Trip Completed...Im Sorry to Say

[JohnnyB]

Ok Left February 4th flew from Albuquerque to Colorado 2hr delay do to de-ice of wings..Arrived in Tokyo late..Missed flight to Manila. Left Next day and missed both flights from Manila to dumaguete. Stayed over night and left next day.
Arrived in dumaguete met my next wife took a tricycle to Escosas resort that I booked for 2 days but now only had 11hrs until our trip to davo.
So we went into dumaguete and found a Jewelry store and I bought her a engagement ring and wedding ring for both of us, Stopped and bought grocery's and Then traveled to her to her parent's and had dinner and I sat with Father and answered every question and gave him my thoughts and asked permission to take his daughter away for 5 days.
I was given permission and told his daughter is of age to make her own decisions and they have learned much about me over the last year and 4mos to believe Im a god and honest man.... So we traveled to cebu to fly to davo.....We arrived in davo and took the ferry across to Island Garden Resort in pangubatan on samal island our taxi drive kinda didnt know the way "yea right" and it took 3hrs to arrive to the resort.....later we rented a motor bike and it was only a 1hr and 15mins to get there. The staff was Wonderful I would have called ahead but they changed management and number's were Not given....I paid for 8 days but only stayed for 5 due to airlines and the next resort access. 5 beautiful days 1 day of crying knowing that I only had 6 days left. Traveled back to dumaguete and went to dumaguete springs resort in bacong......Beautiful spent time visiting family and long drives on motor bike...
Im in Love
Thinking of Retirement in Philippines. .......
Ive been back 4 days and want to go back.....

[Ray]

 
OK, so far so good.
 
It's a little hard to see in your avatar photo, but did you shave the whiskers??
 
 
Ray
 

[JohnnyB]

No I did not.....tied it up mainly during motor bike rental.
She likes how soft it is. 

[robert angel]

Ok Left February 4th flew from Albuquerque to Colorado 2hr delay do to de-ice of wings..Arrived in Tokyo late..Missed flight to Manila. Left Next day and missed both flights from Manila to dumaguete. Stayed over night and left next day.
Arrived in dumaguete met my next wife took a tricycle to Escosas resort that I booked for 2 days but now only had 11hrs until our trip to davo.
So we went into dumaguete and found a Jewelry store and I bought her a engagement ring and wedding ring for both of us, Stopped and bought grocery's and Then traveled to her to her parent's and had dinner and I sat with Father and answered every question and gave him my thoughts and asked permission to take his daughter away for 5 days.
I was given permission and told his daughter is of age to make her own decisions and they have learned much about me over the last year and 4mos to believe Im a god and honest man.... So we traveled to cebu to fly to davo.....We arrived in davo and took the ferry across to Island Garden Resort in pangubatan on samal island our taxi drive kinda didnt know the way "yea right" and it took 3hrs to arrive to the resort.....later we rented a motor bike and it was only a 1hr and 15mins to get there. The staff was Wonderful I would have called ahead but they changed management and number's were Not given....I paid for 8 days but only stayed for 5 due to airlines and the next resort access. 5 beautiful days 1 day of crying knowing that I only had 6 days left. Traveled back to dumaguete and went to dumaguete springs resort in bacong......Beautiful spent time visiting family and long drives on motor bike...
Im in Love
Thinking of Retirement in Philippines. .......
Ive been back 4 days and want to go back.....

Nice tale, unfortunate weather delays and all. Sounds like a sort of old fashioned values family, with practical sense. Pretty young lady you have there. I bet she was an emotional basket case with the delays, worrying about whether you had cold feet at the last minute and that sort of thing--that's very common.

Does the Island Garden Resort in Pangubatan still have the real inexpensive tree house room option? As of last year, I heard the place was peaceful as usual, the rates overall were really reasonable, the food good and the beach still a little rocky in places, but with some nice, soft sand in others.

Did you go into Davao City? If so, any impressions? What about Dumaguete?

Did you feel personally safe there? I bet you did--maybe even safer than in many places in the USA. Which area/s do you think you might be interested in retiring in? I bet she LOVED hearing you say that! Not sure if you're getting over the jet-love lag, still, but fill us in some more please when you get some time. The Asian board has been pretty dead lately!

