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Post by Banjo on Sept 23, 2013 17:35:51 GMT 7
Hypoman regularly sends stuff to the Philippines, give him a PM and ask about sharing the cost of a shipment. May still be cheaper to buy there.
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Post by Denis-NFA on Sept 24, 2013 5:35:49 GMT 7
Banjo said, LOL Banjo... I have been following an expat forum called Living in Cebu Forums, www.livingincebuforums.com/ipb/index , and you see the comments of people coming and going and their reasons for going! That forum is American centric but does have Australian and other mainly Western nation expat members and is a good source of information on living in Cebu and the Philippines in general. There may be other websites but that forum is the only one I follow. Through that website I have learned about some of the expat scammers, mainly in and around Cebu City and Manila, that will hit you up for money with a hard luck story so don't think every expat is your newest best friend. The only people I have ever been asked for a 'tip' were airport security guys, once at Cebu airport and once at Manila airport, on my first ever trip.
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Post by hypoman on Sept 24, 2013 6:12:51 GMT 7
Hi Sandy, I just sent you a PM. I once was running late in manilla at the airport and a guard shot me through a side door and i tipped him 20p. Ive never been asked for a tip though.
Ive seen that living in cebu site and yes there is alot of info there for foreigners. the aussiie guys on there are not sympathetic to people on DSP going for UP or campaigning agaist the govt for changes though. most aussies there are retirees or mine workers etc that occasionally stay there. I find alot of the guys on there are gooses but a few are ok. either way its a great source of info. another good cebu site is istorya.net alot of its in cebuano but many speak engish on there. its more grass roots and more for the locals so you do get great info there and they have a good classifieds section.
as for being married if you get UP you will probably be put on the married rate when you go there. (just out of interest does anyone know what the married rate is?). I havent been put on the married rate yet as Im still going as a 'tourist'. Kick up a fuss if they try telling you you have to be on married rate while abroad. after all your just visiting until you get UP.
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Post by hypoman on Sept 24, 2013 6:31:04 GMT 7
NFA and Banjo: A few can't cope, they go for the more obvious attractions then leave because of the differences in society. Of course it's never their fault. It's always the (racist epithet deleted) to blame. I cant cope in Australia! I've lived (correction: 'stayed' -as im only a tourist) in some absolute dumps in the Philippines. yet they were the best times of my life. This was before I had kids (now in school), before i had to go every 6 weeks and before my depression deepened and my mistrust of all governments escalated. But I still cope better there. I've lived in places in oz in the mountains in tin sheds with no running water or electricity and loved it. would gladly do it again if things got worse. However I love the Philippines and am comfortable there. I never was one for places like Angeles city with all the bars and girls. Those places do nothing for me. so yes, i can see why some guys go straight there but leave 'due to the differences in society'. to me places like Angeles dont have a society. give me the quiet places anyday! for me anyway...
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Post by Banjo on Sept 24, 2013 6:37:59 GMT 7
I'll admit I've run into a few people who, with hindsight, were expecting a "tip".
I was on the back of a girlfriend's motorbike at 2 oclock one morning in Vientiane (yes, alcohol was involved.. lol) and the Lao police pulled us up. They checked my passport and started going through her ID stuff... being a Communist country they have to carry plenty.
After ten minutes they decided she never had something... motorbike rego?... and she had to go and get it while I stayed there to make sure she came back.
When it was all sorted and we were home she asked how much they had tapped me for. It had honestly never occurred to me that that was what all about. So even the police in what was considered a rogue nation were not threatening or demanding, they just stood around hopefully.
Expat forums offer a considerable insight into foreigners attitudes towards the locals. I was a great fan of them once, I have about 10,000 posts on one, and it never ceased to amaze me why people with an appalling attitude towards the country they were in stayed there for as long as they did. My only conclusion was that they had run out of places to go. If you're a prick, you're a prick everywhere, geography doesn't change it.
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Post by chris on Oct 28, 2013 16:32:49 GMT 7
Hi again. Been living in Phils 7 yrs, 5 yrs in Metro Manila, 2 years here in the far north. Pretty much concur with the costs, probably similar here in the north to down south.
