As we land to the island, you can already feel the difference of the atmosphere and the surroundings. When we were at the airport, it was small and filled with local restaurants and merchandise. It was not crowded and it has a garden at the middle. As we got our luggage, we then hurry on my auntie's house. We did a couple of stopovers and I can say the ride was really wonderful! The sight was amazing! There was a stopover at a simple grotto on our way to Mahatao (auntie's hometown). The grotto was located at a cliff with stairs so you can get this amazing view of the ocean and of Mount Iraya. On our way, we were greeted by a jeep that was overloaded! There people at the top of the jeep along with their luggage. You can still see some old stone houses in Mahatao but not as much in Sabtang. 

 On our second day, we went around Mahatao to meet some of auntie's colleagues. We ate at Paulvana's, we ordered a soup with tatus (coconut crab) as the main ingredient and some silogs for the kids. It was delicious and the place was very homey. I believe you need a reservation for the availability of the ingredients. Actually, I noticed that reservation is required in every restaurant in Batanes. On our trip to a land my auntie owned, we had a feast filled with Ivatan cuisine! We had the yellow rice (sticky rice cooked in yellow ginger (turmeric) extract) and Uved (Grated banana root with ground pork) those two are the most memorable as I find it so good.

For the third day, we visited one of my favorite places so far, Rakuh-a-idi Spring (Spring of Youth / Fountain of Youth). It was really peaceful and because you need to do a 30-minute trek to reach the spring there is a 100% chance that you will be able to keep the place to yourself. The spring was cold and I really found it relaxing. I believe its because of the spring and the view. Unfortunately, Mt. Iraya was shy when we came.

We explored a lot of places and IT WAS ALL BREATHTAKING! Their tagline really suits them.