PhilFAQS

Do I need a Visa?

Since I was just involved in a small way with someone running afoul of Philippine Immigration regulations I though I ought to post some more clarification on this … there never seems to be any lack of self-styled information on this subject, but there is always a lot of information that is partially or totally [...]

Back From the Deep Freeze

Well on Wednesday am my dear wife and I arrived back in the Philippines after three weeks in Florida.  Broke, happy and COLD.  I’ve been to Florida in the winter before, I don’t know what could have possessed me to go there again in February … momentary insanity perhaps.
It was my first trip back to [...]

You’re Reading This and Yet You Think You Aren’t Lucky?

So many people visit or write looking for that elusive “job for a foreigner” in the Philippines, or some other elusive ‘key’ that will unlock the door that is holding them back from moving to the Philippines, or getting out of debt and being able to ‘live large’ in the Philippines, or finding that all [...]

What About Phones and Mail

A lot of questions I get about moving to the Philippines come from folks in the USA who want to know how they can deal with getting mail and phone service there.  In particular they are worried about how they can stay in relatively instant touch electronically, and very cheaply in a matter of a [...]

Smells Like America

Some readers may have noticed there is a rather lively (lively for this blog, anyway) discussion going on in the comments for this article:
http://philfaqs.com/get-there/travel-reports/philippine-resources-manila-forwarders/#comment-27306
It really just occurred to me that there are readers here who may not even be aware of what a “balikbayan” box is, and others who may not realize just what a [...]

Why I Left The Philippines

Note:  this post has been corrected, significantly expanded and re-published.  Part of our on-going effort to make PhilFAQS.com your best source for answers to the frequently Asked Questions about Traveling to the Philippines, Retiring in the Philippines, or just plain living here in my second home, the Philippines.

Yes, that’s right, after living in continuously in [...]

Reacquire Philippines Citizenship in the US or in the Philippines?

(Was formerly Philippines Questions — Round 11)
This is an update or amplification of a post first made back in 2008.  I’m going through the blog and updating, correcting, and amplifying some of the posts to make them more useful to my readers.  I’m also redoing some non-descriptive titles so that Google Search will find you [...]

When is a Philippine Visa not a Philippine Visa?

In years or reading and participating in a lot of Philippine interest groups I think I’ve seen more misinformation about entry visas than I have seen regarding anything. This really doesn’t seem so complicated, but it certainly does seem to stump a lot of people.  I certainly won’t be able to dispel all the myths [...]

How To Fly To The Philippines VFR

I wonder how many of my faithful readers know what the acronym VFR stands for?
If you know anything about the world of aviation you probably answered Visual Flight Rules, and you would be correct … but I was looking for another definition.
Read this post defining VFR as:
There are many reasons why people travel, one of [...]

Number Two Philippine Marketing Slogan

A few days ago I published a post about Cebu Pacific airlines and how cheap they can make air travel here in the Philippines.  I love their slogan “Every Juan Should Fly” and variations of the same.

Cebu pacific’s number one competition in the domestic airlines market is Philippine Airlines (PAL).  Not to be undone, PAL [...]

Fly to the Philippines for $768

I’ve been a bit busy running around the past couple days working out some health issues .. not mine, thank God, but my dear mother-in-law.  Had some excellent news today about mother, so perhaps I can get things on a more stable footing here at the old article production center.
One thing that makes Momma [...]

Number One Philippine Marketing Slogan

One of the things we are really blessed with here in the Philippines is cheap domestic travel.  One airline I have used extensively since 1999 is Cebu Pacific.  I love their slogan … “It’s Time For Every Juan To Fly”
I’ve written them up in a number of previous articles, so no need to get into [...]

How Things Grow

More pics courtesy of Thomas Glenn

Tropical Depression Scenery

Hi,
A little over a week ago the effects of a strong tropical depression heading for the coast of China manifested in my area as unusually large waves. Well, just up the beach from me about a quarter of a mile is the designated surfing area in La Union. For some reason there are not many [...]