Laji and Palo-palo

About the Community/Province

Community Profile:

Municipalities: Basco and Mahatao
Basco
The capital municipality of Batanes situated in Batan Island. It is the biggest town in Batanes in terms of population and the most urbanized among the six towns of the province. It is located in a level area at the northern tip of Batan Island bounded on the east by Mount Iraya, on the west by Basco Bay, on the north by Chadpidan with Songsong Bay and on the south by the municipality of Mahatao. It was known as Basay before the Spaniards came, and was renamed after Don Jose Basco who was the Governor General of the Philippines when the church and civil governments were permanently established in the province in 1783. Batan Island has a length of 10.7 km and a width of 6.2 in its widest area. It has a total land area of 71.8 square kilometers.

Barangays: Kayvaluganan, Kaychanarianan, Kayhuvukan, San Antonio,
San Joaquin, Chanarian-Tukon
Population: 7,517 (as of August 1, 2007 census)

Mahatao:
The second town in Batan island, Batanes also known as San Carlos, is six kilometers drive from Basco to the south. It nestles at the foot of three hills namely Naydi in the south, Lagud in the east and Majorojoron on the north. It is bounded on the west by the Disbayangan Beach which is a part of the Luzon and China Seas. The town was originally named San Carlos de Mahatao on 4 November 1798 by then Lieutenant Governor Don Miguel de Amo in honor of the patron saint San Carlos borromeo. A brook runs in the middle of the town which supplied the people potable water before the construction of the present water system. Now it has the best water supply in the main island of Batan.

Area: 1,290 hectares (5.61%)
Barangays: Panatayan, Kaumbakan, Uvoy, Hañib
Population: 1,539 (as of August 1, 2007 census)

Basco and Mahatao are two of the six municipalities of the lovely, scenic far-flung islands of Batanes

BASIC DATA ON BATANES

Location

Batanes, the smallest province in terms of area and population, lies in the northernmost tip of the Philippine archipelago, located between 20˚15’ to 21˚15’ north latitude and 121˚45’ to 122˚15’ east longitude. It is bounded on the north by Taiwan with the Bashi Channel, on the east by the Philippine Sea and Pacific Ocean, on the south by the Babuyan Islands which are part of the Province of Cagayan, and on the west by the South China Sea.
The province is composed of six municipalities – Basco, Mahatao, Ivana, Uyugan, Itbayat, Sabtang – and is part of Region II, but is nearer to Taiwan than to Manila. Basco, its capital, is 180 km south of Taipei and is 280 kms north of Aparri on the tip of Luzon (Mangahas 1994:19).. Mavudis, the northernmost islet in the chain, is only 224 kms. away from the southernmost tip of Taiwan. Batanes has 10 small islands, only three of which are inhabited, namely Itbayat, Batan, and Sabtang, covering a total land area of 23,000 hectares (230 square kilometers), making it the country’s smallest province, while its territorial waters encompass some 4,500sq. km.. Batan, Itbayat, and Sabtang islands make up 90 percent of the province’s land area. The rest of the province consists of the islands of Dequey, Ivuhos, Mavudis, Siayan, North Island and Yami. Ivuhos and Dequey, while unpopulated, are used as communal pasture areas by residents of nearby Sabtang Island.

People

The Ivatan trace their roots to prehistoric Formosan immigrants and latter-day Spanish conquistadores. Thus, they bear the features of their ancestors: the Spaniards aquiline nose and the Formosan’s almond eyes. The Ivatan, having become acculturated with the rest of Hispanized Philippines in the 19th century, have since shared the general cultural trends in the country ever since. (Hornedo, 1983:271-319).

Language/Dialect

The Ivatan still use their Austronesian language. It is peppered with Spanish pidgin and spoken with the tonal musicality of Chinese. The people of Itbayat (one of the municipalities of Batanes) have their own dialect known as Itbayaten. English and Filipino are also widely spoken and understood by Ivatans, 95 percent of whom are literate.

Climate/Weather

Batanes weather is unpredictable although the islands are not constantly battered by typhoons as many believe.. The seas surrounding Batanes are calm and navigable in April, May, and June. At other times, they become turbulent and dangerous to sea craft, being in the direct path of Pacific-born typhoons which visit the Philippines.
It has no pronounced wet or dry season. Cooler weather- which the Ivatan call winter- occur from December to February. Temperature ranges from 14◦C in December and January to 37◦C in the humid month of July. The best time to visit is mid-March to June. An Indian summer supposedly takes place in September.

Topography

The province is hilly and mountainous, with only 1,631.50 hectares or 7.10% of its area level to undulating and 78.20% or 17,994.40 hectares varying in terms from rolling to steep and very steep. Forty two percent (42%) or 9,734.40 hectares are steep to very steep land. Because of the terrain of the province, drainage is good and prolonged flooding is non-existent. The main island of Batan has the largest share of level and nearly level lands, followed by Itbayat and Sabtang, respectively. Itbayat has gently rolling hills and nearly level areas on semi-plateaus surrounded by continuous massive cliffs rising from 20-70 meters above sea level, with no shorelines. Sabtang on the other hand, has its small flat areas spread sporadically on its coasts, while its interior is dominated by steep mountains and deep canyons. Batan island and Sabtang have intermittent stretches of sandy beaches and rocky shorelines. The terrain of the province while picturesque at almost every turn, has limited the potential for expansion of agriculture in an already very small province.

Transportation

Air transportation is Batanes’ only regular link with mainland Luzon. Airlines change its scheduled trips every now and then to suit the conditions of the time as well as for business viability. At present Sea Air and Zest Air fly from Manila to Basco and vice versa at least thrice a week. Zest Airlines flight schedule is every Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. It leaves Manila Domestic Airport at 4:50 a.m. and arrives at Basco Airport at 7:00 a.m. It leaves Basco at 7:20 for their return flight and arrives in Manila at 9:30 a.m. The said aircraft has a 40-50 seating capacity. The cost of air travel from Manila to Basco is P6,659.00 (one-way ticket only). However, passengers may also avail of lower travel price which vary from time to time through the said airlines’ promo fares via internet. Chartered planes like the Chemtrad Aviation Corporation and Batanes Airlines provide alternative air transport to the islands via Tuguegarao-Basco route and vice-versa when there are enough passengers.