General Information

[QUOTE=Faulk]What the fcuk has getting cash out of an ATM got to do with this site. Its like telling someone how to get their luggage off a carosel at the airport. Jeez.[/QUOTE]Someone might regret making such assumptions when they unexpectedly discover:

A. The ATM cards of one of the largest banks in the world are on a network that works at only a small number of machines in the PI;

B. The Angeles City area has only one of these machines that will work with that major bank's ATM card;

C. If your card is from that major western bank you will not find the one and only machine that will take it located anywhere in the entertainment district of Fields;

D. That bank's world ATM finder website (and it's employees) will list many Philippine ATMs all over the place which are supposed to take it, but this is not true, so you will not know that you have a problem 'till you are suddenly stuck in a third world country with no cash and no clue.

At this time it would be nice of me to tell you which bank ATM network that is, and where that sole machine is located, so you will not be stranded begging for Pesos and table scraps with the street urchins. But I have indigestion at the moment, so I don't feel like it, and I won't. Good luck.

[quote=Faulk] What the fcuk has getting cash out of an ATM got to do with this site[/quote]

Sorry, but l am going to have to agree with Faulk here because l am often left scratching my head at some of the questions l have seen posted here, recently. Theses are things that l often think, one has this person ever travelled before and two have they RTFF? This subject has already been extensively discussed in other areas of the forum.

[QUOTE=Wastrel]A. The ATM cards of one of the largest banks in the world are on a network that works at only a small number of machines in the PI;

B. The Angeles City area has only one of these machines that will work with that major bank's ATM card;

C. If your card is from that major western bank you will not find the one and only machine that will take it located anywhere in the entertainment district of Fields;

[/QUOTE]


There are at least seven ways of taking cash around the world, ATMs is only one option, (see below for answers). Anyone planning on going to the Philippines should go into their bank and ask the following: [i]“I am going to the Philippines for a vacation what is the best way of taking my cash with me?”[/i]

On ATMs the local machines that will use western cards are China Bank and Metro Bank.

Anyway here is a Visa ATM locater
[url]visa.via.infonow.net/locator/global/jsp/SearchPage.jsp[/url]



[size=1]Cash, $; foreign currency, Pesos, ¥; Travellers cheques; wired transfers; open an account with an international bank; ATMs; Visa cards.[/size]

[QUOTE=Juniour]Anyone planning on going to the Philippines should go into their bank and ask the following: “I am going to the Philippines for a vacation what is the best way of taking my cash with me?”...

On ATMs the local machines that will use western cards are China Bank and Metro Bank.

Anyway here is a Visa ATM locater
[url]visa.via.infonow.net/locator/global/jsp/SearchPage.jsp[/url][/QUOTE]
No doubt you posted that becuase that's your experience with your particular bank, but one should not generalize from that, as some travellers will be unpleasantly surprised if they count on that with every western bank's network and any any bank's staff. Many of the ATMs listed by the "VISA locator" do NOT work with some common western networks which have a VISA logo, and the bank staff have no idea that this is the case. The two banks you just listed will not dispense money on a Bank of America card, for example, and most of the "VISA locator" sites for the PI won't either. Bank employees frequently have no idea that this is the case, as well as other things pecular to the Philippines that don't always work well, such as selling you their proprietary traveller's checks or dispensing some older creased and worn U.S. currency that PI moneychangers don't want to take.

Every possible subject has been mentioned at some point, but we're not about to freeze the site and pull the plug on posting our individual experiences because of that, and nobody reading this should think they ought to refrain from doing so just becuase someone might not be entertained by it or have a different experience that they imagine must be more true.

Much more annoying to most is the lack of a minimal amount of an adult level of civility on the board, which especially plagues this particular section.

YEA!

Show some adult civility! What's wrong with you people?

X man

[QUOTE=Wastrel]

Much more annoying to most is the lack of a minimal amount of an adult level of civility on the board, which especially plagues this particular section.[/QUOTE]


You want to see dis-harmony ? Just read the Thai boards for a while. When it's not vicious it's childish.

Equitable Bank ATM's have always worked for me. And there are two in AC. Downtown and on base.

FD

[QUOTE=Firedick]Equitable Bank ATM's have always worked for me. And there are two in AC. Downtown and on base.

FD[/QUOTE]Didn't know about the one on base. But it is Equitable PCI bank that always worked with BofA cards. That might save me an annoying trike or jeepney ride in the future, or worse when the one downtown goes mysteriously "off-line" from time to time.

[QUOTE=Firedick]You want to see dis-harmony ? Just read the Thai boards for a while. When it's not vicious it's childish.[/QUOTE]Those last two adjectives seem to live near each other a lot. I've never looked in there. Sounds like I'm better for it, and won't.

