Dress Code For Expats And Visitors

[Mr Lee]

Dress code for expats and visitorsIs there a dress code that foreigners visiting or living in the Philippines should follow? Of course I am not talking about everyday life here where we all wear shorts, teeshirts and sandals or whatever we want to, but how about when going into banks or going to car shows or movies or, or, or?? Anyone care to mention places where shorts and tanks or T's might be improper?How about Church, court, BI etc? The reason I ask is because after talking to a higher up in a bank, I was given the impression that the upper class people here expect more of us than the way many of us prefer to carry ourselves and because of that, some are looked down on by some of those higher ups in society here because we dress improperly at times.

[Markham]

Dress code for expats and visitorsIs there a dress code that foreigners visiting or living in the Philippines should follow? Of course I am not talking about everyday life here where we all wear shorts, teeshirts and sandals or whatever we want to, but how about when going into banks or going to car shows or movies or, or, or?? Anyone care to mention places where shorts and tanks or T's might be improper?How about Church, court, BI etc? The reason I ask is because after talking to a higher up in a bank, I was given the impression that the upper class people here expect more of us than the way many of us prefer to carry ourselves and because of that, some are looked down on by some of those higher ups in society here because we dress improperly at times.

I think you should be dressed appropriately for where you happen to be - but never, ever, ever wear socks with sandals! Or a worse "sin" - socks, sandals and SHORTS!BoI - and a number of Banks - will not admit you if you are improperly dressed. In BoI's case, a clean (preferably slogan-free) T shirt or polo and long pants are a must. Same with banks and offices (particularly Government offices). If you have to appear in Court, Lee, fear not, your clothes will be supplied - orange jumpsuit and handcuffs!!I was having dinner at the Marco Polo's poolside restaurant the other night and two Russian guests at the hotel were refused service as they were wearing string vests; the fact that they chose a table in the non-smoking section and proceeded to light-up didn't help their cause. Edited April 13, 2009 by Markham

[Old55]

Visiting friend

[mike]

Dress code for expats and visitorsIs there a dress code that foreigners visiting or living in the Philippines should follow? Of course I am not talking about everyday life here where we all wear shorts, teeshirts and sandals or whatever we want to, but how about when going into banks or going to car shows or movies or, or, or?? Anyone care to mention places where shorts and tanks or T's might be improper?How about Church, court, BI etc? The reason I ask is because after talking to a higher up in a bank, I was given the impression that the upper class people here expect more of us than the way many of us prefer to carry ourselves and because of that, some are looked down on by some of those higher ups in society here because we dress improperly at times.

government offices require more formal attire, some bars as well!!As for banks if they get sniffy with you just remind them whose money it isAnything else, go as you please if they do not like the invites will dry up :thumbsup: mike

[TheMason]

The reason I ask is because after talking to a higher up in a bank, I was given the impression that the upper class people here expect more of us than the way many of us prefer to carry ourselves and because of that, some are looked down on by some of those higher ups in society here because we dress improperly at times.

Any bank officer that questioned the way I was dressed in their bank would be responsible for me immediately closing my account and doing business elsewhere. I would also likely write a letter of explanation to the bank explaining exactly who was responsible for the loss of my business.As for impressing the higher ups in Filipino society, I really could not care less what their opinion of me is. I seldom if ever interact with the upper class and have very little desire to do so. Why the hell would I want to socialize with the people I feel are responsible for the abject poverty and repression I see all around me?When it comes to church, I generally dress up out of respect for the others attending church with me. I don't think God cares how I am dressed, but I know the other attendees do, so I yield to social conventions in this case. The church I attend in the US is more casual, so shorts and sandals are acceptable.As for BI, I need the services they offer, so I follow their rules. I personally feel the rules are inane, but sometimes you've just got to do what you're told if you want to get what you need.As for hotels enforcing dress codes, that is the height of hypocrisy in my opinion. I stayed at a lot of 5-star hotels in the Philippines when I travelled here on business. Every one of them was full of guests parading obvious prostitutes (dressed accordingly) through the hotel at all times of day and night. Why bother with a dress code in the restaraunts if anything goes in the rest of the hotel?