Rent...free on my wife's mother's farm. I had to construct a dunny for comfort. Then of course I got a fridge and a motor bike for my convenience.
Daily food..here's the kicker. You are never going to provide food for you and your partner alone. 800-1000 pesos a day because you are talking about 2 meals. Extended family of 6-7 adults plus kids and tell me a place where it doesn't exist.
Electric...$40/month, subject to variation.
Computer $30...cable TV with ABC..$20...hard to live without.
Immigration...nah, I got my residency.
Travel...trips down to Manila now and then, you have to watch that, it can get very expensive.
All up $1000, with no luxuries. But then there's some pocket money left over...
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Post by Banjo on Oct 28, 2013 16:38:41 GMT 7
The family will be sorry to see you leave Phil. You wont have much pocket money left over when you get back to Australia.
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Post by chris on Oct 29, 2013 9:12:05 GMT 7
Banjo. I want to tell you a little more about myself. I have quite a bit of pro and con.
I was born Aussie. Taken to the USA at age 17 and worked just past the minimum, 40 quarters/10 yrs. I get $800/month partial SS and we get a child allowance of $520. So quick factoring will tell you I'm going to lose around $300/month off my OAP. On the other hand the US Pension is payable for life with no residency requirements.
So upon leaving the Phils I have the caveat of leaving them with the child allowance, which as you can see is quite good for provincial living.
This board is amazing really.
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Post by Banjo on Oct 29, 2013 9:18:52 GMT 7
If you decide to sit out the 2 years in Australia I believe you can still leave the country but the pension stops until you return and the time you are away is tacked onto the 2 years. Is the child an Australian citizen? If not you should get that done, could make getting the Mrs into Australia easier.
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Post by chris on Oct 29, 2013 9:36:05 GMT 7
Hmm, do they stop it during an approved absence? You mean like putting 10 days at the back end or resetting the 2 years?
Child is a US Citizen, Aussie Citizenship is the next step.
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Post by Banjo on Oct 29, 2013 10:13:31 GMT 7
No, they don't reset the 2 years as far as I can see, if your residency qualification date was Jan 2016 and you went away for 3 months it would then become April 2016. I think.
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Post by chris on Oct 30, 2013 14:59:17 GMT 7
That's useful. Three 10 day trips in 2 years would set me back a month, but probably worth it.
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Post by Denis-NFA on Dec 4, 2013 10:43:35 GMT 7
We had a blackout last night between 6-7pm but it was the first clear sky night I have ever had where you could see the stars so clearly.
It's a strange feeling not to see a night sky that you cannot recognize at all.
This morning was breakfast out on the low tide line, rice and sea urchins we had collected!
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Post by ding on Dec 13, 2013 7:34:42 GMT 7
I'm sitting here having a giggle at hypoman's comment above: - go to the local markets with your mrs and get to know the prices there. she will know if someting has 'skin tax'.
I soon got used to my girlfriend suggesting I go look at the 'scenery' when we're at the markets, until she finished bargaining. It seems to be some sort of sport, this bargaining thing :-)
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Post by bangalorebiker on Jan 4, 2014 9:22:29 GMT 7
Does any one have any suggestions as to the best way to get stuff from Australia to the Philippines........eg.......a very thick and comfortable foam coil orthopedic queen size mattress and my toshiba flat screen tv.......I have heard of Balik Byent packages..I have a partner in the Philippines.....but not actually married to her yet......and I guess that makes more complications from centrelink....??....any advise on these 2 matter would be appreciated......i can go with out the mattress and tv as they are reasonably priced in the philippines.....but any tips to get stuff there would be helpfull for future use sandycreekg yes google forex sydney you load as much as you can into "Balik bayan Box" 2 sizes the $120 & $150 size boxs stuff/jam as much as you can into box it does not go on weight only size i even send 200 ltr drumbs open lid top chockers full of stuff needed in philippines, it took 4 weeks from brisbane via sydney to northern Mindanao i found there good service even go to there web site and track your boxs,
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