Philippines Expats returning to home country what changed?

[Gary D]

35 minutes ago, not so old china hand said:

Am heading down  to Hong Kong in a couple of weeks and then to the UK for a month or so at the end of May so interesting to see if I notice any major changes in the two years since I was last there.

One change I noticed last time was bus fares from Heathrow to London were lower (Boris J capped them at £2 for any journey in London). However one needs to pay with a stored value Oyster card cash is no longer accepted. One thing that had not changed bus drivers were still helpful. Having told me cash was not option and realising I would miss the bus if I went to buy a card the driver wrote out an excess fare voucher for the exact amount and told me I could pay the fare online when I reached my destination (which I did) it's  nice to be trusted.

Not sure the Oyster card is still available, it's pretty much been replaced by touch debit cards.

[Snowy79]

I moved over here due to seeing the changes happening back in the UK and that's before I even left for here. I left from Scotland which although part of the UK has escaped a lot of the UK's problems, but for anyone from some of the large English cities I'm sure it'll be an eye opener if they've not been home for over 5yrs. 

I'm saying this as someone who spent a good few years in England and returning to some of my old haunts after a good five years was met with a whole new World. 

[robert k]

On 4/15/2017 at 8:33 AM, jpbago said:

After years of reading about the problems that expats here are having with LTO, immigration, buying a car, house construction, neighbours, relatives, dogs, roosters, airports, hospitals, ATMs, traffic, crime, breathing bad air, buying a restaurant, finding a school, finding good food, buying quality goods, opening a bank account, TV, internet, etc, I do not see life here as simpler.

Short story in Ray Bradbury's Martian Chronicles, "The Blue Bottle" the blue bottle could give you whatever you wanted but everyone who got their hands on it disappeared, until a drunk got it and it was full of whiskey. I think there was a moral in there somewhere about people asking too much.

Edited April 17, 2017 by robert k

[bigpearl]

1 hour ago, Snowy79 said:

I moved over here due to seeing the changes happening back in the UK and that's before I even left for here. I left from Scotland which although part of the UK has escaped a lot of the UK's problems, but for anyone from some of the large English cities I'm sure it'll be an eye opener if they've not been home for over 5yrs. 

I'm saying this as someone who spent a good few years in England and returning to some of my old haunts after a good five years was met with a whole new World. 

I'm moving for many reasons Snowy, I see where Australia is going, the retirees battle, cost of living and property prices are out of control, can't really see my 27 and 21 year old children purchasing property now, (when I die probably) I could retire here comfortably but realistically I have to keep working until mid 60's so my super is adequate to keep me in the life I am used to. I know this is off topic but for me I look at the changes here but really focus on the changes and realities in PH. Our family are there, our family are here, for me family in the Philippines has a lot more meaning than in my home country, I rarely see my kids as they live 2,000 odd kilometres away and they are busy with their lives,,,,,,,,, no different to my own life and choices. Retirement is easily achievable now in the Philippines for me, my better half will work, I will be the donkey at home, for all the time I have spent in PH I want more, the people, Filipino time and the mere fact that I can retire there and have a simpler life, family, friends and an affordable lifestyle on the beach that I could not dream to have in Australia unless I could come up with another million bucks.

Changes in Manila where we lived 4 or 5 years ago are amazing, the smog is thicker, the taxi drivers are cheekier and yes the prices are rising, the earthquakes seem to have become a weekly or fortnightly norm and between you and I the Mall of Asia or Robinsons in Ermita are no different to any other shopping centre in the world, wet markets are my choice and something we don't see in Oz unless you are in the hub of things,,,,,,,Sydney, Melbourne etc. Where it is so expensive to live, Philippines? Every province has a wet market and affordable food, and realistic property prices, lower cost of living and a great climate including all 20 odd typhoons annually. Personally I am looking forward to the change in countries and watching/learning the changes in my new country, thank God for expat sites. Sorry for the ramble.

Cheers, Steve.

[Dr. Shiva]

On 15.4.2017 at 3:33 PM, jpbago said:

After years of reading about the problems that expats here are having with LTO, immigration, buying a car, house construction, neighbours, relatives, dogs, roosters, airports, hospitals, ATMs, traffic, crime, breathing bad air, buying a restaurant, finding a school, finding good food, buying quality goods, opening a bank account, TV, internet, etc, I do not see life here as simpler.

A lot of these problems can be prevented by selecting the living place very carefully. Many people choose their living place only by how beautiful it is and forget to check the other points. And nearly no place will get a good check on all points. Therefore you have to check which points are more important. The worst thing that can happens if a place that was good suddenly change into a much  worse one.

[jpbago]

14 hours ago, Dr. Shiva said:

According to the link above UK are third and Switzerland is first place. But both countries requires to have a lot of money for a decent living there. If you are a poor guy or family in Switzerland then you will have a really tough living. Especially if you are required to get social welfare or social aid because you have no or a far too low income.

These countries give one an excellent education that is recognized world wide and that gives one the opportunity to earn a good income. There are some that just can't but they too, are given the opportunity of social welfare but some still choose to live on the street.

[Dr. Shiva]

1 hour ago, jpbago said:

These countries give one an excellent education that is recognized world wide and that gives one the opportunity to earn a good income. There are some that just can't but they too, are given the opportunity of social welfare but some still choose to live on the street.

As long the social welfare covers all basic expenses then it is ok. But in more countries it is not even enough for the most basic needs. Even in Switzerland they started to cut the social welfare because of sky rocketing costs from many incoming asylants and the strong growing number of people needing social welfare.

[virginprune]

Somebody very close would have died, no other reason to visit. I have no interest whatsoever in reviewing somewhere I used to live.

[Old55]

Interesting, do you plan to visit any other country someday or simply remain in Philippines?

[virginprune]

There are a few I'd like to visit but top of my to do is Bhutan and Vietnam.