[ 7 Comments ] Posted on 09.29.08 under Perspectives, Philippine Retirement
Philippine Driver’s License. Your foreign driver’s license is good for ninety days in the Philippines. After that you’ll need to get a Philippine license. I’ve been driving in Iloilo City since February, 2008 when we bought a new, very basic Toyota Innova. Most days the Innova stays at home. We take jeepneys in the city, sometimes [...]
[ 36 Comments ] Posted on 09.25.08 under Immigration and Visa, Philippine Retirement
The Philippine government makes it quite easy to live permanently in the country. It has fewer restrictions than I have seen reported by other Southeast Asian countries. There are basically four ways that the foreigner can live in the Philippines:
[ 6 Comments ] Posted on 09.19.08 under Philippine Retirement, Services
If you’re planning to spend your retirement overseas you may want to hire a mailing service in your home country to receive you mail and forward it to you at your overseas home. There are a number of considerations.
[ 1 Comment ] Posted on 09.18.08 under Iloilo City, Philippine Retirement, Services, Where to Dine?
Foreigners living in Iloilo City can attend two expat gatherings each month.
[ 5 Comments ] Posted on 09.12.08 under Medical and Dental, Philippine Retirement
All the facts on Philippine prescription medications, generic drugs, availability of medication and drug safety in the Philippines.
[ No Comments ] Posted on 09.09.08 under Iloilo Real Estate, Our House Project, Philippine Retirement
Most Philippine cities have drainage systems of some kind. You will not see separate storm water and waste water (sewerage) systems. Wastewater freely mixes with the stormwater. In practice this is not as bad as it sounds as the volume of storm water is large and may well flush out the drainage system and its [...]
[ 6 Comments ] Posted on 09.04.08 under Iloilo City, Nature, Environment, Philippine Retirement, Services
Detailed Maps Available at Iloilo City NAMRIA Office Iloilo City, Panay Island, Philippines I’m the kind of person who really does not understand much about direction and geography unless I have a map. There are some good country and city maps of the Philippines available from Nelles, Periplus, the locally published EZ maps and some other [...]
[ 6 Comments ] Posted on 09.04.08 under Iloilo Real Estate, Medical and Dental, Our House Project, Perspectives, Philippine Retirement
Buying rural real estate in the Philippines. Real estate in the Philippine provinces. There are so many beautiful rural areas in the Philippines. I think of the lush, unspoiled area around Lucban, Quezon Province, I think of the spectacular rural landscapes in the hills of Bohol. Closer at hand for us, are the mountains and [...]
[ 2 Comments ] Posted on 09.03.08 under Iloilo City, Medical and Dental, Perspectives, Philippine Retirement, Services
The Philippines has a totally pay-as-you-go health care system. Your first stop at the hospital (as it is in the US) will be the cashier’s office. You must have money to pay for health care, otherwise you will not get care, will not be admitted to a hospital no matter how dire your situation. A [...]
[ 14 Comments ] Posted on 08.29.08 under Philippine Retirement, Services
We moved to the Philippines from Upstate New York. We packed all our things in big cardboard shipping boxes (balikbayan boxes) and smaller file storage boxes, both of which we bought at our local Sam’s Club. We shipped a lot of books. If you have specific reading preferences, bring the books with you. Except in [...]
[ 11 Comments ] Posted on 08.27.08 under Perspectives, Philippine Retirement
Is the Philippines really a tropical paradise for the foreign retiree? For my wife and me the Philippines is a retirement paradise, but it’s the people who make it so.
[ 3 Comments ] Posted on 08.19.08 under Medical and Dental, Philippine Retirement
The Philippines has one of the most restrictive regimes in the world regarding pain relievers for severe pain. it has imposed such onerous requirements on doctors and pharmacies that for all practical purposes, strong pain medications are not generally available.
[ 1 Comment ] Posted on 08.18.08 under Philippine Retirement
Should those moving from the USA to the Philippines bring their appliances with them? We received advice that we should leave our 110v gadgets at home and buy new here. I can’t tell you how frequently we rue this decision. Good kitchen appliances such as Braun, Krups, KitchenAid are hard to find and very expensive [...]
[ No Comments ] Posted on 08.13.08 under Iloilo City, Perspectives, Philippine Retirement
Iloilo does not get nearly so many foreign tourists as places such as Boracay, Cebu, Manila and even Dumaguete and Bohol. Often, I can spend the day in the city and not see another foreigner. Of course, there is a community of resident expats, many who have been in Iloilo many years. Expats hold meetings [...]