Robbie in and around Tacloban

INTRODUCTION Having lived around the Dulag area for many years this is a story I want to tell. It is about a simply style but very nice beach side resort called Harapitan. The resort in in the Dulag barangay called Luan and run by a very nice family. I have found over the years there are many beautiful and nice places to relax that are not commercialized or advertised. This is one of them! LUAN LOCATION MAP HARAPITAN I actually found this place by accident. I had a broken bone in my foot and was actually staying in Tacloban in 2010.I wanted to find a place where I could swim in the Ocean. I had just met my future wife and her family suggested we go to Luan near Dulag. I was on crutches and had a brace on my leg. There were two small resorts side by side. The first one I just wanted to have a look. So I made it to the beach from the entrance and needed a rest so sat down for a minute at one of the cottages on the beach itself. A guy came up to me working there and said...

INTRODUCTION I have foreign friends in different parts of the Philippines who prefer to live in condominiums or gated communities. This is a personal choice. From what I have been told from these friends rent can be anywhere from 50,000 to 70,000 peso a month. When you look at the rent that is 600,000 to 840,000 peso per year. In dollars that is $12,000 to $17,000 US/year  I should point out these condominiums are a bit up market and you could rent cheaper places. I am living approximately 35 km from down town Tacloban in the Dulag area. I found a barangay with the help of my wife that is safe and just inland from the sea. To go for a swim or just relax the Pacific Ocean is only a few kilometers away. WE DECIDED TO BUILD A HOUSE IN THIS BARANAGAY (VILLAGE) This barangay has about 1000 residents and is noted to be very safe. My wife and I looked around for land. Land in the Philippines can be expensive but not so in this area. We found a 1000 m lot of land (1/4 acre...

INTRODUCTION Foreigners may wonder what is like to live in a barangay (village) setting in a province of the Philippines. I can only comment on my experience here in the Dulag area not too far from Tacloban City. It is a life style that will be suited to some but not others. My purpose here is to express my feelings and the plus and minus aspects of this type of life! I have now been living here permanently for three consecutive years. DAILY LIFE The daily life of the local people appears normal and routine in this village. It is very quiet through the night but around 5.30am you will start to hear motor bikes as we are living on the main road. Some people will travel to Dulag, Tolosa, or right into Tacloban City for work. Many in this village are involved with rice farming. You have land owners and you have laborers. Labourers will help with crop preparation and harvest but you also have maintenance workers who spray the rice crops plus other duties. Rice farming appears ...

INTRODUCTION I have been living the he Tacloban area continuous for approximately three years. I am married and have a young daughter.  I have not worked during his time because of a serious illness. With the help of my sister I made the journey back to Australia for three weeks. I wanted to see my sister, son and two grandchildren Three years does not seem such a long time but changes in Australia were significant. PHILIPPINE IMMIGRATION   Having been in excess of six months in the Philippines you need a clearance to leave the country. This was done at the immigration office in Tacloban City . It is recommended you apply for this clearance a week in advance before travel. I had the clearance processed within an hour on the same day. I must admit the immigration office in Tacloban offer a very good service. TRAVEL WITH PAL AIRLINES FROM TACLOBAN I hear many complaints about PAL Airlines and have had a few myself. The main complaints have been ground staff althou...

TYPHOON YOLANDA INTERNATIONAL NAME HAIYAN AN EVENT IN HISTORY  ONE SHOULD NEVER FORGET 08 NOVEMBER 2013 A foreigner’s personal story – that will stay in my mind for ever! I had just been married for 6 weeks. The wedding was held at Tadyaw Resort in Tolosa which was a beautiful setting for such a happy and great day. I had return to Egypt from Tacloban to the mine site about two weeks before typhoon struck. i was working at a mine site as an Australian Expatriate. At the mine site we had cable TV and I was fully aware the typhoon was massive and it turned out to be the biggest storm to make landfall in known recorded history.   I lost contact with my wife on the day Typhoon Yolanda struck. I was 5000 miles away and felt so helpless.   This was one of the most stressful and worrying times in my life. Link to personal story Life after Typhoon Yolanda International name Haiyan I t has been 4 years since Typhoon Yolanda hit Tacloban 08 November 2013 in w...

INTRODUCTION When you drive along the Maharlika Highway from Tacloban to Dulag you will pass through towns and small barangays. Inland from the sea there are many of these small barangays (villages) that most foreigners will never see. If you have met or engaged to a Filipina there may come a time where you will travel to the family home. The family maybe be farmers or have some type of business but the family may also be poor. I have foreign friends married to Filipinas who choose not to visit the family home. That is a personal chose and should be respected whatever the reason.   I have been living in this barangay (village) for many years. I am married and have a young daughter. My wife’s family have friends some of which are poor but I prefer to use the term disadvantaged.      I visited one family, actually there are 3 families all directly related living on this section of land (12 people in total). I did not take pictures of them as all people are enti...

INTRODUCTION Yes I live in Tacloban and as mentioned in a previous blog I travelled to Manila to apply for my daughters Canadian Citizenship recently.. We decided lets also make it a bit of a getaway holiday as well. I would also like to supply a bit of additional information on what we experienced on our stay in Global City. Getting a Taxi at Terminal 3 arrivals Manila I have travelled to Manila many times and foreigners are a target for taxi drivers. Yes taxi drivers have to make a living but in addition they need to promote the country. When you come out of terminal 3 you will see many people trying to get you to take their taxi. When you come out look to right and you see two large taxi stands. The first one is a set price taxi fee that is advertised on a board. I use this service all the time when getting to my destination. It is better especially if there is traffic to get a set price During this trip I was walking to the fixed price taxi stand when I was appro...