Wow Mindanao!

As many of you probably already know, I live on the Island of Mindanao, which is in the Southern Philippines. While Mindanao has the reputation of being a dangerous place that should be avoided, that is not my experience at all! As a matter of fact, every person that I know who makes a trip to Mindanao loves the place by the time they finish their trip!

I wanted to share a video of a song called “Wow Mindanao” which is really a favorite of mine. The song is in Tagalog, but there are some nice scenes of Mindanao, and a really catchy tune! Give it a look!

Renewing My Driver's License

When we first came to the Philippines, I went to the LTO (Land Transportation Office), showed them my California license, paid some money and was given an ‘official receipt’ that was good for six months for the real thing, and told to come back for the hard copy. About six months later, the hard copy came. Pretty painless.

The next time I needed to renew I had moved to another town and also needed to change the address. This was a little more involved, and they had added a ‘medical certificate’ to the process. For the medical certificate, I was sent to the Provincial Hospital where I paid 10 pesos and was given a number. When my number was called, I went to the desk and my blood pressure was taken, a form was signed, and that was it. Evidently, blood pressure was the only essential, medically speaking, for driving a motor vehicle. Nearly blind? Ok. No legs? Ok. No blood pressure? No deal.

That time time I had to keep renewing my ‘official receipt’ for three years because my plastic license never came. It turns out the LTO in Manila, where the plastic cards were made, burned down, and my card with it. I finally re-applied and got my card in four months.

The last time I had to renew my driver’s license I was in a new city again. There were a lot of people the day I went to the LTO, but in only an hour and a half, I had my freshly minted plastic card in hand! Wow, I was impressed!

Which brings us to this last week. My husband discovered his card had expired the end of February. Mine will expire in June, when we will be in the States, so we both went to renew our driver’s licenses. The first item of business was the medical certificate, but now it is the real deal! Businesses offering medical certification cluster near the LTO, along with the smog test places. Paying customers have their blood pressure checked, are weighed, measured, checked for color blindness and myopia. (If someone couldn’t see the number on the color-blindness test, they just told him the numbers, I noticed) The next stop is the drug test, so don’t stop at the CR before you go for a renewal. After the results were found and my picture taken, it was back to the LTO to sit in line for quite some time. When my name was called, I found out I was renewing my license too early. When I explained I would be out of the country, I was told to bring a Xerox of my plane ticket… Okay, I’m out for this round and will have to come back another day. In the meantime, my husband was waiting for the cashier to call his name. At 11:49 the whole place closed for lunch, so we went home. We had been there for about three hours.

My husband went back after lunch and after waiting a while, and after needing the card to be redone since it said he was Filipino, he came back with the much awaited license. Whew!

My friends all told me I should have gone to the LTO at the mall which is very fast, so I went there the next day with my half-done paperwork and a Xerox of my plane ticket. No deal. Since it was an early renewal, it was a special case and this office did not do any special cases, so I had to go back to the other place.

I went the next morning, arriving at 7:30 am. They open at 8 and I was one of the first in. No LTO staff came to my window until 8:45, and then a woman with what must have been a fixer slipped up to that window and the guy gave the window lady P20, and she went first. But I was not far behind. I got my picture taken again, waited for the cashier and the final call for the plastic card, and walked away with my license at 9:15 am.

I am so glad it is good until 2011!

A shocking e-mail!

Over the past 2 weeks you may have noticed that I have not participated on the site nearly as much as normal. I have tried to keep active, but something happened a couple of weeks ago that kept me from spending as much time on-site as I usually do, and has really monopolized my time a great deal.

During Holy Week, one morning I was checking my e-mail as I do every morning after I wake up. I usually have several dozen e-mails waiting for me (usually more than that, I guess), and this particular morning was no exception. When I got about halfway through the various e-mails, though, I got a shock! The next e-mail to read was a mail sent to me through my Contact Form on one of my other blogs. Somebody had gone to this other site of mine and entered an e-mail to me to be sent through the Contact Form. When I opened the e-mail, I instantly noticed that this was a threat that was sent to me.

