Back to the Philippines

And the Househunting Begins

mixxy — Sat, 11 Jul 2009 00:06:14 +0000

We are now in the middle of a big househunt. We are still looking for a new place to rent. We are not yet in that stage that we can buy a house but we are also not satisfied with living in a condo apartment right next to the big old EDSA.

Last week, we almost signed up on a lease. We found a nice and spacious house with a nice view of Eastwood and Antipolo and is on a high elevation, about 15 minutes by car from our office. It is located inside a well-secured and relatively posh subdivision. We thought we were getting a good deal but one day before signing up, the deal went off. We kind of chickened out! Here’s why:

we didn’t like the landlady, she was extremely arrogant and sometimes way too defensive to say the least and we felt kind of pressured to sign the lease quickly because she claimed that there was another family willing to pay 10,000 more than what she’s offering us. Of course, she says she likes us because we were just a couple compared to the other one which is a big family complete with elderly inlaws.
we showed the contract to a friend and we felt that 3 months deposit is just too much. The normal was only 2 months advance / 2 months deposit. To say the least, we were not comfortable with the whole agreement.
my cousin made us realize we are a bit crazy to consider the idea of living in a 6 bedroom house with just the two of us. it’s just not that simple! reality hit us and we saw the light. And she said, there are a lot of choices around the area and it is not a good idea to do this hastily. Also, on a lighter note, she warned us to check if someone recently died in that house or is known to be haunted.. hehe you’ll never know if the house comes with someone from the “other side” watching it day and night. Brrr!
we became a bit suspicious that she’s hiding something from us that’s why she’s in a hurry

We already saw a lot of houses. We are quite surprised at the variety of ugly, old, dingy houses at the price range we are in. Some houses did not even look livable but they said that someone just left it a week ago and it was even a Doctor. Maybe it was Dr. Frankenstein that lived there who knows. It’s really really sad what tenants do to houses they don’t own and is equally sad how the owners don’t even care to clean up the mess, and touch it up before showing it to prospective renters. There was even a townhouse where dead bugs were scattered all over the place! One of the landlords wanted someone to signup and put up a deposit before they fix the house. I say, forget it!

Not all houses were bad. However, only about 2 out of 10 seems to be in acceptable condition. There were brand new ones where we would be the first renters. The monthly rent, of course was on the higher end of our budget.

This afternoon, it’s househunting time again. I have a big list of houses to visit and hopefully I won’t mess up the appointments

Thinking of Moving

mixxy — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 11:06:04 +0000

Well, I just wanted to share some of our little issues with the office lately as well as our apartment. Right now, we have decided to look for a new place. We prefer something far from the main (read: polluted) roads and not on a high-rise apartment complex. We still want to stay within the vicinity though. The past few days, we have also been dealing with leaks in our office. It has gone to the point where the ceiling has holes now from the water damage. The administration here is not very helpful. They have only come here to repair one Saturday and didn’t finish the work. Today, something equally bad happened: airconditioner stopped cooling. When we called the engineering of our building they first told us that they will check from the outside. After a few hours we tried to follow up on them and this time they said that it is not anymore their responsibility (!!). At this point, we just called our local partner who usually deals with stuff like these. Tomorrow, the owner of the office unit will be sending someone to deal with it. Let’s see what happens next.
We have cancelled our plans to put partitions due to the fact that we no longer see ourselves staying here next year if not earlier. We are pretty sure by now we won’t be renewing the lease.

With regards to the work, MrC’s team is on a crunch time now. They even had to do overtime last weekend. So, it’s really quite sad that while everyone had to work a little extra hard these days.. the facilities are not working so well.

It’s hard to deny that the pollution is bothering us a bit. We have put a 3M filter and it turns black after one week. We also have an ionizer/air purifier that also turns black after a couple of days. It seems that our patience is running out also with regards to our apartment. We need a bit of order and breathing room and looks like the place just isn’t something we see ourselves staying for more than 6 months.

Comelec goes High Tech

mixxy — Sat, 06 Jun 2009 01:58:21 +0000

This week, I went to the Commission on Elections to register as a voter. The last time I voted was in the 90’s, the one that eventually elected President Ramos. I think I was still in college. It was my first time to vote so I was quite excited. Flashback to 14 or so years. I left the country and missed out in all the political “circus” that happened for the last 14 or so years. I was not there when Mr. Estrada was elected. I am really sorry for missing out on what was happening back home. I had no idea that there was such a thing as “Absentee Voting”. Anyways, I was probably just apathetic. Anyways, now that I am back and having reacquired my Filipino citizenship, I felt again excited to vote in the 2010 election. It’s like being 18 again.

