Why the Philippines?

[Rock]

[MrBlueLight]

Just wondering, which city has hotter women, Cebu or Manila? I prefer women who look closer to NE Asians than to Pacific Islanders? So which city has more slender women with lighter skin-tone and smaller nose?

[Hero]

Ditto. That's why I accepted that $90K job that only gives me 2 weeks of vacation per year. My best strategy is to build up a shitload of cash as quickly as possible and then move there permanently.

That's a big salary, Hero. Congrats. How much do think you'll need to save up before you leave?

At least $10K in cash, but no more than $20K. I'll evaluate my readiness to leave in March 2015, and every 6 months thereafter until I can get out. It shouldn't take me more than a year to save up what I need.

[gsjackson]

I am in Oregon USA with my wife and newborn. My mother is very elderly and frail, and we are seeing to her care while we work out arrangements with other family members. My wife has a visa (Not a greencard) and we had our Child in the USA. It does save some paperwork, but other than that, no big deal. I have not abandoned ship as you say, I miss the Philippines whenever I am not there.
I do not throw around words like Barangay. I live in one. We have a house, a small farm, a housekeeper, a farm worker, and a host of inlaws to go back to. I love my wife and her mother and father. My wife has become nearly like my heartbeat.
The Philippines is a beat-up third-world country. l like what I have in the Philippines, but I strongly advise most men NOT to think it is good for them for anything other than a visit. Most men should stay home and leave the Philippines alone.
I see these silly articles listing the Philippines as some kind of good retirement country. This is false.
The only people well suited to retiring in the Philippines are Fil-ams and others with family networks already in place. If you do not have this, the Philippines would not be a good place to retire.
For most American men, I have a simple statement: Please stay away from the Philippines. You will not adapt well here or most other third world countries. Consider Arizona perhaps. For most, it is about fantasy and illusions. It will not end well. Third world reality will bite you in the a$$.
I do know a few men who do well in the Philippines. We have learned to adapt. It is not an easy thing to do.

America is better for a great many things. It is not all hell in the USA like some are constantly whining. Some elements of life can be quite good in the USA- my wife observes that easily.

You men that come to the Philippines and live in a hotel for a while, or an apartment in Metro-Manila or Cebu do not know how it can be. We are not too far from Cagayan de Oro in Misamis Oriental.
Our total income is not more than American middle class. Most of that comes from me, and my inlaws
make their own money in their own well networked family.

We have our own house garden. My wife loves to garden and it is the housekeeper and my wife that do that mostly. We always have things from the garden or orchard and fresh seafood.

A lot of things suck in the Philippines without a doubt. The survivors have their rewards. Along with the things that suck, I am also a Don, a ninoy, and the local benefactor who put in a community well near our house. If I want to be, I am pretty well pampered and spoiled- I could not live like this at all in the USA on the same income.

Most men should stay free of the Philippines. They will NOT be happier except for that few minutes of p4p fun time. Go somewhere else. Try Colombia, Brazil...anywhere. Winston's site needs more time spent on all the other possibilities.

Very eloquently put. Some of the wordsmiths hereabouts have risen to notable heights lately.

Congrats on the new family member.

[J_master]

If your cleaver and can adapt to your environment you can live anywhere in the world. I lived in a tent in the Arabian desert for six months. Learning to love the discomforts makes it easier. I also lived where the temperature gets to -20 deg F. Face your fears, handle the discomforts, and stop whining.

[OutWest]

Like who? Winston, me, and a mess of others have left. Mr. S can't wait to get out, Falcon is now in Indonesia, Kboy is in Korea, a few others are in Thailand or china. Ghost tried it there but left after a 3 week attempt. Pete and outwest and publicduende are all in america right now in some capacity. The only one i see happier in phil is Will N Dowd who is a monger who is starting to tire of the scene after a few months and Marcosveitala who is only 20 years old and only been there for 2 months and probably will pack his bags and go back to europe once he realizes living in poverty as a white man aint fun. The only one I can think of who may fit in this category in the long term right now is Rock . Thats it LOL

You make an interesting point. I seem to voluntarily end up living in cities many westerners find hard to endure - Taipei and Makati. It would be more interesting if some fellow HAs stayed here too. Mr. S lives way out in a more suburban area which can be 2-3 hours from the center areas of Metro Manila on any day but Sunday. And he's bogged down with work and family responsibilities.

