Valentine's day is very big in the Philippines. And you can click on http://www.islandrose.net/Merchant2/agent.mv?AG=adon&SC=SFNT&S=BR and take a look at Island Rose, a delivery service in the Philippines. If you buy from them through this link it will go to support the List and website and not cost you a cent more. Check out their vast reasonably priced selection, if your honey ko is over here and you can afford to spend as little as $18 on her for this special day. Thank you for your valuable time and accepting my List an website promotion.

I fully understand what you are saying. When I first joined the list nearly two years ago, I reviwed the archives at lenght, both from yahoo, and the archived previous LINP host. It was very frustrating seeing ""old timers"" responding to me questions by telling me to review the archives, knowing that I had already spent several hours reviwing the archives and not finding the information I was looking for. I for one don't mind too much seeing some of the ""same 'ole questions"" being asked. We were all new members at one time afterall, lets not forget that.

Some members are complaining they can't find what they want in the archives.Part of the problem is that the text of a message bears little or no relationship to the subject line.For instance a detailed explanation of actual expenditures of building a house is contained in lamkin.net,a web site first mentioned in an endless thread about PIGS! It's better for a newcomer to go back to about msg.# 26000 or even further,go to expand messages mode and scan them.A thousand messages sounds like a lot but it would be more fruitful than the hit and miss of an archive search.

You should easily be able to find a price for less than what you stated you were willing to pay. I just booked a flight from Las Vegas to Manila for $725 with Silva Travel in Fresno, CA. I would look into using Singapore Airlines since they fly into Cebu City via Singapore for reasonable price; in fact, there is a Singapore Airline flight from Las Vegas to Singapore to Cebu City that you should be able to get for around $800.

Maranao is a language spoken by nearly 800,000 people living in the island of Mindanao, Lanao del Norte and Lanao del Sur Provinces. It belongs to the Southern Philippine subbranch of the Western Austronesian language family, and is most closely related to the Ilanun language spoken in Sabah, Malaysia and Maguindanaon, spoken in Maguindanao, North Cotabato, South Cotabato, Sultan Kuderat, and Zamboanga del Sur provinces. Since there are two million speakers of Pangasinan, very little has been done in the area of language preservation. Pangasinan is categorized as one of the eight major languages of the Philippines. Nevertheless, Pangasinan speakers do not have access to much printed material in their native language. The few works available in the Pangasinan language are evangelical in nature and often products of English translation for proselytizing purposes. Number of Speakers: 91,208 total Kalinga Speakers (1990 Census); Number of Speakers: Ifugao, 1990 Census: 167,503 The Isinay language is a Central Cordilleran language spoken by around 6,000 speakers. Throughout the region, children still learn Kapampangan as the first language, but in urban cities, such as San Fernando and Angeles, and nearby towns, children are being taught to speak Tagalog to cope with pre-school and primary school education. Today, there are many individuals and various groups interested in preserving and promoting Kapampangan language and culture. One of such groups is the Batiauan Foundation, whose mission is to launch and fund projects aimed against the decline in the prestige and use of the Kapampangan language.