[QUOTE=Firedick]
Equitable Bank ATM's have always worked for me. And there are two in AC. Downtown and on base.

FD[/QUOTE]

A word of warning about [b]PCI Equitable[/b] be very careful with their ATMs, I personally would not touch them, last September I used one of their machines in Makati only to discover that the ATM was empty but it still managed to debit the money from my account, I have used ATMs all over the world and many have been empty but this was my first experience of the money actually having been debited from my account.

The money was later refunded by my bank, after sending in the receipt.

But Wastrel I still wonder why it is that some people go to the time and effort to post non-sexual questions, where the answer could easily be found in seconds by putting this into a search engine, as well as on the forum - it’s totally bizarre.

Hiya,

I plan on spending a month in Davao and Cebu each. Can anyone recommend a place to say on a monthly basis? Basic and or small is ok. Clean is the biggest factor. I normally stay in Thailand with A/C, hot water, mini - bar and a pool. I have stayed in much more basic places tho. I can give up amenities for an overall good "vibe". Any suggestions welcome.

Thanks and take care,

Pass

I have found a place with rooms as low as 385P per day. That's about $7 / day. That may be as good as it gets.... Send me a message if you want the address, because I have been trying to figure out the same thing and am willing to pass on my experience at no cost.

Apartments are out of the question. It seems like they all want three or four months deposit, and that's just too much. I might add that there are apartments available for as little as 5000P per month-- though they may not have hot water.

[QUOTE=Clandestine782]I have found a place with rooms as low as 385P per day. That's about $7 / day. That may be as good as it gets.... Send me a message if you want the address, because I have been trying to figure out the same thing and am willing to pass on my experience at no cost.

Apartments are out of the question. It seems like they all want three or four months deposit, and that's just too much. I might add that there are apartments available for as little as 5000P per month-- though they may not have hot water.[/QUOTE]
I just rented a place and it is about 1/10 the cost of a tier one city apartment of the EXACT same quality . By tier one I mean prices like LA, Chicago, boston, dc,

If Pittsburg or maybe somewhere like Providence RI are Tier 2, then I would still say 1/6.

All the people in the small building are ex-pats. I rented for a full year (share with another ex-pat) Shortest rents are 6 months.

May as well stay in a hotel if you are only there for couple months. Pretty much ALL will give a discount.

Big piece of advice: if you rent, do NOT look to close to the biz park and ayala. If anyone on here decides to take out a six month lease you can get a very attractive modern place with say 750 SQ meters for about $250 per month. BUT just get away from the center, even just 2 miles.

I don't know how many places are so "modern" as mine, but look around.

Hello fellas! This is my first report and probably my only report since my wife won't let me outta her sight when I am there. But here goes.

Jan. 26th 2005

I get off the plane at Cebu International or Mactan, whatever. It's about 3am and I am exhausted from the LONG friggin flight! I was supposed to meet this little 19 yr old at the airport in Manila during my 2 hour layover, but with all the confusion (my first time at an airport outside the U. S.) of transferring to the domestic airport, we missed each other. So I was supposed to meet this other lovely little lady at Cebu airport but, the last conversation we had I got a little upset with her so I had sent her an email saying nevermind, don't meet me at the airport. Well I arrive at the airport in Cebu and I look around a little to see if she actually showed up. I didn't see her anywhere so I got a taxi to head to the hotel. Taxi driver's name was Rudy, helluva nice guy! I ask him if he knows of a place I can find some company for the night, even though it's 3: 15 in the morning. He says sure and he can take me there before I go to hotel or after. I said well I need to change my money first and he says he knows a place. I said ok and we head off into the night. We stop at a little place (looked like a small sari sari store) and he wakes somebody up. After a few minutes a girl opened a small window and we did the exchange. I counted my money, and it looked as if she gave me about 54 pesos on the dollar.

