Welcome to Gio In The Philippines! 🌴
I'm Gio, an adventurous expat from the United States who’s been living in Southeast Asia for over 8 years. My channel is your front-row seat to life in The Philippines through the eyes of a Western guy. From the bustling city streets to tranquil island escapes, join me as I travel across the archipelago in search of the perfect spot for retirement and savor the beauty of Filipino life.
Expect to see:
Travel Adventures: Explore stunning islands, hidden gems, and vibrant cities.
Local Culture: Dive into the rich traditions, cuisine, and daily life of the Philippines.
Retirement Insights: Get tips and insights on what it's like to live and retire in paradise.
Ready to experience the Philippines like never before? Hit that subscribe button and come along for the journey!
Stay Connected:
Facebook: facebook.com/GioInThePhilippines
Website: giointhephilippines.com/contact-gio/
Let's embark on this adventure together!
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Be an observer not a server to others for the first year or two. Get engrained in the country you want to settle down in and build a network of friends and eventually two will meet where the paths are aligned, and that takes another year or two or up to a lifetime, to see that you both deserve each other and feel when the time is right, to be committed and no regrets. 🙏
Social media is why
Yeah, this is absolutely true, and to be honest, I have had nothing but scammers that I’ve dealt with asking for money for absurd things I would say the best women that I’ve messaged that I’ve never dealt with scamming issues with Vietnam women
Obviously it’s always been about money . And that happens anywhere. But in SE Asia the women have started to wake up & realise that too many foreigners arriving long term aren’t the gold mine they expected. These guys talk themselves up , but are basically living pay check to pay check since previous divorces or business failures back home have stripped them of cash. So ….after too many girls end up with a broke old man that can’t afford to take them anywhere or fund a 5 star lifestyle ,,,the party is over.
I live in my paid off home in California and purchased a condominium resort in Manila, and I absolutely love the area and the amenities they give to owners is priceless.
Pay for play in a different town. Never let your neighbors see your mongering ways by bringing chicks back to your place.
I am from the UK and a few years ago had ebay and Paypal accounts with them linked and the PayPal linked to my debt card. Someone in the USA had bought an expensive camera on Ebay after hacking the ebay and PayPal accounts. Luckily my bank blocked my card and obtained a full refund back from Paypal and changed my card. I cancel both my Ebay and PayPal accounts at that point and have never used either company since then.
Always the Toyota Camry 😂. This guy is awesome!
NEVER EVER use debit card, only CC FOR all charges. Only use it for ATM...
Thanks for the plug, Gio! Happy to help anyone looking to rent or buy in The Philippines.
Yo Gio, another knowledgeable video for the books. Thanks, man!
Can you send mike address again ty
Interesting points, some other bloggers (Dumaguete guys) just had a debate about merits of sending your Social Security check directly to a Philippine bank. One agreeing with you (as do I) that the risks far outweigh any benefits, while the other saying, oh you have to pay to transfer, then wait x days for money to deposit. Why not eliminate that middleman (though he does keep an US bank account where his KZread and other funds get deposited. Guess he doesn't have completer faith.) The first person made point (similar to yours) in US your money is insured up to $100K in case of insolvency etc. of the institution. Philippine banks I believe is P100K (at 50 to 1 that is $20k only) and odds of you ever getting your money back (as a foreigner, Filipino shall get theirs while they have the money) is slim to none so it isn't wise to have a lot of money in the banks there.
I believe it's 500k ₱ deposit insurance for PI banks not 100k ₱ but yes as a foreigner, you're probably last in line after the locals should anything happen. Far safer to leave your money in your home country.
Doser anyone know if its allright or a good ide if to file a case aginst a filipino love scammer if you have all the evidence 100k pesso ? worth it or just move on ?
I have all the luxuries of my life in my working home in Australia, but will avoid BGC with every breath I take. Davao / Digos is my haunt and I love it. I am the tabo king 😅. Beautiful natural places to visit, great people around me. Great internet streaming what I want. The thing I don't have nor want is the bar girl scene. You so called bulls can have that world.
I'm 38. I have been serious considering selling my house in two years and moving there. I do not plan on bringing one back if I do come back.. that's for sure. You need to get one who's 18-21 when they're still young enough to shape and mold into a wife. If you get one with a lot of miles on her and there's probably a good reason she's single.
I think mentally it's a lot of work to maintain yourself in two different countries half a world away from each other. Ironic the country with the least amount of government and most amount of freedom is the desired location until there's a problem then it's the country with the largest government oversight and least amount of freedom that is desired to solve problems! What a balancing act you must maintain to live in Shangri-la. Wish I had the mental gymnastics to pull it off like so many of you guys there. I'm jealous! Thumbs up!
That’s totally ridiculous 3-4 months why ?
Yea, absolutely
It must be Ging you are talking about
Nope it isn't. Ging and I were together for 1 year and never lived in a condo.
Get Capital One Credit Card rack up miles for discount flights and no foreign transaction fees
That's exactly the one I have and will be using now.
Hello Folks, Could you do a discussion on the single mom/ child dynamic in Philippines. Many Filipinas are perfectly okay with leaving their children with relatives to raise and moving around with their foreigner partners. It seems strange from a western perspective as that is not common in USA. Also sometimes the foreigner feels guilty of breaking up that union when entering a relationship. Not referring to you guys. I mean children left or sent to province and mom moves to the city.
Never get married and don't let her move in with you to destroy your freedom.