I went to the City Hall and ask around where I could register as a voter. The Comelec office was right at the back of the older building which was in front of the new and shiny Municipal building. I was hoping that I could just reactivate or transfer my registration but after failing to retrieve my records from their computer he just decided that I start with a new application. He gave me 3 pages of application form which was actually 1 with 2 copies. While filling up the form outside in a makeshift covered booth I saw that there were some information that I needed and I didn’t have it at that time (I needed the certificate number of my dual citizenship and the date reacquired). I decided to just continue filling up the application at home.

The next day, I went back and submitted my form. The officer told me to sign the form and give it to the second table. After a few minutes, my name was called and I was asked to take my seat on what I would now call the high-tech zone. I was impressed to see that now they have the new high-tech way of capturing fingerprints. They now have biometric capturing devices and the form I filled up was re-entered by the other officer into their registration database. It was all organized. There were clear instructions posted: they had made labels for each fingers so that if the officer said 1,2,3 you know which fingers to press into the biometric reader. After that I sat in front of him and he took a picture of me with a digital camera and they also captured my signature electronically. After this, I was asked to photocopy my drivers license and include it with my application form submitted to the officer on the last table.. Overall, I spent around 30 minutes there. I would have been totally impressed by now had he not said that my voters id will be available “anytime before the May 2010 elections”. Huh!?

Tracking down Philippine GPS Devices

mixxy — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 01:44:52 +0000

This weekend, after googling about “GPS Devices in the Philippines” I came across several good leads. The first one was the article from Yugatech and it revealed a new GPS device called AVT 800. It uses a very good map provider called Accu-map. We are already familiar and quite satisfied with this map provider, their Metro Manila map booklet is highly recommended for everyone. I also read in their website that they update the map regularly for free on the first (?) year and then for a fee afterwards. Please consult the website for more details. I called several numbers of their authorized dealers most if not all of them were auto dealerships. I called the ones that were nearby. The website says the list price is 18,500 PHP but Toyota Shaw gave me a quote of 22,000 and could not give me any good reason why their price is much higher. I called other Dealers, one of them had it at the correct listed price but it was in the Araneta branch. They could get it for me by Monday if I choose to order.

Second Google find was a website called Car-Navi.ph I still have to verify if this site is not a hoax. All they say is that it is now available but I couldn’t find any information on how I could order. The device also do not have a model or brand name.

The third and last find was someone mentioning that Garmin sold in V-mall had already Philippine map in it. We went to V-mall last Sunday and only found one store called Infomax but they didn’t have a car navigation device. They couldn’t say at all if and ever they would have one in stock at all. So, I am still not sure now if I would still pursue the Garmin device. I hope someone could give me any info on where I could buy this here in the Philippines. I could still wait for a few months though and just buy it in the US when I visit in October but I think we can’t wait that long.

So for now, it looks like we’ll have to wait and see. The search continues.

Six Months in the Philippines Update

mixxy — Fri, 29 May 2009 03:45:59 +0000

We are now here for almost six months. Time flew by so fast — it felt like a roller coaster ride. Here is an update of our life here in the Philippines:

We arrived on the first week of December last year and moved in directly to our two bedroom apartment in Mandaluyong my mom found for us. We reconnected with the people we met during our first trip. We visited my relatives over in Cebu and attended a wedding and also my relatives in Quezon City. We were also invited to a company Christmas party by the beach by the Dutch businessman we met in September who eventually provided us with a lot of hospitality during our stay here. Later on, our personal effects arrived here but we had to wrestle and play phone tag with the customs brokers to get it all done. In the end, we spent a great deal of money and trips to North harbor just get it delivered right into our apartment. We got them all now.

We started getting Globe broadband internet at home after one week of waiting. Meanwhile, I was still unsure of what I am supposed to do here. It was a confusing time for me. My feelings about our move here were still mixed. I explored various options. At the same time I also considered it my Sabbatical.

In January, we visited Baguio. The weather was perfect. I explored the city a bit was impressed by the amount of parks that are still there and well maintained. However, the city somehow lost its “charm” and “magic” that I had in my childhood memories of summer visits with my family. Maybe part of it is the worsening air pollution and the scent of pine was not anymore there. The pine trees are definitely much much less now than 25 years ago.

For my birthday, we also visited Kyoto for a long weekend.

A few more days .. and then next thing you know, we were at the brink of a major business deal with MrC’s clients. And in a few days, we spent time, looking for office spaces and finalizing our deal with the Dutch businessman who would later provide us with our first team here of programmers. We had our official office blessing in March and MrC’s father and business partner came all the way from Amsterdam to visit us. I am glad that during this time, my role in the company is now more clearly defined.