Tausug: Jolo (Sulu Archipelago) number of speakers 651,808 census1990 Hiligaynon is taught in the schools from Grades 1-3 (thereafter, the medium of instruction is in the Philippine national language based on Tagalog). There are numerous publications (periodicals, newspapers, poetry and other literature journals) as well as movies and radio broadcasts in the language emanating from the regional centers (Bacolod City and Iloilo). The Roman Catholic Mass and Protestant Church services are in Hiligaynon, and there is a Hiligaynon translation of the Bible in wide use. The Hiligaynon-speaking population is strong and growing, as the census figures over the last few decades attest. Waray Waray ranks among the top eight languages of the Philippines, there has been very little done in the way of propagating the language through literature or the media. No works of literature have been produced prior to the 1900s during the early American period of occupation and nothing substantial is being produced in Waray to this day. Mapun is a small volcanic island, about 43 square miles, in the province of Tawi-Tawi, Philippines. The Mapun language, spoken by the Jama Mapun (cir. 40,000 people), belongs to the Sama-Bajaw group of languages of the Austronesian language family. Close relatives include: Borneo Coast Bajaw, Indonesian Bajaw, West Coast Bajaw, and the Inner Sulu languages: Central Sama, Southern Sama, and Balangingi Sama Efforts to preserve and promote Bikol are centered on the two main urban areas of the Bikol region: Naga City in Camarines Sur and Legazpi City in Albay. In Manila, the Ateneo de Manila University has also been involved in such promotion and preservation, thanks to the dedication of Father James O'Brien, S.J., who initiated such efforts. Some of the groups which are active in the Bikol region are: The Ateneo de Naga Social Science Research Center (ASSRC), Kabikolan, Muklat (Makabikolnon na Ugat sa Kultura, Literatura, Arte asin Teatro), Institute for the Documentation of Bikol Culture and History, the Bicol Culture Group of Bicol University, the Maogmang Lugar Journal (Ateneo de Naga High School), and Cecilio Press.

OTHER PHILIPPINE LANGUAGES. The Philippines is a country of remarkable linguistic diversity. There are over ninety languages spoken in the country, but only seven are considered important and have an extensive written literature and history. These are (in order of the number of speakers) Cebuano, Tagalog, Ilocano (Iloko), Hiligaynon (Ilongo), Bikol, Waray Waray (Samar-Leyte Bisaya), Pampango (Kapampangan), and Pangasinan. All the languages of the archipelago are Western Austronesian of the Philippine type except the languages left behind by colonization: English, Spanish, and the language of a powerful merchant class, Hokkien Chinese. A Spanish Creole, Chavacano, is still spoken today in Zamboanga, Mindanao, and to a lesser extent in Cavite City Because of the importance of Ilocano in Northern Luzon, it has been called the ""National Language of the North."" Many ethnic groups from the northern regions of the country are more at home in their second language, Ilocano, than the national language of the country, Tagalog (Pilipino). This is undoubtedly due to the historical prestige of the language and the accessibility of its speakers. There has been a national language shift, however, in the last few years due to the extensive use of Tagalog in the media and the national program to promote the Pilipino language in elementary and secondary schools. Ilocano remains a regional langauge with no political power or use in education past the early elementary years. Cebuano has traditionally had little prestige and few proponents. There is one Cebuano-language weekly periodical, Bisaya, which has had a commercial success over the past forty years, and there has always been a small number of intellectuals who have been committed to developing and preserving Cebuano who have published in this periodical. Most of what is published in this periodical, however, is commercial in nature and aimed at the amusement of the uneducated groups who do not read English easily. The majority of Cebuano intellectuals publish in English, and few in the population have much interest in Cebuano as a language or see its importance as a vehicle of the native culture.

I would base my argument on a well know Filipino weakness. That simply being their quest for education. Especially their overwhelming desire toward their children's education. Should it become the law of the land that all subjects be taught in English. I don't think I'm so far out of line in saying that parents will go out of their way to see that their 5-6 year old would speak English before starting school. These years in the past were spent speaking their native tongue. Which gave them that beautiful accent I'm so fond of. Dave mentioned the period of 1902-1941. When English was used in the schools. I think it would be hard to compare the first half of the 20th century with the second half. But to compare it to the first half of the 21st century in any way would be like saying the Wright Flyer, and the Concord are both airplanes. The information below from this site. While I didn't list all it's easy to see that some of these languages are for the best already dead. Judging by the number of speakers, and little or no effort to put forth to preserve them. As Mita said national pride in your heritage is a wonderful thing. I couldn't agree more, but if the children are forced to use English for the largest portion of each day I believe it will become their language of choice. Tagálog (Pilipino) was officially declared the national language of the Philippines (wikang pambansâ ng Pilipinas) on July 4, 1946 following a law drafted six years before. With over 90 distinct languages in the country, the Philippine government deemed it necessary to choose one of them as the basis for a national language. Contenders for this title included the eight 'major' languages of the archipelago (languages having at least one million speakers, see map), but the final round boiled down to two top contenders: Cebuano, with the largest number of native speakers, and Tagalog, the language of Manila, the capital. To the utter joy of many Manileños, Tagalog won, and from this day non-Tagalog first graders are required to learn Tagalog.

