Is the phillipines a bad country to visit

[balo]

I have never been scammed , at least not that I have been aware of, I read about many scam stories from both countries. So I can only base my opinions on that .

I do know Filipinos living and working in Bangkok , they are nice hard working people. But again , all countries have their share of problems with scammers, corruption etc.

[tropo]

I have never been scammed , at least not that I have been aware of, I read about many scam stories from both countries. So I can only base my opinions on that .

I do know Filipinos living and working in Bangkok , they are nice hard working people. But again , all countries have their share of problems with scammers, corruption etc.

It's hard to discuss the Philippines without being stalked and baited by a certain commentator who keeps coming back for more, but it's best for you to visit the Philippines before you make comparisons rather than argue with people who have lived there.

The scamming process in both countries is different. In Thailand it's far more in your face and they often disguise it as language confusion. I can't say much about corruption in Thailand as that will break forum rules, but it's also alive and well in the Philippines.

[Rimmer]

A baiting post has been removed, you have already been advised by another mod to:

Reply to the Post - not the Poster

Keep the Personal Attacks off this Forum

[sometimewoodworker]

FWIW, I have no choice in what I eat for lunch in Japan, it's delivered and distributed. No one special orders or brings a lunch, and only maybe once a week do I actually like it. It's dirt cheap though. Like US$2 or less for a full meal, but 4 times out 5, if not less often, I find Japanese food incredibly boring. I've taken to bringing Sriracha sauce to work with me to dump in my soup. >_> Sushi, teriyaki, and and what-not are actually incredibly rare special things in Japan. People do not eat them every day.

As to the food in Japan being cheap, it's probably in part because you are getting food that is about 1/2 the normal cheapest price that you are finding it so boring.

As to the food being boring, I would say that bland would be a better description for quite a lot of it. But you must agree that the presentation is among the best in the world.

There are some quite tasty low cost Japanese meals and menu items that you can get if you can choose what you eat.

[KunMatt]

So did the OP go to the Philippines in the end? It's the only way he will really know if it is for him. Everyone has difference expectations and tolerances of places, I know some people who hate Thailand and others who think it's the best place on the planet. I know I can tolerate low standards which is why I loved the Philippines, wonder if the OP will ever try it out?

[hawker9000]

So did the OP go to the Philippines in the end? It's the only way he will really know if it is for him. Everyone has difference expectations and tolerances of places, I know some people who hate Thailand and others who think it's the best place on the planet. I know I can tolerate low standards which is why I loved the Philippines, wonder if the OP will ever try it out?

Lol. Maybe he would if he could just get a decent internet connection. We may have to wait until he gets back...

[TuskegeeBen]

Beats me why people keep on about the security guards being armed in the RP. Yes, they are armed, but they dont use the guns unless there is a robbery.

In the same way Brits are sometimes surprised that all US and French police are armed. It's the same: they are armed but they don't use the guns unless they need to.

I spent years in Manila and never saw anyone fire a gun (except during the "revolution" that ousted Marcos).

Apparently, you were living in some kind of (isolated) cocooned environment, in both the RP & the US.

[tropo]

Beats me why people keep on about the security guards being armed in the RP. Yes, they are armed, but they dont use the guns unless there is a robbery.

In the same way Brits are sometimes surprised that all US and French police are armed. It's the same: they are armed but they don't use the guns unless they need to.

I spent years in Manila and never saw anyone fire a gun (except during the "revolution" that ousted Marcos).

Apparently, you were living in some kind of (isolated) cocooned environment, in both the RP & the US.

I've also never seen a security officer or anyone else shoot a gun in a public place in the Philippines, and I never live in a cocooned environment over there. i.e. I don't live in a secured sub-divisions or hotels... and I've lived in Cavite, a place famous for kidnappings... and in Valenzuela, Manila - an industrial area that is not a very pleasant environment at all. My most common mode of transportation is a private motorcycle, followed by trikes, jeepneys, public buses, walking, ferries... and taxis in the city. I'm most certainly not living in a cocoon, that's for sure.

In actual fact, the knife is the most common method of personal assault in PI, not a gun. Knives are easy to get hold of, cheap and quiet. Provincial Filipinos are used to killing chickens, pigs and other animals for dinner, so they're not squeamish around blood. Usually the father has the kids hold a chicken while they chop off the head. Slaughtering a pig for a barbecue is a family spectacle in which everyone gets involved. No fast kill - lots of ear piercing squealing as the pig slowly dies. I'm still not into it and don't like to watch.

I have had a gun pointed at me though - but he didn't pull the trigger. I just gave him my cellphone. That happened in Angeles City.

Edited April 18, 2016 by tropo

[tropo]

So did the OP go to the Philippines in the end? It's the only way he will really know if it is for him. Everyone has difference expectations and tolerances of places, I know some people who hate Thailand and others who think it's the best place on the planet. I know I can tolerate low standards which is why I loved the Philippines, wonder if the OP will ever try it out?

Lol. Maybe he would if he could just get a decent internet connection. We may have to wait until he gets back...

LOL? My wife talks for hours a week, Skype to Skype video, to her family in PI, in Leyte, not known for the best connections - and we usually have great video... since 2008 even. I've had more trouble Skype'ing to areas in Australia.

Finding Internet, good enough to post on here, is a piece of cake just about anywhere in the Philippines. If you can't get a 3G cellular service, Internet cafes abound.

