Most bigger residential towers have backup power so your power never goes out. I haven't had a single brown out here so far. Had a few short internet outages but still very few (using Skycable).

Good idea, I know around 200 words after 1 year and I live with a filipina but I suck with languages.

Definitely have someone correct your pronunciation. When you learn a word, you have to know the syllable stress and whether or not there's a glottal stop, and this is not always in books. Small difference between asking for suka' (vinegar) and suka (vomit).

Rosetta Stone with Tagalog (there are 2 or 3 levels, maybe more now) will help a bunch.
You won't learn slang there nor good grammar or how to construct a sentence, though it helps a lot for most common words, sentences and pronunciation of those. I think it's a superb asset.

JammyD; a little bit of Tagalog is super powerful for picking up (hookers and) regular girls. And I'll throw in that Manila it'll vary a lot, say in Ayala area - reg girls working in malls etc will be more used to being hit on by foreigners - in less touristy areas you'll have massive success. For language, well...
I mean just in some situation in the store -"Seventy-five pesos, sir" and answer with "Talaagaaa???!" usually sets them off

Knowing language or otherwise having interest in culture will say a lot of good things about you regarding girls (and guys/people). Mostly they'll assume you've learned from some sort of GF or friends, which the fluffy top-hat guy with nailpolish and 7 wristwatches once said was great stuff

If you can't pick up hookers with English and pisos, somethings wrong.

^LOL well it just might lessen one of those requirements, who knows!

I definitely see how it could help with none hooker girls. I don't think hookers are going to care what language you speak, only how much money you've got. But whatever.

You're certainly right man, it was just a random throw into the post that shouldn't be there. On the side though, you can however game hookers around a bit with conversation for some reason. Dodge barfines, freebies, even set up a romantic date if for whatever reason someone would be interested in that. Some are looking for a more serious supplement to their work, others for "real" BFs/relationship etc. Breaking through their "working girl" persona can be interesting. Point is, no matter who you're talking to it can be fun and quite "+EV" to mess around with some tagalog

I'd say knowing basic Tagalog is a definite advantage when it comes to hookers. Having a vague idea what she is talking about either to her friend or on the phone can save you a lot of hassle + money.

It also lets them know that you have spent time in the Philippines and know how the "scene" works.

i used to work with some filipinos and this lady told me that i should tell filipino girls malakai ong titiko

so i told one and she said i told her she had a big dick

i guess i was supposed to say titimo instead of titiko or something

(i may have the right and wrong way to say it mixed up)

yep that line is definitely a good opener

Well some Filipino 'girls' would be very happy if you told them they had a big dick... probably not the Filipino girls your looking for though

Hey guys,

So I've found out where I'm going to be working. It will be in Alabang, muntinlupa city.

I obviously want to balance access to the night-life/city centre with being able to get to work, so a few questions.

1. There's what looks like a major highway running direct between makati and muntinlupa. Any estimate of how long it would take to get between the two, a) during rush hour and b) in the evening/late at night? Is the traffic along this road bad?

2. Anyone had experience of getting around by trains? There seems to be something called the PNR?

3. Anyone been to muntinlupa? What's it like? Would you live there?

4. General recomendations? Live in the centre and commute, live further out and deal with being cut off from the rest of the city? Live somewhere in between? Any where nice to live between muntinlupa and makati?

Definitely live as close to work as you possibly can. Get a car. Find a nice place in one of the nice subdivisions in the South (area encompassing Paranaque, Las Pinas, Alabang, etc) if you can afford it.

anyone have citibank? supposedly they have branches in the philippines, anyone know if they have ATMs around that wont charge for withdrawals?

I'm on a good UK salary and work will give me an accomodation allowance, not seeing cost as a major issue.

I'm looking on sulit now. It seems that condo's are much more expensive than houses? I.e. a small 1/2 bedroom condo will cost the same as a large 4 bedroom family house just down the road. Is that right?

I'd rather have a house I think, but not sure what I could do with four bedrooms! Any advice on the pros/cons?

/humblebrag

JammyDodga,

I lived in Alabang for a few months recently.