I figure there are a lot of people who have purchased books on living in the Philippines, or on overseas living in general. I want to know if you want to get rid of them. I'm looking to purchase a few books on living overseas. I realize this is not a trading list, so if your interested, I'll pay for shipping of the books too. I've searched the internet for a place that might sell used books, and found a few places, but they don't have books specifically on living overseas. I'm on Social Security with a limited budget, so I try to save every way I can. I'll pay half the cover price. To the moderator, if you don't let this post go up, I understand. I'm just trying to gather more info before my move to the Philippines. I'm not trying to run a book store. I only want to purchase a few books. I'd like to also get a book with some detailed maps of the Philippines. If no one has any, perhaps you could recommend a book by name or author. I'll probably end up purchasing it at the book store, if I can't find it at a used book store. Thanks all and God Bless.

We had to have a national language and the man who promoted the idea was a Tagalog from the province of Tayabas (now Quezon) - Manuel L. Quezon. This did not sit well with the Cebuanos is what I heard. Cebu has always been a very progressive city. But in those days, they didn't have the political influence they have now. They did have a point in disagreeing with the use of Tagalog as the basis of the Pilipino language. There are probably more people who speak Visayan than Tagalog. I have met a few Cebuanos who preferred to speak English over Tagalog. My own cousins in Cebu start using Cebuano when we converse in Tagalog so it's easier for everyone to just speak English. We have publications in different dialects around the country. It's not illegal to publish anything in the dialects.

Yes, Tagalog is used on radio and television. The major television network however has regional stations with their own production facilities and local news aired in the local dialect. Most radio networks also have local stations that air everythng in the local dialect, including the ads. The evening news in Metro Manila uses Tagalog and is aired all over the country. In the case of ABS-CBN, the evening news is aired live in several countries around the world thru The Filipino Channel which it owns and runs. They also air Tagalog programs that originate from Metro Manila. I think majority of Filipinos do understand Tagalog or Pilipino because we are so exposed to it on television or radio, not to mention in school. It may be that there is a significant percentage of Filipinos who are not comfortable speaking the language since we do have a strong tendency to use our own dialects in our everyday life. I've encountered a lot of Filipinos outside the Philippines and when we talked, it was always in Tagalog, no matter what region or province we came from. In that way, I guess you can say that the media has already done its share in standardizing the language.

Well, they have been teaching English for a hundred years (the American colonial government started it) and Tagalog hasn't disappeared yet. My understanding is that English instruction is a compromise, a way around choosing to elevate on Filipino language -- Tagalog -- over the others. I have been told that Cebuano speakers prefer to speak English instead of Tagalog, the language of imperial Manilla. I also heard in passing that it is illegal to have books or newspapers printed in other languages, such as Cebuano or Ilocano. Is that true? Does that apply to radio and TV broadcasts? They all seem to be in Tagalog. By the way, my fiancee is Ilocano but only remembers ever seeing one book in Ilocano in her life. She currently speaks Ilocano, Tagalog, Illongo, and English, as well as having taken Spanish in school -- sometime which was required when she was pre-law, alot of the colonial laws being in Spanish for obvious reasons.

Hello, I have a girlfriend in general santos city. I hear all kinds of things about the dangers there but I would really appreciate info about going there from people who live there. My girlfriend says it's safe, but she is a Filipina and maybe is not as aware as someone who is a foriegner. I've been to cebu and bohol, and I always felt very safe there. I know about the bombings and such in the past, but advice is wanted from someone with real experiences in

I agree with you that the Pilipino language will not die, but not for the reasons you gave. I believe it has more to do with National pride, and I do not mean that in a negative way. All great civilizations see their language as part of their National identity. But, by the same token, I agree with those who say that so many dialects is a detriment to the economic progress of the Country. It appears to be a catch-22. I wish I knew a solution.