I spent a great deal of time with MrC’s father showing him various places here in Metro Manila. We also had a big adventure right at the crater of Taal volcano. That was indeed something we wouldn’t forget. We also went to Subic and drove through the scenic SCTEX highway. I tell you, that 30 minute stretch of highway westward to Subic has beautiful scenery both sides of the highway that would rival any scenic highway in the world. I am not exaggerating. I am very much convinced that the Philippines is really BEAUTIFUL and BLESSED with natural wonders. There are many places that one still has to discover. And also, that Philippines IS NOT MANILA. Many people outright judge our country by what they see in Manila but Manila is just its major city and but a speck compared to many other places in the Philippines. Our decision to stay in Manila is really mostly driven by business alone ;-).

For example when I was in Santorini, Greece in 2006, I thought .. hmm.. why do I have this feeling that I have seen this before. Think Taal volcano. Also, Subic or SBMA is also quite nice, it is somewhat like “Little America”. I think this is worthy of its own blog entry.

In April, we traveled back to Amsterdam. According to MrC, it was just a business trip. He was right. We were never relaxed and rested there. We had to go and see people, and in between work. At least I was able to spend few days in London by myself! But during this whole 3 week stay my feelings about the Philippines have been more clear. I want to be back here, in the Philippines and life in the Netherlands is certainly over for both of us. MrC shared the same sentiment. I also realize how nice and easy our life here now compared to there. Ok, we admit, we got spoiled here. We have someone coming over here once a week to cook delicious food for us and on other days we have someone come over and do housecleaning. Our laundry is also picked up and delivered to us. All for much much less than what we pay our cleaning lady in Amsterdam who comes 3x a week (combined). We go out and have dinner or lunch as much as we want but we still prefer our homecooked meals most of the time anyways. The amount we pay for an Indonesian or Chinese takeout in Amsterdam will buy both of us a meal at a fine dining restaurant here. A 5 star hotel buffet costs the same or less as a Wok buffet in Hoofddorp. A movie theater ticket costs 2 Euros. And I haven’t told you yet about the pirated DVD’s … hehe.. that’s a secret!

I’ve been working almost daily now since we came back. We work Dutch time which means between 2pm to 11pm. It wasn’t hard after coming back from Amsterdam due to the jet lag.

And by the way, we had a nice dinner with our team a few weeks ago and we commend them for their outstanding work. Our clients are very happy and pleasantly surprised at how we are pro-actively dealing with their issues. Business is good then. MrC is working really hard and it’s getting to be too much for him — I could see it. It’s time that we take a break so we stayed in a nice resort in Subic by the bay just doing NOTHING. However, going back It’s kind of getting hard again for me to work late nights.

This week, we finally gave in and purchased a brand new car. We also hired a driver, who was referred by our business partner. We know the guy already coz he also drove us before using our Dutch business partner’s car. He’s probably starting next week. Geez.. if this is a dream I don’t wanna wake up

A Showcase of Filipino Talent

mixxy — Wed, 06 May 2009 02:52:23 +0000

This week, I saw Filipino Talent showcased right before me. I want to admit that I am quite late catching on the Pacquiao fever so what I did was to orient myself a bit on his background. I went online and read and found videos. There I witnessed the 4-part documentary of Pacquiao and Hatton’s training and saw each boxer’s character showing through the documentary. Hatton’s (and his trainer’s) flamboyant, colorful persona which locally, people would find a bit like a “show-off” or cocky, is so much in contrast with the professionalism, focus and humble demeanor of Pacquiao’s team. You can see that they were dedicated and serious right from the start. You can see that the talent is there, and that there is mutual respect in both parties and most of all I hear repeatedly how his trainer tells that Pacquiao is trainable — he listens to his coach, gets what his saying and delivers! Pacquiao is also very spiritual and full of Faith in God, as most Filipinos are. As I’ve seen his victory in the last match, I wasn’t so surprised. In the boxing arena, Pacquiao is “made”. He is ripe and he doesn’t come cheap — With only like 5 minutes he earned 20 Million dollars. Talk about ultra - high hourly rate!

MrC and I have been interviewing several candidates for our .net Team and I’m somehow exhausted but at the same time delighted to know how good and talented the programmers we have been seeing so far. All of them are low-key, honest to goodness professionals in their field who know their thing. And, I am also somehow relieved that their salaries are on the higher end of the scale here (I have the same skill-set and that’s something good to know in case I actually need to get a job locally). The only difference that MrC is looking for is someone who is really self-driven, meaning someone who likes to learn new things by himself at home, out of pure geeky interest. Not merely seeing the job as a money making venture but an obsession to learn the technology.. ok ok that’s too much I guess to ask. But actually, for me I am already having a hard time choosing myself. It’s really hard to predict if someone will like the work or stay long in the job, and even better know how to get things done the right way and not get stressed about it. But one thing I am really happy to see is that, Filipino workers are talented, highly trainable, but also full of hope. You see it in our smiles.

