A. Packing-
Philippines has weather similar in temperature to Thailand but not the humidity of Thailand, which makes the heat bearable. You want to pack jeans, slacks and cotton shorts along with t-shirts, polo shirts and Hawaiian-type shirts. Starting in March, it gets damn hot and you wont be wearing anything but shorts and short sleave shirts.

Bring a digital camera if you have one as Filipinas do not photograph well with regular cameras. Also bring extra memory, batteries and some blank CD’s to burn copies of the pics if you run out of memory...and you will. Might be a good idea to bring a portable DVD player for your plane ride and to watch movies with your honeyko in bed...they love this. Bring your laptop so you can burn CD copies of your pics and you can also use the laptop as a portable DVD player. Many hotels now have in room broadband so you can stay up to date with your emails and use your laptop as a phone line with Vonage or other providers. This is perfect for professionals as it allows you to make calls overseas with local USA rates. Vonage allows you to have a softphone for $10 a month and it gives you 500 minutes. When you call your clients or associates, they think that you are in the states because the local number is on their caller ID. Another great thing about laptops is that you can burn CD’s for your dates. Burn a love song mix for you’re a Filipina and you would think you just bought them a gold necklace. If you have a triband phone, I suggest you bring it and buy a SIM card once you arrive. Nothing is more important than a cell phone in the PI.
Bring some chocolates, lotions and perfumes to give to the girls. A little generosity goes a long with the girls. Also smart to bring plenty of your prescription medicine as the pharmacies suck in the PI and are overpriced and ran by the Chinese Mafia...what a shock. All over the counter medicine is easy to find in Angeles and affordable for the most part.
Other things to consider packing are as follows: Condoms, portable speakers(Panasonic makes great ones), extra memory cards, DVD’s that young ladies would like, lube, anal beads, vibrators, and cock rings.

B. Money- The money issue is the biggest drawback to the PI. I would suggest bringing a mix of different types of financing, in case of mishap. The following are different ways to manage your money.

Cash: Cash is King here. The best rates are with cash and exchange booths give you the best rates. The best rates are found at Norma’s just off of Fields Ave. Normas is also the only place that will cash 1996 or older 100 dollar bills. Best way to carry cash is place it in a money belt or cache around your neck on your flight. As soon as you check in to your hotel, put all of your money in your room deposit box or at the front desk. Keep some of your cash hidden somewhere in your suitcase for emergencies. Never heard of anyone getting their safety deposit robbed. Always remember that you empty your pockets when you return with your honeyko and put all of your money in your safe while she is taking a shower so she doesn’t memorize the code. I left 3,000 pisos inside a closet on a trip and girl took a thousand and left in a hurry. Another guy I know, had two girls take 6,000 pisos from his room and the girl left the bar thereafter. Filipinas are genuinely sweet and honest but just be on the cautious side.

ATM: ATM’s are not convenient in Angeles like they are in Manila. You have to take a 100 piso round trip to the ATM which is about 10-15 minutes away or more, depending on traffic. Remember to check with your bank as they may charge you as much as $4 per transaction for international withdrawals. Another problem with ATM’s is that they limit the amount of money you take (15,000 pisos or less), they run out of money(especially on weekends) and they go offline or out of order continually. I would still bring your ATM card and credit cards but just know the hassles involved. The best and most reliable that I have come accross is at the BPI branches because they allow 15,000 maximum withdrawals and are usually online.

Traveler’s Checks: Due to the problem with theft and fraud in the PI, travelers checks are a pain in the ass and give you much lower rates with extra fees. You can cash them at banks on Macarthur Blvd, Filipino Travel on Fields and at Margarita Station. They will give you much lower rates and charge fees. Remember the banks are open 9-3:30 and they give better rates. It’s good to keep some traveler’s checks just in case the ATM’s are out of money and someone stole your cash.

Opening a Bank Account: If you are going to the PI often, it is a good idea to open up an account with BPI or Equitable PCI. The extreme paranoia people will frown upon this but your money is safe. It’s safer than carrying around all your money in cash. You will need a copy of your passport and drivers license, two one inch photos, and keep a copy of your hotel receipt for residency purposes. They let me use the Apartelle Royale as a residence because it was an apartment. Every bank has different requirements for residency but they are usually very flexible here. They will give you an ATM card in 5 days or less which you can use at any of the ATM’s in the Philippines without extra charge. The recommend Equitable PCI which has a branch near Savers Mall on Macarthur and the ATM card uses the Plus system and you can use it in the US and make deposits at some of their US Branches. Same goes for Bank of the Philippines (BPI).

did the trike drivers steal the one at kokomoz?

Load up on 10k piso withdrawals, when it has cash-- it runs out frequently.

I've had pretty good luck getting cash at the Kokomoz ATM in the mornings. Maybe they service it first thing in the morning?

When I wouldn't take "No" for an answer at the Kokomo's ATM, sometimes on the second or third try it would miraculously dispense 10,000 pisos. So keep trying.

Nice guide. I saw your previous guide and had based my trips on it. There is one thing that I would like to add if you dont mind. Condoms are expensive in the United States especially when you bring 200+ for that extra long trip. Last trip I went through 120 of them. I have found that the best place to get them is www.condomdepot.com. Very cheap and quick service. All local variety condoms in Angeles City, especially the ones that the bargirls carry, well, just didn't look very trustable.

www.condomexpress.com is another reliable source.

Condoms - now THAT'S funny

E

Yes, I DO have a lot of unused condoms for sale after this last trip, all in their original packaging.

Maybe you can barter them for anti-biotics?

Blazers, which hotels have in room broadband?

Great info and thanks for your post.

Sandman, Swiss Chalet, Royal Amsterdam, Central Park, Kokomoz, Orchid Inn and Wild Orchid all have in-room broadband internet.