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HalfMooner
Dingaling
Philippines
15831 Posts |
 Posted - 06/29/2010 : 03:17:39
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After much deliberation and a great deal of poor planning, I moved permanently from California to the Philippines on June 20, 2010. My life as a retiree in the US had been getting increasingly precarious financially. As I tell people, I truly believe in the American Dream. But I discovered I needed to live in a Third World country in order to achieve it. I have not become an ex-pat for political reasons. Think of me as a reverse economic refugee.
The following will probably be the first of several postings about my impressions of my host country. These will be written in an almost stream-of-consciousness style, and will contain my newbie impressions. Don't take my comments too seriously, as even I don't have a clue yet about what I'm seeing. Later postings may cover the same time period and locations, but with a different way of looking at them. Also, there's little chronological order in what I'm writing.
You've been warned.
There are sidewalks at random lengths of narrow Atab Way in my neighborhood of Baguio City. These are hit-and-miss afterthoughts of whatever doubtful city planning may have been at work. They do come in handy, providing space upon which diesel trucks and vans may be parked without completely blocking traffic lanes.
I am struck by the profligate use of stainless steel bodies on Philippine jeepneys. (Jeepneys provide a sort of transport intermediate between taxis and buses. The cramped seating scheme of jeepneys is designed with the welfare of pickpockets in mind.) If one chooses to ride this low-cost alternative to a taxi, one should be sure that its stainless steel sheeting is at least 22 gauge, so that the dengue-and-malaria carrying aedes aegypti mosquito will be unable to drill through it for your blood.
Manila, with its contrasts between wealth and poverty made it seem an economic Libertarian's paradise. International class hotels loom above garbage heaps with people industriously sorting the trash. Ever-present multistory billboards displayed upon ugly steel fretworks are of such truly monumental scale that they made me wonder how they survive the typhoon season.
The common people I saw on the streets of Manila appeared serious, pressed for time, and often outright desperate. As soon as our Victory Liner bus was out of the Manila metropolis, I began seeing people who were more relaxed and smiling. Truly, Filipinos in general seem a happier people overall than Americans. Their smiles can light up your heart. I had noticed this almost indomitable happiness even during my visits to the country during the martial law regime of Ferdinand Marcos.
Missy, I don't think we're looking at Google Earth anymore
My Chihuahua, Missy, nervous at first about Baya, the askal.
In the great, immemorial war between cats and dogs, the dogs have had total victory in the Philippines. I have seen hundreds of dogs on the streets, but not a single cat. Most dogs are askals, Philippine native dogs. These look nearly identical to the village "pariah dogs" found throughout the world. They are lean, slim, and smart. They need to be, as they are pretty much responsible for their own upkeep, feeding and breeding choices.
Sometimes when something or someone sets them off, the entire chorus of neighborhood dogs will begin barking simultaneously. Aurally, it can seem like living in the middle of an animal shelter, but with added rooster crowing for spice.
Shock Culture
I was (and still am) dubious about this ungrounded, 220 volt shower water heater in my apartment.
In many ways, a fleeting first impression of the contemporary Philippines conjures up unfortunate phrases like "Third World hell-hole." But give the place time. A second or third impression may be more critical by orders of magnitude. Still, there's one thing about the Philippines that counts as its saving grace: It's chock full of wonderful Filipinos. And askals.
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“Biology is just physics that has begun to smell bad.” —HalfMooner
Here's a link to Moonscape News, and one to its Archive. |
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Ebone4rock
SFN Regular
USA
894 Posts |
Posted - 06/29/2010 : 05:18:19 [Permalink]
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Oooooh, that shower looks like an elictical shock waiting to happen.
Have you met any hot chicks yet? |
Haole with heart, thats all I'll ever be. I'm not a part of the North Shore society. Stuck on the shoulder, that's where you'll find me. Digging for scraps with the kooks in line. -Offspring |
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HalfMooner
Dingaling
Philippines
15831 Posts |
Posted - 06/29/2010 : 05:58:11 [Permalink]
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Originally posted by Ebone4rock
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Have you met any hot chicks yet? |
I think so. Here's Bim, the lady who found, rented, and set up my apartment for me before we even met. She has my undivided respect and attention.
