Robbie in and around Tacloban

Introduction It is a personal choice for a foreigner to live in the Philippines or take your wife back to your home country. If you have child or children and decide to remain in the Philippines there is a gift you can give your child. The citizenship of your country. It does not sound like much but think about it. When they finish school and college or university they have an option. Your child may decide to stay in the Philippines or travel to their country of citizenship to work and start a new life. As it stands now Filipinos can work as OFWs but from what I have seen there are limits and the majority seem to go to the Middle East and other parts of Asia. I have only spoken to a few OFW and the salary they receive is not as high as they would receive in other Western Countries. In my case a bit of a mix up I was born in Canada. My father was Canadian and my mother Australian. Many years ago they decided to migrate to Australia and I finished high school, obtained a

Background I built a house in this barangay in the Dulag Area 4 years ago. A family were living on the land next store which was potentially up for sale. So the family were there and not too sure of their future. After typhoon Yolanda they received a grant for simple housing and my wife and I decided it would be ok for them to build this house at the back of our land. This family has five children now. The father works for Poppa on the rice land helping with planting, harvest and crop maintenance. So all works out quite well. So I have seen the children grow up in this 4 year period. The eldest son is Yan Yan a 12 year old boy. He offers to help around the house and go to the sari sari store if we need anything. So a good help. He as most children likes TV and when it is ok no problem with him watching TV. Yan Yan has never been to a shopping Mall at 12 Years of age Talking to my wife one evening it was mentioned Yan Yan had only been to Tacloban City and never been

UPDATE - FOREIGNER IN THE PHILIPPINES – CREATING A FUTURE FOR WIFE AND DAUGHTER We have started to develop the approximate 2 hectares of land I purchased for my wife and young daughter. The land was cleared by hand and ploughed twice. There is a guy in this village who contracts out ploughing at 500 peso/hour. So we have planted 1500 plants of string beans. As the plants start to grow they need stakes and need to be tied up. This is manual labor where bamboo is cut and stakes implanted. The rest of the vegetable land has another green vegetable planted Okra and some pumpkin. There is also approximately 4000 square meters planted with rice. 1200 STRING BEAN PLANTS IN SOME PUMKIN- GROWING QUICK Foreigner flying blind I am not sure what profit we will make from this venture as it is all a learning curve. Allot depends on the weather and as it is known we are in a typhoon area although the season is not quite here yet. When the crop is ready to harvest then I

EDUCATION IS SO IMPORTANT IN THE PHILIPPINES Parents in the Philippines try so hard to give their children the best education they can. There is one thing in the Philippines, the parents will try so hard to give their children a better life through education. In this Dulag Barangay (village) I see the children go to school every day. The children are well dressed and clean. Even being poor they go to tremendous lengths to do the best they can for their children. It is very expiring Before marriage it was always agreed with my wife I would give opportunity to her family the best I can and within my means. Some disappointment from a foreign spouse My wife has 3 brothers. One is a truck driver in Manila and happy doing that work. The second brother wanted to be a policeman but could not pass the entrance exam. We then paid for a security guard course and he is now also working in Manila. The youngest brother wanted to study welding and fabrication but dropped out in his thi

BONIFACIO GLOBAL CITY MANILA PHILIPPINES Bonifacio Global City is one of nicest areas to stay and visit in the Manila area. There is great shopping restaurants and other attractions. This is where you will find Philippine people living from the middle class to the rich. The area is very safe from personal experience. I speak to many foreigners, some living in the Philippines and others visiting as tourists. Many have never heard of this city which surprises me! You may here other names like BGC or the Fort. The area, years ago was part of the main Philippine Army Base Accommodation There are a number of hotels within BGC. I have only ever stayed at the  SEDA HOTEL which is very good with great service. Another option is to rent a condominium if you plan to stay in the area for a number of days. Another alternative is to stay just out of Global City. I needed to stay in the area for a month with my family so we rented a 2 bedroom condominium at Cypress Towers,

When visiting the Philippines the last thing to cross our minds is Luxury cars. Living here for 10 years I was quite amazed myself. I first started to notice the presents of luxury cars when visiting Bonifacio Global City in the Manila area. I was walking around the area near St Luke’s hospital and could not believe my eyes. There were 3 dealerships side by side . JAGUAR    FERRARI and MASERATI . I was curious and had to have a look.   JAGUAR,FERRARI,MASERATI DEALERSHIPS SIDE BY SIDE I entered the Ferrari dealership and made some enquiries even though there was no chance I could ever make a purchase. But the salesman was very helpful. I was told the Ferrari in the picture below would cost 20M peso or $400K US. The other model in the show room was more expensive at 25M peso. THIS MODEL FERRARI COST 20M PESO I wondered if there were more dealerships in Bonifacio Global City and yes there are. ROLLS ROYCE , LAMBORGHINI , BMW , and I presume there are more. Wi

