It took around 55 minutes—almost an hour—for us to get back to Basco from Mahatao. We did not go to return our bikes yet though. We went to the town plaza, which was too busy that afternoon with kids who had just gone out of school. We walked through the plaza tagging along the bikes until we found a spot where we could sit for a while.

If the day before we were goofing in front of the provincial capitol, we were in front of the municipal hall the day that followed. Pero ang totoo, magkatapat lang naman kasi sila.

Ran and I just sat in front of the municipal hall, observing people go about their lives: children playing, vendors selling and adults leaving their place of work.

A little short before 05:00 PM, we had to stand from our relaxed seats when employees from the municipal hall and the provincial capitol started falling in line for the flag retreat. It was a Friday afternoon, and for a while I was thrown to a state of nostalgia, remembering my days in high school and in preparatory military training when during Friday afternoons, we would do the same queueing for the retreat of the Philippine flag.

We knew it was time to go when the flag retreat was over. We still needed to grab something for dinner, and we still got bicycles to return.

Ran and I went on to ride the bikes again and took on the road going to the seaside road, hoping to find a place where we may buy our dinner. We did not fail. As we rode along, we found Cafe Vituhen, a cozy café just across the viewing deck next to the Basco Welcome Arch.

The café has a rustic vibe into it, yet we did not stay as Ran had a different thing to do in mind than to dine in. We just ordered burgers and milk teas for our dinner then went out to the viewing deck where we could see the sea and the sky. The idea was to take our dinner while watching the sunset.

It was unfortunate though that due to the clouds that evening, the sun was not visible from where we stood. We knew it was there though, as hidden as it was, it gave off an orange hue in the sky.

It was a sunless sunset, and our second night in Batanes was already upon us. Before the sky became totally dark, we headed back to the bicycle rental shop, then walked our way to the lodge. Along the way, we stopped by a grocery store and bought some food to munch on as we chill through the night.

We did not stay as late though, as the morning that would follow would start early. We would leave Batan Island on the day that follows, and it would be an experience far different from the first two days, albeit in a way we never expected. In fact, it was in a way we never wanted.