in which she describes Batanes:  “…the sturdy, weather-beaten Ivatans, our velvet hills, old stone houses, and the dark moody waters where the Pacific Ocean meets the West Philippine Sea. Every hint of green, stroke of blue, and touch of grey become translations of my memories of slow afternoon strolls, passing the century-old Balete trees at the plaza, smoky dinner presentations in our stone kitchen, and the welcoming old Ivatan folks.”

Simply beautiful.

Mr. Sta. Ana coordinates Action for Economic Reforms (www.aer.ph). To get a copy of Jawid sawen nu Vatan!, contact Art Post Asia through telephone number 0916 6668605.

Here’s an email I got this weekend:

“Felicity, booked my flight to Manila! Is it really more fun in the Philippines? I want to commute there and have the world’s awesomest status update and climb those badass rice paddy stairs. Tell me where to go. Will I see you there in February?”

He’s one of countless foreigner friends who’ve hit me up for travel tips to Pinas in the last year, but his e-mail was the most intriguing. Living in China, I rarely have access to Facebook and Twitter, and it was through a Briton that I found out about this new slogan. Ahlavet.

Granted I’ve seen really clever mockups of ads made by a satisfied/hyped up netizenry, I haven’t followed the twitter and banter online or in the news about the new slogan beyond my tagged-on-Facebook wall. So here is my un-FB/Twitter-ized view on the slogan. It’s brilliant. Who cares if Switzerland used it 60 years ago? The delivery and the message is spot-on.

(One of the photos even got my ocean-and-large-aquatic-life-averse boyfriend wanting to go swimming with the butanding, two seconds after I showed him the new website. Donsol here we come…)

In my experience as an expat in three continents, I’ve never had such a wave of rave reviews about the Philippines until I moved to China.  Living in Europe and America, I was such a go-to-the-Philippines promoter sabi ko dapat bayaran na ako ng DOT. It felt like work getting people hyped up to go. But that was 12-17 hours away from Manila. 5 hours away? I feel like a Philippines sounding board, where people posted their comments, photos and asked for advice. I just had to say “I’m from the Philippines” and the conversation turns to when’s the next holiday, because it’s time for the most fun under the sun.

Why is this?

1.     The expat population is expanding exponentially in China, as is the number of nouveau-riche and can-affords in this country. They’re all looking for a place to get away. This is an excellent, and growing, market to tap. Southeast Asia is the number one choice for nearby holidays and quick getaways, and roundtrip flights to the Philippines are by far the cheapest. I can fly home and back in time for work for the same price than if I went on a weekend trip to Shanghai (about CNY 1200), and much less than to Hong Kong (about CNY 2500 if you’re really lucky) at the cheapest possible rate. Trips to ASEAN favorites like Bali, Phuket, KL, Singapore, Phnomh Penh and Hanoi are at least twice, even 3-4 times the price than to Manila. Foreigners and China’s new rich are catching on to this. PAL and Cebu Pac are always packed with vacationers when I travel home. The accessibility and affordability is but the icing on the cake.

2.     When they come back, Word of Mouth works like magic. Nearly all the foreigners I’ve ever spoken to here have been to, are booked for, or are planning to go, to the Philippines. When I ask “Have you been?” I’m no longer surprised to hear “Oh yeah, many times.” They like going back. “Underrated” is a word I hear a lot. For those who are about to go or are planning to go, they always – and I mean always – say “I’ve heard amazing things about it.” And here are the three amazing reasons we’ve been hearing, and they come as a package response:

a.     It’s beautiful. Makes (insert typical vacation spot here) look like a cheap holiday.

b.     It’s not a tourist trap. Or, we were the only ones there/it’s like the island was all mine for a week. Or, Who knew someplace like this existed?

c.      Everyone spoke English, they’re always smiling, they’re so helpful, the people made my vacation feel like an actual vacation. I didn’t have to worry about anything.

Now these three, 9 times out of ten, came topped with a variation of one of the following, with palpable excitement:

a.     How was I supposed to go back to (insert crummy place of residence here) after this?

b.     I had such a blast, where can I go next time?

c.      I’m booked to go again on so-and-so-date.

d.     I love your country. Don’t tell anyone else about it please.

Oftentimes prefaced by the word: “Ohhhmmmyyygggggoooooddddd.”

Chinese New Year is just around the corner. That’s a whole week of holidaymaking here. People are busy making plans, and all I have to say now is “It’s more fun in the Philippines.”

Well, I try to, but it’s become redundant. Unscientific survey says, all my expat (and some local) friends who can afford to go on holiday are already booked for one (or two) of our 7,000 islands. Let the good times roll.

It’s been 36 years since diplomatic ties were established between the Philippines and China, and to celebrate, the lovely folks at the Pinoy Embassy here in Beijing teamed up with Chefs Gene and Gino Gonzalez of the Asian Centre for Culinary Studies to bring regional cuisine to the capital. There are no Filipino restaurants here, Pinoys usually get our fix of Filipino flavors from friends’ kusinas, so this was very refreshing. And it’s specifically Davao cooking, making it even more special. The Chinese loved it, and so did my non-Pinoy friends. Here’s a story I filed for CCTV. There’s a quick recipe for an unconventional adobo dish in it too!

For those of you in Beijing, the buffet runs at the Marco Polo Parkside Beijing not too far from Olympic Park, until June 30th. Go go go!