Oh, and you forgot to mention Taco and Starchild by the way, they both abandoned ship as well.

I think many Filipinos are a delight. And my taste in women is the antithesis of what most western guys seem to go for - educated, tall, curvy, and fair vs. simple, short, skinny and native. I'm talking right now to a highly educated Filipina who's 5'9", mixed with both white and Chinese blood, speaks fluent Korean and excellent English and Spanish, and from a very well-off family owning a chain of medical supply stores. She's very talented, pretty, and serious about her Protestant faith too. But according to you and certain others, girls like her should have no interest in foreigners like me. My personal observations suggest that there are at least plenty of exceptions to that belief. In most if not all other countries, such girls would probably not even consider us.

Metro Manila also has a thriving professional class of girls who are not from multi-millionaire families but are still very well educated, some even from the top schools where many of the richest send their kids as well. There's a decent chance that some of the girls you meet from this group will be one of more of following - attractive/very attractive, refined and elegant, intellectual, charismatic, charming, great conversationalists, very intelligent.

Even among the less fortunate classes can you find some sweet gems, girls and families who are kind and generous. Sometimes such poorer girls can be attractive or occasionally have some white or NE Asian blood.

It seems the tendency for most foreigners (or at least HAers) who give Philippines a try is to either dip their tow in a bit and monger for a short period before getting fed up or else find a girl here and take her back home ASAP. Very few seem content to stay here, with or without a gf/wife. But I'm the exception...as long as I can take fairly frequent breaks via travels to other countries.

As that exception, I've identified opportunities which most western visitors seem to miss. Most of these guys just want it fast and easy - point and click. Or they look around at what they see on the surface and are sickened by it.

Just like other HA destinations, it will be very different things to different people. The more I live and travel, the more I come to realize that truth seems to be a very relative and mercurial concept. Objective reality is very hard to pin down.

yeah i was gonna mention taco but didn't bother to edit it back. Starchild abandoned ship? I thought he was still there? You talked to him in person what happened to him?

I am in Oregon USA with my wife and newborn. My mother is very elderly and frail, and we are seeing to her care while we work out arrangements with other family members. My wife has a visa (Not a greencard) and we had our Child in the USA. It does save some paperwork, but other than that, no big deal. I have not abandoned ship as you say, I miss the Philippines whenever I am not there.
I do not throw around words like Barangay. I live in one. We have a house, a small farm, a housekeeper, a farm worker, and a host of inlaws to go back to. I love my wife and her mother and father. My wife has become nearly like my heartbeat.
The Philippines is a beat-up third-world country. l like what I have in the Philippines, but I strongly advise most men NOT to think it is good for them for anything other than a visit. Most men should stay home and leave the Philippines alone.
I see these silly articles listing the Philippines as some kind of good retirement country. This is false.
The only people well suited to retiring in the Philippines are Fil-ams and others with family networks already in place. If you do not have this, the Philippines would not be a good place to retire.
For most American men, I have a simple statement: Please stay away from the Philippines. You will not adapt well here or most other third world countries. Consider Arizona perhaps. For most, it is about fantasy and illusions. It will not end well. Third world reality will bite you in the a$$.
I do know a few men who do well in the Philippines. We have learned to adapt. It is not an easy thing to do.

America is better for a great many things. It is not all hell in the USA like some are constantly whining. Some elements of life can be quite good in the USA- my wife observes that easily.

