Thailand or Philippines? Who has been to both?

[Destiny1990]

How about u go to both and let us know first hand.

[MyFriend You]

I saw a T-Shirt in Angeles City - "I moved to Angeles to kill my Liver"

[KarenBravo]

Spent a lot of time in the Philippines in the 1980's.

Yes, it's a beautiful country.

 

Here are the reasons I chose NOT to live there.

 

1. The food is absolute crap. The only Asian country that doesn't have a proper cuisine. When was the last time you saw a Philippine restaurant (outside of the Middle-East that are only frequented by Filipinos)?

 

2. The women are great, the men can be nasty. If they know you, they will kill you with kindness, if they don't, you're just another mark to be exploited.

 

3. There's no divorce in the Philippines.

 

4. As with all ex-Spanish colonies, the Spanish passed on their culture of Machismo. Total pain to deal with.

 

5. Didn't matter if the woman I was walking down the street with was my wife, or lawyer. The men are constantly whispering insults at her for being with a European. At least most Thais have the good manners to keep their mouths shut.

Edited November 4, 2017 by KarenBravo

[Gruff]

2 hours ago, KarenBravo said:

Spent a lot of time in the Philippines in the 1980's.

Yes, it's a beautiful country.

 

Here are the reasons I chose NOT to live there.

 

1. The food is absolute crap. The only Asian country that doesn't have a proper cuisine. When was the last time you saw a Philippine restaurant (outside of the Middle-East that are only frequented by Filipinos)?

 

 

There are a couple in Earls Court, London which are predominantly frequented by Filipinos. Do the US (burgers) or Australia (meat pies) have a proper cuisine?  Tell me a US or Aussie  dish that is a patch on Adobo or Calereta .

[Gruff]

11 hours ago, pgrahmm said:

I'll back him....I know of people that have disappeared in lieu of divorce (no divorce there but insurance pays).....I've been surrounded by people all reaching at your pockets.....I've met people from the NPA - the anti government militia and heard their stories......I've been knife triangled in broad daylight (main street - just walking).....Seen taxi drivers afraid to take foreigner passengers because of smash and grab.....Watched a guy circle my taxi ready to smash a window if anything was inside - then he spotted me coming.....Warned friends rhat didn't listen & ended up waking up later with nothing.....Been a guest at social events including local mayors (Manila/Angeles) with their body guards locked and loaded (one misplaced his pistol).....Been a passenger in a car diving a block away from main street & looked at areas full of passed out addicts and swarms of rough men......Watched youth gangs working their turf - soon to be the next generation's criminals.....Everybody living in compounds.....Nobody leaves home unattended....Been told in every area to stay inside, it wasn't safe for me to walk about.....Watched some of the village enforcers walking around with machetes over their shoulders....Women don't venture out alone....

 

Just the plight of the hospitals there would keep me away = 3rd worldish......

 

I was fortunate to know a lot of influential poeple & get honest answers to my questions - none of which were good....

 

As one told me re TH vrs PI....

TH is what PI could be in 20-30 years but 1- they don't have the resolve; 2- It's not profitable & works against the "profit" structures already in place......

 

Some beautiful people there - it could be a paradise....But it never will be.....

 

 

You really do seem to have been in the thick of it !  I have been to a few places in Phils now, Manila, Cebu City, General santos, Puero Galera, Subic bay. I have seen women returning home  alone late at night in jeepney / motocycle taxis in all those places. I suspect you have spent more time there than me but we have either seen different sides or you are exaggerating the horrors.

[MaeJoMTB]

7 minutes ago, Gruff said:

I have seen women returning home  alone late at night in jeepney / motocycle taxis in all those places. 

Plenty of Filipino women visiting my room didn't have problems getting home at 3am in the morning.

[Tony125]

5 minutes ago, MaeJoMTB said:

Plenty of Filipino women visiting my room didn't have problems getting home at 3am in the morning.

Because their boyfriends were outside waiting to drive them home.  

[Gruff]

6 minutes ago, Tony125 said:

Because their boyfriends were outside waiting to drive them home.  

Oh so they must all have the same boyfriend then - the jeepney driver !! But i guess their bf's are waiting at home.