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“Biology is just physics that has begun to smell bad.” —HalfMooner
Here's a link to Moonscape News, and one to its Archive. |
| Edited by - HalfMooner on 06/29/2010 05:59:41 |
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Ebone4rock
SFN Regular
USA
894 Posts |
Posted - 06/29/2010 : 06:06:04 [Permalink]
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[ She has my undivided respect and attention.
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Nice. How the heck did you hook up with a pretty girl to do your house hunting without even meeting?
She'd be getting all of my attention too. |
Haole with heart, thats all I'll ever be. I'm not a part of the North Shore society. Stuck on the shoulder, that's where you'll find me. Digging for scraps with the kooks in line. -Offspring |
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HalfMooner
Dingaling
Philippines
15831 Posts |
Posted - 06/29/2010 : 06:39:59 [Permalink]
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Originally posted by Ebone4rock
[ She has my undivided respect and attention.
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Nice. How the heck did you hook up with a pretty girl to do your house hunting without even meeting?
She'd be getting all of my attention too.
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Thank you, Ebone.
I was an idiot to trust a stranger in a strange, far-away land with serious money, of which I have little (after all, my poverty is the reason for my move). But I'd judged Bim to be an honest young lady, and it turned out that my judgment of character in this one case was at last correct.
Even idiots get lucky now and then.
Finding pretty, available young ladies is absolutely the easiest thing for a foreigner to do in the Philippines. Even worn out, half-crippled old dogs like myself can find themselves overwhelmed with proffered affection.
What I did in my Internet quest during the last year was to make it very clear that I was anything but rich, and that I wasn't interested in bringing a lady to the USA.
Not only do many Filipinas scam Americans and other Westerners, the men tend to "inflate their resumes" as well. Based upon a false and stereotypical idea of Asian women, some men also seek pliant female slaves. Since Filipino men generally fool around and have mistresses, if you make it clear that you are a one-woman man, you are far ahead of the local competition. (Being an old fart, I'm happy as hell with just one fine lady, anyway.)
During the months of my Internet quest, I kept things completely honest, and gradually separated the wheat from the chaff. Bim was the golden kernel that remained. Now I'm working to woo her. |
“Biology is just physics that has begun to smell bad.” —HalfMooner
Here's a link to Moonscape News, and one to its Archive. |
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Ebone4rock
SFN Regular
USA
894 Posts |
Posted - 06/29/2010 : 07:11:07 [Permalink]
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Well good luck with your wooing!
Please be sure to keep your skeptic antenna up high. I don't want to see you being interviewed on 20/20 next year.
How are your living conditions there? |
Haole with heart, thats all I'll ever be. I'm not a part of the North Shore society. Stuck on the shoulder, that's where you'll find me. Digging for scraps with the kooks in line. -Offspring |
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Kil
Evil Skeptic
USA
13476 Posts |
Posted - 06/29/2010 : 09:23:14 [Permalink]
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Originally posted by HalfMooner
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Jeez. Maybe I should join you there. Problem is I have no money to speak of. Sigh... |
Uncertainty may make you uncomfortable. Certainty makes you ridiculous.
Why not question something for a change?
Genetic Literacy Project |
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Bill scott
SFN Addict
USA
2103 Posts |
Posted - 06/29/2010 : 13:35:41 [Permalink]
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Originally posted by HalfMooner
After much deliberation and a great deal of poor planning, I moved permanently from California to the Philippines on June 20, 2010. |
My time has been limited of late so it's been awhile since I have been on the SFN. I just learned of your transfer in living quarters. If you don't mind my asking how did you decide on the Philippines as opposed to just moving out of California? I live in a nice Midwestern town of about 300,000 and our standard of living around here is rather comfortable from all my comparisons, especially when compared to California. And then within a 1/2 an hour to 45 minute drive from town the landscape is just littered with 5000-10,000 pop. towns where $250-300/month can get you a nice one bedroom apartment in a town where there has never been a murder ever and shoplifting a pack of gum will get you the headline in the towns local paper. People have been pouring out of the left coast for some time now for costing reasons. I guess my question/statement is that moving to the Philippines seem like an extream measure, how did you come to this conclusion over moving elsewhere in the homeland? The USA is a big country with all different types of demography and standards of living, surly somewhere here must have meet your needs as opposed to moving to the other side of the globe. Just wondering. Anyway good luck with your new home. Oh and it's weird because I just thought of you today when I got a chain email and in the subject it read racist or not? You open up the email and it says, "We are NOT racists. We hate the white half of Obama just as much." I chuckled and thought of you. |
"Lets get one thing clear, Bill. Science does make some assumptions." -perrodetokio-
"In the end as skeptics we must realize that there is no real knowledge, there is only what is most reasonable to believe." -Coelacanth-
The fact that humans do science is what causes errors in science. -Dave W.-
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| Edited by - Bill scott on 06/29/2010 14:31:53 |
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filthy
SFN Die Hard
USA
14408 Posts |
 Posted - 06/30/2010 : 04:06:15 [Permalink]
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Congrats for your successful move and meeting such a lovely, young lady!
