Well our holiday soon came to an end. It is strange how slow your life is when you are looking forward to an event and when it arrives your life speeds up as if someone has pressed the ""fast forward"" button on the video. Again our holiday in the PI sped by at lightening speed! Well we are all safely (as safe as you can be in KSA)back in Saudi Arabia. We arrived at the compound to find that the compound security was at a high level of alertness. In reality the armed security guard (Royal Saudi Air Force) for the whole compound was asleep in his little office on our arrival with his H & K machine gun on the ground under his chair! It does not inspire a lot of confidence in the newly implemented security procedures that is for sure! We were originally flying Saudi Airlines from Manila direct to Dammam but, Saudi Airlines cancelled the flight! Unfortunately our re-scheduled flight meant that we had to leave a day earlier than planned but now we had to transit the Saudi Capital of Riyadh! Our journey to Al Khobar (KSA) started with a two hour taxi ride from Tabunok to Mactan airport on Thursday the 26th February. Leaving Tabunok at 06:30 took a whole hour to travel to Osmena Fuente just 8 or 9 Km away. The traffic is hell at this time of the day. We checked in for our 0830 PAL flight to Manila as this was the only flight (with PAL) that would give us a good connection time with our International flight. The airport terminal fee at Mactan for domestic flights 100P (around 2 USD). After the slow ride to the airport we were rewarded with blue sky and views of Negros, Panay, Tablas and even the resort Island of Boracay as we flew North to Manila. We transferred from the PAL terminal (NAIA Term 2) to NAIA Term 1 using ""Sunshine Taxis"". We have used ""Sunshine"" in the past and were impressed by their polite and very efficient staff. For 200P (4 USD) we had a mini bus and all the help loading an unloading the luggage we needed. We actually shared the bus with a Canadian guy called Patrick who was in the PI on his first visit to meet his girlfriend in Bogo (North Cebu). I passed on the information about LinP so maybe he will be member soon. If you are out there Patrick, good luck! It has become so easy transferring between the airport terminals now there is an organised and disciplined taxi service. I used to try and avoid Manila Airport like the plague before but now I would even recommend it. Check in for our 15:30 flight was slow what with having to go to the Saudi Airlines office at the airport to have our tickets re-issued. As my wife Neng is classified as a dependant and as such does not hold a residence permit for Saudi Arabia she is not eligible for the reduced immigration fee. This had to paid to the Saudi Airlines office before they would issue the new tickets! This fee is 1620 P (30 USD) for economy class travel and 2700P (50 USD) for first class travel as mentioned in previous post The International departure tax per person is 550P (10 USD). Met up with Derrick and his family. Derrick is employed by the same company as my self (BAE Systems) but works at the Tabuk airbase instead of Dhahran like my self. Derrick had some good UK VISA information which I hope he will post once he gets settled back in KSA. After eventually checking in and passing through into the departure lounge it was already 14:00! There is a little play area free of charge for the children in the departure lounge which is handy. At 14:30 we decided to make our way to the gate as by previous experience there was still several security checks before boarding the plane. Another x ray inspection of our hand luggage, and then a body search whilst standing on a plinth was carried out. This is pretty undignified but a necessary check these days, although I would have much rather the check was carried out by the girl that searched my wife instead of the guy checking the guys! Through the metal detector (belts and shoes off), 100% visual inspection of hand luggage, another body and magic wand check and we were in the gate departure area. 5 minutes later Saudi Airlines called forward all the passengers with families to board first. I wish all airlines would adopt this policy! Anyone who has travelled with young children know how difficult boarding the plane and getting hand luggage stowed can be. There were only half a dozen western people on the flight. The rest were Filipinos OCW's returning to work. A few had their families with them but most were on there own. With all that is going on with old SH up the road and his WOMD has not deterred many people from still trying to make their fortune in the middle east. The plane was full. Arrived in Riyadh. Immigration is not so bad but customs is slow. A 100% check is carried out on all your luggage when entering KSA. The customs officers are looking for anything they deem as anti-Islamic. These include Pork products, religious artefacts (crosses, statues of Mary etc), literature and pictures which they feel is pornographic and offensive as well as alcohol of course. Even VCD, DVD, Video cassettes, software CD's and diskettes are taken away for examination of their contents! Depending upon the contents you will A) Get them back (after a couple of days) B) Get confiscated C) Get confiscated and a spell in the pokey with a bit of a whipping to boot! As we queued awaiting customs inspection, we could see that the customs were thorough today. There were many items being confiscated from the Filipino passengers in front of us. We had a few unopened children's VCD's as well as a few Tagalog Videoke DVDs. We did not try to conceal them and explained that these were only music and children's films and the half box of mangos were also for the children. It is strange how we always seem to be bringing Pasalubong to the Philippines as well as back to Saudi! They did not bother to examine them and we were sent on our way! The Jedi mind trick works well on the weak minded! Caught the 23:30 flight from Riyadh to Dammam. We were greeted by my manager and a colleague at Dammam airport. They had brought the ""Death Star"" (LWB Nissan Patrol) up to the airport for my use and they were returning in another car. 55Km later we were home after a total of 26.5 hours travelling. It seems strange being back in KSA. It seems our holiday was only a week long but in reality was a whole month in the Philippines. We must have had a good time (like every time)!