I would have to disagree with you on that. English will never be the primary language of Filipinos, as it never was even during the American Occupation. It will always be a ""borrowed"" language like Spanish was during my grandparent's time. Most of us would prefer to speak in our dialects. I myself speak a mix of English, Tagalog and Ilocano when conversing with family. We still have courses on Philippine literature and Pilipino as a language in schools. For songwriting and musical reasons alone, I believe the Pilipino language will not die.

Well what do you know? I just searched the archives myself, and found no useful information on what it would cost to build a home. I still think that the info is there somewhere, but my searching skills were insufficient to root it out. I, myself have done some checking in the Cebu area, and I got the impression that a modest home could be built for something in the neighborhood of $25,000 dollars US. A relative recently built a very beautiful home for about $50,000 US. These costs do not include land, which cannot be owned by a non-filipino. Remember that land and building costs will vary greatly, depending upon the exact location, city or countryside, etc. I remember reading one post where someone was given to believe that a house could be built out in the boondocks for about $4,000 US. This may be true, but depends on the house. Many homes in the Philippines have very few amenities. One of my relatives only have the bedrooms enclosed. The living, dining, and kitchen areas are open on all sides and just have a roof over the top. Anyway the costs mentioned above are only estimates and you cannot plan based just on these guesses. Another big factor, as I understand it, is that if you have some knowledge about building, you can be your own General Contractor and simply hire the sub-contractors, .

Is there such a thing as a Filipino language? There are so many, and many more dialects. My wife was telling me the other day about a cousin visiting from another island, and no one in the family being able to speak to her, except her father. My wife is fluent in Cebuano and Tagalog, along with English. Her father speaks seven or eight languages. So, which Filipino language language do you refer to? Tagalog is the ""official language"" because it's the language of the power center. In practice, more Flipinos speak English as a second language than speak Tagalog. There is also, as there was with Spanish, (Remember: the Philippines most celebrated writer-poet wrote in Spanish) there is resistance if not outright resentment at the imposition of Tagalog. There is such in some provinces. I could go on, but let me tell you a recent story: A Cebuana of my acquaintance was at the INS. Later, she emailed: ""Not many Filipinos there. A few. Tagalogs. I told them I was Spanish."" She was joking, of course, but there it is. If the Philippines is to succeed as a country, as a unit, it needs a ""lingua franca,"" one that can form fast concepts and grow with the speed of an age of communication and technology. English already has a large established literate base. There is little resistance. Perhaps Ms. Arroyo is correct. By the way, my birth language is Spanish. After growing and studying and living in the cold north for over forty five years, I still speak it like a native.

I know of three efforts to send books to the Philippines. 1. My own, with my fiancee, to send academic oriented books to her university's library, the University of the Philippines in the Visayas. She received a number of books from publishers for free when she was earning her PhD and teaching at Northeastern U. They wanted her to assign their books. We send booth academic and literature 2. An effort based here outside of Boston to send children's books back to the Philippines and in conjunction to set up literacy programs at local libraries. 3. Third, a program in the San Francisco Bay Area to send books back. All of these get relatively new books donated. There biggest problem is the shipping. They need to raise the money. Afterall, it can cost US$.50 to $1 to ship a book, depending on the size. There are plenty of books. On an aside, there is a program in Baltimore that collects donated books and gives them away, kind of like a book exchange. It was reported on National Public Radio. Finally, here at the Wellesley, Massachusetts, dump -- or rather ""transfer station"" -- there are three garage doors of shelves of books. People come and leave their good books. Others, such as yours truly, come and take those that we like to read. The Dover, MA, dump also has a swap shop. Hope this all helps. Frankly, America, and Canada too probably, seem to be awash in books. Far more than we need. If only there was a cheap way to send them abroad.