The e-mailer identified himself as an Al Qaeda operative, and demanded extortion money. He told me that if he did not receive the money, he would “make history” in three days time at a local Mall/Department Store. My first reaction was to think that this was just a joke, some guy with extra time on his hands just playing around on the net. But, the letter seemed very serious, and not something to just laugh off. Feyma and I discussed it, and decided to contact the authorities. Within 30 minutes I actually had Philippine Military personnel at my house to check out what this was all about. After reading the e-mail, they immediately told me that this was not a joke, but a serious matter, and that this person had threatened other businesses and businessmen around town in recent weeks. Although they felt that he did not have the capability to carry out his threats, they also felt that he should not be taken lightly.

I was asked by the local PNP and Military if I would be willing to cooperate with them in an effort to catch the “terrorist” (as he called himself). I reflected on it, but decided to go ahead and help in whatever way I could. After some rather long hours, several more e-mails from the guy, and intense efforts on both my part as well as the authorities, thankfully, the perpetrator was apprehended last week.

While I don’t want to go into too much detail about the case, I will say that they guy is now in jail, and a case against him is pending. There are other things still going on behind the scenes too.

What I would like to say is this – both the Philippine National Police and the Military unit “Task Force Davao” did an excellent job in this case. They worked closely with me, answered all the questions that I had, made themselves available to me 24/7, and were thorough in their work. I was pleased to see how well they handled the situation. I really give a big thumbs-up to the efforts that the authorities made in this case.

I will also say that the threat that was made was not against me or my family. But, the fellow used my website as a conduit to get his message to other business people here in Davao City. Anytime something like this would happen it is only natural that the people involved (Feyma and I) would feel apprehensive about the safety of our family, especially the kids. However, honestly, I never really felt threatened myself. I am happy that I contacted the authorities, though, especially since they handled the situation so thoroughly and professionally.

It would seem that all is now quiet on the home front, and I am happy for that. I hope that the excitement of the past 2 weeks will not visit us again in the future! If it does, though, I am confident that the local authorities here in Davao can handle the situation.

UPDATE: Here is a link to a newspaper article about the incident.  I will say that the article is not 100% accurate, but it does give the general plot of the events.

Immigration Requirements

Today’s guest blog is from Bruce Linder.  Bruce has been living in Davao a few months now, and has his own blog, American in Davao.  Bruce notified me of some changes in residency requirements that he came across when he recently visited the Bureau of Immigration.  Here is what Bruce had to say:

Today when I was at the Bureau of Immigration I recieved information to change status to get residency here in the Philippines by marriage.

They have reduced the requirements and made it easier.

Here is the information from the document

MCL-08
NOTICE TO ALL APPLICANTS/PETITIONERS

To avoid the summary denial/delay of your application/petition, please be advised of the following:

1. All sworn statements or affidavits must be duly notarized.
2. Documents executed outside of the Philippines must be authenticated by the Philippine Embassy/Consulate official of the Philippine Foreign Service at the place of issuance or nearest to it, with English translation, if written in other foreign language. Any document executed within the Philippines must be duly certified by the offices having official custody of the originals.
3. All documents required for submission must be arranged in the order as listed hereunder; otherwise your application or petition cannot be processed immediately.

CHECKLIST OF DOCUMENTARY REQUIREMENTS FOR APPLICANTS FOR CONVERSION TO NON-QUOTA IMMIGRANT BY MARRIAGE

1. Duly notarized letter of application by the Filipino spouse.
2. General Application Form duly accomplished and notarized (BI Form
3. No. MCL-07-01)
4. NSO authenticated copy of Birth certificate of Filipino spouse and
5. certified copy of the ID as Filipino citizen issued by BID.
6. NSO authenticated copy of the Marriage Contract of alien and
7. Filipino spouse or authenticated by the Philippine embassy/consulate
8. nearest to or in the place where marriage was solemnized.
9. Bureau of Immigration (BI) Clearance Certificate
10. Plain photocopy of the passport of the foreign national’s spouse
11. showing applicant’s bio-page, admission stamp and authorized stay
12. of at least twenty (20) calendar days from date of filing.

Happy Anniversary

I am a very lucky man to have made fantastic friends in Davao City from all across the world.

My German friend and fellow LIP columnist is one of those along with his beautiful wife Rose, whom this week have celebrated 25 years of wedded bless. I was very lucky to be able to attend a celebration at their beautiful home, which by coincidence is six metres away from me.

