Hi Kai,

I haven't followed this thread in a while, been re-learning and plowing through the micros and just established at 50nl (which is high enough for SEA pro fwiw yet not desirable) so almost time to travel again!

To those worried about BF, I haven't really played in a year but really there must be like a poker boom in russia and eastern europe, there are many many fish on stars from what I see...this game never dies

I haven't checked my selvangivelse really if it says anything about it. I'll see what appears on it this year...

I opened an HSBC bank account first week I was there and continued using it. It required just some IDs and a PHP30K minimum deposit. I gave them a stars issued $5k check as well to open and it's really unlikely Norwegian authorities would get that info...
While in Manila, I played live in the beginning (internet was so poor I couldn't do my game at the time which was lots and lots of sngs) but playing live is sorta lame.
I've transfered a lot of money from my local bank account to my PI account, and it will be interesting to see whether or not this appears on the yearly financial report like you said

I do NOT tax nor have I ever. Last time I checked, and the laws are very vague...poker isn't taxable unless pots/prize/tournaments won do not exceed 10K NOK (approx 1600USD or so). I have won at most approx 15K usd in an MTT other than that it's SSNL and low/midstakes SNGs. Never heard anything.
When ever I have cashed out, I have done it in increments lower than 10K NOK, say if I wanted to withdraw 5K USD I did it like 1450,1500,1200,850 each with a couple days in between so it wouldn't be noticed or whatever. If even that makes sense.

I'm not great at being a poker pro though, when in Manila I mostly degen drink every day and do anything else but playing so my profits while there weren't a lot at all. Damn girls. Hopefully that changes. GL man

Paul B. : Why did you post that pic of devil in this thread with that girl? Not cool imo

Howzat Inn by a mile. 1350 a day. Free wifi, 24/7 bar/pub/resto downstairs. It's near P burgos just take a right by Ringside and walk for like 50m

As for makati/burgos value + quality hotels;

1) Howzat (1350)
2) Durban st Inn (1500)
3) Soho bel air (1800)

(weirdly the imo better are cheaper)

These are all great for bringing girls, and meeting girls fwiw if gogos are your thing.

You'll find cheaper and more expensive in the vicinity. As for outside of burgos, St Illians Inn is supposed to be alright. But you'll need a taxi from it mostly as from P.B. you can mostly walk to nearby POIs except that GB is maybe 20mins walk/p60 ride

Playtech/Ipoker have offices here in Manila, so they block all Philippine traffic. VPN I guess is your only chance, if that is an option and works.

Right, that would be why rest of asia is np then. If I get caught using VPN what the deal lose my roll for violating site rules ? Also are they safe as i have to do my banking on my phone as well. Sorry if these are stupid questions just have no idea about this stuff and kinda got way more on there than i want locked up till leave here.

Ty if anyone has any info ,

shea1000

what are the best sites to play other than stars? any others still have massive field tourneys?

and would it be better to buy a laptop in the US and bring it over or buy one in manilla?

It depends on what type of laptop you want.

Like if you're buying an HP, Asus, Dell, Acer, etc those western brand laptops, you should definitely buy it in the US as they will be more expensive in Manila.

If you need a generic alright laptop just for poker/HEM and simple stuff like watching videos and downloading stuff, I'd recommend you buy a pinoy branded laptop in the Philippines. You can get a brand new Neo laptop for like $300 and you can easily buy 2nd hand laptops for like $100

ya all i really use comp for is poker (or did), forums, watching tv online and porn so i think the cheaper ones over there should be fine

thanks man howzatt was full so i got durban

I would not advise walking from St. Illian's to Greenbelt, esp. if you go to Pasay Road the whole way. You will encounter some horrible smells. For the longest time there was an open sewer on Pasay road.

Not to mention Pasay is one of the poorer areas in the city. Some of it's streets are, literally, filled with homeless/semi homeless people, many in rags/very dirty and smelly. A sad sight for the eyes, and unfortunate for the nose as well.

If you want to experience Manila, the way most of the Filipinos experience it (hint: Greenbelt and most of Makati ain't the way it is for most Filipinos,) though, maybe you would want to go ahead and walk through that area after all.

Is it safe in these areas? I always like to see both sides of the story when I go to these places.

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time to get some girls in this thread

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guys which clubs/bars should i hit up in makati, would be good if i wasnt abused by the girls there. Imm looking for places where there are freelancers instead of paid girls.
By the way if any1 wants to meet up for a beer/coffee pm me, im in makati till monday.
Cheerios.

