Philippines - Manila 10 days

[Graham]

Hi all,

We have the opportunity to fly to Manila and return for just £70 each, so £140 for the both of us. ( From China, not UK. )
That's just the cost of the flight and air tax, nothing else.
January 16 to January 27.

So we would need a cheap hotel room, or even stay in 2 different places.

I have heard of Cebu, and Borocay, but that's the extent of all my Philippines information.

As we are "Beachy" sort of persons, where do any one suggest?
Activity and quiet beaches, scuba diving etc.

We have never been to Philippines before, but have traveled widely in SE Asia, Vietnam, China etc.
How far out of Manila would we need to travel to get away from the hum ding hustle and bustle.

Who has been, and where and what did you do?

Gra.

 

[frank rabbets]

Hi Gra
Might sound silly but have a look on Google Earth. My friends' son has just married a lovely girl over their. They met on the interernet and had a 2 year relationship before they thought they would meet in person and get married! He has had to come home without her but she is qualified and trying to ge to UK. From what I gather it is a very poor place especially in the country. He showed me a pic of her house. A large mud/timber hut at the side of the road with about 10 people in it.

Frank

 

[Graham]

Hi Frank,
Certainly are some of the worlds most beautiful women around this part of the wold.
However, I most certainly am not looking for any females !

Last month Fay, Chinese girl, and I just got married after an almost 3 year courtship.

At the moment we are looking at Sabang, White beach, and Talipanan beach., which are not too far from Manila itself.

Gra.
I will send a PM soon.

 

[grantw]

Boracay is really lovely! I spent a week there just over a year ago. I'm very well travelled and it's still one of the places I categorise as the ideal tropical paradise. I still have fond memories of drinking the local rum (Tanduay) on the beach under the palm trees watching an amazing sunset. Oh and the rum when iw as there as £7 a bottle (700ml 40%) on the beach front with your mixers!

I want to go back!

Manila is one of the biggest shit holes i've ever been to.

 

[grantw]

Some of my pictures if it helps ...





More at

http://grantw.smugmug.com/Other/Philippines/11880893_M6pgpn#!i=840611170&k=AkKbq

 

[Graham]

Hi Grant,
I hear that Manila is best viewed from a distance.
I see also Boracay is very nice, but I looked on Trip Adviser, and some one said the beach was dirty ?
But most seemed to say it was beautiful, just as you have described.
What sort of activities are in the area?
ski boats, scuba, snorkeling etc ?

At the moment we are planning a month in Beihai, Silver beach (Look internet) from 16 December, to 15 January, then to Philippines, 16 January to 31 January (revised) then back to Beihai for another month until early March.
That should keep us away from the cold of Weifang.

Gra.

 

[grantw]

I was there mainly for the kite surfing so not too sure what other activities are there. I know there is sailing and paddle board hire but beyond that I'm really not sure after kite boarding it was rum on the beach until bed time for me.

The beach was clean when I was there and white beach really did live up to it's name, perhaps the tripadvisor reports where after a storm? I do remember wind conditions change at different times of year so the kite surfers do swap sides of the island, I guess that could influence beach conditions as well?

 

[Ken Brenton]

Graham
Having worked in the APAC region for many years and at least a dozen visits to Manila I can quite easily say it is not for the faint hearted. Filth, squalor, some of the worst traffic in the region, lots of street crime (especially on tourists) and this is when I stayed in the "up market" area of Makati, which is the commercial and banking sector where most expats are located. But it is a fun place, the Filipinos have a great sense of humour and very friendly people and the best value for money in the region for eats (local food is great) and drink. Unfortunately my work never permitted travel to the exotic beaches such as Cebu, and Boracay which I believe are fantastic. If I was you I would transit through the airport only at Manila and not venture into the city itself (which is huge and chaotic). You will get a glimpse of the friendly chaos of the Philippines at Manila airport as an intro

Ken

 

[frank rabbets]

Re my friends' son again. Picture this; he suffers from OCD and Panic Disorder. He's never had a job and can barely leave his flat. He is massively overweight due to all this and cannot walk very far. He is about 25 years old. He phones his parents saying he wants money to fly to Manilla so he can mary his girlfriend who he has only communicated with by way of the internet. So they ask my advice and I say anything is possible if the motivation comes from him. So they drop him at the airport dreading the whole thing and he won't be able to change planes etc. So he gets to his girlfriends family home which is a mud hut on the side of the road. He, Ben, has to sleep on the floor. His girlfriend drives him around Manila. She weighs about 6 stone with Bens' 20 stone on the back of a little scooter. She knows how to stay out of trouble; her parents have told them to buy a pig for the wedding so they go to the market and buy one and somehow get it back to the hut for slaughter which ben has to witness. After 6 weeks or so they are married and are blissfully happy. "Ben; he make me laugh all the time. I come to UK and work to keep him, and his parents when they are old".

So Ben comes back alone and now his wife cannot get into the UK. I think this country needs people like her. I hope this amazing story has a happy ending. so good to hear good news for a change.

Frank

 

[Graham]

Hi Frank,
You got my PM then I take it.
Yes, for non - EU foreign wives, it is very difficult to enter UK, and further more, live there as husband and wife.
No matter if she is a brain surgeon / scientist, the best computer programmer in the world.
While almost every other westernised country recognises that these proposed immigrants are a huge benefit to UK, Theresa May still makes it nigh on impossible.
As in, her needing to read, write, and speak English to ESOL frame work, level B2.
Then the next hurdle is he needs to be earning over £19,800 I think it is, soon to go up to just over £22,600.
Or savings of an amount equal to about 2-3 years pay.
If he can do all that, then fine.
Should he lose his job, and become a non earner, then she will be deported.

I hope there is a happy ending, it's certainly not looking good at the moment.
However, you can come from any EU country, speak not word of English, no job, nowhere to live, and come and get all the benefits known to man.

Gra.

 

[Charlie]

Yep.
Being married for nearly 14 year to my wife who is Indonesian, England has some strange immigration laws. It is actually easier for her to obtain a visitor visa for Australia, than the UK. How can that be, I hold a UK passport our daughter holds a UK passport………

 

[frank rabbets]

Hi Graham
I did not receive email notification of your message. Is that normal with this new site? Anyway I've replied but can't see it in my outbox so can you confirm receipt here please.
Thanks for your help. I'll let you know what happens.

Frank

 

[Graham]

Hi Frank,
I think this new site still has a few tweaks to do, so an email is sent, when a PM is sent.

I did get your P,

Gra.

 

[Jon Wildsmith]

I did not receive email notification of your message. Is that normal with this new site?

You have to turn it on in 'settings' the default seems to be to not send emails.