We arrived in Basco on PAL around noontime.. smooth flight from Clark to Basco.. we took our own time to bike around the town center.. it's simply beautiful
(
on to the next day...
Batan island has mainly 2 parts to go for touring.. the north and the south
we didnt want to do the usual route to avoid the crowd 😂
the goal was to be at the must visit spots, spend time and enjoy the place and of course take some clicks for keeps.. ☺️
we did the south trip first, and the very first refreshing stop was the Tayid lighthouse which was in the town of Mahata
we then went to Racuh a Payaman (according to Edwin, also named by a foreign visitor many years back as Marlboro Country because of how similar it looks as the Marlboro cigarette advertisement before 😊)..
this was by the way my very favorite and Paulo's too.. in fact we went back for a 2nd round there, you'll see later on 😍❤️
from here, you'll see the Tayid lighthouse, very green rolling hills, cows feeding on the green green grasses, blue skies, and the very alluring Mt Iraya, and everything else that's beautiful and nice to see.. truly breathtaking
Ivana - another beautiful town in the south of the island..
lots of stops and spots to go here too..
both old churches, the Honesty Coffee shop - all items are labeled with corresponding prices, and with all honesty, one has to pay and drop the exact amount at the payment box.., the spanish bridge, the House of Dakay - oldest standing stone-house in the island of Batan, the white beach - the scenery really reminded me of Lost (mountains and beaches), and a short stop to glance at the Blue Lagoon.
the second half of our south-tour day..
after lunch we spent time roaming around the area in the municipality of Mahatao.
an old church, San Carlos Borromeo and inside it was a very unique library with blank books where visitors can write their own stories and travels..
last stop was at Chawa View Deck where there's a stairway to meet&greet the roaring waves and an obligatory- stop at the Basco Welcome Arch ☺️
kudos to edwin our guide for nicely plotting this whole day 👍🏻
we then chose to go for the North tour the following day which covered equally breath-taking spots..
✔️Valugan Boulder Beach where you get a beautiful sight of Mt Iraya, wild waves from the Pacific Ocean, and rocks that definitely make the whole view so charming
✔️ Dipnaysupuan Japanese Tunnel. aside from a panoramic view that's so beautiful, you'll get to see all chambers inside this 5-door tunnel.. this serves as a hide-out and look-out posts for Japanese soldiers back in WW2.
✔️ Fundacion Pacita, the most expensive accommodation there is in the island.. but we got there to see the view from the top of the hill and had some refreshments from the very cozy and elegantly designed restaurant
✔️ PAGASA Weather Station – Basco, this structure was destroyed by a strong typhoon few years back..
✔️ Tukon Church (Mt. Carmel Chapel). was under construction when we visited.. reconstructed after it got destroyed by the same typhoon (i alrefy forgot the name ✌🏻).. this is already seen from the hotel/weather station beuatifully standing on top of the hill.. Carmel, our baby love's 2nd name was taken from
IF YOU WANT TO TRAVEL WITH FAMILY THIS IS THE PLACE FOR YOU AND PLACE LOVE