 

 

Edited November 4, 2017 by Gruff

[pgrahmm]

28 minutes ago, Gruff said:

 

You really do seem to have been in the thick of it !  I have been to a few places in Phils now, Manila, Cebu City, General santos, Puero Galera, Subic bay. I have seen women returning home  alone late at night in jeepney / motocycle taxis in all those places. I suspect you have spent more time there than me but we have either seen different sides or you are exaggerating the horrors.

No exaggerations.....Possibly closer to the pulse than most.....Not much living time spent in the touristy areas....More out & about + fortunate to have been favored/connected - thus got the straight answers from the ones that had them......

 

Lovely people, they send their best and the brightest offshore....Some good ones stay but it leaves an extremely predatory place.....Which most of us wouldn't be involved enough to even begin to notice.....

[KarenBravo]

2 hours ago, Gruff said:

There are a couple in Earls Court, London which are predominantly frequented by Filipinos. Do the US (burgers) or Australia (meat pies) have a proper cuisine?  Tell me a US or Aussie  dish that is a patch on Adobo or Calereta .

Are yes. The National Dish. Chicken Adobo........or, chicken in vinegar.

Kind of proves my point, doesn't it?

Aussie dish? I'll go for Morton Bay bugs, or Barramundi with chips. I'll take either one over any Filipino dish.

US? There's just too many.

[Gruff]

2 hours ago, KarenBravo said:

Are yes. The National Dish. Chicken Adobo........or, chicken in vinegar.

Kind of proves my point, doesn't it?

Aussie dish? I'll go for Morton Bay bugs, or Barramundi with chips. I'll take either one over any Filipino dish.

US? There's just too many.

I thought fish and chips was an English dish. Normally a dish with vinegar as well.

[Tofer]

On 3 November 2017 at 12:00 PM, smotherb said:

That, in fact is what I did. However, that was not the intent.  I married a Filipina because I loved her, we had been together for almost 30 years before we decided to come to Thailand to retire over ten years ago. However, I would not simply take that advice. I do not like such generalizations; some Filipinas are real problems, just as some Thai women and even some Western women are real winners. You really need to have something to offer a woman other than money and make a wise  choice. 

Good that you added this caveat to your earlier post, and I agree wholeheartedly. I've know PI women who were completely goal orientated, climbing the social ladder so to speak, now married to real winner Thai, living in Thailand.

 

 

[torrzent]

13 hours ago, Gruff said:

There are a couple in Earls Court, London which are predominantly frequented by Filipinos. Do the US (burgers) or Australia (meat pies) have a proper cuisine?  Tell me a US or Aussie  dish that is a patch on Adobo or Calereta .

How about Texmex or turkey dinner....basically anything on this list which isn;t even haute cuisine topes anything from {Phils

http://edition.cnn.com/travel/article/american-food-dishes/index.html

[smotherb]

30 minutes ago, Tofer said:

Good that you added this caveat to your earlier post, and I agree wholeheartedly. I've know PI women who were completely goal orientated, climbing the social ladder so to speak, now married to real winner Thai, living in Thailand.

 

 

Not sure goal-oriented is a bad thing. My wife wanted an education, wanted a good job, wanted to be able to support herself and those she loved--that is a pretty good goal in my opinion.  Now, if you mean money-grubbing materialistic goals and not willing to do anything for it but spread her legs; well, that is a different story.

[Gruff]

Well F

Quote

22 minutes ago, torrzent said:

How about Texmex or turkey dinner....basically anything on this list which isn;t even haute cuisine topes anything from {Phils

http://edition.cnn.com/travel/article/american-food-dishes/index.html

 

Well Fish and Chips is of British origin. TexMex is the result of those of Mexican heritage living in Texas and turkey dinners were around in the UK in the time of Henry V111 so i think fair to say of British origin also. In the UK we have Indian rest, Chinese, Italian, Greek, Persian, Mexican, even Filipino. Never seen an Australian restaurant but we do have fast fast joints and roadside diners with US influence.

Edited November 5, 2017 by Gruff

[Ulysses G.]

8 minutes ago, Gruff said:

Never seen an Australian restaurant but we do have fast fast joints and roadside diners with US influence.

