⌛ Newbie from America

I don't know which Thailand you lived in, or travelled to, but I worked up north near Khon Kaen for almost two years....there are guns everywhere once you go bush. Outside of Bangkok, most taxi drivers will have one under their seat.... .38 being popular. Petty crime is fairly rampant too....I had a couple cameras stolen in separate incidents, along with several minor things...(I've only had one thing stolen in the Philippines - a cheap umbrella and that was in Manila). While I agree that Thais are fairly friendly (not as friendly as Filipinos I might add) you are up against it language-wise. My employers put me thru a thai course and I could speak, read, and write a fair degree...and I still found it difficult to really get into the culture. I did not know one Westerner that I would consider a real success story for blending in there...

Not saying Thailand is a bad place...wonderful country in its own ways...very proud and ancient culture....but they are definitely their own ways. Philippines is miles better for Westerners to live in - in my humble opinion...

 

I would like to know how THE TEACHER is living on 1000 a month. It cost me just about as much to live here as it did in the US. Maybe he would be so kind to give us a summary of his expenses because it sure takes me a lot more than that to live.

 

hi ya DB..ohmm??..I am also fron West coast and been here for 11 years...just personal e me...Miguel

 

Cost of Living Info :

whtrahonky,

I'm looking for C.O.L. info. If you are currently living in Duma perhaps you'll be willing to provide me with some current, up to date info.

Teacher says he can live in Duma on a $1,000.00 (usd) a month. From what he's mentioned in previous posts I think he's married, no children and rents.
(hope I'm right).

You mentioned it takes you more than that to live on. I realize there are lots of variables involved. Some being whether or not a person is single, or married, or has kids, or owns, or rents a house, or just gets by financially each month, or lives well, (comfortable).

Hope you will enlighten me.

Thanks from Texas.

 

This is a quick, rough budget for family of three plus one helper:

Rent, Electric, Water and Cable TV: P13,000 (utilities are included)
Bottled Water: P400
CP Load: P300
Globe Phone and 2mbps DSL: P2,700
Helper Salary: P1,500
Groceries/toiletries: P16,000
Transportation: P2,000
Eating Out 4x per week: P8,000
Entertainment: P6,000
Clothing for wife/baby: P1,500

Total: P51,400 or $1,050

I don't buy clothes in the Phils as it's hard for me to find my size. The house is 2 bedroom/1 bathroom and we are looking to upgrade...expect to increase rent/utility expense by approximately P15,000 when we find the right place. I didn't include travel or vacation expense but maybe that will give you some idea.

 

Thanks Teacher and Garbonzo et al for the feedback and insight.

I spent most of my time in Thailand near the beaches. Pattaya, Koh Samui, Koh Tau, Phuket, Koh Chang, Hua Hin on three seperate trips. Last trip I ventured to Chiang Mai and Nong Kai for the first time.

I notice Thailand has quite a cultural diversity with Indians, Nepalese, Burmese etc. However I guess that's because of it's location. Also Thailand has a huge settlement of ex-pats specially from Europe. I was suprised to find saunas popular with thais.

Another nice thing about Thailand is you can eat anything you want. Italian, German, American, Chinese, even Russian. Then there are the Holy Trinity of travelers: McDonalds, Starbucks and 711.

Is that the same in PI ? Also I notice in Thailand there are very few Americans. In 3 trips and 9 months in country I think I only ran into 3 Americans and two of them were black.

Yes I agree the government is unstable since Thaksin was shifted out and bombs have been becoming more frequent. Things will no doubt get worse before they get better.

I feel I know enough about Thailand for now so PI is a go for Dec when/if some money comes in from the nasty nasty markets imshalla.

I read my Lonley Planet daily and pour over my maps as I endure the cold and rainy fall weather dreaming of sunshine and friendly people. Thanks again for your feedback. Please forgive my spelling. Is there a spell checker I haven't found yet

 

C.o.l.

Hello D-G,

I really want to thank you for your time and all the great info you've provided for my wife and me.

PCE704

 

C.o.l.

Derivative Guru,

The above message was for you. Sorry I just used D-G instead of complete name.

PCE704

 

No problem PCE. Glad to be of help.

RE: dharmabum's post:

"I notice Thailand has quite a cultural diversity with Indians, Nepalese, Burmese etc. However I guess that's because of it's location. Also Thailand has a huge settlement of ex-pats specially from Europe. I was suprised to find saunas popular with thais.

Another nice thing about Thailand is you can eat anything you want. Italian, German, American, Chinese, even Russian. Then there are the Holy Trinity of travelers: McDonalds, Starbucks and 711.

Is that the same in PI ? Also I notice in Thailand there are very few Americans. In 3 trips and 9 months in country I think I only ran into 3 Americans and two of them were black."


The Philippines is not as diverse as Thailand. Likely due to being an isolated chain of islands, you will find that the population is overwhelmingly pinoy (ethnic malay) with some Chinese and Spanish. Thailand's tourism dwarfs that of the Philippines...Thailand is the third most visited nation on the planet by foreign tourists with something like 40 times the number of visitors welcomed by the Philippines. The bulk of tourists in the Philippines are coming from South Korea, Japan, and the US (many of them Filipino-Americans), followed by Europe, Hong Kong and Australia. Similarly, there are far fewer expats living here than in Thailand. In the Philippines, the expats tend to be Americans, Germans, Scandanavians, British, Australians and the fastest growing group are Koreans (although they tend not to mix with other groups).

You will not find the large numbers of Russians or Middle Easterners that you find in Thailand. Neither will you find the selection nor (unfortunately) quality of restaurants here. McDonald's is in most cities (including DGT); Starbucks is in the Philippines, but not DGT (although a number of local coffee shops exist); 7-11 is in Metro Manila, but not much of anywhere else in the Philippines.

In contrast to your experience in Thailand, you will find many Americans here but only a small percentage are African-American.

 

Its good to know the population of the Philippines is overwhelmingly Pinoy.

I'll file that handy fact away DG.

By the way, if one uses Firefox as their browser, it has a built in and automatic spell checker....
For those who need it.