Just saying hallo

[publicduende]

Hi All,

The world changes, places change, people change. Thanks God we have our memories to cherish, so we can - if for a moment - bask in the reassuring illusion that nothing has really changed, or ever will.

Haven't been here for a good long while. If it wasn't for Marco/Hypermak's complicated menage with the forum (I warned him, several times!), the thought of HA wouldn't have grazed me much at all.

Then these days I'm back in Davao, to take care of the condo unit I bought here back in 2015 and is finally ready to be occupied and (maybe) enjoyed. It struck me that Davao is a huge, city-sized monument to a large part of my memories. Almost 3 years of memories, to be exact.

Can't cross a road, walk into a shop or mall without memories hitting me. Some of the memories are all the more powerful because they are linked to strong physical experiences (you know what I mean ), but also a lot of contrasting emotions. The innocent elation of my honeymoon phase, the rising desperation due to my business slowly (but surely) losing pieces, the mounting cynicism that was only tempered by something or someone up there proving me wrong. The brandy-infused nights spent with one of the senior HA members, then my flatmate, exchanging bits of history, humanity and more complaints.

That was a strange one: just when I reached peak complaining on why-oh-why I couldn't find my Young Filipino Princess, God or the Universe gave me enough tangible evidence that I have always had much more than I deserved. This latest instalment of the Cosmic Bounty was and is in the form of C, who has been my lovely Wife since last September 8.

I don't think I will have the time to catch up with the thousands of posts piling up since I left. On a cursory look I still do see some of the forum Darlings, like good ol' @Yohan, @MarcosZeitola, @MrMan, @gsjackson, @Cornfed and whoever else my aging brain won't remember to mention.

And then, of course, Prime Mover @Winston who is still filling up the space with more or less controversial material about conspiracies, aliens and new age spirituality. I hope things are going well with him. With everyone, really.

For all that flew behind me and has now a slot in my past, Happier Abroad is a brick in the memory monument, and a pretty sizeable one. Yes, I have been down into a rather intense and tiring life routine, tip to toe.

Yet, I would play a disservice to my memory if I didn't stop by, with the Davao sun and a plate of tuna kinilaw as accomplices, to remind myself of that big brick of variate humanity without which, quite simply, I wouldn't be here, I wouldn't be me.

All the best to everyone, I'll try to read and maybe post some time.
PD

[MarcosZeitola]

I'm glad to hear you are doing so well, brother! I am amazed you have since married your girlfriend. From what I remember, she was as cute as a button and clever enough to keep up with you to boot. You're a lucky man, and it seems like you have been blessed. Now I hope this Chinese virus madness will come to end sooner and we could perhaps meet up and have a drink some day to celebrate the death of the pandemic madness.

Life has been crazy for me, too. My family has expanded in recent years, as has my income. Life is exciting and a lot of things are changing for me as of now, but not always in ways that I would say are bad. Life is complicated, but interesting. And I have to say, 2020 has been a wild ride. I hope in the years to come, you'll continue to be fulfilled and happy, as you further establish your position as a member of Davao society.

It's crazy for me, to see the first of my children now growing up, their fluent speech, their growing independence, watching them roll around through town on their rollerblades and play with the local kids, standing out due to their height and strikingly Western features... the sun is still as warm, the rain just as wet and the food still as good, although prices have increased. I'm just in 'waiting mode', hoping soon I can resume my travels, increase adventures and further grow my income. The future is looking bright and exciting!

Hope you and C will continue to have a grand ol' time and perhaps you could begin build your little Italo-Pinay clan in the years ahead.

[yick]

Congrats, PD. Nice to see a success story. Looking forward to HM's success story with his lady! Well done and take care!

[Yohan]

.....I don't think I will have the time to catch up with the thousands of posts piling up since I left. On a cursory look I still do see some of the forum Darlings, like good ol' @Yohan, @MarcosZeitola, @MrMan, @gsjackson, @Cornfed and whoever else my aging brain won't remember to mention.
.....
All the best to everyone, I'll try to read and maybe post some time.
PD

Thanks for nice report and comment and also to remember me.

Best regards, and welcome back

Yohan

[Will N. Dowd]

Welcome back PD!

I too have many memories of Davao since my first trip there in 2012 and 8 more after that.
Surprisingly, most memories involve the hundreds of Filipinas I met and the much smaller number that found physically attractive.
Glad WW let you come back and you're posting again.
HA needs a mix of veteran and new posters to keep the forum fresh and updated.
I hope the Philippines opens up again by the end of 2021 so I get can get back to doing my exercises again.
I accomplish a lot personally and side business wise in Canada, but a man can only go so long without the pink bird's nest of everlasting joy.

[Winston]

Hello PD,
Long time no talk. How are you holding out and surviving? How's your partner?

Did you read all the threads here where people believe you and Hypermak are the same guy? lol. Did they make you laugh or roll your eyes? lol

Btw, you should credit me with good insight, because later on, I began to doubt that you and him were the same person. Your personality and his are different, even your style is different. No one can fake that. Plus my gut and intuition tend to be accurate.

