I only know of 10 other 2+2ers in the Metro Manila area. But there are a bunch of people who play poker for a living. A lot of locals live on $300-500 a month, so it's not hard to make a living even if they're playing 10/20 peso live games.

Well, I explained earlier in the thread why I pay a premium to live in Rockwell specifically. Of course "better" is highly subjective and varies from person to person but imo Rockwell is the best for foreigners like me. I kind of doubt that there's somewhere else both better AND cheaper but I'd be curious where you would live.

Actually the only buildings which might (debatable) be considered better than any Makati buildings are in the fort and are ridiculously expensive by Philippine standards and even quite expensive by US standards (think Pacific Plaza, and maybe one or two others but that's about it, which will run about 4k USD/month for a 3br).

There is literally no logical argument that I'm aware of that can legitimately be used to dispute the above. "better" is always subjective but 'highly' so? Perhaps - if you are the type of person who thinks Oprah is better looking than Alba.

Cliffnotes: Rockwell is god.

Well we have different needs I guess. I prefer not to pay 1.5-2K+ dollar as long as I am in the Philippines. What I meant is that one should be able to get a very good apartment other places in Manila for a lower price then in the financial center, since I am a poker player I do not really need to live there.

Another thing, how about insurance. Is there a reliable filipino insurance company concerning injury etc here?

Yep. Needs (and tolerance levels) are really what it boils down to.

I went back in the thread and saw that I didn't really elaborate why I live in Makati/Rockwell so I'll go into detail what specific things I don't mind paying a premium for.

- I value my safety a LOT. I also own some expensive things that I don't want to be stolen. These are real concerns in this country. Personally, I don't think I'd be comfortable living in a building/community without guards and security cameras, but that's just me (I'm more paranoid than most people). I've been in some bad areas outside of Makati where I didn't feel safe just using my phone in public.
- my Tagalog is getting decent but it's still not good enough to converse with locals, so I prefer living where I feel I'll encounter the least amount of problems/headaches/tilt when it comes to communicating with people. You'd be surprised how bad the English gets outside of Makati.
- I don't go out enough to justify buying a car (plus I don't particularly want to drive here) and I'm too "maarte" to take jeepneys/MRT/LRT, so I take taxis. It's important that I'm centrally located to the places I want to go: Makati CBD, Fort Bonifacio, Ermita, Pasay, etc. because sometimes (usually during rush hour) I find that getting a cab home is problematic... I can't even imagine how much harder it would be in a less central location, like Malate to QC for example.
- Then there are the little conveniences like ordering food delivery or telling a taxi driver "Rockwell" and them knowing where it is without me explaining what it's near, having a gym and swimming pool in my building, living across the street from the mall and having someone carry my groceries home, being 2 minutes walking distance to a spa -- these things make my life much easier and I don't mind paying for the convenience.

For me, I'd rather pay $600 for what I have now than pay less for something worse, but I can see how we might differ. For example if you're comfortable anywhere in Metro Manila, not paranoid about getting jacked, semi-fluent in Tagalog, already drive a car or don't mind taking public transportation, and don't care for little conveniences, then yea it would make sense to live outside of Makati and get better value for your money.

Okay, reasonable for you then. But maybe you should consider going to another country if you cannot travel outside Makati or your apartment without getting paranoid about being mugged;

You just pay 600 dollars?
any links to the apartment building?

If you have a motorcycle you should be able to travel around much easier, even during rush hours, but of course AC-taxi is more comfortable.

I do not speak any Tagalog, I'm driving around myself all over the country and I feel 100% safe. As long as you do not walk around with your Patek Philippe and your Iphone in a bad neighborhood after dark you should be reasonable safe.

I have only spent a few nights in Manila and I think $600 a month for an Apartment complex where you feel safe is very good value! But it also shows the amazing value you can get elsewhere in the country for a fraction of the price.