Here's another response from Jimmy's post that i posted in other forums. Will continue to post the responses as i get them. Ms. Ledesma is one of the active crusaders of AV Bill so she would know most current updates on this.

The DCB or Citizenship Retention bill is not tied to the OAVA but is a complementary bill. the president has not yet signed it into law; it has only been passed by the Senate through the sponsorship of Senate president Franklin Drilon. it is still in the committee level in the House under Justice committee headed by Cong. Libanan. it is widely seen to be a more difficult law to pass (than the OAVA) given that many House members object to the possibility of dual allegiance which the bill seems to be espousing. one authoritative advice given to me to is to have an active lobby group from the actual stakeholders themselves, especially from the US. apart from this, one persuasive strategy would be to have data available of the support, financial and otherwise, being given by former Filipinos to our country which would constitute as a strong argument for giving back their FIlipino citizenship (this one of the goals of the Global Filipinos global forum on August.) but over and above this, for those who have lost their citizenship by operation of law, it should be argued that no laws of another country should be able to strip away one's citizenship if one has not renounced it. hope this helps.

Pepaid subscribers pay p2.5 and postpaid pay p2 for sending to an application like Chikka. If anyone is charged more then there is enough reason to complain to the provider. Even a ringtone is only p20 to p25 for a download. Please let me know what provider is being used.

Actually my Family in PI who I'm sending the text messages through Chikka said that they were being charge 26.00 pesos also. It's why they can't always answer my text messages back unless it's really important.

Even tho I thoroughly enjoy spending time in the PI, and plan on retiring there in a few years, I do have one major nagging thought, and that is the quality of health care. Am I wrong on this, but I sense that if a person were to become seriously ill, their odds of survival would be much greater in the USA, Australia, or Europe. Another aspect of this would be that I (or you) would die happy, in a setting we love and appreciate. But then we should also take into consideration the feelings of our families back home. Is this fair to them?

First, thanks to those of you who took the time to send me info about cost of living, SRRV opinions (workarounds) and housing, it was all very helpful. Also, the ""Files"" folder is a great resource for any newbie. Now, I have heard/read in the past about PI being notorious for power outages. Is this still a big problem for you living in PI? How often do you experience outages? How long did the worst one last? Are outages worse in certain areas? Of course power outages happen everywhere, since I moved into my current residence in USA (6 months now) I have had 2 major outages that lasted over 1 hour (there is a lot of construction going on near my house).

Obviously you have to travel longer distances before medical care can be obtained. I would like to add however that here I did not experience any waiting lists like you see in the Netherlands. I would also not be happy with all the additional equipment that might extend your life (if that's what you call it). The care that you can obtain is good as long as you can pay for and to my personal experience doctors in the Philippines or Asia in general have had more success in solving my medial problems than the doctors in the Netherlands.

Even tho I thoroughly enjoy spending time in the PI, and plan on retiring there in a few years, I do have one major nagging thought, and that is the quality of health care. Am I wrong on this, but I sense that if a person were to become seriously ill, their odds of survival would be much greater in the USA, Australia, or Europe. Another aspect of this would be that I (or you) would die happy, in a setting we love and appreciate. But then we should also take into consideration the feelings of our families back home. Is this fair to them?

