I was stranded in Itbayat island due to unpredictable weather conditions. I originally planned to stay there for 3 days but I stayed on for 7 days! What can someone do when there is neither flight nor boat to get you out of the island?
I tried to make the most of my stay. But there was nowhere to go because of the rain and the howling wind. I was staying in the government guest house for a minimum fee. People came to visit me, they brought me books to read and even some snacks. At night, my new found friends came over and we drank and told stories until daybreak. So much learned, so much shared.
On my fourth or fifth day, I was invited for a home stay. This was great, I am really going to experience living the real Itbayaten way. I ate the way they did and slept the way they did. One thing I noticed, they did not close their doors even at night. So one night, when I was sleeping, I heard some passersby talking (I'm certain, I was not dreaming).
I could not emphasize more about people's hospitality in these places. I do not usually eat in between meals but when I was in the home stay, my host mother always gave me food apart from the usual 3 full meals. They themselves normally do not eat snacks but they thought this is how people from
When the weather finally got a little better, I was informed that there are 3 batches of flights going to Basco, the capital town of
However, being the anxious city girl that I am, I couldn't be dissuaded. Ready to ride the boat and waiting at the port, we heard that the 2nd flight was just canceled. Me and my 2 companions who dared to take the boat ride agreed that it was indeed a good decision to take the 4 hour boat ride rather than to indefinitely wait for a 10 minute flight to Basco. An hour later, another passenger arrived. I saw him earlier, he was supposed to take the plane. So we are now a total of 4 passengers. One is a businesswoman, the other perhaps a student, and the newcomer is an "Ipula (someone not from Batanes like me) since I heard him speak in Tagalog and his outfit showed that he's not local.
Boarding the boat was not an easy task. We have to jump into the boat taking into consideration the rapid movements of the flying giant waves. One lady passenger, the businesswoman, passed out while trying to go on board. With the help of the men crew, carrying her, she was finally able to make it into the boat . The other girl was pushed and pulled into the boat. Watching the scene, instead of being afraid, I became very excited. Ironically,the adventurous spirit in me was raging with excitement. Finally, it was my turn. With outstretched arms reaching out for me from the boat crew, I was able to climb fast and relatively easy into the boat, defying the forces of nature :-).
the fierce north wind (the locals call it "nortada"). The furious sea mercilessly lurched the boat, back and forth, back and forth. Huge waves bombarded us. I went over to the side to throw up. I was wet, numbed and seasick. We were in the middle of an angry sea and I could touch the pacific ocean just by stretching my arms towards it. I was not afraid of the dark blue rumbling water, I hoped that the boat will not turn over although every minute it gave the impression that it will. I was just so numb and seasick, I could not help throwing up a lot, and I didn't care much if I was going to die there.
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