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This review shows why it is good to have people here who can tell us the negatives so we are forewarned and can save our money and time for the best eating-out places.

So those who complain about (what they call) 'complainers' need to realise that we cannot just write a string of positives but have to use this forum to warn about the negatives in all aspects of life here. As long as that is done without insults then it is fine and any establishment has to be able to accept it OR lose customers.

 

It's funny you mentioned Belize and Nicaragua as those are two of my countries of choice where I will eventually relocate to (full-time, then part-time) to develop my crazy dream of planting a tropical tree farm.

Yes. I'm a US Vet, military retired, female and now a widow with an adult Vet Son who is married and on his own. At this stage in my life, I get the luxury of being able to call all the shots in my life now, and do so without having to factor in everyone else plus "The Employer" into the equation -- which is a first!

I'm looking forward to my move to Dumaguete, which should happen Jan-Mar 2017. I'll be utilizing my Post 9/11 GI Bill and be learning about tropical agriculture, tropical forestry, and maybe add some agri-business into this mix.

By far, my research has told me that based on where I am right now and what I bring to the table, and, based on what I want to do and where I want to be in five years, the Philippines offers the best "deal" of the VISA offers that are currently out there in the world that I can choose from.

Cost of VISA, cost of living, being able to plug in to an expat community, educational requirements, language - these are factors that weighed heavily in my decision-making process.

Yes. I fully expect to be "shocked and amazed" by what I will discover in my living on a daily basis in the Philippines.

Yes. I fully expect to have a degree of discomfort in adapting to another part of the world which can/will be very different than what I have experienced in my lifetime and in my day-to-day living lifestyle.

But you know what? I'm not scared of this. I actually welcome this! I'm living life in the here and now -- no matter where I get to hang my hat -- and feel d*mn lucky I get to hang my hat in a few more places than most folks will ever have a chance to do in their lifetimes.

And I get to choose how to make the most it, too. I get to choose much of the hows, whens, and whys now.

So I say enjoy where you are, and be thankful for what you have and what you can pass along to others. Keep your head, heart, and hands working together and not at cross-purposes and at the end of the day, you and everyone and everything you will have touched that day will be the better for it.

ps... I tell myself quite regularly to "look at the donut - not at the hole". What is not there does not drive me so much as what is there. I could be full of S*** with this attitude, but so far, I have been able to keep my sanity and my wits about me for all the challenges I've had to face.

V/R,
nwlivewire

 

There was a case in the nineties (well not the last five years) where the mayor and his two body guards gunned down an american on open street.
They thought they would get away with it. But nope. The lawyer who drove the case transfered the trial to Luzon, as the 'suspects' were too connected in Cebu. All got long prison sentences. The mayor couldn't cope with being locked up and died in prison soon after the conviction. The other two are still locked up.

 

My biggest problem is the arbitrarily imposed elder age limit for going into the city and even the barangay. Each EO copies the other without much thought. Somebody came up with the idea that this was necessary for 65+ and everyone copied it. It continues into GCQ at the lower 60+ (getting closer to impacting you yet?) I know of no other countries that do this because I those countries elders gotta get food and go to the atm machines too. 60+ (revised LOWER age limit likely copied and recopied by typo) already KNOW they must take extra protection and only go out when absolutely necessary; they will if they want to live. The newer rules even ban people with risk factors from going out. Not sure how to enforce that since risk factors are not always visible, although obese people could be quickly identified and arrested for their own good I suppose lol. I suspect the elder ban may be based upon local Filipino culture where family and relatives are available and it can be practical for them. But no thought about the retired expats who didn’t marry a much younger bride or whose helpers went home for the duration in most cases. When PRA reopens, I plan to bring this up as I suspect that many future PRA retirees, concerned about this practice during the imminent future seasonal infection peaks, may choose places where they will not likely be locked down directly due to age; instead they may prefer places where expat elders can get medicine and money, following social distancing. In my case, “home” is what the wife and I are thinking. I am going to make a real big deal about this to PRA SRRV when they reopen; at least we have our SRRV deposits as some minimal leverage. I know, don’t let the swinging doors hit you on the way out lol. Also I hear what you say, Pat, about the success of ECQ, but I am not that sure if the ECQ had any significant effect one way or the other. Not many cases here but then again, there are many places where it is not so successful, ie in the NCR region (according to IATF) which has similar ECQ rules, so, does it really make that much of a difference? Any answer is just a guess. And what does the no-swimming, alcohol ban, wearing masks while driving, confiscating motor vehicles with no OR, charges when no DL really accomplish to reduce infections? Every provincial EO seems to copy the NCR EO boilerplate but this is not NCR. I suspect what had a major positive effect was travel ban between provinces, not these other rules. Just another opinion.




Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

Latest update: Light at the end of the tunnel!
All units now done, bar a few touch-ups to the paintwork inside. Carpenters put the final touches to the cabinets in the walk-in wardrobes this week as well. Two of our Bindoy guys spent the whole week laying the gravel footpaths, leveling the blot to prep for landscaping and shifting heaps of gravel manually for the car park. All done with a shovel and a 5 gallon paint drum in scorching heat. I take my hat off to them. I spent the week drilling holes and hanging curtains, pictures and mirrors in the first two units. Same to follow next week for the second two. Noreco now have the signed certificate of occupancy and will finally connect late next week probably. A big thank you to Dennis next door who allowed us to tap into his electric for the whole build basically. Pics taken today. Landscaper will lay grass in the near future as all topsoil (9 truck loads) now in situ. Native hut installed also - took 20 blokes to manhandle it off the truck into position. Wish I'd been there to record that! Going well.

i

 

For people that don't have saving a mountain of debt would be better than being 6 feet under.
The main advantage to having a credit card is the hospital can get their deposit right away. Imagine breaking a leg Friday evening and having to wait until the bank opens on Monday.
Sometimes families have to make a hard decision when it comes to a loved one. This isn't the only country where people face that problem.

 

So millions of sim cards to be registered within 6 months of Dec 27th.

This is the Philippines - so what could go wrong?

Some people finding after registration that their sim cards get cut off is one guess.