You men that come to the Philippines and live in a hotel for a while, or an apartment in Metro-Manila or Cebu do not know how it can be. We are not too far from Cagayan de Oro in Misamis Oriental.
Our total income is not more than American middle class. Most of that comes from me, and my inlaws
make their own money in their own well networked family.

We have our own house garden. My wife loves to garden and it is the housekeeper and my wife that do that mostly. We always have things from the garden or orchard and fresh seafood.

A lot of things suck in the Philippines without a doubt. The survivors have their rewards. Along with the things that suck, I am also a Don, a ninoy, and the local benefactor who put in a community well near our house. If I want to be, I am pretty well pampered and spoiled- I could not live like this at all in the USA on the same income.

Most men should stay free of the Philippines. They will NOT be happier except for that few minutes of p4p fun time. Go somewhere else. Try Colombia, Brazil...anywhere. Winston's site needs more time spent on all the other possibilities.

Few minutes of p4p fun? No person staynig long term does that. I dont even do that on my 6 month stays. I didnt even do that on my 1.5 month stays. Will n dowd doesn't do it either he is starting to settle on one girl while he meets other. Im sure eventually he will start settling on long term girlfriends only. Those guys retiring in the philippines will perfectly be happy with a low hanger living together or a bargirl on a small monthly stipend. Cheaper than a demanding american girl and she will be a lot younger and better looking with better attitude. So how can you say they wont be happy? Theyd be happier there than wasting away alone in america. You tell others they need extended filipino family yet you dont have any you married yours. You say others can't adapt but you did. Im one of the most unflexible people around yet i somehow can manage to stay for long periods.


Thats my plan. Im trying to save up alot of money before i go back to traveling again. Its a waste spending money and wasting time traveling for months every year when i could put all that focus and money on my work and saving. But you do need to get out once in awhile so im trying to figure out a delicate balance of wanting to retire early but also not rot away in america.


Why do you have a housekeeper? Is your wife to arte to do the work herself? only the arte women or those who want to look like the rich person on the block have housekeepers.



Columbia and brazil are worse than philippines with the organized crime. One of the most dangerous countries. Also you need to know portugues. But the infrastructure and stuff would be better than philippines. And settling down with p4p type relationnships are not as easy there from what others say.

I did not say all men could not adapt- I said MOST men will not do well in the Philippines in the long term. Most are not well suited to it and will not be happy with living in a third world country.
Some Filipino-Americans have built in extended family that makes life easier for them to live in the Philippines. The fact that I married into my extended family does not make it less true. It's just a fact of life.

How much did you observe about the lives of Fililpinos when you were in the country?
It is all about extended family, and such connections enable one to live where and how they do.
I could not live where I do and in the manner I do if it was not for the network involving my wife's family. If you are just some single foreign dude living by himself, many will see you are ripe for the picking. The police are notoriously corrupt. So are many officials. I do have ways of deflecting such corruption so that I am unlikely to be solicited for bribes, but at the same time I am realistic. If you are sell dressed and a well mannered foreigner, the cops do give you a certain amount of deference, but no doubt, the local cops also know that I am married into a family they well know.
Did you ever visit various families in the Philippines and actually observe family life?
You do not even have to be middle class in the Philippines to have a ya-ya, and certainly almost all middle class families have one or more helper. My wife is anything but arte. We have a live in housekeeper because it makes our life better. It also gives the housekeeper a job. You act as if this is some anomaly in the Philippines- it's not, it's normal. It would be abnormal if we did not have one. We have a farm hand for the same reason. They also increase security around the place. Our housekeeper eats her meals with us. We also have a college fund for her. Both of those things are NOT normal in the Philippines. Ask any domestic helper in the Philippines- they will tell you as much.
Many are very poorly treated by their Filipino employers.

First you make the point that so many men bail out of the Philippines. When I actually agree that it is not good for most men, you argue that I am not the exception, other men can adapt also. Are you actually agreeing with me or you just like to argue? lol. That was actually my point: That the Philippines is not good for most, but like me, some can adapt.

