Reason Number One

When people think of Batanes, they normally think of a wild and stormy place -- and not one which is worth visiting, because of this. Blame the fact that Batanes is the weather bureau's point of reference for the North -- Batanes is no stormier than any other part of the Philippines.

What convinces people to go to Batanes are the images: of untouched landscapes, wave-sculpted cliffs, old ladies in vakuls, stone houses with woven thatched roofs....

Batanes is a place that time and modernity seems to have forgotten --- though if you really need and want it, you have a cellphone signal and internet to plug in to the world of the mainland.

Check out these images from Ivatan photographer Noli Gabilo. See the rest of his images at this link and this one . You can check out his other work apart from Batanes imagery at his site.