Is there such thing as an Australian restaurant. I have been there quite a few times and don't remember seeing anything like that.

[torrzent]

15 minutes ago, Gruff said:

Well F

Well Fish and Chips is of British origin. TexMex is the result of those of Mexican heritage living in Texas and turkey dinners were around in the UK in the time of Henry V111 so i think fair to say of British origin also. In the UK we have Indian rest, Chinese, Italian, Greek, Persian, Mexican, even Filipino. Never seen an Australian restaurant but we do have fast fast joints and roadside diners with US influence.

Alot of food comes from different places, even in Phils so what is your point?  What matters is how the food is adapted once it gets to a new place, like how spicy chillis were adapted into great Thai food.

Re. thanksgiving style turkey dinner, sorry but that is not British....see wiki

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thanksgiving_dinner

"The majority of the dishes in the traditional American version of Thanksgiving dinner are made from foods native to the New World, as according to tradition the Pilgrims received these foods, or learned how to grow them, from the Native Americans.[1]

 

For the rest of your points, I am reminded of that great joke,

 

Heaven & Hell

HEAVEN is where:

The police are British, The chefs Italian, The mechanics are German, The lovers are French, and it's all organised by the Swiss

HELL is where: The police are German, The chefs are British, The mechanics are French, The lovers are Swiss, and it's all organised by the Italians!!

 

Maybe we can get someone to attempt a localized version of this joke with the theme of this thread woven into it?

 

 

 

 

Edited November 5, 2017 by torrzent

[Gruff]

19 minutes ago, torrzent said:

Alot of food comes from different places, even in Phils so what is your point? 

 

I was responding to Karenbravo who stated that Phils was the only country in Asia not to have a have a proper cuisine.

 

[tonray]

41 minutes ago, Ulysses G. said:

Is there such thing as an Australian restaurant. I have been there quite a few times and don't remember seeing anything like that.

[torrzent]

21 minutes ago, Gruff said:

I was responding to Karenbravo who stated that Phils was the only country in Asia not to have a have a proper cuisine.

 

Think I will go with Karenbravo on this one

[smotherb]

3 hours ago, Gruff said:

Well F

Well Fish and Chips is of British origin. TexMex is the result of those of Mexican heritage living in Texas and turkey dinners were around in the UK in the time of Henry V111 so i think fair to say of British origin also. In the UK we have Indian rest, Chinese, Italian, Greek, Persian, Mexican, even Filipino. Never seen an Australian restaurant but we do have fast fast joints and roadside diners with US influence.

Well, you have to realize that the US is a nation of immigrants, so our food is usually based upon other countries, but we have added American influence to it and created some really good dishes. Unfortunately, too many foreigners think the fast food garbage we export is what is meant by American food. There are many Americans who refuse to eat that garbage--any bar and grill serves a better burger than Mickey Dee's, any local pizza joint makes a better pizza than Pizza Hut or Dominoes, and any mom 'n pop restaurant has better fried chicken than KFC.

[smotherb]

3 hours ago, tonray said:

The Outback is little more than a fast food franchise. Not the place to go if you want a real good steak.

[torrzent]

9 minutes ago, smotherb said:

The Outback is little more than a fast food franchise. Not the place to go if you want a real good steak.

What's more, it is actually an American resto!

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Outback_Steakhouse

Outback Steakhouse is an Australian-themed American casual dining restaurant chain, serving American cuisine, based in Tampa, Florida, with almost 1,000 locations in 23 countries throughout North and South America, Asia, and Australia. It was founded in February 1988 in Tampa by Bob Basham, Chris T. Sullivan, Trudy Cooper, and Tim Gannon, and it was owned and operated in the United States by OSI Restaurant Partners until it was acquired by Bloomin' Brands, and by other franchise and venture agreements internationally.

[smotherb]

On 11/3/2017 at 8:07 PM, tifino said:

 

The only place we felt safe in PI, was near Batangas,

 

We were inside the compound of that big resort (now called La Virginia) on the top of the mountain, overseeing the Taal Volcano island in the lake

 

 

PI really reminds me mostly of Southern LOS - equally dangerous regions as each other...

