Expat Community > Philippines

Snowbound
Joined 2021
Posts: 159

Headed to RP, Dec. 15

3 years ago

Hello everyone. This is a very helpful blog and I appreciated everyone's comments.

My Filipina wife and I have been planning a trip to our home in Pototan since March 2021, the day after we received our second covid shot (Moderna). I anticipated a quicker and wider reopening at the time. The Delta variant changed that. however, we kept the tickets. I recieved my Booster of Moderna on Nov. 2.

We fly from Boston to Tokyo, and have a 4 hour layover there and then on to Manila and are happy that the quarantine has been reduced to 3 days. We have a hotel booked. This is my first trip to our 10 Hector farm that we share with my wife's 3 sisters, who, as I've said in other posts, are independently well off, by Philippine standards. In fact, one of my wife's 3 sisters lives in the States and has a share of the farm and is a civil engineer. Her assets dwarf mine and I'm doing just great. I share this with you because I've received well meaning advice on this blog to be careful of the relatives because I'm an American, but each sister has a house on the compound just a nice as ours, and ours is one beautiful place.

Anyway, excuse my digression. My wife returned to the farm once or twice a year over the past 10 years, but this will be my first trip. We both took care of my ill mother for 20 years, so we couldn't both be away at the same time and I wouldn't go to the RP without my wife. My Mom passed away at 91 last year. I say this by way of background.

Our return trip is via Hong Kong, with a long layover in Manila but just 4 hours in Hong Kong.. We leave Boston on Dec. 17 and return Jan. 7. As I've said in other blogs, I'm planning my retirement to Pototan at the end of next year (2022).

So, to my point, since I haven't ever traveled to RP and my wife certainly hasn't been there since the Pandemic hit I am curious if any folks on this blog who have been living full time in the RP for the past couple of years can tell me what I can expect to experience when I get there and if you can give me some helpful advice. My sisters-in-law have expressed their experiences to us, but none have really left the farm during Covid.

Thanks,

Snowbound in Boston

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SJB Global is a top-rated financial advisory firm specializing in expat financial advice worldwide, offering retirement planning & tax-efficient solutions with a regressive fee model.
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SJB Global is a top-rated financial advisory firm specializing in expat financial advice worldwide, offering retirement planning & tax-efficient solutions with a regressive fee model.
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SJB Global is a top-rated financial advisory firm specializing in expat financial advice worldwide, offering retirement planning & tax-efficient solutions with a regressive fee model.
Learn More

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Expat Community > Philippines

Headed to RP, Dec. 15

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