Does any one out there live in Surigao or Butuan? I'd like to know the prices for land or house and land in that part of Mindanao.

Thanks every one for all the help with my last question. I believe I should explain what I wish to do a little better. I would like to know if there are banks in the Philippines that have US dollar account and provide an ATM card with the account. I would also need to be able to go to the bank and make withdrawals from my account and get the money in a timely manner of about a day two days at best.

What to do when you have no idea of what is being said??? Here is a problem I have in the RP. I understand some people are not good in English and need to speak their own and have no problem when we are out and about or at someones house. Now, on what I think is a different deal. There has been times when our family gets together, all speak very good english and I am in the group or at least think I am part of the group. These are all people I have helped over the years, put one through school, built two of them houses. Supported others when they needed it. So the problem is they speak their language and only speak english when they taking to me. So I say, how about speaking english guys so I can be in on the conversation??? Most of the time the request has just been ignored. So there I sit, on land that I paid for in a house I built for someone else and I have no idea what is going on? How do you guys handle that? I have one friend who told me I really do not want to know what they are talking about and they will drive me nuts talking about the same things over and over and over. But I do feel isolated when this happens.

I am in the process of building on Bohol and will share my building costs as the project proceeds to any who are interested. So far it looks like the 150 square meter house should cost around $15,000.00 US Being modestly built in an American style.

I empathise with your frustration. I am fortunate that my in-laws speak almost zero English. However the siblings of my asawa learnt it at the same school she went to so therefore they should be able to speak, right? Nope! They are too ""shy"" to answer me in English. Even Dong, my brother in law who lives with us and whom I am putting through a college course that allegedly includes English, is virtually mute. The parents lack of English I understand and they try their best to communicate, but the siblings really twist my su-su's! It is something only Filipino's would understand I guess. In your case there is, in a westerners eyes, no excuse. To us it is just plain rude and I fully understand how you feel. My advice is that next time they ask for money/land/house/carabao/education whatever, simply do the open the mouth to catch flies thing and then giggle. Give them some of their behaviour right back at them and see how they like it. Don't answer the question, simply nod thoughtfully and then change the subject. Or why not say ""yes"" then do absolutely nothing or the exact opposite? It works for them. I had some friends in Manila who were all well educated and had spent time overseas, everyone spoke English well. They did the very same thing and it was, to me, quite insulting. So if they would chat in Tagalog then later ask me something in English, I would answer in German, which nobody understood. I would then continue to reply in Deutsch well beyond my actual ability to speak it and blend it effortlessly into home made Russian followed by Arabic (its all in the accent). By the time I was handing out the ""Inshallah's"" they would either get the hint and revert to English or wander off. I do agree with your friend who says you don't want to know what they are talking about. Most of the time it is about you anyway. As I learn more Visayan and can at least follow the thread of most mundane, everyday conversations; I realise they waffle on about rubbish the same as we do, small talk I think it's called. Anyway, try my answer in a foreign language trick and let me know if it works. Even if it doesn't it is a lot of fun. Cheers, Ursus Incognita,

I have the same fears as you do regarding health care. We have a place in Tacloban, Leyte and the two hospitals there IMO are not very great, to be kind. I've been in both visiting people and would not really care to be in either one. Cebu is somewhat better, but compared to the US, well there is no comparison IMO. I can not speak for the Manila/Makati hospitals as I have never been to one. To me dental and health care are the major downside issues to living in the RP. As I am currently 57 and healthy this has not affected me yet. I fear when I get in the late 60's and have more ailments it make be, or could become more criitical. Others will certainly disagree and say the health care is just as good or even better than in the US. I think not.

Hello everyone, Even tho I thoroughly enjoy spending time in the PI, and plan on retiring there in a few years, I do have one major nagging thought, and that is the quality of health care. Am I wrong on this, but I sense that if a person were to become seriously ill, their odds of survival would be much greater in the USA, Australia, or Europe. Another aspect of this would be that I (or you) would die happy, in a setting we love and appreciate. But then we should also take into consideration the feelings of our families back home. Is this fair to them? Comments? Experiences? All would be helpful.