Once Again Back in the Philippines

mixxy — Sat, 02 May 2009 04:33:23 +0000

Sorry for being quiet the past few weeks but it has been very hectic. By the end of March, MrC’s father was already here visiting so I was busy showing him around (that is another blog-worthy post in itself). And at the same time, we had one special day where the office was blessed by a priest. The same day MrC was also asked to become a ninong or godfather in the baptism of a local Dutch colleague.
MrC’s business partner also arrived on that same week as well! The week after that MrC and I flew to Amsterdam and stayed there for 3 weeks. We arrived in the middle of Spring, lots of sun, sounds of birds tweeting and the scent of flowers. The whole 3 weeks was so busy it flew by so fast. I was also able to spend a weekend in London as well. I hope to blog about the trip in detail in my travel/photography blog.
We just arrived a week ago and I started working a few days after. I am still jet lagged and have a bad cold.

We are definitely relieved to be back here once more! I don’t know, it just feels so good to be back home :-).

Intramuros via Pasig River Ferry

mixxy — Wed, 25 Mar 2009 12:01:28 +0000

My father in law arrived last weekend and today we planned on taking him to see old Manila, right at Intramuros. Being the expected tour guide, I did a bit of research on how to approach this day tour. Since we live in Mandaluyong, I have decided to have a combined Pasig River Ferry “tour” with Intramuros tour. And it went pretty well.

First, we took a cab to the Guadalupe Ferry station which was about a 15 minute ride. We were lucky that we made it to the 11 am trip. I asked one of the guards where we should go and he asked me to take a seat in the waiting area. After a few minutes of waiting, the boat arrived. It was pretty easy to get in and we were assisted by the staff while getting in.
It was a full boat. We were able to get seats with tables sharing with a young lady.
The white boat seemed quite easy to navigate. It almost felt like being just in a bus. The driver of the ferry can easily maneuver back, front, and diagonally. It was impressive.

The river had of course the odor but I noticed that the color is now more like green instead of the coffee light brown color that I read from another blog entry posted a few years or months ago. This is quite a good sign indeed.
It was really a nice and very interesting ride seeing Metro Manila from the river. We saw the houses, buildings, old factories, children playing under the bridge. I really recommend this trip. We are planning to use this again when our other guest from Holland arrives next week.

We got off at the last stop, which is Intramuros (Plaza Mexico). Walking a bit we saw that we were actually at the back of the Bureau of Immigration building. We were there a few months ago but never realized how close we were to the Ferry station. We were clueless how to get to Fort Santiago so after failing to get a cab for a few tries we decided to ask the friendly lady guards of the Plaza Mexico station how to get there.

They urged us to take any of the jeepneys as it may be inconvenient to walk. I believed them so I brought my two guests and called a jeep and asked the driver to stop for us at Fort Santiago, exactly as what the lady guards suggested. I hit my head on the ceiling of the jeepney, as expected my father in law also did ;-). Anyways, it was easier than we expected. We were got off just in front of the sign that says “Fort Santiago”.

It was already noontime so we decided to find a place to drink and eat. After walking a few minutes we stopped at a busy corner with a Chowking. Looking to the left I saw a sign for a restaurant — Marso. My instinct told me we should try that restaurant. I am glad we did. It was not a big place but it was quiet and the waiters were responsive. MrC and I got bottomless iced tea which they promptly refilled even before we emptied our glasses. My father in law ordered calamansi juice, it was his first time to try it. He liked it. For our meal, I first ordered a bangus fillet breakfast but they were ran out of it so I had corned beef breakfast instead. My father in law, who only eats fish and vegetables ordered the sauteed bean sprouts and mushroom omelet. MrC ordered a club house sandwich and shared the sauteed bean sprouts with his Dad. After that we went straight to the entrance of Fort Santiago.

Before we even reached the entrance, calesa ride owners have already started offering their services. We first went to the entrance. The ride included a tour guide as well and includes also a tour of the walled city. The fee was 1000. We then paid the entrance fee and accepted their offer. We went through the Rizal Shrine and then afterwards a short tour of the Walled City and the different buildings there such as the Manila Cathedral, Palacio Gobernador, the nuns convent, and ended up in a craft store. By the time we were at the nuns convent, going down I didn’t feel well so we took a rest and I asked one of the old Spanish uniformed guards to buy me bottled water before I really faint. I was a bit scared of that. The tour guide, to our surprise also had other talents. He could also play the piano! Two songs after, we took photos with the guard and gave him a tip. After this, we were taken to the craft store that was in front of Fort Santiago. My father in law found a nice bottle of Coconut oil food supplement which he was mentioning a day before so I am glad he found it there. The tag price was 300 pesos but the lady gave it to him for 150. After this, we asked for their assistance to get us a taxi cab. The ride home from there was also very nice as we saw places like Mendiola, Malacanang, Ayala Bridge and part of Shaw Boulevard which we rarely ever get to see.