Along with Klaus beautiful mother Mutti and his his godfather Maurice a very very long-term resident of Mindanao and his wife Alicia Cowan were also in attendance who also live above me, and I never knew that was Klaus godfather.

Many of the German community were in attendance and despite my best attempts to speak German I failed badly.

Here is a short film of the event.

The Jeepney

The Jeepney is a quintessential mode of transportation in the Philippines.  Check this video to see what the Jeepney is!

Hello?

One invention which I won’t mind not having is the telephone. It is a useful invention all right. To be more accurate, it is an irritatingly useful invention: a device that rings regardless of when you think it should or prefer it would; an interminable request imposing itself regardless of whether or not you feel like answering it; a source of nervous anticipation when you’re expecting to hear the good news, a source of seconded misery when you’re expecting to hear the bad. Of course all that science with electric signals enables you to speak to a friend half a world away at a phenomenal convenience. But to put things in my narrow perspective, I see the telephone as not essentially different from knowing what it would be like if human beings were equipped with hearing and speaking abilities that transcend distance. Early human history has proven we could live without both.

Imagine then what I think about the cell phone being invented, and about most Filipinos knowing every kind there is. Filing out of the Robinsons Movieworld early this year (to the uninitiated, Filipinos watch boxing matches in theaters now), I noticed every other person holding phones to their ears, celebrating Pacquiao’s electric victory with their Nokias, Samsungs, Motorola Razrs, etc. Never mind their spoiling those who didn’t see the fight live; my bother came from being around a seemingly infinite number of people chattering away on their mobile phones. They were there and yet they weren’t really there, so many of them talking all at once and to each his own receiver. It’s not so much the noise as the noise culture – a culture of such remoteness, thriving in this age of molded plastics and portable conversations.

Do we love the thing so much as to carry it everyday in our pockets? Do we think it so important and sacrosanct that, even for those who loathe its institution, as I do, we nonetheless aren’t given the simplistic option of turning it off? To merely ignore an incoming call or message would make us worry, sort of being granted awareness that there’s business unfinished. To reject it means to face the inevitable question ‘why did you?’, as if you’ve committed an illicit deed and are being tried. Surely you’d be convicted if you make the wrong kind of admission, or lie.

Now this fact shouldn’t be misconstrued as hypocrisy: I own a Sony Ericsson. I don’t care what the devil its model is, but for purposes of due description, my cell phone has some wonderful extra features: a calendar which I don’t mark, a “Java-powered” game which I don’t play, a bunch of Internet and e-mail connectivity options which I don’t synchronize, and a camera which I don’t use, or perhaps am saving for the day when LeBron James walks into my room. Right now I make use of the thing for all work-related calls and messages. And that’s about it – just the buttons needed pressed to ask for deadline extensions (or cash advances). Even so, on occasions that arise wherein a phone call is in order, the battery always runs out. This is my mobile’s only stroke of pure genius.

If I was totally out of work, however, I would find the mobile phone just about as necessary as a Kevin Federline song on the music charts: I mean, what for? While I must admit that this is a bitterer treatise than expected from someone who had skipped lunches back in high school to save for an inch-thick Ericsson G628, I have to be categorical in this discourse now. After all, I find the lower-technology forms of correspondence more agreeable: the buzz of an incoming fax, the fibers of a torn envelope, the tenderness of greeting cards, the creative possibilities of electronic mail, the tradition of stamps, and the human connection of two people being – literally – in touch. I don’t find in the phone any exclusive idiosyncratic quality which would warrant making the medium not just the first option, but the only option; personalized ringing tones just don’t cut it, at least not for me.

For those who find my opinion on this matter extremely idiotic, spare me the sales talk. I haven’t the least tincture of caring – not about when mankind will enable video-conferencing in a mobile phone, not about a future where everyone can create a movie with a Nicole Richie-slim Nokia. Phones must have never been invented to make life easier.

But oh my goodness – the new iPhone is a work of art, even if only for its looks. And do I want one for next Christmas? Do I? Do I?

The Coffee Craze in Davao

Davao City has turned into sort of the Seattle of the Philippines. Seattle, Washington is where Starbucks got started and is sort of the Coffee Capital of the USA, and that is how Davao is here in the Philippines.

