Sateev

I'm married to a Filipina from Mindanao, and she is the finest human being I know.

That said, neither of us would live in the Philippines at any price.  Lies, cheating, rampant theft and general rip-offs are their stock-in-trade.  The infrastructure is pitiful, both in Manila and in the provinces, the food is about the worst I can imagine eating, and as noted above, the hotels are ridiculously priced and disgusting.  100 pesos/night for an extra blanket.

No one will take the initiative to do ANYTHING.  They are slow as molasses, and passive-aggressive.  It is a culture of 'give-me-because-you're-rich'.

I briefly considered moving there, as it would have immigration advantages, and my wife would be more at home in her own culture.  Then we looked at all the stories about Customs extortion on household goods: a family with $2000 of stuff being extorted for $6000 in 'fees', while port 'storage charges' increased daily; $35 in 'fees' on a $12 EMS package sent from the US, etc.

Then, as fate would have it, my wife's father passed away, and we had to attend the funeral in southern Mindanao.  A week of the above left me even more determined to avoid going there again in this life.

Hell no.

Cambodia looks ok, but the rip-offs there are also a problem.  However they seem to have not yet honed them to a fine art, as the Filipinos have done.  Probably need a few more post-Khmer Rouge generations before they regain that cleverness..

I will always love Thailand, but, in spite of what the well-entrenched have to say in rebuttal, it isn't what it used to be.  And it's nearly as expensive as the US for anything but the basic staples.  Add the ever-more-frequently-shifting Immigration enforcement, and the rising crime, and I'm just about ready to head south and turn left.

Learning Khmer looks daunting, but so did Thai 25 years ago, when I had more game brain cells.  I guess we'll make do.

Apple II+, 48K, with Integer Basic card, dual 160K 5.25" floppies, and a $1800+ hole in my credit card. Learned my second assembly language on it.  My first, was....Control Data - on punch cards.

That $1800 was the best investment I ever made.

blazes, on 2012-05-22 13:23:53, said:

CM is only the 8th largest city in Thailand.

ubonjoe, on 2012-05-19 10:53:26, said:

The days of applying to Honorary Consuls, if you are not in their coverage area, are, I'm afraid, gone.  They were being inundated with just such requests, and the MFA decided to make applicants apply to the Consul, honorary or not, in their own area.

The fact that the LA Consulate's website is being updated should be viewed as a good thing.  And the fact that they are in line with the MFA policy is also refreshing.  In the past, they unilaterally decided things like no multi-entry O-A visas, which was clearly ridiculous. Since His Excellency Damrong Kraikruan took over, many things have improved there.

OP: My advice (since you didn't state your situation) is to call them, and speak with the farang that works in the visa section.  He will help you if he can.

What's CDC?