BrettGC Posted October 20, 2016 Posted October 20, 2016 16 minutes ago, Happyhorn52 said: This only impacts US expats as the average American doesn't a clue where the Philippines is. Can anyone tell me what the US gets from the Philippines? Plenty of beaches in California and Florida! No surf in Phils unless it's cyclone season, but some of the best beaches and diving in the world! 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robert k Posted October 20, 2016 Posted October 20, 2016 20 minutes ago, BrettGC said: No surf in Phils unless it's cyclone season, but some of the best beaches and diving in the world! I hear the diving around the Marianas is decent and they have some beaches. They have more than a few Filipinos there too. I'm ok with getting a visa. I do think it would negatively impact tourism if the Philippines did away with the 30 day waiver but that is their problem, as I have never come just for 30 days. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Happyhorn52 Posted October 20, 2016 Posted October 20, 2016 Philippines has some of the best beaches in the world but it's also a 25 hour flight from the US. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Happyhorn52 Posted October 20, 2016 Posted October 20, 2016 50 minutes ago, Reboot said: Duterte is talking about making US visitors get a visa. He complained that Filipinos must to visit the US, and he was once questioned when he wanted to visit a girlfriend in the US, so fair is fair in his words. Most Americans won't go to the trouble of getting a visa just to visit the Philippines. I thought of visiting Vietnam once but blew it off because I didn't want to go thru the hassle of getting a visa. Oh well, they lost $3,000 - $4,000 in tourist dollars. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JonPalawan Posted October 20, 2016 Posted October 20, 2016 1 hour ago, Reboot said: Duterte is talking about making US visitors get a visa. He complained that Filipinos must to visit the US, and he was once questioned when he wanted to visit a girlfriend in the US, so fair is fair in his words. Source? I have PRA visa, but could the entire program be abolished? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Hounddriver Posted October 20, 2016 Author Posted October 20, 2016 People brush this off like nothing's gonna change but are you certain? I believe its the uncertainty that will warn cautious people away. But on the bright side, we can expect more Russian and Chinese tourists, and sailors maybe, and the value of the peso may drop so we can hope our dollars will go further. I have sympathy for the bar girls as they will now have to learn two new languages 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robert k Posted October 20, 2016 Posted October 20, 2016 14 minutes ago, JonPalawan said: Source? I have PRA visa, but could the entire program be abolished? Virtually anything COULD happen. Would I expect it? Not really. Duterte seems to be one of those people who think out loud, they float an idea and see if it sinks. It's tough on people when they have a boss like that, telling him politely that while he is not an idiot, he just floated an idea that might have come from one. I had a boss like that and he was the one who had problems because I would tell him we could do that...or we could MAKE money instead, totally up to him. In the family business I wish I could bind and gag my brother (confirmed idiotaholic) and lock him in a closet because I narrowly stopped him from offering to pay an extra, after tax $30k USD that he didn't have to pay. But if I tied him up, well...there might be talk. This was his first business decision he tried to make. Glad he was talking to our lawyer and wasn't talking to the other side where they would have said done and done, and been binding. What the news reports Duterte saying is not binding, even when they quote him correctly. The cut ties with the US thing was walked back so fast it must have been on a leash with a choke collar. Had that actually been binding, Duterte wouldn't have had anything that China wanted tomorrow. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Happyhorn52 Posted October 20, 2016 Posted October 20, 2016 (edited) Correct me if I'm wrong but the Russian and Chinese tourists in Thailand didn't look like they were spending very much money, and they sure as hell weren't leaving tips for the wait staff. Edited October 20, 2016 by Happyhorn52 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davewe Posted October 20, 2016 Posted October 20, 2016 (edited) 2 hours ago, BrettGC said: I can't see how this would make any difference to any expats lives unless they changed any laws directly related to it. He's never said this is the case and his history in Davao is proof of this. Just because he's aligning himself with the soon to be biggest economy in the world does not mean it's the end of the world for expats. So he's anti-American government foreign policy and pro-China; it's not the end of the world from where I'm sitting. I'm indifferent as long as it doesn't affect how I live when I'm there. I agree. If my country were in Asia I'd want to sidle up to China and get some of that Chinese money as well. But I am shocked at all the doom and gloom I hear in the US. Guys who themselves hate Obama, call him the n-word and advocate his impeachment (or worse) are furious that a Filipino doesn't like him. As long as DU30 doesn't ban sun, beaches and San Miguel I too will be indifferent. Edited October 20, 2016 by davewe 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HikiSpray Posted October 20, 2016 Posted October 20, 2016 11 minutes ago, Happyhorn52 said: Correct me if I'm wrong but the Russian and Chinese tourists in Thailand didn't look like they were spending very much money, and they sure as hell weren't leaving tips for the wait staff. I just wanted to point out that tipping is an mostly american thing, I only tip if the service is out of the ordinary, meaning, most of the time in the Philippines I do tip. Not huge amounts but still. I find that service is better in the PH than my home country. It's not bad in my country but it's just better. (Smiling, welcoming and eager to please) 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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