I have not been to this particular Resort in Tubud Minglanilla nor did I read the news item in the Sun Star that Richard (Disco Dick) mentioned. However during a web search for something completely different I came across a reference to this Resort being up for Sale - cant say how out of date this reference was but the website URL gives some interesting news and pictures of the ' Tubod Flowing Springs Resort', Upper Pakigne, Tubod. Minglanilla. http://screwfaceworld.tripod.com/tubod_cebu.html With 4 large swimming pools, water slide, cave with flowing natural spring, picnic cottages, quality room accomodation and a conference facility, it deserves to be checked out. I intend to visit Robert Warren, who lives in Minglanilla, in the near future and intend to check this place out. Will report my findings to the LinP Group. In the meantime take a look at the pictures on the website URL.

Thank you for your informative post. As my wife and I plan to retire to the Iloilo area, may I please request additional details regarding the construction of your home? Are you willing to you share with us some details regarding the construction, for example: Is the roof tile? Did you use marble on the floor? I understand that kictchen appliances are not included in the construction cost but what about bathroom fixtures? Did you install standard porclean? Did you build both a shower and bathtub? What kind of water heater did you select? Do your figures include airconditioning units? Do your figures include water connections and sewage disposal contruction costs? Do your figures include a garage and driveway? Do your figures include landscaping and fencing? Many thanks in advance for your time and your response.

I am in the process of building on Bohol and will share my building costs as the project proceeds to any who are interested. So far it looks like the 150 square meter house should cost around $15,000.00 US Being modestly built in an American style.

Thanks for this post!!!! In August I took a trip with my wife and 3 other relatives. Same thing, everyone speaks English but only used it to talk to me. I spent a lot of time watching the pretty ladies along the road...lol. What really would get me, when after a 30 minute discussion they would turn to me and say, What do you think we should do? I found it frustrating, to say the least. We did run into some Germans whom I spoke to in my very limited German. When I turned to the family I said, ""what do you think"". They had no idea what had just been said and just looked at me. I took the opportunity to tell them, oh yes, I know how you feel, and said about them not speaking English. When we got back in the car, Tagalog was the spoken language. Oh well.

I tend to agree with you. Many English speakers just assume that everyone else should speak English when they are there because it is the dominant commercial language Worldwide. For anyone in this position who doesn't understand the conversation at a family gathering I would say try to learn Tagalog or whatever language they speak. It shouldn't take long to pick up a little and then just keep trying every day to add to your vocabulary. If you want to speed things up, take lessons, you could be passable in two or three months with a bit of effort. I'm sure they'll appreciate it and you should feel better too. If a foreigner comes to stay in the UK they are expected to learn English. But their partner should learn their language as well. My ex now speaks perfect English with a lovely Polish accent and I speak Polish with a Glasgow accent.

Hello, my name is Mike Sannes and I am new to the list. My wife is a Filipina from Davao. We live in San Diego, Ca where the weather is nice but I am thinking of retiring to the Philippines. My wife is from Davao (Mindanao) but I have been thinking of buying in the Cebu area due to safety and the availability of a more modern environment. But I haven't been to Cebu yet to look at it. I have been to the Philippines many times but mainly in Manila and Davao. Any advice or suggestions would be appreciated; especially if people could point me to good areas to live and any suggestions on costs. I have looked on the Web at Corona Del Mar. Small lots (270 meters) are about $6000 per meter. But the facility and the area looks very nice and it is on the beach. I would appreciate any advice and suggestions.

I had recommended to me to purchase insurance that will allow you to be medi-vaced back to the states in case of major problems. Renting an air ambulance can cost huge money. I think the insurance is not that expensive.

Even tho I thoroughly enjoy spending time in the PI, and plan on retiring there in a few years, I do have one major nagging thought, and that is the quality of health care. Am I wrong on this, but I sense that if a person were to become seriously ill, their odds of survival would be much greater in the USA, Australia, or Europe. Another aspect of this would be that I (or you) would die happy, in a setting we love and appreciate. But then we should also take into consideration the feelings of our families back home. Is this fair to them?