Yes they did teach english in high school, When I started, everything except Pilipino was in English. We had elementary Spanish too since my school was run by Spanish nuns. We used American textbooks for our Reading and Language at the school. When my nephew (he's now in college) started elementary however, they introduced Pilipino as a medium for instruction for Social Studies and some other subjects. I read his books out of curiosity and the Pilipino used was too difficult for me. It was almost impossible to teach Math and Science purely in Pilipino and they didn't succeed with that. Textbooks for elementary and high school are now all local. There was much to-do about using Pilipino as the medium of instruction then and now with the switch back to English, it's the same thing.

You're not going to be there long enough to warrant renting an apartment ... especially with the rent deposit, utilities and all that stuff. Instead, go directly to Baloy Beach in Barrio Barretto. There are many places that rent by the week. There's some really nice studio apartments across the street from the Beach Boulevard Hotel that rent by the week or the month.

Two young relatives we sponsor for college are going to graduate in one year from STI in Manila. They major in computer scinece and technology. Would appreciate if there is information on the job prospects for these young people in the Cebu area in the near future. I assume they will first seek employment in Metro Manila but won't hurt finding out more about the same in Cebu. Hi I have a house in the philippines and i intend to retair there this year with my filipino wife and daughter i am just looking for a little bit more work and to make and meet new friends in the philippines. Thank you.

Some of you will know I support another Yahoo Group here in the Philippines - the Cebu Hash House Harriers. What some may not know, is the origin of this strange Group, and in particular the guy that started it all off - expat Albert Gispert. ""The Hash House Harriers received its humble beginnings in 1938 from a Britisher named Albert Stephen Ignatius Gispert, in what is now Malaysia. Having a fondness for the ""paper chase"", he gathered together several expatriates to form a group in Kuala Lumpur that would later become a world-wide legacy. The fraternity received its name from the Selangor Club Chambers, which due to it's lackluster food was commonly referred to as the `Hash House'. There are currently almost1500 hashes, including groups in almost every major city in the world, listed in the World Hash House Harriers Database maintained by Global Trash, the world hash publisher. Keep in mind when reading the history of hare and hounds, what separates the Hash House Harriers from other harriers groups is as much emphasis on the social camaraderie and non-competitive aspects of the group's activities, as on the sport of hare and hounds itself. Whereas membership in other harrier groups can be traced by its founding members prior to 1938, it is generally accepted that the sport of Hash House Harriers, in contrast to other hare and hounds groups, was defined by this particular club and all other groups of the Hash House Harriers can trace their lineage (directly or in concept) back to the Selangor Club Chambers or the Hash House in 1938"". ""Today, hashes around the world remember G with an Annual Gispert Memorial Hash on or near the anniversary of the day he died, February 11th, 1942. In a regimental history quoted by Magic written by Brigadier I. Stewart: ""About 0400 hrs (11 Feb) a considerable force of Japanese from track junction 751150 moved up the track for 200 yards to within ten yards of Battalion H. Q. and halted. They surprised and silently caught Captain Gispert, the mortar officer, and three men and killed them."" Cecil Lee later states, ""So perished a gallant, kindly, happy soul whose memory the years do not efface. He would be pleased, and I think amused, to know how the HHH have persisted and spread."" Here in Cebu, the Cebu Hash House Harriers will remember G on their Run #310 on the 8th February as this is the closest to the anniversary of G's death. This run will be Hared by WildMan from his house out at Naga. I know Steve Ford will have arrived in Cebu and he indicated he wanted to join in a Cebu Hash Run. Will other LinP Members who have run with us before (Rick Martin, Ron Winkley, Dave Witkus, Robert Warren), and will be in Cebu, come & join in to commemorate 'G'? Hopefully there will be a Jeepney from the SandTrap - be there by about 2:30pm. Otherwise make your own way to WildMan's house by 4pm (contact me if you want more details or need to know where Wildman's house is).

