It's (no) more fun in the Philippines.

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ryanx
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It's (no) more fun in the Philippines.

Post by ryanx »

My fourth and probably last visit for a long while to the Philippines. I don't know what happened this time but I had no fun. I went with the view of finding out if perhsps I could retire there...but all I could think about was how awful the food was...how noisy and polluted the environment was...how decietful the women were...more later.
Hero
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Post by Hero »

I suspected that the Philippines was going downhill. I had much less fun on my second visit than I had on my first. Maybe I just have to get away from the big cities like Cebu and Manila and visit some farm girls instead.
jtest28
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Re: It's (no) more fun in the Philippines.

Post by jtest28 »

ryanx wrote:My fourth and probably last visit for a long while to the Philippines. I don't know what happened this time but I had no fun. I went with the view of finding out if perhsps I could retire there...but all I could think about was how awful the food was...how noisy and polluted the environment was...how decietful the women were...more later.
I was there in just last April, and while I admit I've never been there prior to that to compare, I will just say it wasn't what i thought it would be, the land I mean. As for the women, I got a lot of looks and attention from them, but I too couldn't see myself living there, not if I could live in Eastern Europe, or 2nd to that, Western Europe. The Philippines look like a paradise when you see a picture, but when you're there, it somehow didn't feel like I thought it would. It basically just felt like being in Florida. I never really felt like I left the accursed west.
Ghost
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Post by Ghost »

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Yohan
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Re: It's (no) more fun in the Philippines.

Post by Yohan »

Ghost wrote: If you have a nice pension coming in from retirement, the Philippines can be very nice and you can have all the comforts of home. But then, you can do that in many other places as well. So why focus on only Philippines?
This is correct, and for sure Philippines is not for everybody.

I am visiting Cebu frequently because of my Filipina fosterdaughter but would never consider to retire there.

Manila is a terrible place, more or less a big slum with floods, brown-outs, it's not a nice city.
As there are direct flights from Tokyo to Cebu, even more expensive, I prefer the direct connection and now I am rarely in Manila.

About Cebu, you can still find a little history there and I consider it to be better than Manila, but again, Philippines is a 3rd world country and impoverished. Security for foreigners is a major issue of concern too, as many places, in the cities as well as in rural areas, are not safe.

I am living in Japan, and I consider after my retirement in about 2 years to spend winter-time in Thailand, where I have my own rooms in the Pattaya area. Cebu is good for me for a visit of a few weeks only.

It is easy and cheap to enter Philippines from Japan, Hongkong and Thailand, Malaysia.

Philippines: Visits for fun = YES, longstay for retirement = NO.
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E Irizarry R&B Singer
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Post by E Irizarry R&B Singer »

Hero wrote:I suspected that the Philippines was going downhill. I had much less fun on my second visit than I had on my first. Maybe I just have to get away from the big cities like Cebu and Manila and visit some farm girls instead.
Don't you read any of my posts???? I SAID ON COUNTLESS FCUKING TIMES THAT METRO-MANILA/MANILA IS A P.O.S.!!!!
....and you still have gone there because you think I blow smoke out of my a.s.s. like former socialpathetic posters like Phoenix Sosa did when he used to post here.

You have no respect for my credibility. You think I'm some keyboard-warrior charlatan don't you?????? My only thing was was that I'm not saying specifically where in the Philippines that I have gone and killed it; I simply said that Manila is a P.O.S.

Hero, you make me sick. When are you going to respect seasoned expatriates like me??? in lieu of wasting your money!?!?! Unfettered idiot.
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MarcosZeitola
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Post by MarcosZeitola »

E Irizarry R&B Singer wrote:
Hero wrote:I suspected that the Philippines was going downhill. I had much less fun on my second visit than I had on my first. Maybe I just have to get away from the big cities like Cebu and Manila and visit some farm girls instead.
Don't you read any of my posts???? I SAID ON COUNTLESS FCUKING TIMES THAT METRO-MANILA/MANILA IS A P.O.S.!!!!
....and you still have gone there because you think I blow smoke out of my a.s.s. like former socialpathetic posters like Phoenix did when he used to post here.

You have no respect for my credibility. You think I'm some keyboard-warrior charlatan don't you?????? My only thing was was that I'm not saying specifically where in the Philippines that I have gone and killed it; I simply said that Manila is a P.O.S.

Hero, you make me sick. When are you going to respect seasoned expatriates like me??? in lieu of wasting your money!?!?! Unfettered idiot.
Inland girls is where it's at. In locations largely ignored by tourism you will encounter people who can count the number of non-Filipino's they saw in their lifetime on one hand. That's the type of place where a foreign visitor would be looked upon as special, and would be in demand more then anywhere else. It's simple common logic and too many folks here seem to be lacking it.