Overall, I totally recommend this trip!

I got my Philippine Drivers License in Half a Day

mixxy — Tue, 17 Mar 2009 07:04:03 +0000

Today, I decided to apply for a drivers license. At first, I was planning to go to the Santolan Licensing Office but when I asked the taxi driver he was not so sure how to find it. It was good that he knew how to get to the East Avenue (Main) Office of the LTO so that is where I ended up. I arrived there at around 9AM in the midst of a very gray and rainy morning. As soon as I got off the taxi someone with an umbrella was planning to escort me. He insisted that I should first go on the other side of the road instead of the Entrance. My first instinct was to ignore them so I just ran towards the entrance. The guard told me to go to Window 14. Because it was really raining so badly I was glad to find that they had covered walkways all throughout.
The main building , where Window 14 is located is the first blue building you would see after walking through their catwalk. At the entrance, one would probably get confused if it was a chapel or the main hall. But it was both. The chapel was smack right in the middle of the main hall and at the other end of it you would find Window 14 where you would see several people sitting in light blue chairs. At that time, (only) less than 50 people were seated there.

I told the guy at Window 14 I had a foreign license I wanted to convert into a Philippine license and that I had gotten married since and changed my name. I was ready with my marriage license and passport. He then gave me an application form and told me to get my medical clearance and drug test. And guess where that was — right across the street. So now I understand that the “escorts” who mobbed me in front of LTO worked for these drug test and medical clinics.

Later on, I realized I would rely a big deal on the “escorts”, first of all to help me cross that extremely busy street called East Avenue and shielding me from the rain. In the end, I felt sort of cared for. It felt half dodgy but somehow, I also felt that it will be alright, even as I followed them towards the seedy narrow walkways where left and right are small makeshift offices that provide many kinds of services which include notary publics, photocopying, medical clearances, drug tests.. Maybe even snacks! A lot of other applicants were also there so I felt that it was pretty legit. I asked for their fees: it was 400 pesos for both the urinalysis for the drug test and the medical exam. They first asked for my foreign drivers license because they had to use it to enter data into their computer system. They told me this was part of the process. And so I gave them my license. It didn’t feel that wrong since others were also giving their license. I then paid for the fee and they gave me a number. When my number was called I was given the plastic cup and was taken to the toilet. Luckily I was able to collect just enough to fill the cup. Next was the medical exam. I had a vision test. I told them immediately that I wore glasses and that I unfortunately forgot to bring them. They said it was ok. They would just note that I had to wear glasses. After that, they took my blood pressure. It was quite on the high side but it seemed not bad enough to fail so they just told me to lose weight. In short, I passed the medical exam. Whew! I thanked the doctor and then went back with my “escort”. She helped me cross the street.

While walking, some other men offered to “fix” my license. They said the lines were long. I told them the lines were pretty short today. I thanked both of them and proceeded to go back to Window 14. Later on, I found out I had to still photocopy (when will I ever learn to PHOTOCOPY before going) my passport and foreign drivers license. It was good that there was one at the back. 8 pesos later, I had my photocopied documents submitted. I was given a number. All it takes now is to wait for my number to show up on the display. Not long after, I saw my number and then I was asked to have my picture and signature taken. After that, I waited for my name to be called, this time it was the cashier and so paid some 600+ pesos. After sometime, I was called again to get another photo and signature. And then, not long after that I was finally called the final time to pick up the license card. It was nevertheless anticlimactic. I couldn’t believe it was all finished. I had my card in my hand. What else is there to do (buy a car!)? I sat in the chapel and paid my respect and gratitude to the Lord and went back home. I arrived home before 12 noon.

Opening Day

mixxy — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 10:08:57 +0000

Today is the first day of work for our Philippine team. Unfortunately, the desks and internet were still not yet available so temporarily we are now using the office of our local partner close by. The chairs and the PC’s had to be moved from the new office. During the weekend, one of our team members prepared and installed the PC’s.
While I am writing this, our day has not yet ended since we started working at around 2:30pm today. It started with them setting up their accounts, logon details, installing tools and MrC providing all the information. Next, MrC gave his overview of the whole project during the kickoff meeting. There were pretty good questions from the team which led to meaningful discussions about the system. This was followed by a demo of the current system of one of the team members. Last week he has already been briefed about his tasks so everything was well prepared.
Overall, it went quite well. We are scheduled to start on the new office next week and then early April we will have our office blessing. I also just heard that the Globe phone lines and DSL will be ready tomorrow. The aircon is also functional now.
Oh and by the way, MrC’s father and business partner will be coming over in a few weeks.