I'm going to assume you're actually working in Makati, not Alabang. Cuz it would make no sense to be working in a gated community whose only employer is the country club in the middle of it.

Not sure what the commute times are, but by Manila standards, it's not obscene. You can also pay a huge toll and take Skyway to commute. I think it's on the order of $3 each way.

I've never met anyone who got around by train. My impression is that they're for the masses--i.e., average poor people. I think they're also like the LA Subway. You can live in the city for 5 years without realizing it even exists (moi).

Muntinlupa's one of the nicer parts of Manila. Pretty new developments all around. Don't know exactly where Muntinlupa ends and where the next city begins, but Alabang and its immediate surroundings are much like an upscale suburban town in the US, except that the streets are narrower and there's a lot more traffic. Plenty of nice shops and stuff. Most of the nightlife is in Makati, though.

Besides Alabang, the other place I'd consider living if I had the money was near the airport across from terminal 3. Newport City, I believe the development is called. New, upscale condos, close to Makati, and close to the airport. You don't know how important that is.

If condos are more expensive than houses, there's probably something you're overlooking. There's no reason particular to Manila why that should be the case.

Why is close to the airport important?

Anyway, I am working in alabang - or close enough to it. Its a placed called Northgate - got a bunch of large companies there from what I can tell.

Re airport - I've been looking close to there but on the south side - lots of places in a development called merville. I've just been browsing but have fallen in love with a couple of places already. I cant wait to get out there!

This one in particular looks perfect

http://sulit.com.ph/4592175

The whole house vs condo thing... maybe I am missing something, but either way, I'm sold on getting a house rather than a condo. The idea of a garden and maybe even a pool is too much for this Londoner to pass up.

Well, part of the reason that condos might be more expensive than houses is that the Condo is far more likely to have a pool in the complex, not to mention Gym/other service facilities.

Having a garden seems nice until you realise that you will have to work in it in the stifling Manila heat or pay someone to take care of it for you. Same goes for a pool in your house. You clean it. If you live in a condo, they clean it.

But really the main reason that Condos are more likely to be more expensive than a house is that the Condos are built with western-quality fittings and fixtures, because they are mostly aimed at expats. The house on the other hand might not be as well-appointed regardless of it being bigger.

I dunno, looking at his photos, it seems alright. And pool boys don't cost much at all. Are you sure they're literally just down the road? Living in one gated community vs another could make a huge difference in price. Oh yeah, neighborhood security is a pretty big deal.

Re: airport, most foreigners that live there travel a lot. Don't know how much traveling you'll be doing. Most times, it's only annoying, but it's the frequent nightmare situations that make you hate the country as much as anything else. This is mostly a problem for people living on the other side of the city, though. If you're working near Alabang, living there is fine. Fairly easy access to the airport.

Oh, by the way, are you familiar with vehicle number coding? You can't drive your car in many parts of the city for one day of the week.

Do you drive? Would you recomend it? How cheap are taxis? Would a 20 minute twice daily commute by taxi be excessively expensive?

Wow. I did not expect this question. One of the questions I was going to ask you earlier was if you were going to have a driver. Ex-pat working at a proper firm, Alabang resident... It's pretty standard, actually.

Well, you're single so I figured you wouldn't have a driver, but I took the car for granted.

Your company's really throwing you in the pool hoping you'll float. I hope you're the adventurous type.

Haha, I am as it happens!

They provide allowance for car etc, and provide a local company who will sort it all out for me. I'm trying to get ahead of the game so I just don't wind up living in an apartment on top of the call center!

With car/driver I need to decide whether id rather take the cash or the benefit. Car would be nice, but from what I've heard, driving in manila is fairly hair raising, and a driver would be a bit weird for a 29 yr old single guy.

Living next to work isn't the most horrible idea in the world when you've had some experience with what traffic is like in South East Asia.

I'd get the driver. If you end up living in a Subdivision your chances of getting a taxi are going to be slim. I also wouldn't want to be turning up to work in a suit after a 20minute walk in 30 degree + weather.

Also means you won't have to deal with taxi drivers when your out drinking/seeing different parts of the city.