[davewe]

PS- It's a boy. John Thomas, 7lbs 1 oz.

Big time congrats - I was waiting for this announcement!!!

Are you going to ask Winston to be the ninong?

[Jester]

PS- It's a boy. John Thomas, 7lbs 1 oz.

Big time congrats - I was waiting for this announcement!!!

Are you going to ask Winston to be the ninong?

So OutWest is a Don, Zeitola already is, I guess DaveWe will be next.

(And, um, I guess Winston already is, too!!)



Congratulations OutWest!

[Luc Furr]

PS- It's a boy. John Thomas, 7lbs 1 oz.

Big time congrats - I was waiting for this announcement!!!

Are you going to ask Winston to be the ninong?

So OutWest is a Don, Zeitola already is, I guess DaveWe will be next.

(And, um, I guess Winston already is, too!!)



Congratulations OutWest!

LOL How can you be a Don if you don't own any land? fck you guys are stupid.

The land is in his wife's name so his wife is the Donna. That makes OutWest the Jew money boy and a stupid one at that. LOL

[MarcosZeitola]

LOL How can you be a Don if you don't own any land? fck you guys are stupid.

The land is in his wife's name so his wife is the Donna. That makes OutWest the Jew money boy and a stupid one at that. LOL

Don't be rude, Luc, there's absolutely no need. Maybe you should find a more productive way to vent your frustrations? Unless you've seen the papers of OutWest's lands you have no way of knowing in whose name they are registered and who owns them. From what I gather he runs his business(es?) himself with the help of his wife and in-laws and one or two employees.

Are you an expert in Philippine Law or did you just google 'foreigners and owning land' and draw your own conclusion based on some outdated online information?

[OutWest]

PS- It's a boy. John Thomas, 7lbs 1 oz.

Big time congrats - I was waiting for this announcement!!!

Are you going to ask Winston to be the ninong?

So OutWest is a Don, Zeitola already is, I guess DaveWe will be next.

(And, um, I guess Winston already is, too!!)



Congratulations OutWest!

LOL How can you be a Don if you don't own any land? fck you guys are stupid.

The land is in his wife's name so his wife is the Donna. That makes OutWest the Jew money boy and a stupid one at that. LOL

On HA one can always count on some vile ignorant mental degenerate to chime in lol!

[hammanta]

If your cleaver and can adapt to your environment you can live anywhere in the world. I lived in a tent in the Arabian desert for six months. Learning to love the discomforts makes it easier. I also lived where the temperature gets to -20 deg F. Face your fears, handle the discomforts, and stop whining.

+1

Well said!

Some people would rather waste their life complaining than try and embrace something that they believe is uncomfortable or unappealing.

[Jester]

{duplicate post}

[Jester]

LOL How can you be a Don if you don't own any land? fck you guys are stupid.

The land is in his wife's name...

Mafia Dons and Rothschilds put things in other people's names too. Are they all stupid?

That makes OutWest the Jew money boy and a stupid one at that. LOL

Well he has a life, a wife and a newborn son. More than some of us on here have, eh Luc? So I guess if he IS a "Jewish money boy", he clearly ain't a stupid one, now, is he?

[newlifeinphilippines]

You make an interesting point. I seem to voluntarily end up living in cities many westerners find hard to endure - Taipei and Makati. It would be more interesting if some fellow HAs stayed here too. Mr. S lives way out in a more suburban area which can be 2-3 hours from the center areas of Metro Manila on any day but Sunday. And he's bogged down with work and family responsibilities.

Oh, and you forgot to mention Taco and Starchild by the way, they both abandoned ship as well.

I think many Filipinos are a delight. And my taste in women is the antithesis of what most western guys seem to go for - educated, tall, curvy, and fair vs. simple, short, skinny and native. I'm talking right now to a highly educated Filipina who's 5'9", mixed with both white and Chinese blood, speaks fluent Korean and excellent English and Spanish, and from a very well-off family owning a chain of medical supply stores. She's very talented, pretty, and serious about her Protestant faith too. But according to you and certain others, girls like her should have no interest in foreigners like me. My personal observations suggest that there are at least plenty of exceptions to that belief. In most if not all other countries, such girls would probably not even consider us.