Are you gonna stick around? I'm sure everyone here misses you. lol.

Btw, can you ask Hypermak to post here at the same time as you, so we don't get a Clark Kent/Superman phenomenon where we can only see one of you at a time? lol

[publicduende]

Hello PD,
Long time no talk. How are you holding out and surviving? How's your partner?

Hey Winston,

Yeah indeed. I swore never to be back to HA, to be honest. You know why. Water under the bridge anyway... C and I have been living together under the same roof for 3 years, in Makati. Metro Manila is a big, chaotic, polluted city with shamefully insufficient infrastructure, as everyone knows. Yet, at least before lockdown hit, there was a bit more of a cultural and night life compared to Davao and the province.

Like many, I spent the past year working my a** off on multiple IT project. I never made as much money in my life as last year but I, in fact both C and I, are pretty exhausted. This year we'll be looking for other opportunities. Perhaps a Masters in Japan for C, if she gets accepted (very competitive), and we will move to Nagoya for a couple of years. I have created a startup with an Italian friend in London and it looks like it might bear good fruits soon. All in all, keeping busy and trying to stay sane among the many problems and inconsistencies of living in the Philippines.

We'll be in Davao for at least another month, so end of April.

Did you read all the threads here where people believe you and Hypermak are the same guy? lol. Did they make you laugh or roll your eyes? lol

I have been spending about an hour going through those threads. It's too much for my brain right now LOL But nothing really new under the sun, though. Psycho Alto Guy using the same old "public" photo of C and myself to try to attack me/Hypermak. For such a busy businessman as he likes to portray himself as, he surely has plenty of time on his hands.

You are free to think whatever you want, I don't care honestly. I told Marco that he should consider it a compliment, to be mistaken for me based on his command of the English language. I bet stereotypes about chefs being nothing but glorified kitchen labourers are hard to kill. I only met him once and chatted him a few more times but I felt he's a very intelligent young man, if a bit on the adventurous/happy go lucky side. He was very proud of his level of English and happy to improve it by posting in here.

Not sure what to make of the massive diatribe with Contrarian Expatriate. I never liked the guy too much, but I would have never entered into such bitter flame wars like Hypermak did. I guess he did it as a bait to enter these (over)long conversations and improve his written English. Or maybe he was really that bored, with his resort caught in the pandemic shutdown.

Btw, you should credit me with good insight, because later on, I began to doubt that you and him were the same person. Your personality and his are different, even your style is different. No one can fake that. Plus my gut and intuition tend to be accurate.

LOL, didn't your write entire threads on how Hypermak and I are, indeed, the same person? Anyway, I see your latest post about your change of mind. There are plenty of Italians in London and, after 5 years plus, they will have learned English properly. Why is it so surprising? I didn't read all of Hypermak's posts but, as an Italian, I can tell that his choice of words and phrasing are those of an Italian (or Romance language speaker) writing in English.

Are you gonna stick around? I'm sure everyone here misses you. lol.

I don't have nearly as much time as I used to, but will check out the place from time to time.

Btw, can you ask Hypermak to post here at the same time as you, so we don't get a Clark Kent/Superman phenomenon where we can only see one of you at a time? lol

I still have HM on my WhatsApp, I can ask him if he's interested. Last I heard from him, he's busy running his shops and launching a gourmet meal delivery business with some friends from University of Padua.

[publicduende]

I'm glad to hear you are doing so well, brother! I am amazed you have since married your girlfriend. From what I remember, she was as cute as a button and clever enough to keep up with you to boot. You're a lucky man, and it seems like you have been blessed. Now I hope this Chinese virus madness will come to end sooner and we could perhaps meet up and have a drink some day to celebrate the death of the pandemic madness.

Life has been crazy for me, too. My family has expanded in recent years, as has my income. Life is exciting and a lot of things are changing for me as of now, but not always in ways that I would say are bad. Life is complicated, but interesting. And I have to say, 2020 has been a wild ride. I hope in the years to come, you'll continue to be fulfilled and happy, as you further establish your position as a member of Davao society.

It's crazy for me, to see the first of my children now growing up, their fluent speech, their growing independence, watching them roll around through town on their rollerblades and play with the local kids, standing out due to their height and strikingly Western features... the sun is still as warm, the rain just as wet and the food still as good, although prices have increased. I'm just in 'waiting mode', hoping soon I can resume my travels, increase adventures and further grow my income. The future is looking bright and exciting!

Hope you and C will continue to have a grand ol' time and perhaps you could begin build your little Italo-Pinay clan in the years ahead.

Hey @MarcosZeitola

Thanks for your warm welcome, buddy. I am amazed, too, to be married again! I can say my only regret is not meeting C earlier on in life. But well, better late than never

I am glad to know that you and your ever-growing family (how many kids now?) is doing well, despite the ups and downs of these testing times. You are a lucky man too, if anything because you made some brave choices and bore all the consequences, good and bad, of those choices. You're still living in the Cordillera area of the Philippines?

