Living in The Philippines. The Cebu Experience

08/08/2020

It's been a struggle for the last few months. I had to do without one of my medications for over two months. The lockdown in Cebu is profund.

http://rustyferguson.com/living-in-the-philippines/internet-outage-during-lockdown

Internet Outage During Lockdown It’s been a trying month, longer really. For this month, the Internet has been bad. It has been down about 25 to 50 percent of the time. Right now, it’s completely dead. I tried three networks. Two mobile data networks while the WiFi in the hotel has died complete...

28/10/2019

They are in Luzon. I've come across these people before. They also do an ancient form of the tattoo but that may be dying as there was only one person left to do them. :( I would love to visit that area. It's quite remote.

Have you ever think of cycling a bike made from wood? Bicycle is one of the mode of transportation that has largely been overlooked which is ideal in an urban setting and inexpensive purchase and maintenance.

10/10/2019

INTERNATIONAL travel magazine Condé Nast Traveler hailed Cebu as the second best island in Asia in its 2019 Readers’ Choice Awards survey.For the...

08/10/2019

07/10/2019

MOST students give their teachers flowers, chocolates, cakes or balloons on Teacher’s Day.A public school teacher in General Santos City, who goes...

07/09/2019

News network CNN has named Vigan as one of the "most beautiful towns" in Asia for its heritage and Spanish colonial-era architecture.

05/09/2019

It will be interesting to see how this plays out. A woman tried to sneak a six-day-old infant out of the country. I know I would not want to be her. But, then again, I never would be her or do something like this. My first thought was "how many times did she get away with it?"

http://www.xinhuanet.com/english/2019-09/04/c_138365094.htm

MANILA, Sept. 4 (Xinhua) -- Philippine immigration officials held an American woman on Wednesday for trying to smuggle out a six-day-old male baby inside her "oversized" carry-on luggage at Manila's Ninoy Aquino International Airport.

28/08/2019

After six weeks of bad news, I finally got some great news.

My insurance will pay 100 percent of my hospital bill. There is a catch, there always is huh? You can read more here:

http://rustyferguson.com/living-in-the-philippines/medical-issues-in-the-philippines/insurance-approves-100-percent-of-hospital-charges -221

I also included my thoughts about medical tourism in the Philippines.

Insurance Approves 100 Percent of Hospital Charges Well, after a string of really rotten news, I finally got some good news. BlueCross paid my ENTIRE hospital bill. Well, I should say they approved all charges. I haven’t seen a dang nickel yet. 🙂 Check is in the mail for the rest of my life? I ...

27/08/2019

http://rustyferguson.com/journal/fresh-buko-in-cebu-city

This is mostly a journal entry but has some info about coconut juice and street vendors. It includes a short video of a vendor on the streets of Cebu City. They are all over.

Read more here: http://rustyferguson.com/journal/fresh-buko-in-cebu-city

Fresh Buko in Cebu City This was a day of stress. I got my first bill from the card that I charged all of my medical bills too. The first bill that included interest. I knew it would be a lot but I didn’t know it would be that much. It’s devastating to my budget. The interest is almost $300 a mo...

26/08/2019

I had to visit immigration for my tourist visa extension a couple of days. It was a mostly uneventful trip. If you are new to the Philippines this will have some information you can use. Including the general location for the two office in Metro Cebu City.

http://rustyferguson.com/living-in-the-philippines/where-to-find-bureau-of-immigration-in-cebu

Where to Find Bureau of Immigration in Cebu A couple of days ago, I had to make my bi-monthly visit to the Bureau of Immigration (BI). If you are on a tourist visa, you have the option of a one month, two months or six months extension for each visa. I have never gotten a one month visa except when....

21/08/2019

20/08/2019

A US government official who used his position to s*xually abuse children in the Philippines has been sentenced to 40 years in prison.

18/08/2019

Don't let anyone tell you that is illegal for a hospital to hold you until you pay in full. It is not illegal except in circumstance that probably won't apply to you.

Warning: I Was Held in a Philippines Hospital Until I Paid in Full Recently I told the story of my stay in a hospital in Cebu. You can read the details of that post by clicking here. I had heard about hospitals holding people that could not pay. I’ve also heard foreigners say that is against the l...

18/08/2019

For those that don't follow my personal page, you might not know I recently had a stay in the hospital. I always wanted a short stay but not like this. I nearly died. :) I was septic, in kidney failure and once I got there I had a heart attack.

