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Philippines
/ Batanes / Sabtang Island
From Ivana,
the town of Sabtang looks ethereal in the early morning
sunlight, like an impressionist painting. The ubiquitous Spanish-style
church seems to add to this "impressionism".
Though on
maps it reads "San Vicente", the town is actually known as "Sabtang",
made up of the barrios of Malakdang and Sinakan. On this island
there are no motorized vehicles, only carabao and other animals
for transport.
Since the
only schools are in the town proper, children from Sumnanga
on the other side of the island must cross the steep hills twice
a day. It takes them about one hour to cover the 6km distance.
There are several trails that traverse the island. None are very
difficult; all give views worth framing.
At some point
along any of the cross-island trails, one will be able to see the
neighboring islands of Ibuhos and Dequey, and the "Taiwanese junks".
Apart from
trails over the top, there is also a trail that generally follows
the perimeter of the island around to the other side. But most
locals impatiently dismiss this route, muttering that it is 30km
long and not worth taking, more because of the time lost
than the distance involved.
Yet, on the mountain
trails one sees even the elderly carrying heavy loads on their back,
on the way to or from their farmland. One wonders if anyone at all
uses the coastal route.
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