My fiance runs into that branch bank issue from time to time. If you go to a branch bank that is in another city that was not the branch that you opened your account, if you want to deposit, or withdrawal money you pay a fee because it was not your branch. So odd. Same thing with any issues like online banking or what you mentioned you would have to go to the branch you opened up your account with. I guess if you move, it is better to close your account, and reopen a new account in the city you moved to.
Hi Gio, could you and your wife make a video talking about the police in the PH? I know it's not a fun topic to talk about but I think it is important to inform us the inside out on how they treat the people and how they operate also in comparison with other countries like the US.
When i was there, sorry im not interested because u are already here,u have many ladies im sure 😂whatever...im reliefed to be single
Thanks again Gio Can't say in a few words how we got identity theft/fraud here in the US the past 2 months but since we want to move next year to the Philippines. All very important information and testimony to life abroad! Ciao
Thanks Gio, I enjoy the vids.
Just had 5000 wired to me ffom Seattle western union and BECU Almost instant. Could get it from 3 or 4 other countries as well.
Lots of places in the Philippines won't take a credit card. You should definitely be prepared to pay cash for most purchases. Even thrown I'm planning Roto use a credit card, I carry enough cash just in case. That said, I think many overstate this point. Stores at the malls almost always take credit cards. Fancy restaurants, airlines, and tourist spots take credit cards. oh, but many online services say they take credit cards and you can enter your US credit card number ... But it doesn't work. I called my cell phone company about this and they said sorry, its s known problem and they're working on it. I now use g cash for most Filipino online payments.
😎👍🇺🇲 Agreed. I'll leave it in the hotel room. 😏 Who's buying??? 😆
Lesson #1: have at least two credit cards and two US bank accounts with ATM cards. So if there's an issue with one, from a card comply expiring to having to block A card be cause of fraudvtobwhatever, you're not stuck.
It's worse than you think. If you have transactions against your card directly AND PayPal, which exists to shield vendors from any of your financial details, then the hacker has much more information about you. You need to check your credit report to see if that same info has been used to open other accounts in your name, NOW!
Agree with this. It's not only his debit card but might be PayPal as well that's been compromised.
Continued from my last comment, I did this twice 5000.00 each time. It cost 1.99 both times using W.U. I'm in Philippines now so it will be a while before I need to do again. Also brought 2000.00 cash in case of problem.
Captain Save a 304 = the Filipina will ask for more! High Value men say no 👎.
I transfer from my checking account in US to Filipina's account in Philippines using Western Union. She then withdraws with atm card or goes to bank.
I decided before I left the USA to open a second bank account. So I chose Schwab and it comes with a debit card. Well recently someone tried charging something at a gym back in the USA. It was one of those test charges where they tried to charge $1.00 . Well Schwab locked that ATM card so if that is your only bank account it could be an issue for you until you get a new one. I recommend having two bank accounts back in your country so if there ever is an issue and they lock the account you still have a way to get money while you address the issue with the other bank. I also use my Wise debit card for purchasing things here in the Philippines. I just move money into the Wise account and bought a refrigerator as an example.
I have the Schwab Debit card. I use it in Tokyo, Thailand, and RP all the time, ever an issue. Why did yours get locked?
@@jonb3189 It's because he's in the Philippines. Schwab has issues with transactions from the Philippines with their debit card--sometimes they work and sometimes the card gets locked.
My fiancé used an ATM at 7 11 to withdraw 10K pesos to pay her monthly rent/utilities and other bills. The machine charged her bank account, but did not dispense any cash. She is now out that money while the bank "investigates" the problem. It's been 2 months now and she doesn't know if she will ever get that money back. As I'm sure you're aware, 10K pesos is a large sum to the average Filipino and she really needs it. Morale of the story? Only use ATM's at reputable banks, not convenience stores.😒
Hey Gio, What’s your opinion on using BDO for banking?
BDO is fine but keep your bank in your home country for your primary bank.
Thanks for these Words of Wisdom, Gio and if your wife told me her experiences I would definitely listen and do likewise...! I will check out Mike Ross too...!
Always link recurring payments to credit cards because U.S. Law limits fraud to $50.00. No federal protection for debit cards.
If you have an iPhone it’s advisable to update your apps daily (especially if you’re overseas). Learned my lesson the hard way-as I always do. But anyways, if your bank app or Wise app is not responding to a purchase or a transfer it’s because you need to update the app now. If you don’t it’ll be repeat, repeat, repeat.
Hey Gio, what do you think about using your banks phone app to lock your debit/credit cards and only unlock them when you use them then relock them again? I guess if you loose your phone your cards are locked and you may be stuck without funds. My bank (Wings financial credit union in Minnesota) has this option with the phone app but you can also login to their website on a computer from a browser and unlock your cards from there...
I think that is an excellent idea!
You can set up a virtual debit card with Wise. Put in money as you need.
I use my credit card for all my bill pays such as power bill cable food etc and get cash back by paying these bills
I never use paypal.
Never send money to someone you never met face to face
Great job
Bingo! Credit card is the right answer. Never carry a balance and you get nothing but benefits.
This makes me think twice about getting the SRRV, where they will require me to deposit $10k in a Philippines bank. It seems like I would have to just kiss the money goodbye if I decide to go that route...
Yup, I'd just extend your visa monthly then take a out of country short trip once your 3 yrs are coming up..too easy..live life my friend!
I recommend that strategy Anywhere Gio. Credit cards tied to Paypal, etc. And Debit only for ATM.