I went back to Batanes to fly a kite

I just got back from a 5 day trip to the northern most tip of the Philippines – Yes. Batanes islands.

If you’re an avid reader of my blog (like that will happen) you probably read my first post about Batanes. When I finally found some time to write about it after 2 years.

So why go back to Batanes? Aside from the obvious reason – it rocks! I needed a well deserved rest away from the jungle – from the civilized yet primitive world. And of course, I wanted to fly my kite.

This was the first flight of my kite – the famous white beach at Sabtang Island. This shot was taken under the arc that you probably see on most pictures of people who took the slow 45 minute boat ride from Batan Island to Sabtang Island.

The kite didn’t fly as high as I hoped it would. I tried several times… I did – promise! I don’t think it even flew more than 5 minutes. The wind kept changing direction. I gave up after an hour when I realized that it was high noon and getting a nasty sunburn on the first day… will suck!

Moving on, 2 years ago this is where we camped out – under the lighthouse. It was a truly unique experience. Falls under the “when was the last time you did something for the first time” category. We had a few of these experiences during this trip – I’ll talk about that on my next post. Flying a kite on the beach, the mountains, under a lighthouse definitely meets the requirements.

Anyway, this was also a failed attempt – only a few meters up. No worries – I had a feeling that my 3rd try will be a success. Besides, 3′s a charm.

On the 3rd day, we went back to Batan Island for my 3rd and final attempt to fly my kite – Marlboro country. A government reserved area where carabaos were free to roam the land. Ain’t that sweet. If only we could apply the same concept to our society – a place where we can dump all the people who are full of sh!t so they can freely sh!t at will (*wink).

A quick glance at this picture and you know immediately that all elements for a successful lift off are there. Just like in life – nice steady direction, a good support system, a plan of attack, and some good old friends.

There she goes – a successful flight. And it stayed up there for a really really long time. A quick tug every now and then, left to right – and we’re smooth sailing. As if nothing could go wrong. The wind was strong but consistent.

This is the life! A nice view, laid back without a care in the world, kite is flying high, friends running around glancing up every now and then just to see if your kite is still flying high (and that’s what friends are for).

Batanes doesn’t have all the luxuries we have in Manila but that’s the beauty of it – it changes you and it stays with you. This is a “civilized” society where people care for each other. Only the basic necessities.

Allow me to end this post with a short message to all who have future plans to visit Batanes: Please do not try to change their ways. Do not abuse their kindness. Do not influence them on what you think is right – take a good look at the world you move in, it can’t be all right.

The locals there are well educated – their educational system is solid and just by talking to them you will realize that what they have is how things could have been… for all of us.

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