It is true that the Philippines is cursed with malaria and dengue, as well as some *ahem* "social diseases," but on the plus side, there are cobras and kraits -- also venomous colubrids. I find myself envious.....
Do give us updates!
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"What luck for rulers that men do not think." -- Adolf Hitler (1889 - 1945)
"If only we could impeach on the basis of criminal stupidity, 90% of the Rethuglicans and half of the Democrats would be thrown out of office." ~~ P.Z. Myres
"The default position of human nature is to punch the other guy in the face and take his stuff." ~~ Dude
Brother Boot Knife of Warm Humanitarianism,
and Crypto-Communist! 
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| Edited by - filthy on 06/30/2010 14:20:48 |
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HalfMooner
Dingaling
Philippines
15831 Posts |
Posted - 06/30/2010 : 06:00:07 [Permalink]
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Originally posted by Ebone4rock
Well good luck with your wooing!
Please be sure to keep your skeptic antenna up high. I don't want to see you being interviewed on 20/20 next year.
How are your living conditions there? |
My apartment would be deplorable by American standards, but is middle-class by Filipino standards. A few more appliances, furnishings and some more bug spray and it should be quite comfortable for living. It was part of my planning to go especially cheap to begin with, as I got my financial bearings. My apartment only costs 10,000 PHP,which today works out as $217 USD. It looks as though I can afford double or even triple that, which could give me some really nice digs, even by American standards. |
“Biology is just physics that has begun to smell bad.” —HalfMooner
Here's a link to Moonscape News, and one to its Archive. |
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Ebone4rock
SFN Regular
USA
894 Posts |
Posted - 06/30/2010 : 06:19:50 [Permalink]
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| My apartment would be deplorable by American standards, |
Eh, you should have seen some of the shitholes I've been in!
I envy you. I would just love to pick up and move to a tropical island.
Is there good surfing in the Philippines? |
Haole with heart, thats all I'll ever be. I'm not a part of the North Shore society. Stuck on the shoulder, that's where you'll find me. Digging for scraps with the kooks in line. -Offspring |
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HalfMooner
Dingaling
Philippines
15831 Posts |
Posted - 06/30/2010 : 06:51:51 [Permalink]
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Originally posted by Ebone4rock
Well good luck with your wooing!
Please be sure to keep your skeptic antenna up high. I don't want to see you being interviewed on 20/20 next year.
How are your living conditions there? |
My apartment would be deplorable by American standards, but is middle-class by Filipino standards. A few more appliances, furnishings and some more bug spray and it should be quite comfortable for living.
It was part of my planning to go especially cheap on housing to begin with, as I got my financial bearings. My apartment only costs 10,000 PHP per month, which today works out as $217 USD. It looks as though, even on my Social Security income, I can afford double or triple that, which should give me some really nice digs, even by American standards.
Food is cheap and of fairly good quality. In my opinion, tropical fruits are finer and more varied than those of temperate regions. The local SM Mall here is nicer than most I've seen in the USA. It has a large, quality supermarket, a huge department store, and stores selling the latest electronic gizmos and software.
Medical facilities run from marginal to very good, and there are medical teaching hospitals here. For a town of about a quarter million, Baguio is loaded with universities. Almost half the population is university students.
