There are some things I don’t like about living in the Philippines. I will talk about those things in this article but first I wish to point out that I love living in the Philippines. I recently wrote an article about some of those things which you can read here.
There isn’t that much I don’t like and some of those things are only negative to me. They are not negative to most Filipinos. I do not see it as my place to try to change the culture of the Philippines. Frankly, I think that is absurd.
Yes, believe it or not it is illegal to be in the company of a minor in the Philippines. There are of course some exceptions to this.
The first time I heard of this law was about three or four years ago. Two men, both on Bantayan Island were busted for breaking this law. One got off on a technicality and the other paid his bail and flew out of the country and of course didn’t come back. No one placed a hold on him with immigration.
I have had people argue with me about this law, telling me that I’m crazy and it doesn’t exist. It matters not that I show them the law. They try to twist and turn it to say it means something other than it does. After all, if you go to a fast food store and there are children in there then you are in the company of a minor. Yes, I agree but this is not the USA and there a huge dose of common sense injected into applying the law in the Philippines that is long ago lacking in most Western countries.
Even when life gets a little bit hard, I love living in the Philippines. Really, it’s been a little difficult lately but when people say I should go home, my answer is always the same, “I am home”. No matter how hard things get, they are better for me here. I could likely get better medical care in the USA but other than that, pretty much everything seems better to me here.
A huge part of that is the women that are attracted to me here, whatever the reason. The other major part is that I can live here cheaply. I’ve run into a rough patch financially. A month or two in a boarding house with air con for $50 could turn that all around for me. That won’t happen in the USA.
In the Philippines, 7-Eleven’s are a bit of a social gathering place. There are a good number of tables and chairs where you can sit and be seen. The college kids seem to love them, especially the one in Downtown Cebu City as there are several colleges in the area.
The 7-Eleven is located at the corner of Osmena and Colon Streets. It’s a busy intersection with lots of foot traffic in the area. It’s surrounded by a little bit of everything, drug stores, street vendors, banks, Internet cafes and clothing stores.
This week, I’ve been around several scams in the Philippines. I’ve not been a direct party to any of them myself. I’m not going to mention names to keep the innocent and me safe. Easy to get sued in the Philippines for writing anything negative about someone else. I hope I’ll be able to write about one place before too long. It’s a travel agency and full on fraud. I think I’ll start with that one.
Before I get started with that, I want to make it clear, that I love the Philippines. People do bad things all over the world. Where salaries are miserably low, more shady things happen. Foreigners are often behind the scams and shams in the Philippines. People will do what they have to do to feed themselves and their families. Soon I will write a new article about the things I love about the Philippines. Keeping it short will be hard. The Philippines is as close to paradise as you can find but finding that here depends mostly on how you see the world. It’s not paradise though. As I always say, you gotta die to have any hope of getting there. I find that the reports of being scammed here are very overstated but it does happen and this information will help you to stay safe in the Philippines
Living in the Philippines on a pension or fixed income means you might see your spending power decrease. Of course, this is true anyplace and has long been a problem for seniors. I’m not exactly a senior but I’m knocking on the door and now ride in the same boat as they do. I retired early, around 45 due to disability caused by lupus. That’s an autoimmune disorder where your immune system becomes confused and attacks your own body. Mine’s not too bad but over the year it has taken its toll.
When I arrived here in February of 2008 the dollar was at the lowest point since I lived here. It was lean month but only because I spent most of my money on the way over. It was a month of lots of dried fish. It stinks but its good haha. One problem, it’s mostly air and bone. Bones that you can crunch and swallow. I could eat a trainload of them and I think I’d still be hungry.
I recently had dinner at the Golden Courie at SM Mall. SM mall serves as
a good place for people to meet in the city, especially if they don’t
know exactly where you are. A text mate and I decided to meet there for
a first date. There is a bench outside of Golden Courie and I need a
place to rest my aching back. So I sat down to rest and wait for her to
arrive at the mall.
As I reached for my phone she asked where I was so I told her at SM. She
let me know she was already there too. Later I found out that we both
arrived at the same time and she saw me enter the mall. Took her a lot
longer to get to me than it took me to get down there. Filipina’s are
shy. I was afraid she got a long distance look, turned around and went
away haha.
In many areas of Cebu City, finding a place to get your clothes washed is not difficult. There are people willing to do it by hand all over the place. And often you can also find laundries. I’m currently living in a hotel, the CebuView Tourist Inn in an older area of Cebu City on Sanciangko Street. The area is called “Downtown” and it’s a very old area. In this area, it is difficult to find a Cebu City laundry.
Colon Street is the oldest street in the Philippines and is just a block away from Sanciangko Street where my hotel is. Colon Street is known for other things too, mostly that you shouldn’t wear jewelry on that street and pick pockets just might come to visit. My advice is to keep your money and cell phone out of your pocket or you’re asking for trouble.
There are a lot of stories about monsters in the Philippines. There is debate on whether they are true or fiction even in among Filipinos. I have my opinions on the ghost stories and they may not be what you think. I will say that there are monster sized bats in the Philippines.
The Philippines is home to the largest bat in the world and the smallest if what I watched on Discovery or Nat Geo was correct. I don’t remember which network I saw it on. However there recently a giant Flying Fox was captured in the southern part of the Philippines on an island known as Mindanao.
Living in the Philippines in 2014 with five years behind me now I’m still happy to be here. But the last few months have been difficult. May finally brought the unwelcomed changes I have been dreading for the last couple of years.
A lot has happened in the last few months, some good and some pretty bad. That bad has taken the wind out of me a bit and I didn’t feel like blogging. Another problem is I need to upgrade the server. Each time I post an article the site goes down because it can’t handle the increase in traffic. I have deleted some sites so that will help and I am trying to work with HostGator to get the hosting upgraded
They will let you die... – Jul 28, 10:58 PM
So if I get sick... – Jul 28, 8:36 PM Thanks and I'm really glad... – Jul 19, 1:59 AM
It is a wonderful resource... – Jul 18, 7:52 PM It can cause a lot... – Jul 18, 12:52 AM
An interesting article Rusty,i to... – Jul 18, 12:48 AM You are welcome and thanks... – Jul 17, 10:45 PM
Thanks for this reminder Rusty.... – Jul 17, 10:40 PM Content is king, that's a... – Jun 18, 10:34 AM Yes you did 
– Jun 18, 10:08 AM
Good Information Rusty. I think... – Jun 18, 12:52 AM Maybe there are more requirements... – Jun 17, 9:32 AM
