Best safe and hassle free method to go from Terminal 2 to Makati? I am thinking of arranging for a hotel airport transfer but seems kinda waste, it's $70 for a 10km ride.

Yellow taxi at the airport. Don't agree on a fare as they are going to try and rip you off just make sure the meter is turned on and you will be fine.

In general:
Singapore > Taiwan > Thailand > Malaysia > Philippines > Vietnam > Laos > Cambodia.

But imo it's impossible to live decently anywhere in South East Asia on $800. It simply isn't enough money.

Obviously it depends on how you define decently, the locals live there on far less than that, and English teachers in Thailand only make about 1k/month and don't seem to be starving to death either.

That's very interesting to me. Here in Sweden which is normally much more expensive comparing to SE Asia, I can afford a nice renovated 33m² apartment, good food (only eating out 3-4 times / month), gym, iPhone bills, drinks and have money over for savings with a budget on only $900-1100. I guess I learned all the tricks while being a student . Anyway, if you live a bit outside of for example Cebu or Phnom Penh, shouldn't it be able to have a nice living for under $800, since transportation is cheap if you want to visit the big town?

Tjena!
That sounds really discusting, like kebabs but worse (kebab actually tastes good though ;D).
My plan was to not cook, so I guess the food out isn't close to Thailand/Cambodia then, since the meat I got there was exceptionally good. Maybe I'll have to visit all places before settling down to grind, others' opinions matter, but is probably not enough to determine for your own.

Thanks

I've found it nearly impossible to get any weed. My wife had a friend that got it for me once when I first moved here 10 months ago, but my wife's friend moved to the UK to marry some guy.

Being a big white guy that's tatted up I thought it would be easy to find like in Florida or anywhere in the US, but no one seems to smoke here. I'm going nuking futs.

I used entropay to make my first deposit on stars. I make all my withdrawals straight to my union bank account, never any problems. I haven't had to make any other deposits but maybe I make a small deposit with my Union bank visa debit card and let you know if it works.

Locals/teachers living on less than $800 don't live decently according to my definition.

Do you pay your own utilities? Do you buy your own groceries? Do you have a girlfriend or go out on dates? Do you have any hobbies?

Also do you track your expenses? If not, try it and you might be surprised.

I've been living in Manila for almost 3 years and there hasn't been a single month where I spent less than $1k.

Wow really?

I'm single but I do buy all groceries and I have hobbies, broadband, electricity and other expenses. But I do fine with $1100 for sure. I don't go out and drink that much, which is the biggest expense to most money-bleeding youngsters

How would you guys compare Bangkok to Manila? I really liked Bangkok with the semi-degen lifestyle I had there. Would Manila be good for that? You know, drinking, strip bars, bachelor nonsense, etc. Good thing, there's even poker in Manila and people speak English. I got a feeling it might even be better than BKK. What about safety level? I felt really safe in Bangkok everywhere even if I was at a dimly lit street with a nice watch.

TBH, considering your budget but also what type of food you like I think Thailand and especially Chiang Mai would be an ideal starting point for you. They also have rather big Poker community and many players play low-mid stakes there.
There you will be able to eat cheap local food without feeling like a dog/prisoner with the perspective of a Sweden/Westerner.

IMO, the Philippines is great and in many ways better than Thailand, better looking women, most speak really good english, you can eat any type of food here (better diversity than Stockholm etc), cheap services like laundry, maids, massage and better weather.
But it can only be utilised properly if you have bigger budget, I'd say around 100k or more a month for Manila, have no idea about Cebu.

You can degen for sure in Manila, there's both areas with girly bars and well known freelancer places. Also, you will have no problem at all picking up non-working girl here. If you want proper degen, head to Angeles City, 2 hours drive from Manila, cheaper and more to choose from.

P1K/day average is sufficient for a decent living IMO. Typical is probably 50K+ going out a decent amount.

If I didn't degen I could probably do fine with p250/day or so and that's for two. I like to cook myself.

Noob month I used like $6K effortlessly. Without going to degen bars/girls/etc. So it's easy to spew a ton while thinking "everything is so cheap here"

As for people curious about electricity consumption, I've completely stopped using aircon now and it's totally fine. I use electric fans daytime but they're getting too cold at night lol. Getting used to living hot has its upsides as well, much more comfortable staying outside for long periods. It feels a bit torturing at first to stop using AC tho.

1hp airconditioner alone going on max 24/7 would use about p8K a month and that's a lot of GSM black.

Yeah, AC is definitely expensive. The thing is that it helps you focus while playing. The ideal would be to have it on while playing and off every other time, but I don't really have the discipline for that.

Yeah I've been reading up on Chiang Mai, and it sounds like the deal. I was aiming to see a new country however since I've been living and grinding in Thailand a short period before . However 100k php/month seems absolutely too much, its more than an average Swedish net salary for christ sake . That gotta be a real baller life or it wouldn't be worth it imo.

Haha yeah, I couldn't imagine playing without AC! I even consider buying one here in Sweden, since we've really hot summers sometimes. A fan into your face works but its not good for you, I usually get this cough.

7500 pesos in a month? Rent, utilities, groceries, household items, etc for two people? Visa extensions alone cost on average 2000 per month... Or you talking about food only?

I spend more than that without living a baller life I have the same standard as I had in Sweden plus services like laundry and weekly massage.

It seems like every place ive looked online about living costs in thailand all say you can live like a king there for 1k us a month, is this true?

Is 1k enough for all your bills and still have some walking around/going out money as well? Unfortunately ive become a customed to living the flat broke busto lifestyle the past few years so i wouldnt be living any lavish lifestyle, no frills.

Paul B, it sounds like your expected lifestyle is a good bit pricier than SwedeModel.


@ Swede, I have lived considerably cheaper than $800 a month in both Manila and Bangkok. That being said, I don't recommend it, particularly in Manila.


$800 however, you should do absolutely fine on, especially considering your life style.


I would also recommend Bangkok over Manila though.

Have a 23" Samsung LED I'm selling in the next week.

http://manila****.craigslist.com.ph/ele/2433411428.html

PM if you wanna look at it.

Here's a link to someone who lives on $1000 per month http://www.ycebu.com/articles/Philip...n10000USD.aspx

IMO, the more native you're prepared to live, the cheaper it can be. If you want to live like a westerner then be prepared to pay closer to western prices. There are some things which are dirt cheap like alcohol & ciggies, the yaya who'll do all your laundry & cooking etc, transport, market fruits, veggies & seafoods, local barbecue food. When it comes to things like rent though, you'll often get what you pay for, same for when you eat out, generally cheaper equals less quality than what you might be used to.

If you go out on dates, set the rules from the beginning, otherwise you might find the whole family will turn up and you'll be the rich kano who pays

I'll buy it with cash. Where can I find you? (What did you pay for it?)

You can't live anywhere in the world like a king for 1k/month, but you can live well on that with a girlfriend (well, a filipina girlfriend anyway) in the Philippines.

With the right girl, yes.

That guy's life sounds miserable.

Probably, but I also think he underestimates his expenses as most people do.

tbh, you have a point, but it sounds better than being miserable couped up with a fat nagging wife in the western world