Best Posts in Forum: Expat Section

Speaking from experience, my husband and I came to the Philippines in 2009 (he was originally from Dumaguete, anyway, but became a US citizen in his early 30's), when his health had deteriorated and needed my care 24 hours a day. We could much more afford for me to quit work and live in the Philippines than in the US. The medical care he received in the Philippines was, for the most part, okay. Of course, it was not up to par to what he could get in the US, but we knew that before we moved. He dropped his Medicare since he could not travel to the US for care; Dumaguete was his "final destination" and it is exactly where he wanted to be laid to rest. We had PhilHealth, which is very affordable, and is pretty good for helping out for hospitalizations, you just have to be sure to read the fine print or you could get screwed, (I did on his 2 week ICU stay while he was on life support, I ended up having to pay 100% of the bill because of a policy they have of not paying twice within a 30 day period for hospitalization for the same diagnosis). Doctor visits, medical tests, and medications, for the most part, are much more affordable and we never felt the need for any further health insurance to cover these items. So, to answer the original question: Financially, it is cheaper for most medical care in the Philippines. If it is top-notch, state of the art medical care you desire or require, then you best head home, although there are some good facilities in Manila and Cebu, but you won't find that kind of medical care available in the smaller provincial islands. We could never travel outside of Dumaguete for his care, so I cannot give specifics.

 

I have often said that I MUST ACCEPT things here I do not like or I leave (i.e. no one forces me to stay) - the corollary of that is that if I am NOT ACCEPTED here then also I should leave. Minimal standards of courtesy from a host country should not be too difficult to extend to its guests. In fact, I find the people very welcoming but I do not think that at higher levels it is the same - however, I am not sure that respect for its own citizens is there at authority level either.

 

Nineteen years ago I met my true love, No internet for us, Pen to paper is all we had, Not even a cell phone.
Her family have never asked for any money. I met her via her sister in the Nederlands and she recommenced me to my now wife.
So if there are bad Filipinos out there and I guess there are. Be sensible.

 

The most important and untold story here is, what happens to the victims? Unfortunately they probably won't receive much help in funds or counseling. These stories make me think that the expat community should create a fund to help the victims from these stories.

If there is ever a case for eye for an eye...

This is the sort of situation where the government could send a hit squad to this guy's house, loot all of his belongings, take him to the ATM, order him to empty his accounts and then beat him severely. Then drop him off in rebel territory in Mindanao with a tattoo of a cartoon of the Prophet Mohammad tattooed to his forehead.

Unfortunately, perpetuating violence is something we need to move away from. History shows that it doesn't work for stopping these people. The worst we could come up with is nothing compared to the horrific brutality he probably would have experienced not too long ago.

Old Croghan Man - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

People have been finding remains of bodies buried in bogs in Ireland which have been tortured, disemboweled, decapitated and a bunch more fun things. Maybe these guys screwed with the wrong people, yet that hasn't stopped others to do the same thing with the same results.

These people need to have their passports either revoked or their international movements closely monitored. Customs on each side need to be aware of who is passing through. I suppose we'll get there eventually. One day we'll have so much data floating about us that after taking a sh*t in the airport, the ticket agent will know to hand us diarrea tabs before boarding the plane. Privacy issues are a discussion for another thread.

The taxpayer issue could largely be solved if we were to quit locking up people who shouldn't be in prison and put more focus into dealing with the people who really should be there. People as jacked up in the head as this guy need to at least be subject to mandatory counseling (while locked up or not depending on the case.) I regularly fantasize about filling people with bullet holes, especially while on the road! But I don't act out on these fantasies. This guy acted out multiple times and that makes him a threat for as long as he is alive.

This is something the U.S. needs to take the lead on. I have the answers. Vote TheDude - 2016.

PS - Vote for me for U.S. president, not Philippines - or I'll be the one on the receiving end of the hit squads.

 

Dogs can go missing for days and then suddenly return; so remain in hope. Certainly a good idea to take your other dogs with you as their sense of smell is far in excess of that of humans; either they could detect Shadow or he could detect them. Even possible they may lay a fresh trail to your home (the past ones having been obliterated by the rains last night) which he may follow if he meets it at ANY point.

 

That’s a difficult statement to deal with. Is it worth it coming here? I’m certain that in this area you’d find many, possibly the majority of expats who’d say absolutely yes, it is worth it, at least for them – certainly not for everyone. There are many of us who live peaceful lives here, usually with a girlfriend or wife, who’ve never been spit upon, shot at, harassed by the authorities… Many of us find life here quite livable and affordable. You won’t read about us in the press. Many don’t post on this or other forums. If you’ve never been to the Philippines or you’ve been here but haven’t spent much time, my advice would be come here, see for yourself, but don’t burn bridges at home until you’ve been here for some length of time. Don’t get overly committed, don’t buy anything – just check it out. Good common sense should keep you safe and out of trouble.

 

Most bars (or any food establishment) already have friendly dogs just waiting for someone to drop their fried chicken.
I doubt anyone would care if you sat outside with your dog, the concerns would be in what your dog "picks up" while there. I'm not talking about scraps either.
Lots of dog flu, dog covid (yes, it is a thing) overall dog viruses, fleas, and ticks from all the strays. Also concider any puddle of water contaminated with stuff you dont want them drinking.
I have finished putting my puppies thru a 20 day antibiotic regime and we dont even live in the city. Also, my dogs are NOT friendly to strangers, we walk in quiet and "off"hours. Yet they still got sick, vet said it is because of stuff that lingers in the air, on the ground and overall environment.
This is just a heads up.
If you still go out then, at the very least, make sure puppy is fully vaccinated, and boosted.
We people can skip vaccination and get sick if we want (free will), but our puppies deserve beter care than we give ourselves.