[JohnnyB]

Ok Left February 4th flew from Albuquerque to Colorado 2hr delay do to de-ice of wings..Arrived in Tokyo late..Missed flight to Manila. Left Next day and missed both flights from Manila to dumaguete. Stayed over night and left next day.
Arrived in dumaguete met my next wife took a tricycle to Escosas resort that I booked for 2 days but now only had 11hrs until our trip to davo.
So we went into dumaguete and found a Jewelry store and I bought her a engagement ring and wedding ring for both of us, Stopped and bought grocery's and Then traveled to her to her parent's and had dinner and I sat with Father and answered every question and gave him my thoughts and asked permission to take his daughter away for 5 days.
I was given permission and told his daughter is of age to make her own decisions and they have learned much about me over the last year and 4mos to believe Im a god and honest man.... So we traveled to cebu to fly to davo.....We arrived in davo and took the ferry across to Island Garden Resort in pangubatan on samal island our taxi drive kinda didnt know the way "yea right" and it took 3hrs to arrive to the resort.....later we rented a motor bike and it was only a 1hr and 15mins to get there. The staff was Wonderful I would have called ahead but they changed management and number's were Not given....I paid for 8 days but only stayed for 5 due to airlines and the next resort access. 5 beautiful days 1 day of crying knowing that I only had 6 days left. Traveled back to dumaguete and went to dumaguete springs resort in bacong......Beautiful spent time visiting family and long drives on motor bike...
Im in Love
Thinking of Retirement in Philippines. .......
Ive been back 4 days and want to go back.....

Yes she was nervous and comments from work mates asked if I was visiting other's "actual posts on Facebook"

Island Garden still has the Tree House....I rented it and a Cottage both for 8 days but only had 5 spent.

Did not check out Davo city.

Spent 7 days in dumaguete area and tryed a few restaurants and Robinson Mall.

Drove down to slaton and stopped at a few resorts and looked at vacation rentals that were not available for my short visit.

Could not believe how mellow the traffic was down south compared to dumaguete.

SAFE ? SAFE? Yes fully SAFE I think many were more scared of me.

I think I will need another trip to make better decisions of location living......Since families stay close, it will be south of dumaguete or north. My Lady prefers the mountains and the ocean is not important.

Im already starting business ideas....motor bike mechanic, Restaurant, Resort, Cattle/Beef Production or even creating proper drainage under fields to grow Alfalfa hay or other better production to help the feed market.

No jet-lag......Im doing great

[robert angel]

It's very difficult to start up a small business in any third world country. Typically the laws are made to make it that way. Even really big companies that would hire 100's of locals typically find it a royal pain and that if they can own the business, they can't own the land it sits on. 

Besides the rigid way the laws are constructed that make creating and operating a small business by a foreigner extremely difficult in the Philippines, the low income of people in the nation overall also works against it. Profits are very thin. Filipinos, as I am sure you noticed, are extremely resourceful people and given a natural advantage already, will often take and copy any business model a foreigner puts forth rather quickly. And with endemic corruption and favoritism, getting permits and licenses would be a lot easier and cheaper for them--if they are asked to comply at all. They don't even pay to insure their cars--the very few that can afford cars, of course. Foreigners often still pay the 'foreigner rate' for a whole lot of things, even when married to a citizen.

Where you might have made a dollar profit, they'll see what you're doing, set up and settle for a quarter profit--just enough to keep the kids in school uniforms, provide rice, vegies and Red Horse beer. We tend to think that if we simply 'live like they do' that we'd be fine, but it's much harder than we typically think and if we actually do it, it gets old before long for all but the most extreme people.

Few people there even have air conditioning (or many things that use electricity) because per kilowatt, the electrical utilities charge much, much more than anyplace in the USA. You probably noticed how when people leave a room, they typically shut off the fan (if they even have one) along with the lights and everything else.


In the USA, we tend to pay around 8 cents a KwH, or in some extreme places here, 17 cents, tops. In the Philippines, that same KwH will cost you over 36 cents USA, and as the govt. there allows private companies to own the utilities, the price goes up all the time. Inflation there has been worse than here historically. To keep a small place reasonably cool can easily run $600++ a month.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electricity_pricing#Global_electricity_price_comparison

Add in some appliances and, well--you get the picture.

