Guarded subdivisions

Good to see you back posting, been awhile, wondering what happened to you.

 

If I ever felt the need to hide behind a bunch of ex soldiers for safe sleep I'd rather put my pillow down somewhere else.

Being one of the (or even _the_) filthy-richest clans in the country of course the ayalas know how to hide from normal people. Not my cup of tea though. Guess (western) Europeans in general find the whole gated community thing a strange idea. Cities are meant for living together, not jailed into subdivisions, clustered according to the size of the bank account.

Before moving to Dumaguete I stayed in some very cheap Quezon City areas, a short walk away people were sleeping under bridges. I was the only foreigner for miles, taxi drivers sometimes stared in disbelief when I told them where I'm going. Of course one can think of a million things to go wrong, but being stabbed in my sleep has never been a thing I was worrying about. Common sense, being nice to people and keeping a relatively low profile go a long way.

 

Deleted double-posting.

 

Fair enough Jens...I think we can all quote lucky breaks, or even sustained periods of survival against the odds. Before I met my wife, I had a girlfriend in Tondo. Nice young lady and she was working at a Makati bank. Whenever, I went to her house - she lived with her parents and brothers and sisters - in a real house in Tondo..basic but decent..It wasn't cardboard - or plywood. The taxi drivers always refused to go there. I'd get out and walk the last k or so...I survived, was a big boy and recent Marine LOL - but did get propositioned by several young ladies each time - some showing what they got....My girlfriend's brothers would always escort me out of the place - not that I wanted or needed it but they did. I accept there is a certain degree of risk not living in a guarded subdivision. I accept there is less risk, even considerably less risk, living in a guarded and gated high-quality subdivision. It is a roll of the dice. If you want better safety in a local community, Malaysia has a great retirement visa program and prices are higher - but not outrageous living there. Some regions better than others of course....I'm not advocating Malaysia or anywhere else...But the Philippines has challenges....recently improved a bit...but still challenging from what I am hearing. My wife is off there again in a couple weeks....I've got some refurbishment work to get done on our house here while she is away....My pick of the Asian litter, by far - is Japan....If we could get decent visas there our feet wouldn't touch the ground on the way to the airport. We have spent a lot of time there last few years - and I lived there as a kid and as a Marine. Never happen though - LOL - last thing they need is two more old people - even if they are self-supporting....

Back to paradise....All it takes in Dumaguete or anywhere else - is a couple shabu addicts - to like your house....and it won't matter how nice you are - or how low your profile is - at 3AM - that it isn't on their agenda.

 

Thanks Jim....It has been a long while...Been down with a few issues. Back went seriously out, got diabetes, a Japanese auto-immune issue that ate some of my pancreas and all of my thyroid (f me ded - I love Japan - how did that happen LOL) and a few other problems but gradually getting better. Moving to Negros went totally off the agenda for a couple years - to now thinking about it again - Bacolod of course....but that said we do love to visit Dumaguete....All the best mate!

 

One thing I got to add Jens....Most of the residents of gated communities...at all levels...from the cheaper ones with the sleeping guards - and wonky doll houses - to the Ayala premier subdivisions - are actually Filipinos. Fair number of Western expats amongst them of course, but the majority in every subdivision I have seen - are, Filipinos. I know those who make up the overwhelming number of my 'possible' neighbours - are businessmen, doctors, lawyers and others towards the top of the food chain. If they feel the need for that level of security.....I'm sure it is for a reason. Got an uncle, quite wealthy, good Catholic (and actually gives tremendous amounts of money and charity work away to very worthy causes), who lives outside of a subdivision - but in Bacolod. He has a nice house in a fine neighbourhood. And he has four guards at night, cameras everywhere, alarm systems, and an armoury in his bedroom. Told him several times to move to Ayala....but no success yet.

Good luck for all those living out in town....wish them all the luck in the world and sincerely hope they have great lives. But my opinion means nothing - my wife is dead set serious - gated secure community or nothing. And I think she knows better than me.

 

Hermogina Appartments. Dumaguete South Road nearby Elementary School South. Seaside of the road look at the sign with telephonenumber.

 

Well we don't have any kings in Germany but residential areas that are gated and off-limits to non-residents are very rare if they exist at all. I'd say our cities are that way.

Of course people still tend to form clusters for reasons like rents or land prices, but nothing stops jobless and pot smoking John Doe from taking a walk among the villas at Elbchaussee in Hamburg, for example. And that's a good thing. Of course you might say that there's less crime in that part of the world (I don't know numbers for breaking into homes here or there though), but as a goal for city development this is the right direction, not locking everything up more and more.

Regarding all the Filipinos living in the subdivisions - of course they do. Just like buying the biggest car they can barely afford, living in a more or less expensive gated subdivision is a great way to clearly separate themselves from their poorer fellows, visible proof that they "made it". I doubt many of them really move there for fear of their life, it's more about showing status.