It took a month for me to feel like I was normal again. I'm not fully normal but mostly. Friend me if you like. Ask if you can't find it and I'll get you a link.

My Stay in a Philippines Hospital Posted byRusty August 17, 2019 Leave a comment on My Stay in a Philippines Hospital On July the 7th of 2019, I almost died. I went to Chung Hua hospital because of an abscess on my right thigh. It hurt severely and it smelled horrible. I had sepsis and I ended up ha...

09/08/2019

While Cockfighting is considered immoral and illegal in much of the world, it is common in the Philippines.

However, if you stumble across one you might be interested and want to take a look at just what is going on. I would be curious.

Don't do it. The authorities are arresting the bettors and maybe those just watching too? I doubt all 300 people were actually betting.

The law:

But Section 5 of PD 449 says that “cockfighting shall be allowed only in licensed cockpits during Sundays and legal holidays and during local fiestas for not more than three days.”

“It may also be held during provincial, city or municipal, agricultural, commercial or industrial fair, carnival or exposition for a similar period of three days upon resolution of the province, city or municipality where such fair, carnival or exposition is to be held, subject to the approval of the Chief of Constabulary or his authorized representative.”

Don't watch, just keep going if you come across it. I have come across it but never on such a large scale.

https://cebudailynews.inquirer.net/…/men-arrested-at-mandau…

So many ways to get yourself into trouble when you are in a foreign land. I've been here for a long time. I didn't know about this.

CEBU CITY, Philippines -- The more than 300 men and women who were arrested in a cockpit in Mandue City have started to complain of hunger and thirst. But they could not be released from

08/11/2018

This is a bit interesting. It seems a dog got on a bus without a human helping it to find its owner. Odd but maybe not fake?

https://www.albawaba.com/editorchoice/dog-boards-bus-own-follow-owner-philippines-1209712

Dog Boards Bus on Own to Follow Owner in Philippines

25/01/2018

Saw this article and thought I'd post a warning. As a foreigner never get involved with a native finding a job in the Philippines. You could quickly find yourself running afoul of Human Trafficking Laws. Even a Filipino could if they don't have the proper license. I've seen it many times. A few seemed innocent to me, most do not. :) Be very careful of this one:

https://thenewdaily.com.au/news/world/2018/01/23/australian-man-four-years-philippines-jail/

A Queensland man has languished in a Philippines jail for more than four years despite not being convicted of any crime.

27/11/2017

http://www.excitingcebu.com/getting-face-smashed-visa-extension-cebu/

"I'll smash your face in." The last time I went to immigration for a visa extension I ran into a foreigner that wanted to improve my looks by smashing my face it. :) Getting an extension has become a bit of a pain. But it's good that we can stay for 24/36 months now just by going to BI and paying about $50. A little less than that. You can read about it here:
http://www.excitingcebu.com/getting-face-smashed-visa-extension-cebu/

15/09/2017

Wow, the Commission on Human Rights in the Philippines has been under fire from the President. I have been following them for years but I can't claim to be an expert on them at all. The new budget is proposed to give them $20 or P1000 for the next year. The president wants to abolish it. They mostly keep an eye on the government and I guess they've not made a lot of friends. http://www.nydailynews.com/news/world/philippines-awards-human-rights-commission-20-budget-article-1.3490214

I have no public opinion though. :)

Don't go spending that all in one place.

03/08/2017

Hmmm, a non-bailable offense but he got bail. Actually, it's not uncommon for someone to get bail but it's uncommon to do it so fast. Also, it is supposed to happen only when the evidence is weak. http://www.rappler.com/nation/177414-arnel-lagarejos-priest-s*x-abuse-bail

Monsignor Arnel Lagarejos gains temporary freedom after spending almost 3 days in the Marikina City police jail

31/07/2017

I often hear how the authorities don't go after Filipino paedophiles. It certainly is not true. True, foreigners make bigger headlines but far more Filipinos are caught. I see the convictions in the paper.

Just a few doors down there is a guy that is spending 20 years in prison for renting out underage girls. Well, he was just a couple of doors down.