Im a real estate broker based in the Phils. To be a broker u need to pass the licensure examination which is given by Dept of Trade and Industry ( twice a year : May and November). There are requirements needed to take the examination: must be a Filipino citizen, 144 units of college education and have not been convicted of any crime involving moral turpitude...

i planned to go to philippines along time ago to see my gf, and security reasons b4 i have read all about filipines from boards have made my mind up to go. in the meantime i have thought of going on a volunteer group from australia, and stay for as long as the group or what has to be done is done, for the fact i would have felt good that more ppl my age (23) would also be going, and i could have still met my gf. i have just recieced or been granted a 3 month visa, and plan on renting somewhere for that time. what am curious to know: , if i feel i need to do something in the day or get a little bored sometimes, which i know i probly wont, is there anywhere i could go or find out about volunteer work in the filipines onces allready arrived. i want to help and enjoy helping ppl and would love to do this, but am very unsure of if this type of thing is possible onces u are allready in the country. also. i have seen posts from usa ppl saying they will live on 800$ us a month, but my plan is to live on $860au a month for 3 months which i feel if i could do that each month in australia then im surely going to be able to do it over there. if anyone living in the filipines maybe even a builder would like a hand even that i could fill up some days then let me know cuase im more then happy to help out,i suppose help is a free word, but i suppose everyone wants something in return dont they ? like i said, i am more then happy though to fill up some days and see more of fili with my gf as i can, but apart from getting set up for the 3 months i supose after that is done i will try live off $869au so anything that could help me in the slightest of ways would be so much appreciated also. if u think, NOW LOOK, heres a young lad who will work for free, then msg me or email ezlow2003@yahoo.com becuase everything is experience and helping ppl sometimes opens doors for u , thanks everyone and hope to hear something soon.

You brought up a good point I was thinking of mentioning several times in the past. Many times in the group people lament the fact that a foreigner can't buy land. But there is nothing particularly wrong with leasing. When I lived in England, for example, so- called 'freehold' houses were in the minority. Likewise in Japan it's quite uncommon for a city homeowner to own the land under his home. Condominiums, cooperatives and other leasehold properties are common in all US cites, so there's really no reason one can't build on long-term leased land. As I recall, the former Pennsylvania railroad main line between New York and Washington DC (now the Amtrak high speed meterolink) is on leased land. Of course the lease has some 700 more years to run (started as a 999 year lease) so it will no doubt outlive Amtrak.

I'm not a ham, but have had many ham friends through the years.. to me one of the attractions of the hobby would always be the ability to get answers to questions like yours with a quick CQ DU, but perhaps your interests are in the bands that would have a hard time reaching the Phils. Anyway there are plenty hams, most with emails, on the site I posted above, so you cna get up to date reports from hams who are actualling QSL'ng.

My named is Tony and I plan to go to Philippine 8 Feb 03 for a month to look for a place to retire at. I was wondering what I can do in the Philippines during my retirement. Maybe I could be a Real Estate Broker, because what I notice being on the . people need someone to give the honest information. Not information that is 5 years old, you need up to date info. I am a teacher librarian here in Canada. I quite often discard books which could be used but either are dog eared or the pages are loose etc. Pardon me if this a totally naive question and i hope it is not offensive. Could these books be of use to anyone in the Philippines? Could they be shipped there cheaply? Does anyone know the customs implications? Could Filipina/Filipino friends of mine make money selling them?

My husbands name is Bob. We are planning to make a trip to the Philippines in March. My son is married to a philippino. Her family lives in Cebu which is where we will be vacationing. We wish to investigate living somewhere in the area. we have a lot of questions about moving there. What to bring and what not. Best way to move money and invest it. To ship a car or buy one there. Can we buy a house and land? Any other info would be greatly appreciated. Thanks ..Sincerely, Anne Gordon. [Anne I have approved your message, but please search the Archives, since these questions have been asked many, many times and received many reply postings on such topics.

