Well, the vacation is over and it's back to work in USA.
I must say, travel was a little complicated. Both of my outbound flights from iloilo were cancelled. The first was with Japan Air. The inbound flight was OK, but outbound got changed to a 27-hour layover in Tokyo, which is prohibited, thereby voiding the flight. Then, Cathy Pacific banned incoming flights to Hong Kong from the Philippines and the USA. Finally, I successfully re-booked with Philippines Air through LA. I took American Airlines from LA to Boston.
A couple of points of note. I was warned about Philippines Air and their bankruptcy and such on this blog. I couldn't have been happier with their service. The plane was clean, the flights on time and the crew was professional and courteous. I still await my refunds from Japan Air and Cathay Pacific, which goes to my point. The vacation to our farm in iloilo Province was sensational. I am certainly planning on retiring there in a year. No question.
But travel to the Philippines at this time takes three things: IT knowledge, Patience and Money. As I said earlier in this post, i had to re-book my flights (two tickets) and now have to wait on my refunds. I can afford to tie up a few thousand USDs. Others may not. I am not IT savvy, so I needed help along the way. My wife's large family located everywhere (Manila, the US and Iloilo) helped us upload all the S-Passes and entry documents. I wish I could help more, but my wife knew all the laws, had all the papers and her family uploaded all the stuff.
The trip started, after a US test, by flying through Tokyo to Manila for a 5-day quarantine (Dec. 16 to 21). We lucked out by checking into the hotel at 11:45 PM in Dec. 16, thereby having the first day count, even though it was just 15 minutes. The testing went well on the 20th, and we flew Cebu Pacific to Iloilo (nice flight) on the 21st.
We stayed at the farm until after Jan. 1, which ended the 14-day self-quarantine. The stay on the farm was just great. We went into Pototan for a day and iloilo for two. The traffic was a little tough in iloilo, but i can live with it.
The testing was easy at the Iloilo Provincial Hospital, where people were helpful, and it took just 20 minutes, The cost was $121 USD (6,048 Pesos) for two tests (my wife has the senior citizen's discount).
Then the flights out. I purposely booked long layovers in Manila and LA, just in case of flight delays. It turned out to be unnecessary, but I wasn't taking any chances.
I landed in Boston about 8:30 AM Saturday Morning (EST). I slept 24 hours straight until about 9:00 AM Sunday. I took an extra day off (Monday) to make sure all my bills are paid and to get an extra day's rest. I return to work tomorrow.
I fully expect to work one more year and book two one-way tickets to iloilo this time next year.
I will post throughout my preparations., as I intend to apply and receive my 13a visa at the Philippine embassy in New York and deposit my Philippine money in the PNB at the same time.
There's a lot to do, but a lot is already done. My house in RP is finished, and the physical prep work is done in iloilo. The rest is a lot of paperwork here and in the RP (Phil Health, Senior Card, ID, Driver's License, banking, such as RP credit or debit cards, etc.).
I must say, travel was a little complicated. Both of my outbound flights from iloilo were cancelled. The first was with Japan Air. The inbound flight was OK, but outbound got changed to a 27-hour layover in Tokyo, which is prohibited, thereby voiding the flight. Then, Cathy Pacific banned incoming flights to Hong Kong from the Philippines and the USA. Finally, I successfully re-booked with Philippines Air through LA. I took American Airlines from LA to Boston.
A couple of points of note. I was warned about Philippines Air and their bankruptcy and such on this blog. I couldn't have been happier with their service. The plane was clean, the flights on time and the crew was professional and courteous. I still await my refunds from Japan Air and Cathay Pacific, which goes to my point. The vacation to our farm in iloilo Province was sensational. I am certainly planning on retiring there in a year. No question.
But travel to the Philippines at this time takes three things: IT knowledge, Patience and Money. As I said earlier in this post, i had to re-book my flights (two tickets) and now have to wait on my refunds. I can afford to tie up a few thousand USDs. Others may not. I am not IT savvy, so I needed help along the way. My wife's large family located everywhere (Manila, the US and Iloilo) helped us upload all the S-Passes and entry documents. I wish I could help more, but my wife knew all the laws, had all the papers and her family uploaded all the stuff.
The trip started, after a US test, by flying through Tokyo to Manila for a 5-day quarantine (Dec. 16 to 21). We lucked out by checking into the hotel at 11:45 PM in Dec. 16, thereby having the first day count, even though it was just 15 minutes. The testing went well on the 20th, and we flew Cebu Pacific to Iloilo (nice flight) on the 21st.
We stayed at the farm until after Jan. 1, which ended the 14-day self-quarantine. The stay on the farm was just great. We went into Pototan for a day and iloilo for two. The traffic was a little tough in iloilo, but i can live with it.
The testing was easy at the Iloilo Provincial Hospital, where people were helpful, and it took just 20 minutes, The cost was $121 USD (6,048 Pesos) for two tests (my wife has the senior citizen's discount).
Then the flights out. I purposely booked long layovers in Manila and LA, just in case of flight delays. It turned out to be unnecessary, but I wasn't taking any chances.
I landed in Boston about 8:30 AM Saturday Morning (EST). I slept 24 hours straight until about 9:00 AM Sunday. I took an extra day off (Monday) to make sure all my bills are paid and to get an extra day's rest. I return to work tomorrow.
I fully expect to work one more year and book two one-way tickets to iloilo this time next year.
I will post throughout my preparations., as I intend to apply and receive my 13a visa at the Philippine embassy in New York and deposit my Philippine money in the PNB at the same time.
There's a lot to do, but a lot is already done. My house in RP is finished, and the physical prep work is done in iloilo. The rest is a lot of paperwork here and in the RP (Phil Health, Senior Card, ID, Driver's License, banking, such as RP credit or debit cards, etc.).