I've been quiet on this thread the last couple of months because I have been going through the process of investing in a buisness over here. So if any 2+2ers come to Sabang hit me up and I will buy you a drink on my Floating bar!!!!

also if anyone wants any pisos for pokerstars/fulltilt let me know

yeah, 600 is really cheap, I pay about the same in Angeles City..

Setting up any business in the Philippines must be really time consuming and a huge hassle, I have just tried to pay a traffic violation and that took me about 5-6 hours(the fine was just 300-400 pesos, lol)), and after that I swore that I would stay away from the public bureaucracy at any cost.

You are talking about Sabang Mindoro diba? I hope you have some pretty girls for sale on your floating bar for business sake. With bar girls the name should be floating disco, if it is located in Mindoro.. hehe

"luckily" I bought an existing buisness at a very good price and my father has a filipino company for house ownership. So it wasn't too bad. But there is always the worry that nothing is safe here. Will have to see how it goes!! Its not what you know its who you know!!

I live in fear everyday I ride my Motorbike home because there is a chance I could get stopped. This country could be so much more than it actually is. Tis a shame


jup Sabang Mindoro....but politics down here if I even mentioned bar fining then im looking at a massive bribe. Have to be so strict on everything.

I dont want to risk doing anything until I have the place settled. But if anyone comes down its going to be a crazy ass night we will spend on there.


Other news I have managed to procure some slightly illegal fireworks for today (xmas day) to launch off it. So my biggest concern is that I dont sink it!!!

Just out of curiosity what kind of place does this get you in Angeles?

two bedroom townhouse with a shared swimming pool and 24 hours security guard. It cost 25k a month. Fully furnished.

But, I am hoping to find a place in Manila soon if I cannot find a place close to a nice beach with nice apartments and stable internet. If anyone has any recommendations then please PM me?

Being pullover is not really a problem, you just pay a bribe if you don't have all the right paperwork or if you did something wrong. But, if you don't do it then you will have to waste a whole day at LTO. However, it is pretty hard to actually be pulled over, I have been going 3 times the speed limit past control points, speeding past police cars etc without any problems. They are just strict on NLEX, in Clark and in Subic base.

I miss Mindoro I can recommand snorkeling on the beach there, but internet was really unstable when I was there in June, maybe just the place I stay at, I do not know. Do you play poker from there or full time bar operater?

I've been looking around a bit and found some studios that go for 25,000PH per month in Joya for 33m2, fully furnished. Is that a good deal and can anyone recommend living in Joya when someone is looking for high quality living area and living building?

pics?

I would say the price is right though

hey how's the internet in angeles city for multitabling? I do something like 20 tabling.

how would angeles city compare to makiti? in terms of safety.

I just arrived in manila today, will stay here till the 2nd and than travel for 3 weeks. I have some questions:
1. Any recommendations for new years?
2. I want to spend a few days on the beach after manila, just relaxing at day, getting drunk at night w/ locals & backpacker folks. What is the best location for this? I'm also interested in learning scuba diving.
3. I'm going to Macau afterwards and I'm thinking about buying a really nice suit. are the prices cheaper in manila or does a good suit cost everywhere the same?
4. Lemme know, if anyone wants to meet for a drink or something else. Would be cool to meet some fellow 2+2ers.

1) don't know
2) Batangas/Sabang/Boracay/Palawan depending on your budget and what you want.
3) The prices will be cheaper in Manila, quality will be higher in HK

I came out playing poker to live and I still do. But I would in no way call myself a pro. I've mainly played SNG in the past but they just bore me in all honesty. I enjoy playing MTT (mainly mixed games) but all the time i'm playing I'm thinking of other better things I could be doing over here.

Running a floating bar i'm kind of being paid to party and have a good time so its win win.

Internet- I'm lucky that I'm staying at my dads house and I can plug directly into the router. The problem with public wifi is that if someone decided to watch a youtube video then it hogs all the bandwidth and it makes it impossible. Also as its landline if its a hotel and they use the same landline as the phone everytime someone phones for a booking it cuts out.

There are a couple of places in sabang that If I get a brownout/cutout at home I can go down to and plug into there routers knowing the Internet is gong to be semi reliable.