Kennon Road

mixxy — Sun, 15 Mar 2009 04:37:51 +0000

Last January, we were in Baguio for a short trip. MrC was able to video the whole scenic stretch of Kennon Road coming down from Baguio. To everyone who is not familiar with Kennon Road, this is the most scenic winding road to take if you are going Baguio. There are other alternative roads which are safer and easier to drive but this has got to be the road that is part of many childhood memories for me and for others. According to history, this was a landmark construction effort led by Col. Lyman Kennon along with highly skilled Japanese, American and Filipino builders. The road was completed in 1905. I am sure you would like this video. Enjoy!

Preparations for the Opening of the Office

mixxy — Fri, 13 Mar 2009 05:24:21 +0000

This week the final preparations are being done before we start with the whole team:

* Desks have been ordered
* Computers have arrived
* Office Chairs have arrived
* Planning for the next 6 weeks (until the end of April)
* Preparing the team and making sure they understand the existing system
* Systems and infrastructure organization

MrC is busy and under pressure to say the least. He works from 9:30 am to 2 am, almost non-stop (except when he eats or is sitting in the taxi). But at the end of April we expect that when everything is running smoothly there is little need to be totally hands-on.

Several issues come to our attention: The aircon in our office is leaking (!!), so the owner was there to fix it. However when I checked out the office there was no sign of them there. I am still trying to contact them as of now. Her phone seems to be not working or able to accept calls.

Monday we will start probably in the small office of our business partner nearby, because we do not have internet yet. The provider Globe lost our application and carrier PLDT is still checking out the building in order to see whether they have available lines.

But despite the pressure, we are happy to see that in just 1 and a half month we were able to setup the team of 5 from the ground up, found and leased an office and ordered all the trimmings. That is indeed something!

Buying a House and Lot versus a Condo

mixxy — Wed, 04 Mar 2009 03:18:28 +0000

I am still debating in my mind whether it makes sense to buy a house or a condo. Both has its pros and cons. Here’s a quick list I made up.

House and Lot:

Pros:

SPACE, OPEN SPACES!
You can live away from the city where there is fresh air
Your can have a garden
Use your backyard for anything you want
The property will still be there after a long long time
You can have pets
You can freely modify your house and surroundings without the need for approval or compromise with neighbors

Cons:

You need to commute to work everyday (which translates to fuel, car payments or public transportation expense)
Risk of theft and petty crime due to unreliable security system
It is not practical to leave it without a caretaker
High maintenance bills
Can feel too big for only 2 people to live in

Condo:

Pros:

Security
Usually close to work, entertainment, school and shopping
Maintenance is shared among the occupants
You usually can easily leave the condo for longer period of time without any worries

Con:

You don’t know how long the building will stand and how much it will be refurbished or maintained
Earthquake and fire
You have to be sure your property management company maintains the condo well otherwise, the place will eventually look worn and shabby
Values do not appreciate well unless you are in a great location and with good developer/property management company
You have to pay Association dues monthly — and they are not cheap!

Let’s show a good example of this comparison. Looking at classified ads, with a hypothetical 4 to 6 million budget we can either buy:
170 sqm 2 floor, 3 BR Quezon City Residential townhouse

100+ sqm 3 bedroom brand new condominium unit in Dansalan Gardens (we are not being paid to advertise but yes we saw this property and it was quite impressive)

122 sqm 3 bedroom, 5+ years old condominium in Pioneer Mandaluyong

210 sqm house and lot, 2 storey 3 bedrooms in Quezon City

350+ sqm LOT in Alabang (and build your own house)

220 sqm 3 BR+DEN, 4 T&B, maid’s rm w/ t&b newly renovated good as new house and lot in BF Homes Paranaque

294 sqm Foreclosed house and lot in Alabang (San Jose Subdivision)

Of course, there are many many ways one can spend 4 to 6 million pesos, like for example going farther north or farther south to buy a lot. You will definitely spend less but I am just trying to anticipate the type of properties people that have this budget might be interested in. Feel free to share any suggestions.

Freedom is a double edged sword

mixxy — Fri, 27 Feb 2009 04:34:31 +0000

Warning: Explicit Nagging and Ranting may be found in this posting.