You should have been on top of the mountains behind Taal in Tagaytay, a great little city with clean streets, good restaurants, plenty of nice hotels, cool climate and very safe. I have lived in several provinces in the PI--Luzon, the Visayas and Mindoro. The major safety issue I have seen in the PI is personal property--you leave it unattended it will be gone and if you catch them in the act they may get violent. As far as danger, there may be more guns being carried by guards/police in the PI; however, I have twice had guns pulled on me by Thai citizens here in Thailand and not once in the PI--and that is with about an equal amount of time in each place; lived in each for more than ten years, visited each for more than 50 years.  Now, I live in Songkhla in the South of Thailand and it is quite dissimilar to the PI--culture, religion, language, bureaucracy, corruption, food, clothing, etc. However, if you are only talking about Muslim insurgents and/or wannabe autonomous regions; there may be a political similarity between the three Southern-most provinces in Thailand and Southern Mindoro and the Sulu archipelago in the PI.

[smotherb]

22 minutes ago, torrzent said:

What's more, it is actually an American resto!

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Outback_Steakhouse

Outback Steakhouse is an Australian-themed American casual dining restaurant chain, serving American cuisine, based in Tampa, Florida, with almost 1,000 locations in 23 countries throughout North and South America, Asia, and Australia. It was founded in February 1988 in Tampa by Bob Basham, Chris T. Sullivan, Trudy Cooper, and Tim Gannon, and it was owned and operated in the United States by OSI Restaurant Partners until it was acquired by Bloomin' Brands, and by other franchise and venture agreements internationally.

Gee, did I say it was Australian? It is Australian-themed offering ab-originals such as stuff off the barbie, kukaburra wings, Ned Kelly Burgers, etc. And, as I said, if you want a good steak, go elsewhere.

[torrzent]

2 minutes ago, smotherb said:

Gee, did I say it was Australian? It is Australian-themed offering ab-originals such as stuff off the barbie, kukaburra wings, Ned Kelly Burgers, etc. And, as I said, if you want a good steak, go elsewhere.

Golly gee Jimmyjoebob, never said you did...but others might have.

[smotherb]

On 11/3/2017 at 3:57 PM, Scouse123 said:

I actually did a big thread asking why anybody would go to the Philippines and after reading so much negativity about the place, honestly, to this day I have never ventured there!!.

 

Food was an issue from comments made, everything apparently drenched in oil, grease and fat. I watched a documentary featuring Anthony Bordain, who of my favorite chefs and TV hosts , love his down-to-earthiness. but I wasn't impressed food wise by what I saw in his programme.

 

Also, I think armed guards at shopping malls and 7-11s just wouldn't be my bag!  I hate the thought of a lot of no-go areas and parts off limits. I love the resilience of the Filipino people. They just seem to get a raw deal with weather, governments, infrastructure, crime,........Wait!.... I could be talking about the UK here!

 

They said in the programme as many as 10 million Filipinos are working exporting services outside the country at any given time, be it bands and live music to nursing, maids and cleaners. They are a hardworking bunch. The programme also said they are responsible for sending back to the country in various forms of revenue some 30 Billion USD.

Well, you have to remember, TV posters, people who apparently chose to live in Thailand, or who  follow life in Thailand via TV, would likely prefer Thailand. I have many friends in the PI who swear that the PI is so much better than Thailand. Forget what any other person says, go and see for yourself; there are many good things abut the PI, if you open your eyes to see. 

[smotherb]

2 minutes ago, torrzent said:

Golly gee Jimmyjoebob, never said you did...but others might have.

Gee willicurs, you mean others might have said I said Outback was an Australian restaurant or that others might have said on their own that it was an Australian restaurant? You really need to clarify your drivel.

[torrzent]

5 minutes ago, smotherb said:

Gee willicurs, you mean others might have said I said Outback was an Australian restaurant or that others might have said on their own that it was an Australian restaurant? You really need to clarify your drivel.

Don't overthink it Einstein

[smotherb]

1 minute ago, torrzent said:

Don't overthink it Einstein

Gee whizz, should I follow your advice and not think it over lest someone refer to me as Einstein?