We leave and drive to a Casa. Big Gate, Big guard and a few little buildings. I meet the Papason or whatever (pimp) and a light comes on in a little room. I see 3 girls walk in and stand there. I go in and see this little cutie looking at me with THOSE eyes. So I said I'll take her. 4000php. I know now I paid too much but hey. It was my first time. I say ok and we walk outside while the girl went to get her bag. He says to me, "Good choice, she is new. Only 19 and she only 1 man before 10 days ago! " I say oh really. Didn't know whether to believe him or not but oh well. I pay him and the girl comes out, we get in the taxi and head to the hotel. I thank Rudy for his help and give him 500php for the ride. I stayed at Midtown Hotel in Cebu. We check in and head upstairs to the room. I ask the girl how old she was and she says 19. Her english was very bad but, I did find out she arrived from Province only 2 weeks ago and this was the only way she could help her family and she had her first man 10 days ago. A 46 yr old american. She hadn't had any customers since. I thought ok cool and I asked her to take off her clothes. She was VERY shy! She hid under the covers until I pulled them all away so I could see her nice little body. The only thing I didn't like was her legs had alot of mosquito marks on them which I attribute to the fact she was fresh from the province. I laid next to her and began to kiss her and fondle those nice young breasts. I reach down and holy crap this girl was tight and very wet! She was ready for me to hit it already. I waited a little and decide to taste her. She didn't know what to do. She kept trying to get me to stop but I wouldn't have it. After a few minutes of that I decided to see if she knew how to give head. She didn't! But I give her credit for trying. She wouldn't let me watch her, but I did anyway. I gave up on the BJ and decided to slide it in. She insisted I wear a condom which I would anyway, and proceded to put it in. She was so tight and all she kept saying was "eets so beeg! " ha ha ha. I love hearing that! After about 15 to 20 minutes I busted my nut. I was exhausted! We went to sleep right away at about 4: 30am.

At 5: 30am the phone rings. I thought I was dreaming it, so I didn't answer. At about 5: 40am the phone rings again. I know I am not dreaming now, so I answer it. I said hello and I hear the sweetest little voice say "Hi honey, I wait you all night at airport. " Yeah, it was the girl I was supposed to meet in Cebu. I said "Oh, hi, I didn't see you there so I came to my hotel. " She said, "That's ok honey, you still want to meet me? " I said "sure when? " and she says "Now? ". I said "where are you" and she say she's in the Hotel lobby! Now I've got this little hooker sleeping next to me so I say "Oh no, I am too tired now. Can you call me back at noon? " She says ok I will call you at noon and we hang up. Wow, close call!

So we wake up about 9am and she asks if its ok if she leaves at 10: 30am. I say yeah that's fine and we go at it again. This time my stamina is alot better and I just wrecked it! We get finished and she asks me if she can stay longer now. I asked her why and she says because now she loves me! ha ha ha. I told her that I was not the man for her and I already had a girlfriend. She then says to me "But I love you so much! " and I just said "honey, I am not the kind of guy you want to be with. If you want to find a nice man and marry, you should get on the internet and start meeting people. I practically had to throw her out of the room. But finally she left about 11: 30am and I took a shower and got dressed.

At 12 noon the phone rang and it was the girl I was supposed to meet. She was in the lobby again and she asked me if I wanted her to come up or if I was coming down to the lobby. Since the room wasn't made up yet and I didn't want her to see the bed had obviously been slept in by two people, I said I'd be right down.

I get to the lobby and I see this amazing tiny little woman (4'10" and 77lbs) and after a few days with her, I knew what I had to do. I don't want to be a monger forever and this girl is the best. She smiled really big and gave me a hug. 5 days later, I was married. I know most people think I'm nuts but, I don't care. She's absolutely the sweetest little thing. I went back in Sept. For a whole month and we had a great time. We're just waiting for the papers to get finished so she can be here. If anybody has anything negative to say about my marriage, please just keep it to yourself. I've heard it all. I am happy and so is my wife so that's all that matters.

Well that's my report, sorry if I got off track with any of it but I don't' know how to tell the story without all of it.

Wulfe

Hi all,

Just got to Cebu yesterday afternoon. It's quite a long trip from Dubai so I needed a nap for 3 hours. Good thing my girl from Cagayan sent me a text asking her to pass a cellphone load or I might have slept the whole night away.

I did make it to 2 places last night. Black Hole seems to get worse and worse every time I go there. It was only about 10:30 but they only had tired, bored, used up looking girls. After 1 drink I headed over to Viking. Last July it was the best place in this little square of clubs. This time it was still pretty good, but not as good as before. I was told that a lot of girls are still out of town for the All Saints' Day long weekend. So maybe things will get better in coming days. I eventually went home with Jessica (aka Jamaica) for a barfine of 1700. This should be all inclusive, although extra tips are 'up to you' as they say.

The peso seems to be on a minor upswing right now. I changed for 54.4 yesterday, compared with about 56 most of last summer. So if you're headed this way throw in an extra hundred or two.

[QUOTE=Wulfe13] If anybody has anything negative to say about my marriage, please just keep it to yourself. I've heard it all. I am happy and so is my wife so that's all that matters.

Wulfe[/QUOTE]Hey, CONGRATULATIONS ! and the best of luck to both of you.

I'm sure you made a great decision!