I am not too sure I will be spending more time that I need to, in Davao. I came here to fit out this condo and, as expected, it's taking absolutely ages. As soon as we are finished, we might spend maybe another few weeks "decompressing", then we will be back to Manila. I had a chance to establish myself as a member of the Davao (or Manila) society, but ultimately gave up.

It's true that I used to look up to upper class Filipinos and I wrote a few posts about them. In the end, the more I got to know them, the more I saw that they tend to be very traditional and uphold a set of values that I don't agree with, for the most part. The new generations are exposed to international culture, they will have travelled or studied abroad and they are closer in mentality to our Western. Still, those who populate the upper echelons of Filipino societies are still their dad or lolos. Impossible to expect changes in the way this country is run until there is a change of guard at the top. It will take at least one more generation.

The more I live here, the more I see what everybody has been saying: the best Filipinos to be around us foreigners are those from a more modest middle class background, yet highly educated and with a strong sense of pride/honesty. From what I remember, those are exactly your wife and her family.

Keep going strong, my friend, and be happy no matter what! Best of luck!

[publicduende]

Congrats, PD. Nice to see a success story. Looking forward to HM's success story with his lady! Well done and take care!

Thanks @yick, I hope you're doing well, too! Best of luck!

[publicduende]

Thanks for nice report and comment and also to remember me.

Best regards, and welcome back

Yohan

Of course I remember you, my Austrian-Japanese friend By the way, I did read the book written by that forum owner friend of yours (you know who I am referring to). Honest and entertaining!

I hope you're doing well over there. If C gets accepted at University of Nagoya for a Masters, we might end up there for 2 years. Official results are due next week...fingers crossed!

[publicduende]

Welcome back PD!

I too have many memories of Davao since my first trip there in 2012 and 8 more after that.
Surprisingly, most memories involve the hundreds of Filipinas I met and the much smaller number that found physically attractive.
Glad WW let you come back and you're posting again.
HA needs a mix of veteran and new posters to keep the forum fresh and updated.
I hope the Philippines opens up again by the end of 2021 so I get can get back to doing my exercises again.
I accomplish a lot personally and side business wise in Canada, but a man can only go so long without the pink bird's nest of everlasting joy.

Hey man,

Hehe, that's what I meant by "memories connected to strong physical experiences", thanks for making it clearer still

I have maybe spent an hour going through a few posts and I can see the forum is quiet. There are more posts about conspiracy theories, sci-fi-like topics and new age spirituality than anything related to being "happier abroad".

I guess the whole idea of moving abroad to look for better romance is no longer so revolutionary. What continues to surprise me is that so few Americans (Canadians, Brits, Australians) decide to take the plunge and move to another country to find love. I guess the brainwashing that wants every young man stuck at home, playing videogames and fantasizing about twerking TikTok hotties, when not stuck in front of an office PC, has fully succeeded.

It won't be long before men won't even bother looking for a girl, not even for sex. Hopefully by then, virtual sexual experiences courtesy of sex dolls and augmented reality/VR will be good enough to cater for all of them. And then it's game over, amen.

Hoping to seeing you on these shores soon...tourist lockdown permitting.

[Yohan]

Thanks for nice report and comment and also to remember me.
Best regards, and welcome back
Yohan

Of course I remember you, my Austrian-Japanese friend By the way, I did read the book written by that forum owner friend of yours (you know who I am referring to). Honest and entertaining!

I hope you're doing well over there. If C gets accepted at University of Nagoya for a Masters, we might end up there for 2 years. Official results are due next week...fingers crossed!

Hopefully you will show up in Nagoya, you will see the difference between Japan and Philippines.
It's not bad here, this year not yet any chance for me to travel to Thailand and Philippines, but my place in Japan is also very OK.

Already spring, today it's +22 C and sunshine in Okayama, ideal weather for me and my motorcycle.
We have again a visit from my daughter and husband and our two grandchildren for this week in our home.
No problem with covid-19 in my province, today about 70 infected patients so far out of 2 million people living here. No restrictions at all for us.
Still no vaccine available in Japan except for hospital and elderly care home staff.

[Winston]

Glad you're doing well PD.

Hope we can be friends again and meet again someday. Its kind of silly to let a trivial argument ruin a friendship, don't u think? In life we have to learn to agree to disagree. No two people will agree on everything.

Btw ask hypermak if i can add him on social media too. Ask him to come back so we can have both of u at the same time. Tell him we miss him.

I PMed him but he never replied.

[publicduende]

Glad you're doing well PD.

Hope we can be friends again and meet again someday. Its kind of silly to let a trivial argument ruin a friendship, don't u think? In life we have to learn to agree to disagree. No two people will agree on everything.

Disagreeing on the trivial argument (of whether you would do well or not in Europe) was never the issue. It was the tone of your responses and even those shouty audio messages sent to my WhatsApp that made me want out. But anyway, water under the bridge...

Btw ask hypermak if i can add him on social media too. Ask him to come back so we can have both of u at the same time. Tell him we miss him.

I PMed him but he never replied.

I don't chat with HM too often. Our last contact was for the new year, on WhatsApp. I don't even know if he has a FB account. He still has an account here on HA though, right? If he feels like he has something valuable to contribute here he will be back, I am sure.