I went to both countries in my twenties and thoroughly enjoyed both. Beyond some overly strong beer in the Philippines and maybe a joint or two in the rural parts of Thailand, I didn't engage in any of the stereotypical behavior, though I definitely saw it.
I guess now that I'm in my fifties, I'm not allowed to go back because it would be a matter of course that I'd pick up some teen bride, right?
But seriously, both countries are so, so beautiful. I've got less than zero desire to ever go to Hawaii after island hopping in the Philippines. As to Thailand, it's just so calm. Like you're not even capable of being stressed there. (Unless of course, you're smuggling drugs around and find yourself on the business end of a prison cell door. Then yer fucked)
Yeah a lot of the stereotypes come from people that spend their entire vacation in the red light district. Interesting that places in Europe that also have red light districts don't get the same reputation. Wonder why that is....
Coming from Philippines, there are plenty of gold diggers who see foreigners--especially white people-- as easy cash machine. And lonely white Westerners come to lap up the attention, whether or not they realise they are being sought after for money.
Then on the much darker side, foreigners exploit the extreme poverty that locals suffer to exploit trafficked individuals--many of whom are minor pimped by their own family.
My Dad's bills are like $200 a month for everything, he eats fresh fruit and vegetables everyday, he bought a small truck or cheap, he gets to explore jungles and beaches and experience life out side the US.
It's not just young Asian women that people go there for. The cost of living is so low and you aren't bombarded by american bullshit all the time
My friend lived in a beachfront hut in Thailand for a couple of years and he said his total cost of living was $7 per day, including food and alcohol, and he drank A LOT of alcohol.
Man in 30s married to a half-Filipina woman here. When we went to visit for our honeymoon it was really gross. LOTS of very, very old men with teenage girls.
I had women falling out of their chairs to look at me.
I had a woman literally fall over while trying to ogle me while walking down the street.
For our goodbye dinner, her Ate toasted us by saying "You have fulfilled all our dreams: you've married a white man."
I had several people say how ugly they were because they were Filipino.
EVERY convenience store and super market had skin whitening creams.
It was my first experience of the Philippines and the first experience I had of racial fetishism.
My wife got preferential treatment for being Mestizos.
The Spanish did a real number over there with their racial hierarchy bullshit.
Not...really. The racial hierarchy and the self-loathing are really Spain's doing via the Church.
Spain was in control for 400 years and had clear racial caste system. They brought a new religion and used it to justify an incredibly evil rule. Lain America had governors, the Philippines had Friars (read Touch Me Not or Noli Me Tángere).
Compared with America, which in control for around 50 years and about 10% of that was the Japanese invasion. They are seen as liberators and saviours because of how utterly horrific the Japanese were (wasn't just Korea with comfort women). In the early 20th century, a lot of the reforms in the Philippines by America were based around giving land to the farm workers and laying ground work for independence via the Insular government (so the cheap sugar supply could be blocked from entering the US market).
I don't even have a dad bod! I've actually heard women say they prefer someone with a dad bod when I spent time on dating sites lol
I'm just whiter than white bread, short, hairy in all the wrong places and not at all in the right ones, and as for my face I'll just say I'm pretty aesthetically challenged lol
I’d like to go to the Philippines someday, and I really dislike the stereotypes presented that there could only possibly be one reason.
I’ve spent about a quarter of my life training in the martial art arnis; I’m knowledgeable enough that I have taught or helped to teach classes myself. I would love to go to the land where it was born and train with masters there… which just happens to be the Philippines.
I’m also a software developer by trade and have worked with a few people who my company outsourced from the Philippines. A couple of them have really been a delight to work with and I would really like to travel and hang out with them.
It’s irritating that I need to include a wall of text to justify that I may have a non creep reason to want to travel. Thanks a lot, actual creeps ruining things for the rest of us.
I understand this. I was underemployed for a while, so I was doing tutoring American English online. Since I was working graves, my schedule meant I ended up with clients from SE Asia, China, Japan.
After a few months, I found better work and didn't need to tutor as much. I cut my availability and was down to 2, then one.
The one I still tutor is a Filipina in nursing school. Most people, when they find that out, go straight to the "I'm a creep/She wants a green card" duality.
I get tired of explaining that she actually qualifies for permanent residency as soon as she gets her work visa. She doesn't need me at all to come to the US to work.
There are plenty of legitimate organizations and agencies that help Filipino nurses get jobs and visas at minimal cost above the required fees.
She has mentioned that she'd prefer to live with me and would be open to a relationship with me, even though I am older...much older.
I leave that last bit out when talking to folks because it makes me sound like a creep. I totally get why people would think that.
On the other hand, an attractive, intelligent, hardworking, and fun younger woman is interested in me? It's a challenge to say no to that.
The big thing I will say from my experience there: the people are AMAZING. I didn't get ripped off, everyone was so friendly, got to play basketball with a group of kids and had a blast. And the nature is incredible.
It also had some of the most downtrodden areas I've ever seen, some of the biggest displays of wealth disparity, and after a few weeks on different islands, Manilla felt more like a theme park for the rich than any kind of city.
Overall, really recommend it, but try going off the beaten path!
I work in a passport office, and any time a guy comes in alone to apply and says he's going to the Philippines, without exception, he's exactly what you'd picture. Some have been pretty upfront about getting married while they're there (one guy showed me a picture and said, "look what I'm marrying," and I'm really proud for not screaming at his phrasing) and some try to keep it stealthy, but it's pretty obvious. We're not sending our best is all I can say.
I've never heard this and my friend group consists of a lot of single, middle aged women, but assuming it's true, I'm gonna assume those women are at least sleeping with adults, which cannot be said for every man going to those two countries.
I have a colleague that has a wife from the Philippines. They live in Canada but are building a house there. He said I should come visit, and I replied something about how my wife would love a tropical vacation. He replied:
Bringing your wife on vacation to the Philippines is like bringing a lunchbag to a restaurant.
Ya basically. I was with my partner and her family, some of which was from PI. Couple of her cousins who were teenagers at the time walked down the wrong street and got offered a "job" by one of the locals. Thankfully their uncle/dad was able to catch up to them and pull them out of the situation. We later saw call girls working that same street who looked even younger than the cousins
for those who dont know why banana ketchup is used, the Philippines for a time period didnt have ready access to tomatoes, so to get a sweet red sauce, they substituted tomatoes with bananas. thus related, since they didn't have tomatoes, you couldnt make a tomato based sauce, so here comes in banana ketchup.
