PhilFAQS

Economy-Birding in the Philippines

A couple days ago I wrote about “snowbirding” in the Philippines and mentioned also that now days there seem to be quite a few of us living here who are as much “economy-birding” as anything else.  Even though I was in good shape financially when we left the US (I have a very decent pension, [...]

Snowbirding in the Philippines

I’ve written before about “Making a Soft Landing in the Philippines“.  It’s the start of a new year and a new decade and sadly, many of you reading this and thinking about the Philippines are still in tough times.
I read about the weather in the US … and my dear wife, the Unofficial Cook, views [...]

It’s All a Big Nothing

Or so once said Olivia Soprano, played by the extremely talented and deeply missed Nancy Marchand.
As I write this, most of you in the USA are in various degrees of preparation for the “big ball drop” on Times Square in a couple hours.  Here in the Philippines, it’s just past 9 am on New Year’s [...]

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 [...]

Philippine Gas Prices Jan 2010

Just a little update here about cost of living/prices.  I started to include this info in my last Philippine Cost of Living post but I had an idea that I had somehow gotten the figures wrong, so I went out and checked today.
actually I did a lot of checking of gas prices, staring at gas [...]

Real Cost of Living, Philippines

Happy New Year 2010 to all my readers new and old.  This post is updated today, 27 December, 2009.  I really don’t see the need to change any figures right now on the attached spreadsheet breakdown, as virtually everything there appears to still be correct within pennies.  I’ll update again at intervals as I feel [...]

Working In The Philippines

A lot of folks I’ve met on-line over the past 7 or 8 years want to live in the Philippines.  Many are also below normal retirement age and don’t have a pension or other regular non-work income source to support their move.  So those with technical talent often ask about getting a tech job in [...]

Live in the Philippines — Use a Fixer?

Here are a few thoughts on a question that comes up frequently here on PhilFAQS where we try to answer the most common questions about living in the Philippines.  With this one you are not going to get a clear, quick answer from me, but I’ll give you some current guidance and some real world [...]

Marriage, Nationality and Divorce

By Atty. Rita Linda V. Jimeno
The story of Rosanne in my column last week triggered numerous reactions from readers that merit discussion. As a jump-off point, we shall encapsulate Rosanne’s case.  Her Filipino husband who used to be loving and conscious of his familial obligations, abandoned all his duties toward her and their children when, [...]

Christmas Is Upon Us

Don’t worry, I am still going to continue my “What I learned this Christmas” series, but this is now, officially Christmas week, and things are hectic here.  Opportunity and interesting demands for time come fast and furious.
Some of you may not be interested in this, but I also look upon it as an offer that [...]

Things I Learned So Far This Christmas — Part 2

Yesterday, give or take a few hours, I promised you some thoughts on the questions:

Do you want to retire in the Philippines?
Do you want to move to the Philippines and earn a living here?
Are you undecided about either of those first two questions?
Are you searching for a job in the Philippines?
What is the single, most [...]

Things I Learned So Far This Christmas

I looked this quote up a few minutes ago.  It was posted back in March 2009, and got virtually no notice.  So one of those “sides of the brain” of mine (I don’t know the right from the left, or so I have been told) says to me, “why write about this again, Dave, they [...]

Get A Job

A significant group of readers who I have been in contact with are still of working age (who said retirement had to be age based, anyway?) and are conflicted with the seemingly conflicting goals of earning a living and a deep desire to live in the Philippines.
A large percentage of the folks who find their [...]

Blessed Are the Meek — Or Are They?

First of all, let me throw in a little disclaimer here.  This post isn’t really all that much about religion, but I do throw in some Bible teaching and no matter what your personal feelings about religion, you can’t learn much about the Philippines without recognizing the fact that it is one of the most [...]