This priest was just arrested for taking a 13-year-old girl to a hotel. He is Filipino.

http://malaysiandigest.com/frontpage/29-4-tile/689808-priest-booked-13-year-old-girl-for-rm40-on-facebook-arrested-on-their-way-to-a-motel.html

A 55-year-old priest was nabbed after he booked a 13-year-old girl from a 16-year-old pimp.

25/06/2017

I recently had to renew my passport. It went exceptionally smooth. I wrote a about it on my blog.

You can find out more here: http://www.excitingcebu.com/renewing-american-passport-in-cebu/

23/06/2017

Scary stuff, I hope they get this under control soon. Recently they attacked a school and took hostages. I am unsure of the outcome on that. http://cebudailynews.inquirer.net/136882/marawi-becoming-hub-fighters-se-asia

WASHINGTON — Southeast Asia’s jihadis who fought by the hundreds for the Islamic State group in Iraq and Syria now have a different battle closer to home in the southern Philippines. It’s a scenario raising significant alarm in Washington. The recent assault by IS-aligned fighters in Marawi City has...

17/06/2017

There is a crises ongoing in the Southern Philippines. I haven't looked on a map to see exactly where this is but I will do so soon. It's almost certainly in the Southwest part of the country.

http://www.philstar.com/headlines/2017/06/17/1710749/martial-law-babies-birth-time-war

I guess with IS loosing ground in other places they are looking for a foothold in other places. It's a little bit scary but I don't think the lessons from the past will go unheeded. I don't think they will be able to establish control of the city.

Raisah Labay gently cradles her newborn: a boy who was named Martial to mark her flight from this war-torn city and his birth under newly imposed military rule.

03/06/2017

What is wrong with people? A Two year old? Though, I don't fully believe it. Any special interest group tends to distort the facts and make the issue bigger than it is. The need to be even more relevant. I hope no one is paying to see a freaking two year old?

http://www.rappler.com/nation/171819-victim-minors-rescued-online-s*x-trafficking-iligan

Authorities catch the suspects live-streaming s*xual abuse of Filipino minors

26/05/2017

More on martial law in the Philippines:

http://www.philstar.com/headlines/2017/05/25/1703393/nationwide-martial-law-eyed

With the likelihood of violence in Marawi City spilling over into the Visayas and Luzon, President Duterte said yesterday he might expand the coverage of his martial law declaration for Mindanao to include the entire country.

26/05/2017

Life on Sanciangko street is getting more colorful. A couple of nights ago I was sitting outside when a ladyboy approached. she asked me if I liked something, I couldn't hear here so I just said no. :) Next she asked me what I do like. I told her "My girlfriend" ha ha. That caused her to do what I wanted, go away.

24/05/2017

As you might know, martial law has been declared in part of the Philippines. I wrote a quick little article to let people know that may not yet know. :) I'm not very concerned about it.

http://www.excitingcebu.com/martial-law-declared-philippines/

Martial law has been declared in parts of the Philippines. There is a centuries old conflict ongoing in the southern part of the Philippines between

10/05/2017

How am I Doing? I get asked that a good deal in email. I try to respond but sometimes people use the form on my blog to ask and give an incorrect email so I can't respond. :P
I recently added a new post to my blog. I really am not depressed but reading this post depresses me. ha ha So warning.

http://www.excitingcebu.com/how-am-i-doing/

People have been emailing me and asking how am I doing. I am doing okay but I have been better. I do need to write more and I always plan too but then get distracted by my latest obsession. That is playing clash of clan. But more about writing about me. I rarely do that. It is rare any article is a...

18/03/2017

I have known for years that the penalty for drugs is high in the Philippines. Was researching something else and found this:

WHEREFORE, finding the accused Elmer Mapa y de Gula Guilty beyond reasonable doubt of the crime of selling and delivering prohibited drug, consisting of twelve (12) sticks of ma*****na ci******es (Indian H**p) as defined and penalized under Section 4, Article II of Republic Act 6425, as amended, he is hereby sentenced to suffer the penalty of Reclusion Perpetua with the accessory penalties prescribed by law and to pay a fine of Twenty Thousand Pesos (P20,000.00) with the corresponding subsidiary imprisonment in case of insolvency and the costs of suit.

He got life for 12 joints!

http://www.lawphil.net/judjuris/juri1993/mar1993/gr_91014_1993.html

That's really a stiff penalty.

Philippine Jurisprudence - PEOPLE OF THE PHIL. vs. ELMER G. MAPA