I empathise with your frustration. I am fortunate that my in-laws speak almost zero English. However the siblings of my asawa learnt it at the same school she went to so therefore they should be able to speak, right? Nope! They are too ""shy"" to answer me in English. Even Dong, my brother in law who lives with us and whom I am putting through a college course that allegedly includes English, is virtually mute. The parents lack of English I understand and they try their best to communicate, but the siblings really twist my su-su's! It is something only Filipino's would understand I guess. In your case there is, in a westerners eyes, no excuse. To us it is just plain rude and I fully understand how you feel. My advice is that next time they ask for money/land/house/carabao/education whatever, simply do the open the mouth to catch flies thing and then giggle. Give them some of their behaviour right back at them and see how they like it. Don't answer the question, simply nod thoughtfully and then change the subject. Or why not say ""yes"" then do absolutely nothing or the exact opposite? It works for them. I had some friends in Manila who were all well educated and had spent time overseas, everyone spoke English well. They did the very same thing and it was, to me, quite insulting. So if they would chat in Tagalog then later ask me something in English, I would answer in German, which nobody understood. I would then continue to reply in Deutsch well beyond my actual ability to speak it and blend it effortlessly into home made Russian followed by Arabic (its all in the accent). By the time I was handing out the ""Inshallah's"" they would either get the hint and revert to English or wander off. I do agree with your friend who says you don't want to know what they are talking about. Most of the time it is about you anyway. As I learn more Visayan and can at least follow the thread of most mundane, everyday conversations; I realise they waffle on about rubbish the same as we do, small talk I think it's called. Anyway, try my answer in a foreign language trick and let me know if it works. Even if it doesn't it is a lot of fun. Cheers, Ursus Incognita,

Also Philippine national bank, they also have offices in the US. I use it to transfer money every month for a $5 fee (USD). Any of the ATM's that use Cirrus will allow you to take out money from your US bank (in Pesos).

my asawa is the granddaughter of the late scuptor ramon sarmiento with many famous scuptures through out cebu and minila he made the large horse and rider leon kilat in carcar. does any body have any information on any of his work in cebu and minila, the family has no interest yet but someday they will so I am getting them started.

When I find myselfin that situation, I usually just get up and leave the area....like to find something else to do......I make it clear by my actions that they realize I am not part of the group when they are speaking only Tagalog, even though I know more of that language than they think.....I am learning more and more all the time, but I never speak it to them, JUST LISTEN.... very interesting some times, but you need to keep a straight

I understand people have fears of substandard health care in the PI, but my first hand experience with hospitals in PI was very positive. My wife and I have a home in Angeles City and about a year ago I became very ill. I did not want to go to the hospital, because of the same fears some of you are having. Then finally my wife won the battle and I went to Angeles University Hospital. Of course when I went in I found it wasn't as modern or decorated like our better US hospitals. But I must tell you all the treatment I received there was far better than any hospital I have ever been in, in the US. I was not put through unnecessary test or placed in a waiting room for hours. I guess the best way to describe it was almost celebrity treatment. Most of all, the doctors explained everything to me, answered all of my questions and the ultimate goal was reached and that was a cure. Besides all that it didn't cost me $5000.00 or more it cost me less than $150.00 that included medication. The only advice I could give somebody is do your research, as anywhere, you have good and you have bad hospitals. Find out in advance where you want to go in the event of an emergency or illness. My experience was positive but I'm sure for every good experience, somebody will have a negative experience to match. Best of luck,

When I find myselfin that situation, I usually just get up and leave the area....like to find something else to do......I make it clear by my actions that they realize I am not part of the group when they are speaking only Tagalog, even though I know more of that language than they think.....I am learning more and more all the time, but I never speak it to them, JUST LISTEN.... very interesting some times, but you need to keep a straight face.livinginthephilippines1@yahoogroups.com, ""Gary Newville Dear Gary, Yes, Gary, even if you know the formal language, it is hard to understand because of the slang and ""short cuts,"" used around the house. The issue I believe the gentleman was concered about if the rudness of being left out of a conversation he may be intested in hearing. I understand his fustration. If you can speak English and they can too, why don't they have consideration enough to share it with you by speaking your language though they may be a little uncomfortable with it. English just won't convery the same emotions, feeling, etc as local dialect will and it is a strain to use, compared to theirs. It is so natural for them they just don't think but do what comes naturally, not meaning to insult you or to leave you out, though you are. There are no kinder and considerate people in the world than Filipinos. If they have a fault and you consider this a fault, and I do too some times in my fustration, this is it. But you ain't going to change it, or at least I have not been able to do so. I stopped trying. It happens most often when the conversation is intense, when just playful or serious, but it can happen at any time. It is just one of the downsides of living here. Learning the local language *and* slang is the only way I can find, a hard job, but so rewarding. And it can be fun! If you have time what better to do. In my opinion as always.