Thanks to the both of you who sent replied to my request, even though my spelling was way off! The recipes sound good, although not what I've had in Iloilo. Both call for asparagus and mushrooms and for cooking the duck in the over. The dish that I've had (several times) didn't have asparagus or mushrooms and the fine folks that cooked it for me didn't have an oven! Thanks, though! It's great that I can get such good results here!

Since he's at work and hasn't seen your post, I'll answer your question about whether I like US-made goods. My purchases are almost always ruled by price rather than the country of origin. I take exception to buying Philippine-made whenever I can. When I was in the Philippines and did the family shopping, I consciously made an effort to buy local. Occasionally, I'd have to buy imported ingredients for cooking and baking but ony bought one regular imported item - olive oil from Spain (cheaper than Italian). Most of the imported items I would buy were either Chinese or Australian since they were cheaper and more readily available. I would buy California wine every year for our family's new year celebration. As for clothes, I always shopped at Surplus Shop - all Philippine made clothes for the US market with US labels - at very low prices. Shoes and bags and make-up were almost always local brands. I would occasionally buy a Revlon lipstick when I felt like splurging. My lotions were Nivea, a German brand I believe, manufactured in the Philippines or maybe Thailand. My chocolate binge was on Choc-Nut. American chocolates are everywhere in the Philippines and I would buy them for ""pasalubong"" for my nieces. I'm not your typical Filipino shopper. Filipinos like American brand towels and beddings, kitchen appliances like ovens and ranges. PX goods dealers were very common when I was growing up. My mother had a friend who supplied her with Crisco, Dove soap, Blue Bonnet margarine and some other foodstuffs. I think American shoes and jeans would be something worth looking at. Before disposable diapers, mothers almost always told their daughters having their first babies to buy ""Bird's Eye"" diapers from the US. The only Bird's Eye brand I've seen here was in the frozen foods section - LOL! I met someone who would scour garage sales in the US and ship everything to Manila for resale at much higher prices. A lot of Filipinos have done this successfully.

I don't think that is confined to things made in the US. Filipinos like things made in other countries. But that's not confined to Filipinos. Most nations like foreign items. Americans like foreign cars, Brits like Swedish furniture, Japanese like British clothes. The hard thing is not to judge that there will be a market but to judge how big it is and for what specifically? I tried asking for the recipe on the filipino food lovers list, but, I think that most of the members there are from the Manila area and got no satisfactory response (although it is a good list with some knowledgable people). So, if there is someone here located in Iloilo or Negros, I would really like a recipe for patutin. It's one of my favorite dishes, and, of course, it's a duck dish. Offlist response is fine.

Hi from a space cadet from the land downunder, I currently live in Australia and intend to retire in RP circa 2006. I have travelled and lived extensively in many 1st and 3rd world countries. Your reportage of a typical 1st world country is accurate. I concur with you. 1st world countries are suitable for the mainstream people. The clinical and sterile ambience is definitely not my cup of tea. To RP and other similar countries let me say, ""Viva la vie."" Sincerely and best regards, John I don't know if you are married to a Filipina. If you are ask her if she likes things that are from the United States. As a result of our long time presence in the Philippines, Made in USA ""things"" are in high demand to the lucky who can afford. Obviously there is a limited market, however, if you go to the malls and markets you will see people spending money.

Hi from a space cadet from the land downunder, I currently live in Australia and intend to retire in RP circa 2006. I have travelled and lived extensively in many 1st and 3rd world countries. Your reportage of a typical 1st world country is accurate. I concur with you. 1st world countries are suitable for the mainstream people. The clinical and sterile ambience is definitely not my cup of tea. To RP and other similar countries let me say, ""Viva la vie."" Sincerely and best regards,

Hi, name is Don and I will be moving to the philippines end of Feb03 I plan on staying in the Angeles city area. I would appreciate any insight to what my general household expenditures per month would average this would be for a modest two bedroom house, also I will be in the market for appliances ie, stove,refrigerator,a/c unit. I'll be looking for basic units nothing fancy also if theres someone out there who knowa a realtor in that area that would also be handy.thanks for the help.