It's also relatively cool here. The elevation is about a mile above sea level. The surrounding environment is a tropical pine forest. The rainy season, which is beginning, is ferocious. In August, rainfall averages 1160.8 mm, or 45.701 inches. Last season during the two typhoons, many people were displaced or killed by mudslides on the town's steep slopes. Swan-shaped pleasure boats normally used for leisure on Burnham Lake were enlisted as weird rescue craft along city streets. All the roads to Baguio were blocked by slides. Food began to become scarce. |
“Biology is just physics that has begun to smell bad.” —HalfMooner
Here's a link to Moonscape News, and one to its Archive. |
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HalfMooner
Dingaling
Philippines
15831 Posts |
Posted - 06/30/2010 : 07:14:10 [Permalink]
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Originally posted by Bill scott
Originally posted by HalfMooner
After much deliberation and a great deal of poor planning, I moved permanently from California to the Philippines on June 20, 2010. |
My time has been limited of late so it's been awhile since I have been on the SFN. I just learned of your transfer in living quarters. If you don't mind my asking how did you decide on the Philippines as opposed to just moving out of California? I live in a nice Midwestern town of about 300,000 and our standard of living around here is rather comfortable from all my comparisons, especially when compared to California. And then within a 1/2 an hour to 45 minute drive from town the landscape is just littered with 5000-10,000 pop. towns where $250-300/month can get you a nice one bedroom apartment in a town where there has never been a murder ever and shoplifting a pack of gum will get you the headline in the towns local paper. People have been pouring out of the left coast for some time now for costing reasons. I guess my question/statement is that moving to the Philippines seem like an extream measure, how did you come to this conclusion over moving elsewhere in the homeland? The USA is a big country with all different types of demography and standards of living, surly somewhere here must have meet your needs as opposed to moving to the other side of the globe. Just wondering. Anyway good luck with your new home. Oh and it's weird because I just thought of you today when I got a chain email and in the subject it read racist or not? You open up the email and it says, "We are NOT racists. We hate the white half of Obama just as much." I chuckled and thought of you. |
You are certainly right, Bill, about affordable alternatives in the USA. I'm not at all sure I'm doing the right thing, and am not advocating that others follow suit.
I suppose there are several factors in my choice of moving to the Philippines. One is that I really like Filipinos. And I instantly loved Baguio in particular when I took R & R there while in the Navy in 1965. Another factor is that I've always had a somewhat adventurous streak, and this may be my last grand adventure.
By the way, I really do love my birth state of California. If one is working, there is no place on earth that has a better creative atmosphere. Despite what you seem to think, people are still flocking there, and for good reasons of jobs, climate, education, and culture. I think it's mostly retirees like myself and people who already made their fortune who leave.
Sweet story about people hating Obama. Truly, some people don't need racism to fuel their burning hatred. But it helps. |
“Biology is just physics that has begun to smell bad.” —HalfMooner
Here's a link to Moonscape News, and one to its Archive. |
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HalfMooner
Dingaling
Philippines
15831 Posts |
Posted - 06/30/2010 : 07:17:02 [Permalink]
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Originally posted by filthy
Congrats for your successful move and meeting such a lovely, young lady!
It is true that the Philippines is cursed with malaria and dengue, as well as some *ahem* "social diseases," but on the plus side, there are cobras and karaites -- also venomous colubrids. I find myself envious.....
Do give us updates!
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Thanks, Fil!
I will try to avoid all those creatures you mention, great and small. |
“Biology is just physics that has begun to smell bad.” —HalfMooner
Here's a link to Moonscape News, and one to its Archive. |
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HalfMooner
Dingaling
Philippines
15831 Posts |
Posted - 06/30/2010 : 07:25:11 [Permalink]
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Originally posted by Kil
Jeez. Maybe I should join you there. Problem is I have no money to speak of. Sigh... |
I made the move for about $5K. I don't think it's possible to do it for much less. But if you can get here, Kil, I'll try to show you the ropes, assuming I know them by then.
Oh, are you near Social Security age yet? If so, that should support you well here. |
“Biology is just physics that has begun to smell bad.” —HalfMooner
Here's a link to Moonscape News, and one to its Archive. |
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Ebone4rock
SFN Regular
USA
894 Posts |
Posted - 06/30/2010 : 07:30:10 [Permalink]
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| I made the move for about $5K. |
No kidding??? That's it? I might do it now! Does Bim have any sisters or cousins?
Ah shit, I have that darned wife to consider..... |
Haole with heart, thats all I'll ever be. I'm not a part of the North Shore society. Stuck on the shoulder, that's where you'll find me. Digging for scraps with the kooks in line. -Offspring |
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Settling in Baguio