Moriones Festival | Photo used with permission, by Toni Alvarez

1. Marinduque. Marinduque is a small heart-shaped island in the Southern Tagalog, which, coincidentally, is also in the center of the Philippines. Dubbed the “Lent Capital of the Philippines“, Marinduque welcomes thousands of tourists here during the Lenten holidays to experience religion and culture at the same time.

On the first week of Lent, which usually starts on Holy Monday, Morions or the masked Roman soldiers can already be seen roaming around the streets of Marinduque, or Boac, its town capital.
Tourists are also welcomed by the Morions at the Balanacan Port in Marinduque to give an instant feel of the province’s Moriones Festival.

The Senakulo, a Lenten play that depicts the life, suffering, and death of Christ, starts staging on the evening of Holy Wednesday. The Via Crucis or the Way of the Cross starts on the early morning of Good Friday. You have the option to go along with Christ, the other penitents, and Morions or simply watch–though it is highly suggested that you go with the Way of the Cross so you can also internalize Christ’s suffering and just consider it as another form of penitence. The Via Crucis usually starts between 7:00AM and 8:00AM and ends with a “crucifixion” before lunch.

Senakulo in Marinduque| Photo used with permission, by Toni Alvarez

The Senakulo ends on the midnight of Easter Sunday and with the most anticipated presentation of all, since the resurrection of Christ will be staged. Early morning of Sunday, most people run to the beach as a sign of celebration for the risen Christ.

When in Marinduque during Holy Week, be sure to take some snapshots of its famed Moriones Festival. Take a pose with some Morions or, specifically, look for the Morion Longinus. He’s easy to spot–he’s blind on one eye and is the most famous Morion off all. Read the Bible or, better yet, listen and watch the Senakulo carefully to know why.

Cutud Lenten Rites| Photo used with permission, by Bong Du

2. San Pedro, Cutud, Pampanga. The Cutud Lenten Rites is famous for the re-enactment of Christ’s crucifixion, with the actual nailing of people on a wooden cross. Tourists and foreign media flock to Cutud just to witness the 55-year-old street play, thus, turning what is supposed to be a solemn religious celebration a highly commercialized one. Just a word of caution though: this is not for the faint-hearted. If the mere sight of blood makes you queasy and nauseous, then better not go here.

However, if you are into photojournalism, then going to Cutud is an experi

Cutud Lenten Rites| Photo used with permission, by Bong Du

ence not to miss. The event has a VIP area for media and photographers so taking photos won’t be a problem. Just be sure that you can endure the heat of the sun.

Aside from the crucifixion, flagellants, also known locally as “magdarame”, walk barefoot around the town and whip their backs with a bundle of bamboo sticks at the end of a rope and use razor blades to cut their swollen backs so blood can come out.

Biyernes Santo in Quiapo| Photo used with permission, by Liz Reyes

3. Quiapo. Since most people head to their respective provinces during Holy Week, traveling around Metro Manila during Good Friday is always a breeze. In fact, Visita Iglesia in Manila has always been a tradition among Catholics who choose to spend Lent in Manila, and the Quiapo Church is probably one of the favorite churches among pilgrims.

During Good Friday, Black Nazarene devotees flock to Quiapo Church for the Black Nazarene procession, which usually starts as early as 5:30 AM. Various Black Nazarene replicas are also paraded along the streets of Quiapo while devotees go barefoot in imitation of Jesus on his way to Mount Calvary.

Biyernes Santo in Quiapo| Photo used with permission, by Liz Reyes

There have been various accounts of people who have touched the Black Nazarene are reported to have been cured of their diseases. Thus, like the actual Black Nazarene feast on January 9, towels and handkerchiefs are also hurleto the marshals and escorts guarding the Black Nazarene, requesting their cloths to be wiped to the statue in hope for a miracle.

Nearby churches that can also be included in your Visita Iglesia itinerary are the Malate Church, Binondo Church, Manila Cathedral, San Agustin Church, Santa Cruz Church, and San Sebastian Church.

On the other hand, the usual rowdy and busy Escolta and Delpan suddenly transform into peaceful streets during Good Friday–a perfect time for photojournalists to capture this very rare quiet moment in Manila through their lens.

4. Balaan Bukid Shrine, Guimaras. If you love outdoor activities, then trekking to Balaan Bukid Summit in Jordan, Guimaras is the best activity for you this coming Holy Week. Balaan Bukid, which means “Sacred Mountain” in the Hiligaynon dialect of Panay, is a pilgrimage site of Catholic devotees that sits on top of the mountain.

Balaan Bukid, Guimaras| Photo used with permission, by Liz Reyes

At the summit of Balaan Bukid is the Ave Maria Purisima Shrine where a chapel is marked by a huge, white cross. It is hard not to miss this large cross when you’re coming from Iloilo to Guimaras. Climbing Balaan Bukid is free of charge but be sure to bring lots of water to keep you hydrated, and put on some sunblock before climbing as the trek will take 45 minutes. On your way up, be sure to take note of the 14 Stations of the Cross.

Also, a local version of the Passion of Christ, called “Ang Pagtaltal sa Guimaras”, is performed during the Lenten Season. In 2009, a new kind of Christ’s Passion and Death on the Cross was experienced by the Guimarasnons and tourists as the stage play inspired by the Seven Last Words was transformed into a street play dubbed “Ang Pagtaltal sa Balaan Bukid.”   “Ang Pagtaltal sa Guimaras”, which is already on its 35th year, was once called as the “Golgotha of the Philippines.”