Metro Manila also has a thriving professional class of girls who are not from multi-millionaire families but are still very well educated, some even from the top schools where many of the richest send their kids as well. There's a decent chance that some of the girls you meet from this group will be one of more of following - attractive/very attractive, refined and elegant, intellectual, charismatic, charming, great conversationalists, very intelligent.

Even among the less fortunate classes can you find some sweet gems, girls and families who are kind and generous. Sometimes such poorer girls can be attractive or occasionally have some white or NE Asian blood.

It seems the tendency for most foreigners (or at least HAers) who give Philippines a try is to either dip their tow in a bit and monger for a short period before getting fed up or else find a girl here and take her back home ASAP. Very few seem content to stay here, with or without a gf/wife. But I'm the exception...as long as I can take fairly frequent breaks via travels to other countries.

As that exception, I've identified opportunities which most western visitors seem to miss. Most of these guys just want it fast and easy - point and click. Or they look around at what they see on the surface and are sickened by it.

Just like other HA destinations, it will be very different things to different people. The more I live and travel, the more I come to realize that truth seems to be a very relative and mercurial concept. Objective reality is very hard to pin down.

yeah i was gonna mention taco but didn't bother to edit it back. Starchild abandoned ship? I thought he was still there? You talked to him in person what happened to him?

I am in Oregon USA with my wife and newborn. My mother is very elderly and frail, and we are seeing to her care while we work out arrangements with other family members. My wife has a visa (Not a greencard) and we had our Child in the USA. It does save some paperwork, but other than that, no big deal. I have not abandoned ship as you say, I miss the Philippines whenever I am not there.
I do not throw around words like Barangay. I live in one. We have a house, a small farm, a housekeeper, a farm worker, and a host of inlaws to go back to. I love my wife and her mother and father. My wife has become nearly like my heartbeat.
The Philippines is a beat-up third-world country. l like what I have in the Philippines, but I strongly advise most men NOT to think it is good for them for anything other than a visit. Most men should stay home and leave the Philippines alone.
I see these silly articles listing the Philippines as some kind of good retirement country. This is false.
The only people well suited to retiring in the Philippines are Fil-ams and others with family networks already in place. If you do not have this, the Philippines would not be a good place to retire.
For most American men, I have a simple statement: Please stay away from the Philippines. You will not adapt well here or most other third world countries. Consider Arizona perhaps. For most, it is about fantasy and illusions. It will not end well. Third world reality will bite you in the a$$.
I do know a few men who do well in the Philippines. We have learned to adapt. It is not an easy thing to do.

America is better for a great many things. It is not all hell in the USA like some are constantly whining. Some elements of life can be quite good in the USA- my wife observes that easily.

You men that come to the Philippines and live in a hotel for a while, or an apartment in Metro-Manila or Cebu do not know how it can be. We are not too far from Cagayan de Oro in Misamis Oriental.
Our total income is not more than American middle class. Most of that comes from me, and my inlaws
make their own money in their own well networked family.

We have our own house garden. My wife loves to garden and it is the housekeeper and my wife that do that mostly. We always have things from the garden or orchard and fresh seafood.

A lot of things suck in the Philippines without a doubt. The survivors have their rewards. Along with the things that suck, I am also a Don, a ninoy, and the local benefactor who put in a community well near our house. If I want to be, I am pretty well pampered and spoiled- I could not live like this at all in the USA on the same income.

Most men should stay free of the Philippines. They will NOT be happier except for that few minutes of p4p fun time. Go somewhere else. Try Colombia, Brazil...anywhere. Winston's site needs more time spent on all the other possibilities.