Manila is dirty, snobby, overcrowded and nasty. Those who are lowest in the social hierarchy lick the asses of those above them, while those on top spit on them and treat them like animals. People are obsessed with status and money and are ridiculously fond of their status... to the point where I know of a girl who, when a friend made a delicious dish containing sweet potato, the whore wouldn't touch it because "her family does not eat sweet potato", as it's a poor people's food. I could never see myself living or being happy in such a place, nor anywhere else with a woman born and raised there, though there are probably some exceptions. In my overall impression, the people in Manila have quite a nasty attitude, and the richer the nastier.

If you want to be happy, go provincial and stay clear of the cities.
ryanx
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Post by ryanx »

Philippines: Visits for fun = YES, longstay for retirement = NO.
My sentiments entirely!
Hero
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Post by Hero »

E Irizarry R&B Singer wrote:
Hero wrote:I suspected that the Philippines was going downhill. I had much less fun on my second visit than I had on my first. Maybe I just have to get away from the big cities like Cebu and Manila and visit some farm girls instead.
Don't you read any of my posts???? I SAID ON COUNTLESS FCUKING TIMES THAT METRO-MANILA/MANILA IS A P.O.S.!!!!
....and you still have gone there because you think I blow smoke out of my a.s.s. like former socialpathetic posters like Phoenix did when he used to post here.

You have no respect for my credibility. You think I'm some keyboard-warrior charlatan don't you?????? My only thing was was that I'm not saying specifically where in the Philippines that I have gone and killed it; I simply said that Manila is a P.O.S.

Hero, you make me sick. When are you going to respect seasoned expatriates like me??? in lieu of wasting your money!?!?! Unfettered idiot.
Damn! Looks like your lack of female companionship is really getting to you. As of now, you're on my "ignore" list. I have no time to waste on mentally disturbed crybaby psychopaths like you. Later, gator.
Hero
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Post by Hero »

MarcosZeitola wrote: Inland girls is where it's at. In locations largely ignored by tourism you will encounter people who can count the number of non-Filipino's they saw in their lifetime on one hand. That's the type of place where a foreign visitor would be looked upon as special, and would be in demand more then anywhere else. It's simple common logic and too many folks here seem to be lacking it.

If you want to be happy, go provincial and stay clear of the cities.
Ever been to Toledo?
hammanta
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Post by hammanta »

Hero wrote:I suspected that the Philippines was going downhill. I had much less fun on my second visit than I had on my first. Maybe I just have to get away from the big cities like Cebu and Manila and visit some farm girls instead.
Here's my take and you may not agree.

Philippines is usually amazing for first time western visitors. The beer is cheap, food is cheap, everyone seems friendly and the beaches are amazing. The girls smile with cute accents and seem so kind and genuine, as well as open to meeting foreigners. They are usually petite, tan skin with decent bodies, unlike the fatties with terrible attitudes back home. Its a refreshing atmosphere. For first timers it makes for one hell of a 2-6 week vacation.

A year or two maybe goes by and the remembrance of how amazing the Philippines was starts to trickle back. Perhaps the foreigner gets on one of these threads and reads Will N's posts and thinks "Oh yea, I was a god to." He then plans another trip but this time he wants to bang more, travel more, find a wife, or find a place to settle down.

The trip comes up, he lands thinking every girl wants him. He doesn't use caution and gets scammed or he is way to aggressive and girls are put off by him. Instead of being content with trying to get to know a few girls, he wants to meet 100 in a few weeks. He also wonders where all the hotties are that he remembered. He gets outside of Manila and sees the poorer lifestyles, the actual culture of the Philippines. The reality sets in that this place wasn't as good as what it was before, or so it seems. The girls he once thought were hot are simply average. The cab drivers he once paid 700 pesos to, he now realizes they are scamming him out of 3 dollars.

Its the effect of our brains remembering the really good or really bad occasions. A place will never be as good as the first time we went because, if its good, we always create an illusion of it being better than what it was. The Philippines in reality sucks for most, except for short term vacations, as mentioned. But it also depends what you put emphasis on, what truly makes you happy and what you can or can't live without. I personally don't find the food all that bad, where as others can't stand it.

IMO the Philippines really hasn't changed much in the 6 years spanning my 1st and 2nd trips, except maybe Manila or Cebu. Is it different than the 70's, 80's, 90's, probably so but I doubt much has changed in 5, even ten years span. It's just our perceptions and expectations change, especially since reading other peoples subjective opinions and experiences on an online forum.
davewe
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Post by davewe »

hammanta wrote:
Hero wrote:I suspected that the Philippines was going downhill. I had much less fun on my second visit than I had on my first. Maybe I just have to get away from the big cities like Cebu and Manila and visit some farm girls instead.
Here's my take and you may not agree.