I also exclusivly play on Stars because there software regarding disconections is so good.

I've also had to adapt my game a bit so if the internet is patchy then Instead of making a big bet I just go all in and not risk getting disco'd and losing my chips.

Also I've found that the worse time to play is from 16:00-midnight. Anyother times its usually quite good.

2- Get to Sabang. Its close a lot of tourists around at the moment and just a general good vibe at the moment. Its also a good scuba diving hub with alot of good shops and quite cheap.

I wouldn't dive in Batangas as Sabang is 45mins over the water. The diving in Boracay isn't that great from all accounts. Although for a beach resort its the absolute nuts. Palawan is another good option but unless your flying there then its going to take you a while to get there.

1 New years- from what i've heard about Manila most of the westerners and rich filipinos get the hell out of there and go to where there know best. Get down to Sabang and watch the place turn into a firework warzone.

PM me for more details

I do not know, I have played 6-7 tables at full tilt without problems before. Internet is probably better in Makati. I have feeling that the closer you get to Clark the better internet stability you get, the reason is that the call center businesses there need stability and speed. As backup I use prepaid smart bro which is fast to connect but way to slow for anything else than poker.

AC is probably at not as safe as Makati, but I have stayed here maybe 9 months over 2 years and I have never had any problems.

happy new year guys! somebody send me some facebook chips. pm me if u have some. looking for about 100k only...

Pretty much my exact sentiments.

The Philippines could be one of the greatest countries in the world purely by nature of their almost-universal English fluency. They could so easily be a spectacular success story; an Asian economic and military powerhouse bridging to the West.

But...they instead languor in abject poverty crippled by a self-induced Brain Drain under the watchful shepherding of the Catholic Church. A fine institution with a fine mission statement. Good people at the Vatican. Hearts of Gold. Actual Gold.

Hi Guys, I'm planning to take a very extended trip starting in SE Asia, ending in Western Europe (or maybe never ending, really). I'm really curious/concerned about setting up a bank account as a United States citizen. I want to avoid any delays, maximum transactions, and fees associated with moving money from poker sites->US bank->overseas bank account and try to get a Bank account and neteller set up if possible. I am/will be a poker pro as long as possible and would like to take full advantage of being out of the US.

In the US, I would advise someone to rent a place for a month, get a bank account, have all mail forwarded to a PO Box, and then travel their brains out. Is there any way to do this in Manila?

I can only speak for Philippines and Thailand but in Thailand, I don't think you can even get *any* form of bank account unless you have the right working visa. I had a 12 month non-resident visa and that was dismissed with a frustrated wave when I attempted to open a local bank account.

For Philippines, no bank would let me open an account without an ACR [not even a USD account] *except* for HSBC - with whom I seamlessly opened a PowerVantage USD account instantly upon arrival and presentation of proof of local address.

But when I tried to wire some money into that account - they snap-closed it for unofficially admitted "money laundering" concerns. Official line was "We are closing your account - pls collect the balance. No reason for closure."

A year later, I then opened an HSBC Premier Global account with even greater ease. Moved very large amounts through it with ease. But it was snap-closed one day about 7 months after I opened it. No reason given.

I haven't the slightest clue as to how banking works throughout the rest of the continent. I imagine every country will more or less be similar to the above two...the international banking industry places incredibly stringent restrictions on Asian banks [who I imagine haven't been able to negotiate from any position of 'strength' or 'advantage' post Asian Financial Crisis a decade or w/e ago....]

------

But it's a lot better than in Argentina. Banking in that country is the definition of Tilt. Countries that declare "bankruptcy" tend to deliver banking tilt for decades after such drastic WTF mismanagement / economic disaster....

thanks for the help so far, I have settled down in Borancay now. got some new problems now
I only have a visa till the 18th but my flight leaves at the 20th. whats the best way to deal with that?
I tried to get some money from moneybookers to stars, but apparently thats forbidden in this country. is there a way to bypass it?