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I know it's too late in your particular case, but when I renewed my UK passport very recently I used JRS Express. Cost no different to what you quoted and was received in Liverpool around 5 working days later. I have always used them - no waiting around as is the norm with LBC and the guy that does the paperwork is impressively fast!

 

I have been using Airlink for over a year and am very happy with it. I have a 30M package, and my speedtests show I usually get that or a little better, ranges between about 27M to 35M. Has never been effected by heavy rain.

 

Me and the wife tried Spice the other day; the food came out very quick. The wife had a pasta dish with shrimp...loaded with shrimp. I had an Indian curry dish, usually don't pay attention when a menu item says it is spicy as most are not close to spicy; this one brought the heat. Very impressed with the service and quality/quantity of the dishes.

We don't find many reasons to go to Valencia but any future trips this is the place we will grab some food.

Shawn

 

In addition to the previous answers, for those planning on staying long term it certainly doesn't hurt to show a little respect to the local culture - not to mention showing a bit of respect to our wives by learning at least a bit of her language.

I certainly respect those traveling to live in the US making an effort to learn English, shouldn't I do the same when I am the traveler?

 

"By birth a.k.a Jus soli is quite self explanatory. It means you’re an automatic citizen if you were born in the Philippines soil or territory."
I don't believe this is correct. I'd always heard that the Philippines did NOT recognize the principle of "jus soli", rather that Philippines citizenship derives from at least one parent, regardless of place of birth:
"I would then have to explain that I wasn't really Filipino — even though I was born here (where jus soli — acquisition of citizenship through place of birth — is not in effect) and even though I speak the language fluently. Neither of my parents are Filipino and I'm not married, so aside from being Pinoy "sa puso, sa isip, sa salita at sa gawa," I still wasn't legally a Filipino.
How I became a Filipino: A guide to naturalization for fellow foreignoys
R.A. 9139

 

My take on the hospital situation: Silliman is over-rated and they are not as friendly as Holy Child. When my husband was in Silliman hospital, he had his own oxygen generator, thus he did not use the hospital oxygen. Some guys from the mechanical dept came and checked his machine and told us it was fine to use, the nurse supervisor ok'd it, and we had Dr. authorization to use his machine. When we checked out of the hospital, there was an astronomical charge for oxygen on his bill. When questioned they said he had oxygen ordered and we must pay for it. We argued that we had gotten ok's from everyone involved and told them that we would accept the charge for the electricity to use his machine (although they weren't charging people to use their laptops, charge their phones, etc...). I paid the bill, minus the oxygen charges, and we were told we could not leave until that was paid. We literally ran out of the hospital with them yelling at security to stop us!! Not to mention they required a down-payment before he could even get a room!!
Holy Child took him right in and put him in a room, never asking for a penny up-front. He was allowed to use his machine, no questions asked. Holy Child provided a much nicer room, more pleasant atmosphere, and it is cheaper to boot. Yes, we had Phil-Health, and used it, however, for his last visit, Phil-Health wouldn't pay a single centavo since he had been previously admitted for the same condition. The last visit was our costliest, 160,000php plus our costs for medications and supplies. (This was still a bargain compared to what it would cost for 10 days in ICU, on a ventilator, in the states.) I whole-heartedly recommend Holy Child for any hospitalization. (Of course, you have to keep in mind, you will not receive the same level of care as if you were in a hospital in your home country, just bear in mind you are living in a 3rd world country.....)
Side note: Our daughter was a student at Silliman, and when she had to get her clearances, one stop was Silliman Hospital. Guess what? I ended up having to pay for that oxygen charge to get her clearance!! Silliman will hold you hostage, one way or another!)

 

14 years into retirement I think about working only in occasional nightmares. After years of anticipating being put out to stud, this is living a dream.