D Master

i stayed 1 week in sankciago street around colon in may.

my problem was this; i am a budget traveller, so did not want to pay more than 1000 pisos st and i did not want to feed what i regard as parasites (mamasasans, pimps etc.)

cebu pimps deserve the gold medal of "worse pain inthe ass" in my short but already varied experience.

you can never get read of them , i tried to explain , after i tried to threaten them but it was no use, i even heard it could have been dangerous for me, as some are junkies; for example, i tried to walk to the pick up place near univ san carlos i speak thereafter but there were guys always around.

one time i found a lonely fuckable lady among the wrecks and **** beggers of colon but a pimp ran to me and said "i sell you that lady, very good lady etc...". the lady followed me with some distance. unfortunately another pimp saw her entering my hotel. i asked him what was going to happen, she said she would have to pay not to be beaten.

-> where can i find real freelancers without pimps around in cebu?
i considered going to the hayala center but it was closed early and i am a middle-aged man very abnoxious to ask to a wrong lady

-> is it easy to notice sw in malls? when? how much (i'm not so young). i just went to the big commercial center on colon with escalators and restaurants, no girl tried to attract me, everything sonded normal as in europe :-(

->are there bars for freelancers like the biergarden from bkk to pick them up in cebu? (same question for angeles)

if not, i have to go in bars with barfines; what are the cheapest for st? australian guys proposed me to go to silver$, but said it was around 3000 minimum. no other option? (i walked around osmena circle nights but saw no pattaya-like action, so i wunder where those bars are)

my report to finish :

stayed 6 days at cebu view inn hotel on sanciangko str.near colon st, no view, room basic, ac very loud for about 1000p/day, guestfriendly but ladies at the desk dislike mongers!

only the doorman seems in the deal to provide girls, i never paid him directly, but seems acquainted with some taxi drivers.

as soon you leave hotel, others hustle you to bring you in bars , competition seems fearce!

i said no "i want a cheap girl for 1000p", which seemed too little, but after some discussion another guy stepped inside taxi, 2mn later we entered a dark street near the rosario university. i would have liked to take time and walk as in pattaya, no way, pimps were had given kicks on the car, and now i was looked as a prey by the girls who surrounded the car. small prey, so only some stayed, i think it was the girls belonging to the mamasan in bussiness with the taxi driver.

you have to say yes or no, because everybody is waiting for you.

i never lived that, so i did not dare to ask my usual pattaya check list.

they wanted the 1000p at once , i said no, later to the girl, taxi driver seem afraid and asked his 200p for him at once. i had to pay in advance.

once in room, she refused to undress because of "monthly period", i tried to kiss her, she refused also. so i ordered her to leave and bring a friend. she refused, i called the doorman to expel her, he promised me another girl if i give the 100 p now.
the replacement girl was awfull; she stayed like a statue refusing to touch me, when i tried self hj, she laughed at me, after 5 mn, i gave up.

a freelancer is less likely to behave that way; those girls receive only a small part of the money (taxi driver+another middleman +mamasan for 1 working girl!).
this place is the cheapest i found in cebu , so some after some days of diet, i made another try. this time taxi driver demanded paiement in advance, but i took more time to look, saw a shy 21' with nice smile behind.

she was not skillfull but cute, so i tipped her 500p, and when she told me i had been the first to pick her up in cebu, i advised him to stay like that, without illusion...
after 6 noisy nights of dredfull haunting the street of colon, i spent 2 nights relaxing in moalboal (200km down on cebu west coast opposite negros). it was the best moment of my trip with real nature (not like mactan), rainfalls, relaxed pinays, amazing corals... it's laid back but i'm sure you can have some action at least on the last small bar in the middle because those 4 girls (rank 4-5) wanted to go with me for 1000, but no pics even with tip, so i left. there are others bars with 10 girls who seem more than waitresses, but most were gone when i came back around 11pm to check.

Doesn't sound like you had a very good time. I think one of the problems you are having is that Cebu is relatively large city and your limit of 1000p might be a little low.

Freelancers in the Mall aren't hard to find. Just sit at one of the coffee shops in Ayala or SM Mall and wait for a pretty girl to smile at you. If you talk to her, just let her know you are looking for a "companion".

You could also try to meet a Salesgirl in one of the Department stores. I had a girl in Robinsons try to pick ME up... She worked as a Hotdog vendor! My wife was inside one of the stores, so I had to pass on her. Cute girl, all smiles.

I wouldn't worry about whether a girl is Freelance or not if it's your budget you are worried about. I would just negotiate better with the pimp and then tip the girl if she does a good job.

I only went to a couple of the bars but Thunderdome had some beauties when I was there, but I'm guessing you don't want to pay the barfine...right?