Few minutes of p4p fun? No person staynig long term does that. I dont even do that on my 6 month stays. I didnt even do that on my 1.5 month stays. Will n dowd doesn't do it either he is starting to settle on one girl while he meets other. Im sure eventually he will start settling on long term girlfriends only. Those guys retiring in the philippines will perfectly be happy with a low hanger living together or a bargirl on a small monthly stipend. Cheaper than a demanding american girl and she will be a lot younger and better looking with better attitude. So how can you say they wont be happy? Theyd be happier there than wasting away alone in america. You tell others they need extended filipino family yet you dont have any you married yours. You say others can't adapt but you did. Im one of the most unflexible people around yet i somehow can manage to stay for long periods.


Thats my plan. Im trying to save up alot of money before i go back to traveling again. Its a waste spending money and wasting time traveling for months every year when i could put all that focus and money on my work and saving. But you do need to get out once in awhile so im trying to figure out a delicate balance of wanting to retire early but also not rot away in america.


Why do you have a housekeeper? Is your wife to arte to do the work herself? only the arte women or those who want to look like the rich person on the block have housekeepers.



Columbia and brazil are worse than philippines with the organized crime. One of the most dangerous countries. Also you need to know portugues. But the infrastructure and stuff would be better than philippines. And settling down with p4p type relationnships are not as easy there from what others say.

I did not say all men could not adapt- I said MOST men will not do well in the Philippines in the long term. Most are not well suited to it and will not be happy with living in a third world country.
Some Filipino-Americans have built in extended family that makes life easier for them to live in the Philippines. The fact that I married into my extended family does not make it less true. It's just a fact of life.

How much did you observe about the lives of Fililpinos when you were in the country?
It is all about extended family, and such connections enable one to live where and how they do.
I could not live where I do and in the manner I do if it was not for the network involving my wife's family. If you are just some single foreign dude living by himself, many will see you are ripe for the picking. The police are notoriously corrupt. So are many officials. I do have ways of deflecting such corruption so that I am unlikely to be solicited for bribes, but at the same time I am realistic. If you are sell dressed and a well mannered foreigner, the cops do give you a certain amount of deference, but no doubt, the local cops also know that I am married into a family they well know.
Did you ever visit various families in the Philippines and actually observe family life?
You do not even have to be middle class in the Philippines to have a ya-ya, and certainly almost all middle class families have one or more helper. My wife is anything but arte. We have a live in housekeeper because it makes our life better. It also gives the housekeeper a job. You act as if this is some anomaly in the Philippines- it's not, it's normal. It would be abnormal if we did not have one. We have a farm hand for the same reason. They also increase security around the place. Our housekeeper eats her meals with us. We also have a college fund for her. Both of those things are NOT normal in the Philippines. Ask any domestic helper in the Philippines- they will tell you as much.
Many are very poorly treated by their Filipino employers.

First you make the point that so many men bail out of the Philippines. When I actually agree that it is not good for most men, you argue that I am not the exception, other men can adapt also. Are you actually agreeing with me or you just like to argue? lol. That was actually my point: That the Philippines is not good for most, but like me, some can adapt.

Im saying for the majority of men they will not be happy with the philippines on many accounts BUT it beats the alternative which is being ALONE or with a nagging old fat western woman or the antisocial behaviour. Even bstyle slammed asia but the first thing he did when going back to america was move in with a fat terrible sex milf who had a screaming kid. Even i wouldn't have done that in america. He says he hates p4p in asia but id rather do p4p than be miserable in USA.


As for community, villages, barangays and extended family. I live in a hotel what the hell do i need to worry about all that for? If i moved there permanently I would move to a rented condo or apartment. No farm, no village, no squatters and certainly no in laws.

Yes only the rich or feminist or arte women have helpers. Ive had bargirls and scammers that do more work for me than your wife does apparently. Also Id be creeped out having a stranger in my house at any level. thats just bizarre. Your sex life and romance must be terrible if you have a live in helper. Im an american not a filipino they are used to sex in huts.