[Rimmer]

An off topic argumentative and baiting post has been removed. Please take heed of the following forum rule:

9) You will not post inflammatory messages on the forum, or attempt to disrupt discussions to upset its participants, or trolling. Trolling can be defined as the act of purposefully antagonizing other people on the internet by posting controversial, inflammatory, irrelevant or off-topic messages with the primary intent of provoking other users into an emotional response or to generally disrupt normal on-topic discussion.

[hawker9000]

So did the OP go to the Philippines in the end? It's the only way he will really know if it is for him. Everyone has difference expectations and tolerances of places, I know some people who hate Thailand and others who think it's the best place on the planet. I know I can tolerate low standards which is why I loved the Philippines, wonder if the OP will ever try it out?

Lol. Maybe he would if he could just get a decent internet connection. We may have to wait until he gets back...

LOL? My wife talks for hours a week, Skype to Skype video, to her family in PI, in Leyte, not known for the best connections - and we usually have great video... since 2008 even. I've had more trouble Skype'ing to areas in Australia.

Finding Internet, good enough to post on here, is a piece of cake just about anywhere in the Philippines. If you can't get a 3G cellular service, Internet cafes abound.

Yes, LOL. My experience, which includes hotels in Manila (even Makati), residential service further north in Bulacan & Pampanga, over in Zambales, Cebu, Palawan, Baguio and one or two other places has been often - not always - quite the opposite. 'Do agree that if internet cafes are available where you are or you have cellular 3G (my trips are usually short and I don't want to bother with a Philippine sim) that's often the best option. No, definitely not "a piece of cake anywhere in the Philippines" though, at least not for travelers.

[tropo]

So did the OP go to the Philippines in the end? It's the only way he will really know if it is for him. Everyone has difference expectations and tolerances of places, I know some people who hate Thailand and others who think it's the best place on the planet. I know I can tolerate low standards which is why I loved the Philippines, wonder if the OP will ever try it out?

Lol. Maybe he would if he could just get a decent internet connection. We may have to wait until he gets back...

LOL? My wife talks for hours a week, Skype to Skype video, to her family in PI, in Leyte, not known for the best connections - and we usually have great video... since 2008 even. I've had more trouble Skype'ing to areas in Australia.

Finding Internet, good enough to post on here, is a piece of cake just about anywhere in the Philippines. If you can't get a 3G cellular service, Internet cafes abound.

Yes, LOL. My experience, which includes hotels in Manila (even Makati), residential service further north in Bulacan & Pampanga, over in Zambales, Cebu, Palawan, Baguio and one or two other places has been often - not always - quite the opposite. 'Do agree that if internet cafes are available where you are or you have cellular 3G (my trips are usually short and I don't want to bother with a Philippine sim) that's often the best option. No, definitely not "a piece of cake anywhere in the Philippines" though, at least not for travelers.

Why would you not want to bother with a Philippine SIM. 50 pesos? That's no bother at all, even for a trip lasting a few days and no registration is necessary. I use that when I'm in Manila hotels. You'd have to be hiding away in dense jungle not to be able to post on Thaivisa.

[chicowoodduck]

I've just returned from the Butuan/Tandag area in the South....about an hour and a half flight from Manila....was the longest two weeks I've ever spent in one spot....the food was the shits, the weather was not much better.....and the locals all tried to get their hands in my pocket.....? It could have been worse, could have been stuck in Manila! That was on my last adventure last year....what was I thinking????

[livinthailandos]

Have not gone yet to the phillipines, but thanks to the many of you posting though, however after reading the posts and researching more it would appear the areas to stay in manila are

1. Makati and Ermita - any recommendations on these areas as a good place to stay for first timer?

2. Walking around alone in makati or ermita area at night time, safe or not safe, just asking as i've walked around many night areas in the sukhumvit area and never any problems by myself

3. In terms of getting around by subway, better or worse than bangkoks bts and mrt, if worse why?

4. Any areas in manila that should avoid simply due to being to dangerous and areas to avoid if simply walking alone by yourself during daytime or nighttime

5. Any other things to avoid or be aware of, also am aware after reading many posts that many places I go that I could see lots of guards with guns, so the phillpines is very much a gun culture. No stranger to guns as I'm from the US.

Look forward to any more advice.

[hawker9000]

Makati is by far the more expensive, but also safer at night, than Ermita. Ermita's not all that particularly dangerous compared to the rest of Manila, but I wouldn't take my safety for granted there.

I would say Manila's LRT is much worse than Bangkok's BTS. Certainly more crowded. And less reliable. And less comfortable. About a year and a half ago, I was riding on the LRT when it developed some kind of mechanical problem (which I don't think is all that uncommon). EXTREMELY crowded at the time. (Think BTS car at Siam at rush hour, and just about double that.) Everyone had to get off at the next station, and then board the following train, which was just as crowded to begin with. Unbelievable.

Other than Makati, I'd be very cautious just about anywhere else in Manila at night. Don't be out alone. Don't be flashing any wealth (jewelry, expensive watches, etc.). Don't be out on the streets drunk. Keep your head on a swivel. Stay in well-lit areas with other people around as much as possible. Watch out for pick-pockets. Keep a certain "bubble" of personal space around you, and be suspicious & watchful any time that bubble gets penetrated. Don't respond to or linger around strangers on the street trying to "meet you" or strike up a conversation. Don't bury your nose in your phone while out & about.