Surprisingly, there are a lot of coffee shops here in Davao. I have told Feyma, and others recently that I would estimate that there are at least 100 Coffee Shops here in Davao. And, I’m not talking about hole in the wall type places, I am talking about classy places where you can get a world class cup of coffee, some good food, and see a lot of nice people. And, you can get more than just the normal cup of coffee too!

Some places in Davao offer literally dozens of different varieties of coffee drinks on their menu. You can order coffee grown in the Philippines, in South America, or just about anyplace of your choice! Davao is really in the business of serving Coffee Connoisseurs these days! There are no Starbucks in Davao either, these are almost exclusively home-grown shops that you will find around the City.

What are some of my favorite Coffee Shops?

• Bluegre Cafe – You can’t talk Davao Coffee Shops without mentioning Blugre, it is the original Davao Coffee Shop, no doubt. Blugre has locations at Landco Building, Matina Town Square and at SM. Have I forgotten any?
• Bo’s Coffee Shop – Bo’s original location is at SM City, and they have a second location on F. Torres Street. My only problem with going to the F. Torres location is that the acoustics in the place are terrible. I can sit at a table with Feyma and not hear a word she says, yet I can hear the guy on the other side of the building like he is sitting on my lap! The coffee is great, but not a great place for socializing, in my opinion.
• Fagioli – This is a relatively new coffee shop, located on J.P. Laurel Ave, in Damosa. My favorite here is actually the tea instead of the coffee. Only complaint about the place is that it can get hot in there, they need additional Air Conditioning units.
• Basti’s Brew – Basti’s has great coffee! It can get quite crowded in the place, though, as it is in a mall, Victoria Plaza.
• Holiday Health Spa – I work out and swim here at Holiday Health Spa every weekday morning. The coffee shop inside the spa actually has excellent coffee! My favorite is the Vanilla Bean Latte.

If you want to experience true Davao, I recommend that you go to Blugre Cafe and try the Durian Coffee. It is superb, and really is a true Davao experience!

Want to have a cup of coffee with me? If so, I am usually at the Coffee Shop in Holiday Health Spa on F. Torres Street every weekday around 10am until 10:30 or so. Stop by and let’s enjoy a cup!

photo credit: clchung

Lazy summer days, BUT… .

Many of us have different dreams how to spend lazy summer days. For some, a memorable vacation is to go and spend it with the whole family at the beach for a day or even longer. The bonding and sharing can make any place beautiful and memorable. Many of my ex pat friends want to be alone… – even, and that’s my experience, this period of time for laughter and merriment strengthens relationship with one another… :neutral:

Others say: “When you are in business you tend to overwork yourself, especially if you are alone and you have to do everything alone or you have to try everything alone. Closing shop or leaving your business with trusted friends and people will make your vacation memorable.

Wow – no distractions! Can you imagine to leave radio, TV, internet (!) and everything and stay somewhere in a forested mountain resort in Palawan where one can commune with God and nature? Where are your hidden paradises? Who are the people, you would like to be with you?

It's summer!

The seasons work a little differently here in the Philippines. In Northern areas you have rainy season and dry season. Here in Davao, where I live, the weather is roughly the same year around. The amount of rain we get here is roughly equal every month of the year, with slight variations.  In the Visayas and Luzon, though, there are definite wet and dry seasons, and you might want to plan your travel around those seasons.  Traveling all the way to the Philippines to stay inside where it is dry is not a great vacation!

photo credit: olasisucsd

One thing that is interesting, though, is that Summer here runs from around the beginning of March until mid June or so. This is the hottest time of the year throughout the Philippines. Why? Well, because we are just north of the Equator, which means that summer hits us earlier than in North America or Europe. Both North America and Europe are significantly further north compared to us, and thus it is a little later in the year before the sun has moved that far north of the equator. By the time it is Summer in the north, the hottest of our yearly weather has already passed us by, and we are settling into cooler weather. Now, don’t take me wrong, cool here means a few degrees lower than during the hottest part of the year. It is not a major difference, but it is noticeable.

For those with children in school, summer vacation here in the Philippines also happens at this time of year. Today, as this story is published it is the last day of the school year for my kids, and they will be out for about 2 1/2 months before starting a new school year in June. Oh how time flies!