Volume 2, Issue No. 64
OPINION/COMMENTARY
/ News That Fears None, Views That Favor Nobody /
. . . . . A community service of The Filipino Web Channel (TheFilipinoWebChannel@gmail. com) and the Philippine Village Voice (PhilVoiceNews@gmail.com) for the information and understanding of Filipinos and the diverse communities in North America . . . . . .
Our latest as of Tuesday, May 25, 2021
~ The raw, pristine beauty of Batanes is simply awe-inspiring. Located at the northernmost tip of the Philippines, the islands are a wonder. Braving unforeseen occurrences, a group of media persons toured the area for three days and surprised themselves with having survived life without the internet. But the tour, part of Winterescapade 5, was a priceless gift in education and awareness of the exquisite appeal of one of the country's jewels. Within that brief span, we learned that people can do many things without so much gadgetry and urban sophistication. It's one lesson from the Ivatans, the natives of Batanes. (Some parts of this article appeared in another publication in February 2018).
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THE PHILIPPINES' NORTHERNMOST FRONTIER
The Pristine Beauty of Batanes
By ROMEO P. MARQUEZ
Editor, The Filipino Web Channel
"One half of the world does not know how the other half lives" - Proverbs
BATANES, Philippines – The uncertain weather situation in this northernmost part of the Philippines made me decide to forego a planned 30- to 45-minute boat trip across rough seas from Ivana township to a small village in Sabtang where the Ivatans, native to these islands, live a life of comfort for centuries.
The Ivatans are a hardy, patient lot. Nature seems to have endowed them with the determination and resiliency to overcome whatever hurdles face them. In their homeland, for instance, the big challenge is their environment - geography, the erratic weather, and the roaring seas around them.
Rather than impediments, they recognize them as blessings, accept what they have, and live happily, content of their fortunes living off nature's bounty. (Info at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Batanes).
Here now in Batanes, the less-than-a-dozen members of various media from the US and Canada, the Philippine Department of Tourism New York, the Tourism Promotions Board, and travel agencies, had just flown in the night before from Davao via Manila. (Video at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n-tRDIw1d8g).
I traveled from Toronto to the Philippine capital on my own and joined the group from there for the rest of the tour. Once done, I extended my stay for a few weeks and used my return ticket for the flight back to Toronto.
In Davao, the southern Philippines bailiwick of President Rodrigo Duterte, the group was treated to spectacular Mindanao hospitality with an abundance of food and entertainment, all tailored to please and relax the visitors. For a while, it looked like this part of the country was basking in luxury.
For us non-resident Filipinos, what would have been truly rewarding was the physical presence of the president himself (who was actually there attending another function) or in his absence, his daughter, Davao Mayor Sarah Duterte. Despite the buzz, neither Dutertes graced the two lavishly attended parties.
As any journalist knows, even a brief interaction with either the president or the city mayor would have made attending the function worthwhile. That was the value in that event, not the really impressive show of opulence.
Along the main avenues of Davao, we have to contend with seeing a smiling president in his trademark cardboard cutout. It's a devious reminder to all and sundry that he's very much all over.
Since joining the group in Bacolod on February 5, two days after the tour commenced in Manila, I'm much too saturated with all the information I gathered from this tour and from earlier appointments.
Each of the places we visited deserves a story of its own, not just a passing mention of what we saw on the surface, meaning the welcome treat and the overflowing food served to please and impress.
After visiting Bacolod, Davao, Pampanga (at Clark), and now Batanes, for the first time, and being treated warmly to their food, their indigenous traits and practices, I feel so wanting of knowledge of the many unique cultures of the Philippines.
(The tour did not end there; from Batanes, we flew to Manila, and from Manila, it was another plane ride to Puerto Princesa, Palawan).
It's not so much the fun for me personally, it's the wealth of wisdom, the folk tales, the legends told and retold, that add up to a better appreciation of the Filipino mosaic.
Previously I had thought I had enough insights to say I'm a proud son of the Philippines, having been born in the very citadel of the revolution against Spain, and having for grandfathers revolutionaries who belonged to and fought under the KKK, the Kataastasaang Kagalanggalangan Katipunan ng mga Anak ng Bayan.
But that was not enough “credential”, if I may so, to make me an authentic Filipino. My understanding of the culture I grew up with is just starting to be filled, and as the tour went on for another week, my outlook of the country I thought I knew, grows deeper and wider than I ever imagined.
Seven thousand one hundred jewels of an island called the Philippines would be too broad of a cultural and linguistic mix so that in the counting we tend to lose track of the diversity and richness we have in our midst. One need not go to fabled places to see the divergence; it's in us, it's in all of us.
I've been to many places in Spain, particularly in Madrid, Toledo, and Barcelona, on the wrong assumption that I was looking up for some connection with the "motherland". Little did I know that the identity I carry with me was in the pre-Spanish Philippines, among the people who look like me.
I acknowledge my own dearth of perception. Our ignorance makes us dismissive. My self-estimation of the province that gave the Philippines independence only proves that I need a more basic understanding and an appreciation of the others outside of my orbit of knowledge.
I was content with being a Caviteno first before being a Filipino, the point being that Cavite, the land of my birth, predates the Philippines. Others may claim the same if only to point out that our “jewels” are very much untapped. There are so many things to be discovered in our own backyard if only we care to look and take notice.
Some of that diversity exists in this land of the Ivatans. The scant knowledge we have is worsened by an inability to see beyond the government's weather forecasts which makes Batanes, being in the northern tip of the country, a reference point in the map for the entry and exit of typhoons.
That may be so but it strengthens the myth that wind-swept Batanes is typhoon-ravaged all year round. Talking to the Ivatans, they swear their island regularly receives a beating, an average of five to six typhoons, but not in the way most listeners of weather forecasts believe.
The truth is Batanes is a must-see place to visit if only to stay away from the humdrum of city life. If the internet is one's link to the world, well, here one stays in total isolation as the internet is still a thing of the future. (Video at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O3E55CszKxE).
Of a number of places in the central and southern Philippines I visited, nothing beats Batanes. Perhaps it has to do with the province's geography. Top that with the friendly and respectful people one meets anywhere. They instantly become nodding acquaintances.
That is best demonstrated in the narrow streets crisscrossing the islands. In fact, they are too narrow for comfort. Drivers, however, miraculously pass each other unscathed, even as it seems vehicles leave no distance between them and kiss.
In Manila, that kind of situation would surely generate a war of words if not a war of fists altogether.
The tour has reawakened every Filipino fiber in me. I believe that is the unintended consequence of learning the many jewels we should treasure but have largely ignored. The tour is as much a voyage of discovery as it is an eye-opener.
Thanks to the Department of Tourism New York, especially to Tourism Attache Susan del Mundo; the Tourism Promotions Board, the Philippine Embassy in Ottawa, the Philippine Consulate General Toronto, and other agencies and private entities which provided assistance and made sure the journey was pleasant.
I've awakened from a slumber of ignorance. (Copyright 2021. All Rights Reserved).