You'd better like rice, vegies, chicken and the cheapest types of fish a lot, because if you plan on eating a more western diet, it will cost you more than it does here.

Even though we have a house over there already, with air con (in the master bedroom mainly) even my own wife (who loves it there) increasingly tries to tell me that living there more or less permanently would drive me nuts. She says we'd best not think of selling our house in the USA. I am sort of resigned that my extended family over there will get much more use and enjoyment out of our home than we ever will, but once you get into the "Filipino mindset', that doesn't bother you anymore. It is what it is and after all, their homes were (are)always open to me.

I'm sure you'd research the scenario ahead of time, but you'll surely see that it is very hard for a foreigner to create a small business and make a living there. And after you've been there a few times, the allure tends to wear a bit thin once you see how hardscrabble living on a modest income really is over there.

I'd venture to say it's the same in most third world countries. In places where electricity costs aren't as high, the cost of say a car, or a hamburger, or a liter of gasoline are so much higher, that before you know it, you're paying almost the same to live as you would in the USA, but w/o some of the things back home you might be missing....

[Ray]

Im already starting business ideas....motor bike mechanic, Restaurant, Resort, Cattle/Beef Production or even creating proper drainage under fields to grow Alfalfa hay or other better production to help the feed market.

If you are seriously thinking of living there and starting a business, BE VERY CAREFUL!
 
Generally speaking, the cards are so stacked against you that you are destined to fail.
 
Restaurant?...forget it!
 
Resort?...If you have US$1,000,000+, maybe, but no real profit potential there at all.
 
Cattle/beef production?...forget it. You can not personally own land there, with extremely few exceptions. Beef has a small market there.
 
Mechanic? Are you willing to work for pennies?
 
I would spend a LOT of time doing your homework. And remember, you can't work there on a tourist visa.
 
You may be able to lease land with a 25-year lease and possible option to renew for another 25 years. Before you consider any land purchases or leases, definitely consult with a competent Filipino attorney.
 
Also, see if you can find old posts by Shadow, an American guy who moved to Dumaguete and tried several businesses (computer sales, Mexican restaurant, bed & breakfast inn, chicken ranch) ...all failures. Very enlightening stuff.
 
 
Ray
 

[JohnnyB]

Yesss Robert
Yesss Ray

More details are always accepted, Im very glad to have others see from past knowledge.

Yes land and business ownership, It will be the wife and the family.....
I understand Foreign Ownership is not quickly accepted
Im lucky to say there are some political relationships in the family.

But with that said.....Names on ownership and who run the business can be changed.

My retirement will do us very good but creating somthing for future and family can greatly assist.

But you did bring up somthing I have not thought of......Tourist Visa???

If I plan to retire there what are my possible statuses I can hold?
I thunk I remembered about never being able to have citizen status.

[JohnnyB]

Where you might have made a dollar profit, they'll see what you're doing, set up and settle for a quarter profit--just enough to keep the kids in school uniforms, provide rice, vegies and Red Horse beer. We tend to think that if we simply 'live like they do' that we'd be fine, but it's much harder than we typically think and if we actually do it, it gets old before long for all but the most extreme people.

I understand it's totally a different place, I did the same thing when I opened my plumbing business, I came in much lower and settled for less profits and offered No Extra Charges for Weekend's & Holiday's and No Extra for after hours.  I built up a reputation and customer base that was more Family instead of Customers.

I would try to do my Best just to make enough to keep the doors open and work on Trust and Reputation in dumaguete.

Family and Local workers....but even thar creates possible problems.
All I will do is try and learn as I go.

[JohnnyB]

http://s1028.photobucket.com/user/johnnybee682012/library/1st%20Trip%20To%20Philippines?sort=3&page=1

Took me a few hours to get these photo's up.

Practice makes Perfect or Just do it Over and Over Until She Says You Did Good.

[michaelb]

Nice photos, pretty lady.

[JohnnyB]

Nice photos, pretty lady.

Thank You and I Thank Her Father and Mother.

I spoke to many Beautiful women but for me, Once I found the Personality that matched I knew it was all over for me.

[JohnnyB]

Well I have started making plan's for my next trip in October this year.
Will be going with a friend for his 1st trip there.

[new_here]

The photos don't work now, have they been taken down?

[robert angel]

I think Johnny closed the account or limited access.