Is Philippines good for expats?

[atpeace]

On 11/10/2021 at 5:24 AM, steven100 said:

I tend to agree ......   I think a dog would even throw up after eating that slop .....   

The first two pics look OK and the third pic is a little dodgy but is bad German any worse than good German food?

[Mike Teavee]

29 minutes ago, atpeace said:

The first two pics look OK and the third pic is a little dodgy but is bad German any worse than good German food?

Lol, I agree with you & often go out with a Dutch guy (wife is my GF’s Auntie) who loves German food but I find it just Blah e.g we went to a place in Naklua that does all you can eat buffet with 6 different meatloafs, food was top quality but boring.

 

Am sure our German friends would say exactly the same about English food (i think we have the most boring food on the planet) but I love it every now & again (especially breakfast). 

 

 

[grahamuk]

I have been visiting and living here in the Phils for more than 31 years...retired here for the past 4 years. Married to a local. 

Most things are good. Travel and booze are cheap.  Beaches can be very litter/dog-<deleted> strewn, so don't believe all the touristy promotional bs.  

I find most of the local food revolting and unhealthy (full of fat, salt, and teeth-breaking bones) , but cook my own anyway, using perfectly good locally-sourced raw ingredients, stored correctly and prepared hygienically.  

[Mike Teavee]

1 hour ago, grahamuk said:

I have been visiting and living here in the Phils for more than 31 years...retired here for the past 4 years. Married to a local. 

Most things are good. Travel and booze are cheap.  Beaches can be very litter/dog-<deleted> strewn, so don't believe all the touristy promotional bs.  

I find most of the local food revolting and unhealthy (full of fat, salt, and teeth-breaking bones) , but cook my own anyway, using perfectly good locally-sourced raw ingredients, stored correctly and prepared hygienically.  

Whereabouts in PI are you Graham only I’ve done many many trips around the islands in Southern PI & haven’t seen anywhere near the number of dogs that I see on a beach in Thailand (we were feeding 3 of them on a beach in Koh Samet today).

 

Good call about cooking your own food (My Filipina & her mum were terrible cooks) but I found it really hard to get decent groceries (especially meat, don’t eat fish or chicken) which is ultimately why I ended up retiring to Thailand.

[shdmn]

The PI has two major advantages over countries like Thailand and Vietnam.  It's easy and painless to live there on a retirement visa and english is widely spoken.  The food thing is manageable.  There is plenty of fresh food in the markets if you like to cook yourself or get someone to do it for you.  If you like to eat out a lot it's not so great as most of it is mediocre and kind of expensive.  Some of the barbecue and carinderia places are good and cheap though. 

[Mike Teavee]

3 minutes ago, shdmn said:

The PI has two major advantages over countries like Thailand and Vietnam.  It's easy and painless to live there on a retirement visa and english is widely spoken.  The food thing is manageable.  There is plenty of fresh food in the markets if you like to cook yourself or get someone to do it for you.  If you like to eat out a lot it's not so great as most of it is mediocre and kind of expensive.  Some of the barbecue and carinderia places are good and cheap though. 

Lol, my Filipinas parents (Kapalong, about 1.5 hours north of Davao City) & people their age (I’d say 50 now) didn’t speak a word of English 

 

But we had some great Chinese, Japanese & Korean meals in Davao itself.

 

I miss the place & when people talk about having a “Plan B” I know 100% where mine is.

 

Most people who speak badly of the Philippines have either never been Or only been to Angeles/Mania… 

[shdmn]

4 minutes ago, Mike Teavee said:

Lol, my Filipinas parents (Kapalong, about 1.5 hours north of Davao City) & people their age (I’d say 50 now) didn’t speak a word of English 

 

But we had some great Chinese, Japanese & Korean meals in Davao itself.

 

I miss the place & when people talk about having a “Plan B” I know 100% where mine is.

 

Most people who speak badly of the Philippines have either never been Or only been to Angeles/Mania… 

Yes of course you can get good international cuisine, for a price.  English is widely spoken.  People who don't are not dealing with foreigners on a daily basis anyways.

[grahamuk]

8 hours ago, Mike Teavee said:

Whereabouts in PI are you Graham

I live in Pangasinan. 

[Mike Teavee]

53 minutes ago, grahamuk said:

I live in Pangasinan. 

Always wanted to do a tour of the north & in particular Vigan City (read it has some really nice European architecture) & Pagudpud (spelling?) which has a really nice beach (which is something the Philippines has in spades). 

[BritManToo]

9 hours ago, Mike Teavee said:

Lol, my Filipinas parents (Kapalong, about 1.5 hours north of Davao City) & people their age (I’d say 50 now) didn’t speak a word of English 

Do they speak Spanish?

[Mike Teavee]

15 minutes ago, BritManToo said:

Do they speak Spanish?

They speak Bisaya & Tagalog which is pretty close to Spanish.

 

She & her 4 siblings all speak good English