I would be a hypocrite to admit that I am all happy happy joy joy during these days. But the truth is, I may be experiencing some sort of reverse culture shock. In a way, I am quite shocked to realize that I have not totally embraced the idea of living my life here permanently. First of all, the biggest thing I am having a hard time getting used to is finding out what I really want and what my role is in MrC’s business. From time to time, I get into a mini-panic mode that I am totally f#$% up in my career so to speak. My usual default is to find a job but somehow this is no longer practical for me. In short, I am very confused now about what the hell I am doing in this country. My first instinct is to go back to the States where I could be with people I know and somehow be in a sort of system which I have come accustomed to. I like the freedom and independence there, and also having simple stuff that works like HOT water, electricity, plumbing– things like that. When I say independence, I also mean financial independence, earning something that I know comes from my own efforts. I definitely do not want to be a housewife (not that there is anything wrong with it) but it’s just NOT ME and I do not ever dream of being one. I sometimes worry about not having a career (whatever that means).

On the lighter side, I would also miss spring!

However, this situation I am in is a double-edged sword. On the other hand, I am in a place where starting a business needs so much less capital I know I can start up things with much less risk. However, I totally have no clue where to start and if I start on something I have this tendency to get lost along the way or lose fire (ningas kugon). I think this is one thing that I need to really change about myself. I have to follow through– I need to be self motivated to continue on what I started. One thing this country has an abundance of is plenty of nicer, courteous and helpful people. And true enough, abroad, I feel that most people are rather into themselves most of the time. There is a serious recession taking place there and it is probably something I have not experienced or seen before in my 9 years of living there. So with this, I am still grateful of being here and not having to worry financially. And yes, I am quite happy for MrC’s business taking off finally and I am willingto support him in every way I can… After all, isn’t that what marriage is all about?

The Office

mixxy — Thu, 26 Feb 2009 09:49:44 +0000

I am happy to announce that (1) this blog is now ONE year old and (2) we now have an office in Mandaluyong! Just over a year ago, we were just dreaming and planning about this and now it seems that we are indeed going as planned.

The office we found is right next to where we live now, as in our commute would consist of going down the elevator walking over a few steps, opening a door to the other building, taking another elevator over the 8th floor! This is quite nice indeed. The contracts have been signed and deals made so probably by next week we could be looking into starting work in the new office. The space we got is 89 sqm and fully fitted with airconditioner and huge pantry and private common toilet. As of now, we already have 1 team lead and will be interviewing 3 programmers over the next few days. MrC foresees hiring more for additional projects over the summer.

Also, the next few days will be spent looking for furniture and other necessary stuff for “The Office”.

A Visit to the Philippine Social Security office (SSS)

mixxy — Wed, 11 Feb 2009 03:28:17 +0000

Today I visited my local neighborhood SSS. I had lost all my documents related to my former life here, and that includes my SSS number. If not for the China Bank officer asking for it when I opened a bank account I would not have even remembered about this. Anyways, after 12 years of not being here, and changing my name after marriage I have several application forms that need to be filed. However, when I get there, the only thing I was able to do was to file an application to lookup my SSS number. However, after filing it I found out that I would not be able to get it right away because they would send it to me by postal mail. Well! At least I tried. Hopefully I would get it soon.

Meanwhile, a bunch of questions popped up in my mind like for example payment of contributions. Now that I am a self-employed Filipino-American IT Consultant living in the Philippine I have no idea which country I should be paying social security taxes. Based on my talk with the lady and from my brief research, it seems that for self-employed here, SSS contributions are voluntary. However, upon looking at the US social security website I found out there are no bilateral agreements between the US and the Philippines. I have no idea what this means. I guess it means I have to pay social security to the US then? Well, this calls for a visit to the good old social security office. It’s good that they have a branch right here in Manila. I also need to go there to apply for a new card and change my last name. However these things I might as well postpone until I come back from my upcoming trip to the Netherlands because.. uhm.. I left my Social Security card over there, I think it helps a lot to have it when I apply. Darn! Anyways, the deadline for US filing for overseas people like me is still a few more months away.

Wanted: Office Space

mixxy — Sun, 08 Feb 2009 04:19:38 +0000

MrC is on the verge of closing a new contract with his clients. With this contract, we would be using three web developers. We eagerly anticipate the outcome of the talks in the Netherlands with the client. As of now, they are evaluating the offer. This new project for the same client will somewhat be a big milestone for MrC’s company since it will be a long term thing therefore he has planned to rent an office space care of our local partner.

As of now we are looking for office spaces with sizes between 60 square meters to 100 square meters. Based on my initial research and talks with brokers. Here in Mandaluyong and Ortigas the typical rent would be somewhere between 25K to 45K but can even go up thousands more if nearer to the Ortigas Center or for newer buildings. We have seen only 1 unit so far which is within walking distance from our place. Tomorrow, we will be looking at several more.