Paydays are the first and the 30th or the 31st. I knew that. but many companies pay the 5th and the 20th. Construction workers are always paid on Saturday, and there are more then you can imagine in a country where I see no need to build anything now with so many places empty. (I heard Cebu Plaza was closing down for lack of business. A Dunking Donuts just across from the University of San Carlos, great location, just folded. The first is hearsay, the second I know for sure.

We have a link on things to do at www.livinginthephilippines.com, most put up by David Whittall. But there are a couple of things that come to mind that are not there, that I do, and the Filipinos love. I play table tennis, and everyone else does. Volley ball is also very popular. More popular than them both are Chess, with Scrabble a close second in many households. Tennis is expensive for many, but there are many courts here in Cebu and other places. For exercise you can always do some ball room dancing. If you need private lessons, they are about $4 here for the best, and much cheaper lessons are available. You can find tutor for just about anything you want at an excellent price, highly qualified. My hobby and avocation, for years, has been flying kites. I now fly the two string ""stunt."" kites that take a lot of concentration and al the strength I have left in this old body to control. When I get tired I pull out a more conventional on or more and decorate the sky. (That was the name of my former kite business, now defunct, *Decorate the Sky!* "") The best months in Cebu are April May and July for kites. Bear Brand milk has kite contests all over the Philippines with finals in Manila, usually. Some place near the water has good winds all year around. I still order ripstop nylon from the States, not available here, an build my own, when I can. I want one for windsurfing a fast growing sport in the states, ""Kite surfing,"" faster and more demanding the windsurfing, so I read. It is not done here. If there were enough tourist to afford it, or economic times were not so hard here, it may make a good business too, lessons, equipment sales, rentals and all. Now these are just a few. And some of you have your own hobbies. Everything from classic car collection to sitting on a bench, is here. For entertainment you can't beat the Philippines, in my opinion, because there is always someone unemployed to do it with you. I get most of my enjoyment and pleasure from being with the Filipino people. And of course ever NGO needs volunteers, even the Red Cross where I am on call for typhoons, etc. We have had so few here in Cebu, I have never been call and been to training and on the list for three years. As the moderators continue to contribute more and more to helping me manage the List, I intend to do more of the above, especially some island hopping. Don't do as I do, get tied to the computer and miss all the fun. I had 11 good years of it and then started the list. It gives me pleasure to provide what I can to others as it does the moderators, but it takes so much time.

What messenger program do you use? My girl friend and I have been trying to use Yahoo's Messenger with little success. We almost always resort to typing. I have a friend who uses MSN to talk with his family in Mexico. Works great for him, even better than the phone. But I don't want to go through the hassle of teaching her a new system if it is not going to work any better.

It gets back to what each culture considers rude. As I think Don once said, the Filipino has modesty, but no concept of privacy and thinks nothing of walking in without knocking. The same goes for the language. They don't think or intend to be rude, I believe. It is just the way it is here. Given they speak English and Tagalog or Visayan or all three, we are in a position of poor leveredge as they can simply insist we learn another language etc. However, it does frustrate and annoy and if you are in your own home or one you have paid for then I believe they should consider our feelings. I won't hold my breath. Ursus Incognita Jim Baumbach wrote:Gary, Thanks for this post!!!! In August I took a trip with my wife and 3 other relatives. Same thing, everyone speaks English but only used it to talk to me. I spent a lot of time watching the pretty ladies along the road...lol. What really would get me, when after a 30 minute discussion they would turn to me and say, What do you think we should do? I found it frustrating, to say the least. We did run into some Germans whom I spoke to in my very limited German. When I turned to the family I said, ""what do you think"". They had no idea what had just been said and just looked at me. I took the opportunity to tell them, oh yes, I know how you feel, and said about them not speaking English. When we got back in the car, Tagalog was the spoken language. Oh well.