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Furnishing a home

June 8, 2010 By JohnM 54 Comments
sofa

Since LiP is focused on the interest of expats in the Philippines and those who want to move here, there are many inquiries as to the cost of moving. Your biggest expense in moving probably won't be rent, or the tickets to get here. Once you arrive, you need to furnish your flat or ship furniture here to use. Jeff Foxworthy once talked about his flat during his college days as part of his stand up act. Though funny, it had a grain of truth to it. I, like most people, when younger, would see one of those big cable spools near a dumpster, and would think, "coffee table!"  There are millions of uses for milk crates. Sleeping on a cheap mattress … [Read more...]

Filed Under: John Miele Tagged With: Expats, John Miele, Living in The Philippines, Moving

Going Home, Part 2

December 2, 2009 By RebeccaM 24 Comments
With my brother during the Dubai Boat Show 2007 (we worked in the same company)

After two weeks rendezvous in the RP and HongKong, we went back to Abu Dhabi. I submitted my resignation letter on November 2007. My boss had asked me to stay until the end of March when the Dubai Boat Show was over. John wanted us to go home in December, just in time for Christmas. It was not easy to break this news to my then fiancé, and he felt very bad. When I say having a foreigner for a boyfriend or husband, it’s no beating around the bush. Take it or leave it sometimes. He has his moments, although he understands my situation as a breadwinner. A little extra savings will help me put up a small scale business back home. I just could not … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Rebecca Tagged With: Expats, Filipino Culture, Living in The Philippines

HEY YOU! 'Bro!

November 19, 2009 By PaulK 77 Comments

(PREFACE NOTE:  To be fair, I will state for the record that SMART does care and generally does listen to its customers.  They've established social media services on Twitter @ Smartcares and willingly accept comments regarding customer concerns via e-mail at ISMS@smart.com.ph ) As much as I’d like it to be, this is not an “Open Letter to SMART Bro.”  It’s more like venting my frustrations than anything else.  I mean, I’ve been pretty doggone patient and understanding over these past four months.  Things seem to have arrived at a point, however, where I am starting to feel as though someone is taking advantage of my patience … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Paul Tagged With: Adjustment, Communication, Ilocos Norte, Living in The Philippines, Luzon, Paul Keating, PLDT, SMART Bro

What currency do you think in?

March 3, 2009 By MindanaoBob 52 Comments

If you have lived in a foreign country like the Philippines for an extended time, it is likely that after some time, in financial terms, you will begin to think in the currency of the country you are living in, instead of the country where you came from. When you first come to live in the Philippines, if you are from the United States, it is likely that every time you buy something, or even look at something you might buy, you will always convert the Peso price into Dollars.  In other words, if the price is marked at P300, you will calculate in your mind how many Dollars that is, even though you will pay in Pesos.  Like I say, when you first … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Bob Tagged With: Adjustment, Bob Martin, Business, Financial, Living in The Philippines

Rental Thoughts Philippines

February 24, 2009 By Dave 16 Comments

As many of you already know, my wife and I rent the home we are living in right now in the Philippines.  To many Americans, long accustomed to buying more house than they can afford because “real estate always goes up” renting instead of buying is perceived as a very bad thing … an admission that I am unsuccessful or one step ahead of personal bankruptcy or the bill collector.  Yet another “ran off to the Philippines failure” in some people’s view, I am sure. Well opinions are just like armpits, everyone is entitled to a few, but for those that do feel that way, my own opinion is, you would be wrong.  I am heading into my retirement … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Dave Tagged With: Living in The Philippines

Pesos, Dollars, Euros, Pounds

October 23, 2008 By Martin 34 Comments

One of the advantages of running a small business in the Philippines is that once profitable, you can count on an income stream in the local currency: Pesos. This is a definite advantage, because ideally it should mean you rely less and less on outside sources of funds. As a foreign small business owner, the more Pesos you earn, the less likely you are to tap into your savings or outside investments which are likely to be in a different currency like dollars, euros, pounds, yen, etc. Having a local income stream is important for two very practical reasons. The first, and most obvious, is being able to lower your overall transaction costs when … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Martin Tagged With: Financial, Peso Exchange

Cheap living?

February 21, 2008 By MindanaoBob Leave a Comment

Living in the Philippines is not something that the majority of people even consider.  Heck, to be honest, a lot of people don't even know where the Philippines is, unless they have some connection to the country (a friend from there, a wife, served here in the military, or something like that).  I know that when I got married to Feyma, when we would tell people that she was from the Philippines, a lot of people would ask - "where is that, South America?"  Well, no it is not, but that is just an indicator about how much the average person thinks about the Philippines. For many of us who have a connection to the Philippines we think of the … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Bob