Got Gasul?

mixxy — Thu, 05 Feb 2009 14:04:14 +0000

We have been out of LPG for more than a week. Last week, it seemed like the whole city ran out of LPG. We looked around and called every single possible place we could find Petron Gasul but no luck at all. They said they all ran out of stock. Could it be really true or the stores are just hoarding them before the price goes up. After all, I heard in the TV news report that prices are going up. I ordered a refill and a backup tank from the Petron Direct Ordering site and they told me that it would arrive the same day and nothing came, not even the next day. So today I decided to just call a dealer directly. They told me it would be today. I was not able to buy an extra tank though but only a refill that costs 520 Pesos.

I waited the whole day. Finally, the Gasul tank refill we ordered arrived at around 5pm! At least now, we can cook using our stove again.

Mysterious Filipino

mixxy — Mon, 02 Feb 2009 01:22:47 +0000

Eventually our goods arrived on Friday. We just had to accept that we had no choice but to pay the “damages” the brokers imposed on us. Besides all the goods arrived in good condition.

Right now, with all our important stuff with us it is not hard to admit that it adds to the feeling of being at home. In spite of all the bumps along the way and the disappointments and unhappy surprises that dealing with Filipinos has shown us we are again one step closer to getting to know our new home and our surroundings better.

Today, we just came back from a business trip to Baguio where we spent sometime with our business partner and the first programmer. Our business partner, is of the same nationality as MrC and through all our long talks he and MrC still shared that still the Filipinos are one hell of a mystery for him. I share in their sentiment. Even I don’t understand why some people say things and act a certain way. Being late is one of the things that standout among the list of things foreigners don’t understand — even me sometimes. I also for instance, remember again that in here there are meanings behind what someone would say or do. For this, I am sometimes suspicious of motives behind people’s actions. I wish people could have been upfront with us, with the brokers for example and things in general.

We also covered the topic of “crab mentality”. I was actually the one who provided them with the right terminology. It came up as a result of a surprising move of his maid who recently left them and while leaving started to backstab the Filipina wife of our business partner. It’s sad but true but envy is something we see everyday here.

As for me, I would add that here in the Philippines the resources seem quite not enough that I have never seen so much competition and this I did not see in US or Netherlands. That is, in jobs, in business, in relationships and hell yes, in being attractive! Is it just me but I noticed a huge bombardment of pressure to be whiter, to be sexier, to have better skin, better, shiny hair! And what is this I hear about 80,000 nurses took the latest board exams? I see a lot of review centers everywhere for all things, IELTS, and all acronyms as such and even getting to Ateneo, DLSU or UP. I even saw a review center to get into Philippine Science and Ateneo High School. In my time, I never felt this amount of competition and pressure to actually go through hoops just to get into the right places. I am guessing it’s just that the amount of people twenty years ago had just grown tremendously and that the resources that should gave grown with it did not. Maybe this is the reason.

Our Mistakes in Shipping our Goods: Charge it to Experience

mixxy — Thu, 22 Jan 2009 07:29:19 +0000

I wasn’t even sure if I could make a proper entry because I am very angry and frustrated now. The broker called today and told me that they can get the goods to us possibly today if I give them the go signal. The bad news was, the total charges she quoted to me previously did not include Freight Forwarding which brought the total to twice that of the original amount! It was very annoying because they did not provide that information at the beginning. As early as 23rd of December, we were already waiting for them to provide us with the quote. I have been calling almost regularly and the one who was in charge of it was the only one who knew about our situation. We should have seen that as a bad sign that we shouldn’t go with them at all. The lady was on leave until Jan 9 and only on the 13th of January were they able to give me the quotation which was even incomplete. The packages arrived on the 11th of January and somehow they lied to us saying that it will still take a few days until warehouse charges kick in but actually on the 12th it already started and that the daily amount was negligible! No way Jose! The total estimated total is now 3x what was quoted at the beginning :-(.

I am really very sorry for myself for all these stupidity. It’s too late now, our goods are now somehow held hostage by them and the Customs licensed warehouse. Another stupid mistake we had is that the three appliances we brought at 50 hertz.. technically it will not work with 60 hertz here in the Philippines :-(. They will break down quickly. But we overlooked that fact that there is no easy to solution to this. We assumed it was something easy. Nothing is easy here at all. It was not even the government that gave us a hard time but just ordinary business people. They are simply untrustworthy. I am very very sad. Next time, we will not let this situation happen wherein we have no leverage at all. They had full control of the situation.
Let’s just all charge this to experience. We have learned the hard way and let’s be thankful this did not leave us broke.
However, we would really be extra extra careful from now on. For me, it’s even more of a pain because I am in my own country.

I wonder if ice cream could help cool me down now.