Philippines is usually amazing for first time western visitors. The beer is cheap, food is cheap, everyone seems friendly and the beaches are amazing. The girls smile with cute accents and seem so kind and genuine, as well as open to meeting foreigners. They are usually petite, tan skin with decent bodies, unlike the fatties with terrible attitudes back home. Its a refreshing atmosphere. For first timers it makes for one hell of a 2-6 week vacation.

A year or two maybe goes by and the remembrance of how amazing the Philippines was starts to trickle back. Perhaps the foreigner gets on one of these threads and reads Will N's posts and thinks "Oh yea, I was a god to." He then plans another trip but this time he wants to bang more, travel more, find a wife, or find a place to settle down.

The trip comes up, he lands thinking every girl wants him. He doesn't use caution and gets scammed or he is way to aggressive and girls are put off by him. Instead of being content with trying to get to know a few girls, he wants to meet 100 in a few weeks. He also wonders where all the hotties are that he remembered. He gets outside of Manila and sees the poorer lifestyles, the actual culture of the Philippines. The reality sets in that this place wasn't as good as what it was before, or so it seems. The girls he once thought were hot are simply average. The cab drivers he once paid 700 pesos to, he now realizes they are scamming him out of 3 dollars.

Its the effect of our brains remembering the really good or really bad occasions. A place will never be as good as the first time we went because, if its good, we always create an illusion of it being better than what it was. The Philippines in reality sucks for most, except for short term vacations, as mentioned. But it also depends what you put emphasis on, what truly makes you happy and what you can or can't live without. I personally don't find the food all that bad, where as others can't stand it.

IMO the Philippines really hasn't changed much in the 6 years spanning my 1st and 2nd trips, except maybe Manila or Cebu. Is it different than the 70's, 80's, 90's, probably so but I doubt much has changed in 5, even ten years span. It's just our perceptions and expectations change, especially since reading other peoples subjective opinions and experiences on an online forum.
+1


hammanta - I wish young guys like you and Marcos would stop posting such mature and sensible responses. It makes the rest of us look bad.

The reality is that this is life in general. You get a great job and 5 years later you're bored. You marry someone and the same thing can happen. It's up to us as individuals to renew our interest and excitement.

As for the Philippines, it's absolutely, positively not for most people. Most Westerners will never adjust to living in a foreign country, let alone a developing nation without the conveniences we take for granted. My good friend and his Pinay wife, who at first were going to definitely retire in PI, now are leaning toward staying in the US. Why? He likes walking on sidewalks and in parks. That's literally the biggest thing he misses when he goes abroad. Me? I couldn't care less about that. I'll walk on the beach and look at the ocean and cute girls.

As others have said, going to smaller cities and towns not named Manila or Cebu gives you a totally different perspective. That said I know lots of guys who like Cebu and Manila. To each his own.

Visit for fun, visit to meet a genuine girl. Visit to live, only after many trips and much soul searching.

As to the specifics of why the country is not great - few of those have been named here - and there are many. Pollution is a problem in Manila and Cebu but not the rest of the country. As to the "food sucks" comments - here's a radical idea - cook your own :)

Guys who live in the Philippines and move home after they get sick of it, don't move back for those reasons. Generally they fail because they cannot adjust to a different culture, or more accurately expect that culture to adjust to them. It will never happen. Those who cannot accept a culture on its terms and adjust will never be able to successfully live (or even travel) abroad. I'm not saying this is an easy thing - it is not.
chanta76
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Post by chanta76 »

hammamta,

From reading other people;s blog regarding the Philippines and even Thailand. The countries change compared to the 1980 and even the 1990's's to now. Obvious there would be changes but because of the internet and over mongering both countries went down in quality.

It's like the internet advertise sex tourism and advertise go to Asia the women are easy. Every low life and sex addicts are going there and over pasteurizing the place . The women there see expats as either sex tourist and have their guard up and the scammers come out. The decent girls have their guard up. In a way the expats did it to themselves by being too greedy .
Banano
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Post by Banano »

All you need is 100 foreign players like Will and place is ruined, think about it for a second, he is capable of banging 100s of young girls, regular girls, now multiply that by 100...

Word is out and picking up gets harder and harder
Array9
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Post by Array9 »

Banano wrote:All you need is 100 foreign players like Will and place is ruined, think about it for a second, he is capable of banging 100s of young girls, regular girls, now multiply that by 100...

Word is out and picking up gets harder and harder
The sad part about what you said is that Will may not be the worst kind of foreigner there. Yes, he is a low life but just think about the dudes going after underage girls. When friendster was hot many years ago, I remember looking at the pictures of an acquaintance. In one of the pictures, a group of 15 or so young Filipinas, I would guess between the ages of about 10 to 16, were standing around butt naked smiling for the camera. :shock: The first thing that came to mind was whore house where the guy could pick which girl he wanted. I could be wrong though but that's the way it looked.
Men chase, women choose

As long as you have gold in your hand, you will ALWAYS have bread on your table.
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