Hey guys. 24 yo Australian here looking to move to the Phillipines early next year. Just want a cheap cost of living and also live like a king while I work on my game and get a massive roll. Few questions.
1. Any problems with internet? I have heard both that its **** and that its OK but ease up on the redtube?????
2. What were your decisions about getting your PC over there? Did you buy a new setup there or just mail your from home? If you rebought, were you able to get what you wanted?
3. Any ideas of where to find a share house other then just posting on here?
4. If anyone works out what are the gyms like there and how do you get your supplements? I imagine just ordering online?
5. Are the live games still juicy? I've heard some interesting stories.
Thanks in advance for the responses and feel to PM me or add me on skype if you want to chat. karl.armstrong3

after someone in the thai thread told me how stiff the drug penalties are there i feel i need to ask here are they that bad in manilla also? i think someone already said but i cant seem to find it, but if u buy under an oz you arent gonna get locked up are you?

Here's the thing, it's hard for us to give you specific details about what would happen to you, as they would change based on the specific situation in which you came across the police and who that police officer was.

Things are so corrupt, and so up in the air in South East Asia, that you aren't going to run into too many cops doing it 'by the book' as to a certain extent, there really isn't any book in the first place.

You'll find that different police will do different things, at different times, depending on their mood, and the situation.

It's really kind of 'old west' in that part of the world, even today.

It's hard for us to give you any hard and fast rules.

That being said, if you did get caught with drugs, you'd better expect some **** to go down, don't expect to just be given a slap on the wrist. You may easily be able to negotiate some sort of bribe (money, or perhaps the drugs themselves, or both,) or they may decide to cart you off to jail. Who knows, if they are crafty and dickish enough, they might first get a bribe from you, and then still cart you off to jail.

But your main plan should be 'don't get caught' because unless you are in good with the cop, or a friend of the cop, some **** of some sort will definitely go down, there is no way they will just 'let you off' lightly.

^I've been at various stations and also in situations where they could rightfully **** me over if they wanted to. I have good experiences with most cops and even discussed the police corruption with them, it's rather inevitable that it happens. This is gonna vary a lot and there will definitely be shady police. I have only one negative experience when some cops in malate obviously had some sort of agenda that they pussied out from. About 70% of cops I've interacted with have been quite friendly and the others either cocky or somewhat condescending. I guess I ran well with them. Note this was unrelated to drugs but they could definitely have extorted me on a number of things.
Mostly they were like "you don't wanna spend the night here...it's pretty bad".

They're not gonna do much for you either tho. Something gets stolen from you they don't give a **** probably even if you had the thief with you. They'd be like "just talk it over, it's probably a misunderstanding". lol

GL stay clear of risky situations, get weed through friends and do it in private

1 ounce = 28.3495231 grams

If caught in Phil and convicted, most probable sentence is at least life imprisonment because punishment is ridiculous relative to the amount.

Section 11. Possession of Dangerous Drugs. - The penalty of life imprisonment to death and a fine ranging from Five hundred thousand pesos (P500,000.00) to Ten million pesos (P10,000,000.00) shall be imposed upon any person, who, unless authorized by law, shall possess any dangerous drug in the following quantities, regardless of the degree of purity thereof:

(1) 10 grams or more of opium;

(2) 10 grams or more of morphine;

(3) 10 grams or more of heroin;

(4) 10 grams or more of cocaine or cocaine hydrochloride;

(5) 50 grams or more of methamphetamine hydrochloride or "shabu";

(6) 10 grams or more of marijuana resin or marijuana resin oil;

(7) 500 grams or more of marijuana; and

(8) 10 grams or more of other dangerous drugs such as, but not limited to, methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDA) or "ecstasy", paramethoxyamphetamine (PMA), trimethoxyamphetamine (TMA), lysergic acid diethylamine (LSD), gamma hydroxyamphetamine (GHB), and those similarly designed or newly introduced drugs and their derivatives, without having any therapeutic value or if the quantity possessed is far beyond therapeutic requirements, as determined and promulgated by the Board in accordance to Section 93, Article XI of this Act.

http://www.lawphil.net/statutes/repa...9165_2002.html

so that link says as long as i have less than 300 grams on me (which i would never have more than 14 or so) i wont get a 12 year prison sentence, lol

it really doesnt mention anything for smaller amounts


a couple other quick questions, how do you get your money over there? i wouldnt really want to travel with my entire net worth, and do they take a percent if you transfer it or just a set fee?

and if taking a train in manilla is it going to be like those super packed no room to move scenarios like u always see on tv with azn people jammed into them?