INTRODUCTION  I returned from the Middle East to the Philippines after sugary for a serious illness. I received additional treatment at St Lukes Hospital Global City and prospects are good for a full recovery. So you have to deal with the situation at hand. You cannot change the wind but you can adjust the sails. This allows for a topic for what is the hospital treatment is like in the Philippines from someone who has experienced provincial hospitals to one of the best hospitals in Manila. (See full story below) I was working in Egypt on a roster of 6 weeks on 3 weeks off. I was getting stomach pains and just putting it down to bad food or maybe an ulcer. I got very sick and was transported by ambulance and underwent emergency surgery at Port Galib hospital on the Red Sea. This hospital was built to offer tourist to the area emergency medical care. I spent 3 weeks in hospital before being allowed to return to the Philippines under the escort of a doctor. I visited St Luke’s Ho

TACLOBAN A CITY WORTH A VISIT What a great improvement three years post Typhoon Yolanda. There appears to be a good amount of investment in the Tacloban area. New hotels, restaurants and various new businesses. I have noticed an increase in foreign visitors. Some I presume are tourists and others involved in charity and ongoing aid work. In addition there are many Filipinos visiting as tourists and to visit family. The airport has greatly improved and my hope one day it becomes international VIEW FROM LEYTE PARK RESORT Increase in the number of hotels What really stands out is the increase in new hotels which points to needed demand. I drive into the city regular and see the Oriental hotel in Palo is open again with repairs still ongoing. The new hotels are smaller but many of them appear very well presented from the exterior. New hotels being built means more visitors to the city. This is good for Tacloban. More visitors, more spending points to a growing economy. Most i

Our daughter was walking before she was one year old. She is also got a good grasp for words but the languages are mixed as my wife and myself speak English and others Waray which is the dialect in this part of the country. Filipinos love to celebrate birthdays. It is the most celebrated event apart from Christmas and New Year. A child’s 1 st birthday is a big event in the Philippines In the Philippines a child’s first birthday is a big event and most families try to put on a party within their means. I am not working and living on savings but decided my daughter would have a great party. We contracted a business in the Dulag area that specializes in birthday parties Superstitions in the Philippines I am curious of the superstitions of Filipinos. Our daughter’s hair cannot be cut in the first year of life. In addition a long noodle dish must be part of the foods prepared for her first birthday. I think this relates to a long life. Whether you believe, agree or disagree t

This is a question I am asked all the time. Were you here in Tacloban when Typhoon Yolanda unleashed its furry?   The answer is no. Not being here with my wife on that day is one of the most worrying times in my life. We had just been married on 28 September 2013. I was working back Egypt as an expatriate at Sukari Gold Mine. I have written a story on my feelings and relief when I travelled back to the Philippines to look for my wife: Typhoon Yolanda 08 November 2013 The disaster was approaching the Philippines. In Egypt, we had cable television in our accommodation rooms. Typhoon Yolanda international name Haiyan was heading towards the Philippines. The concern was Tacloban City and surrounding areas were on the predicted path. I had phone contact with my wife and we talked about the needed precautions. The Philippines experiences typhoons regular and is accepted as part of life. There was a difference as this typhoon was increasing in intensities and was going to be one of

MY LIFE IN THE TACLOBAN AREA   I have been coming to the Philippines since 2006 and have seen quite a bit of the country. I am now living in the Dulag area in the province of Leyte. Dulag is approximately 35 km from Tacloban City. Tacloban is approximately a one hour flight from Manila with regular flights daily with PAL, Cebu Pacific and Air Asia. First I would like to describe my life here in the Tacloban area. I am married with a family and I am happy living here. This is now my home. I live in a barangay (village) of approximately 1000 people. It is very safe and I get along well with the local people. This is a rice farming area and the way most people make their living. Work is available during planting and harvest but many people work on crop maintenance. Some people travel to Tacloban City and other areas for work. My father-in-law was a farm labourer before meeting my wife. I like most foreigners worry about level of support for the spouse’s family. I have ta