Over the last few months I have been very lucky to be able to travel to more remote areas in Mindanao, and sometimes they get bad publicity, sometimes that may be deserved. But in the main people are great in the Philippines wherever you go. Over the last few years I have been a friend of a local businessman here in Davao, Mr Bong Domingo, who apart from other things is co owner of the Felis resort, but he will be the first to tell you his heart is more into agriculture. Now I have no green fingers, and most of what Bong told me went over my head until one day at a party at his house I noticed his small front garden area was full of containers … [Read more...]
A gentle and quiet people
June 30, 2009 By 50 Comments
Filipinos are a very gentle people. They are very quiet and demure. They speak very softly, sometimes so softly that sometimes it is difficult to hear what they say. Of course, you already know these things, because we hear it all the time. STOP! Wait, is it true? If Filipinos are so gentle and quiet, then why do we also hear complaints from our fellow foreigners (myself included) about the noise problem here? Oh, I know... you are saying that the noise is from the dogs, the roosters and the traffic. Is it, though? I did not plan on writing about this topic today, but a while ago I was in my office making some coffee. I … [Read more...]
Ten Business Ideas I'm Thinking of Trying
June 29, 2009 By 98 Comments
A while ago, I responded to an inquiry on Bob’s Snowbird posting, where I mentioned that my travel schedule is starting to get very tiring. Quite frankly, I want to settle down a bit more. My response got me thinking about the term “Snowbird” and retirement. Ugh! Bob’s picture of the two old goats sitting there looked like one of those funeral home ads or adult diaper ads. Not for me! Additionally, there are quite a number of inquiries about earning a living in the Philippines that are posted in the forum, so I thought about writing about some business ideas that I believe could generate a decent income. First off, I would highly recommend … [Read more...]
This week on LiP
June 29, 2009 By Leave a Comment
Welcome to the Live in the Philippines Web Magazine for the week of June 28 through July 4, 2009. This week promises more exciting and informative stories on LiP. Remember all days and times listed below are Philippine time (not Filipino time, though!). The first article listed is generally published between 5am and 6am. The second article listed is generally published around 5pm. Watch for these articles on LiP this week: Sunday Bebe teaches more Bisaya, this week she looks at Locative Pronouns Monday Bob is happy to see a new trend among LiP Readers John Miele looks at some possible ideas for Philippine Business Tuesday Bob … [Read more...]
Something that's good to see!
June 29, 2009 By 57 Comments
Something has been happening in recent months. Something kind of unexpected, for me at least. It is certainly something good in my view, though. So, what's been happening? A number of people who read this site have actually been moving here to actually Live in the Philippines! It's kind of rewarding to me to see this happen too. While I don't think, nor will I claim that I am responsible for them moving here, but I would like to think that I played a small role in helping them make the decision. Too many people think that they just can't do it. They dream about it. Everyday they think about it. They read about it here and on other … [Read more...]
Lesson 12 – Locative Pronouns
June 28, 2009 By 3 Comments
Today where are going to learn what to use for direction and location. Locative Pronouns Long form short form English Dinhi diri here Dinha diha there (near the speaker) Didto -- there (far from the speaker) Note: You can use the locative pronouns in the beginning of the sentence, middle or at the end. Examples: 1. Mopalit ko ug mangga didto. I will buy the mango there. 2. Palihog anhi diri. Please come here! 3. … [Read more...]
Downtime Postponed
June 27, 2009 By 2 Comments
Just a quick announcement. I had early announced that there would be some downtime for LiP starting later today. At this point, I am postponing that, so LiP will be online for the entire weekend. A couple of issues came up that I need to work out before the maintenance work on LiP. So, that will be done later this coming week. Sorry for any inconvenience. … [Read more...]
Fire The Nanny Or Just Beat Her?
June 27, 2009 By 26 Comments
Seems like a lot of life happens right on my front porch. Its a bit interesting how many stories I get while sitting on my porch. In a land, a long long time ago, people used to sit on their front porch with their family, especially on Sunday afternoons, and watch life go by. Many of you have been to that land, it was the 1950's in the USA and of course somewhat into the 1960's and there are a few hold outs like me. The Front porch in the USA leaves a lot to be desired these days. I still remember sitting on the porch with my grandfather, this was a normal pattern way up into the late 1980's. Air conditioning probably had a lot to … [Read more...]
Positive Or Negative, Where Do You Fit?
June 26, 2009 By 19 Comments
I was pleasantly surprised at the reaction to my recent article Why You’re Reading About the Philippines. In particular I’m glad that no one took my examples of how repetitive and cyclical our always present world and national crises are … so many things today sound the same as when I listened to the radio at my mother’s knee in 1949 or 1950 or so … my mom would have been glued to CNN 24x7 if she were around today (except when a Mets game was on). She was a bit of a news junkie I would have to say. Frankly, although we get the International edition of CNN here in the Philippines, which is head an shoulders above the drivel you … [Read more...]
The Dalaga
June 26, 2009 By 74 Comments
What is a Dalaga, you say? Well, a Dalaga is a single woman. Usually it is a young woman, maybe a teenager. There are two things that make a female a Dalaga. First, they have already had their first menstruation. Second, they are single. I suppose a woman who is older can also be a Dalaga assuming the meets the first two criteria. Our daughter became a Dalaga this year. She is only 12 years old (almost 13), but I can definitely see a big difference in her level of maturity since she became a Dalaga. She is visibly more a woman now. Before she was a girl. The difference seems to have happened literally overnight, before my … [Read more...]
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