So for the amount posted, the sentence is LIFE IN PRISON, as in the rest of your life, and you're still asking about getting caught with smaller amounts.

I gave you the, likely, best case scenario for getting caught with any amount, in my last post. You would probably either have to pay a bribe, or do some time in jail. Depending on what cop catches you.

A slap on the wrist only? Don't expect it with even the smallest amount, unless you get very lucky.

Your going to be ****ed 99% of the time.

By ****ed i mean you either going to have to pay a big ****ing fine or your going to be facing Jail time.

I think they are more tolerant to drugs in Thailand you should try there first.

hmmm thailand thread says possession of any amount is a 5 year prison sentence, and they also said they sometimes randomly drug test at clubs and u can get a year for just testing positive.... so thailand is out

and ITT 500 grams is quite a bit and there is a huge difference between that and getting caught with a joint, im sure it wouldnt be a pleasant experience but im just wondering if its gonna be a 1 night stay or months, as that is a huge difference as well

Sorry I did not paste the complete section 11 because I thought that it would make the thread too long, and I guess you could extrapolate from the first part that the PUNISHMENT IS EXAGGERATED, but it seems that I must paste it anyway.

Minimum sentence in Philippines is 12 YEARS and 1 day for drug possession for the most minute amount. Like I said, most probable sentence you get is LIFE IMPRISONMENT because of the grey area "regardless of the degree of purity thereof". The fine is ADDED on top of the prison term, which would be probably the last thing on your mind after having a guilty verdict. (see the last paragraph)

Section 11. Possession of Dangerous Drugs. - The penalty of life imprisonment to death and a fine ranging from Five hundred thousand pesos (P500,000.00) to Ten million pesos (P10,000,000.00) shall be imposed upon any person, who, unless authorized by law, shall possess any dangerous drug in the following quantities, regardless of the degree of purity thereof:

(1) 10 grams or more of opium;

(2) 10 grams or more of morphine;

(3) 10 grams or more of heroin;

(4) 10 grams or more of cocaine or cocaine hydrochloride;

(5) 50 grams or more of methamphetamine hydrochloride or "shabu";

(6) 10 grams or more of marijuana resin or marijuana resin oil;

(7) 500 grams or more of marijuana; and

(8) 10 grams or more of other dangerous drugs such as, but not limited to, methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDA) or "ecstasy", paramethoxyamphetamine (PMA), trimethoxyamphetamine (TMA), lysergic acid diethylamine (LSD), gamma hydroxyamphetamine (GHB), and those similarly designed or newly introduced drugs and their derivatives, without having any therapeutic value or if the quantity possessed is far beyond therapeutic requirements, as determined and promulgated by the Board in accordance to Section 93, Article XI of this Act.

Otherwise, if the quantity involved is less than the foregoing quantities, the penalties shall be graduated as follows:

(1) Life imprisonment and a fine ranging from Four hundred thousand pesos (P400,000.00) to Five hundred thousand pesos (P500,000.00), if the quantity of methamphetamine hydrochloride or "shabu" is ten (10) grams or more but less than fifty (50) grams;

(2) Imprisonment of twenty (20) years and one (1) day to life imprisonment and a fine ranging from Four hundred thousand pesos (P400,000.00) to Five hundred thousand pesos (P500,000.00), if the quantities of dangerous drugs are five (5) grams or more but less than ten (10) grams of opium, morphine, heroin, cocaine or cocaine hydrochloride, marijuana resin or marijuana resin oil, methamphetamine hydrochloride or "shabu", or other dangerous drugs such as, but not limited to, MDMA or "ecstasy", PMA, TMA, LSD, GHB, and those similarly designed or newly introduced drugs and their derivatives, without having any therapeutic value or if the quantity possessed is far beyond therapeutic requirements; or three hundred (300) grams or more but less than five (hundred) 500) grams of marijuana; and

(3) Imprisonment of twelve (12) years and one (1) day to twenty (20) years and a fine ranging from Three hundred thousand pesos (P300,000.00) to Four hundred thousand pesos (P400,000.00), if the quantities of dangerous drugs are less than five (5) grams of opium, morphine, heroin, cocaine or cocaine hydrochloride, marijuana resin or marijuana resin oil, methamphetamine hydrochloride or "shabu", or other dangerous drugs such as, but not limited to, MDMA or "ecstasy", PMA, TMA, LSD, GHB, and those similarly designed or newly introduced drugs and their derivatives, without having any therapeutic value or if the quantity possessed is far beyond therapeutic requirements; or less than three hundred (300) grams of marijuana.



So there is only 1 rule. DONT GET CAUGHT.