Best Posts in Thread: Why do expats love Dumaguete?

Like most folks have said, everyone has different needs/wants in a place. We picked Tanjay for a few reasons; the most obvious is that the wife is from there which does make things convenient as the family is close if we need anything, I personally like the smaller towns and we are known around town so no issues with prices if I am out shopping by myself or with the lovely wife out of view. Shopping is enough unless you are making a major purchase. With having a house there and folks we know I really enjoy life.

Bais is also close by and has a nice seafood market and things to do. We usually will go to Dumaguete 2-6 times a month on average for shopping, movie theater, restaurants and/or to meet up with folks we know. Dumaguete is a bit more than I would want full time but enjoy the times when we do go there.

One place in the Philippines we really enjoyed (only 5 days or so) was Bohol. I think there is a lot to do there and the area was nice. Of the places we have visited outside of Negros this is one we will visit again. For someone looking at places to settle/visit I think Bohol is worth checking out as well.

We've been to quite a number of cool places/areas in Negros but have barely scratched the surface and think it would take years just to really explore this one island.

What a cool adventure living overseas...

Shawn

 

That sounds a little like asking what are the advantages of a steak dinner vs a pork dinner or a chicken dinner. Its all about your personal taste. You have to try them all and see what works for you OR do what most of us did and find a place you like (Dumaguete) and don't even bother to go and try living in all those other cities.

If you asked someone living in Tacloban what the advantage of living there vs Dumaguete is, what do you think they would say if they had never lived in Dumaguete?

I have been in Philippines for 9 and a half years. I have visited several of the places you mention, but I have only actually "lived in" (like for a period of more than a year) 3 different areas. The city of Cebu is too congested, spread out and expensive. The city of Naval, Biliran is too quiet without enough conveniences for me. The city of Dumaguete is right in the middle and just right, for me.

 

Coming from Europe I think gasoline is actually *very* cheap here

That aside, the cheap labor is a big plus imho, you just have to get used to it and actually let people work for you. A full time maid for a 3 person household is way above what I could or would want to afford back home, but here it is ridiculously cheap. And that adds a lot in terms of quality of life, even if everything else would cost the same (which at least from a Western European point of view isn't the case).

And for each thing I might miss, there's also something here that I couldn't have in Germany - coral reefs a 20minute ride away, never having to think about bringing a jacket or what shoes to wear, all these little 'priceless' things.

 

Sniff, sniff, sniff.............nope, sorry, I don't smell it everywhere I go. Of course, I don't hang out with substance abusers to smell them, or ask where they come from.

I've never been to angeles city or Thailand. Came here from the USA. Many of us live responsible lives here.

 

When I was your age, I saw old people. I saw them living on pensions that I thought were poverty level. I wondered how they could survive. Then I "suddenly" reached the age of those old people and I found out: With no rent, no car payments, no taxes, and no kids to pay for its freakin' easy. I live better on US$1,000 a month here and now than I did on US$50K a year earned income when I was working 10 to 20 years ago.

 

A better question might be, "what are the sacrifices for living in the cities you mentioned".
So much depends on one's background and their criteria for being comfortable.

 

A lot of things for sale here are cheaper, but there is some simple reasons. First the main market, the Filipinos, can not afford the higher priced more quality products that last a long time. Many brands here have a short life I found after setting up house here. There are better brands available but you have to learn what they are. I was amazed how thin the metal products are here, for some purposes the thin one work, other they do not work. Simple things like pan cover handles can easily be bought here. I have replaced a few here, but never on in the US, none ever broke.
Food is another whole issue. I learned from a nice Filipino lady to look at through the rice plastic bags in one of the local markets, because you can see the rot or insect investigation in the nicely branded bags of rice, and you need to check before you buy. Cockroaches in the kitchen of the restaurants... as long as they are not still moving in the plate or bowl of food you have been served seem almost acceptable here. I have not heard of a restaurant being closed for not having running hot and cold water in the Philippines, but saw the weekly published lists in the US for that infraction. I will say just like the thin rice cooker, I am not sure how much this affects my life here. I still am alive and really can not remember being beridden for something I ate. Once I was bedridden for someone I ate, but I chose to stay in bed with her.
I am not sure these are lifestyle changes, in accepting that a military grade rice cooker is not part of the required lifestyle or not, but important merchandise here that is cheaper... is cheap... does not last like things do in the US. Guarantees are longer else where than here, where the guarantee is over when you are done counting your change... Are these the lifestyle changes you are talking about? I certainly agree that if you do not adjust, the cost of living here is not reduced except for housing, and that is only partially. As paraphrased in an earlier post, a cheaper live style here is cheaper, but without all the balls and whistles we are used to.