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Jane, a Filipina who has worked abroad and returned to the Philippines, shares her journey of family support, career aspirations as a caregiver, and personal life, including building houses and relationships, while also offering advice to viewers on her YouTube channel.
Jane, a 35-year-old Filipina, shares her life experiences, including her time working abroad in Manila and Singapore as an OFW and breadwinner for her family. She discusses the financial necessity of working overseas, earning significantly more in Singapore than in Manila, which allowed her to support her sisters' education and build a strong house for her parents in Leyte, a region prone to typhoons.
Upon returning to the Philippines, Jane has focused on her personal and professional growth. She completed a caregiver course and volunteered at a nursing home, aiming to work in a hospital. She also explored call center opportunities but prefers daytime work due to sleep pattern issues. Jane is also building a house with her boyfriend, whom she met online and later in Singapore, and they plan to settle in Leyte.
Jane's YouTube channel, 'Jane the Ultimate Filipina,' serves as a platform for her to share advice, particularly on relationships. She cautions foreigners about the stereotype of 'gold diggers' in the Philippines, advising them to get to know their partners well before marriage and to avoid immediate cohabitation. She also touches on the complexities of travel within the Philippines and the challenges of provincial life compared to city living.
The video also details the practical aspects of house construction in the Philippines, including costs, labor, and the time it takes to build. Jane shares her experience building her parents' house, which took eight months and cost around 900,000 pesos, including a basement for guests during local festivals. She emphasizes the importance of thorough preparation and legal processes when buying land and building.
A Filipina caregiver's journey often involves working abroad to support family, as Jane did in Singapore. She pursued a caregiver course and volunteered, aiming for hospital work. This path includes financial support for family education and significant personal sacrifices.
Building a house in the Philippines requires careful planning regarding materials, labor, and legal documentation. Jane's experience building a typhoon-resistant house in Leyte took eight months and cost around 900,000 pesos, highlighting the investment involved.
Jane advises foreigners seeking Filipina partners to get to know them well before marriage, cautioning against stereotypes. She emphasizes building a genuine connection rather than rushing into commitment or cohabitation.
Filipinas often support their families through remittances earned while working abroad, as Jane did to fund her sisters' education. They also contribute by helping build family homes, ensuring a secure future for their parents and loved ones.
Yes, online dating is a common way for Filipinas to meet partners, including foreigners. Jane met her boyfriend online, illustrating how digital platforms can initiate long-distance relationships that may lead to marriage and shared life goals.
Provincial life in areas like Leyte can present unique challenges compared to city living, including logistical complexities for construction and daily life. However, it also offers a strong sense of community and the opportunity to build a stable home.
Jane is currently back in the Philippines. She is editing and uploading old content to her YouTube channel. She hopes to return abroad at some point in the future.
Jane's parents' house in Leyte cost approximately 900,000 pesos to build. This cost included materials, labor, and a basement for guests. The construction took about eight months to complete.
Tampo is described as a childish behavior in relationships where a problem is ignored rather than solved. It's likened to burying the issue, allowing it to linger and cause future problems. The video suggests this behavior is counterproductive to resolving relationship conflicts.
0:02 I'm a breadwinner in my family. The caregiver course is six to four months, but I studied only two months because I learned very fast. It's well known here in the Philippines that we are gold diggers, but it's not true if you choose the right one. If your girlfriend gets upset, you just walk away.
0:18 Hey YouTube, Alex here. Tonight we have my good friend Jane. Jane is a Filipina who used to be an OFW in Singapore. Before that, she actually worked in Manila, and now she has a YouTube channel called Jane the Ultimate Filipina. I was introduced to her through my good friends Mike and Janet. Be sure to check all of them out; I'll provide links in the description.
0:46 First, hi Jane. It's nice to meet you today. It was really great for our mutual friends Mike and Janet to introduce us. You're a YouTuber, right? Could you introduce yourself?
0:59 Hi, I'm Jane. My YouTube channel is Jane the Ultimate Filipina. I'm 35 years old, single. And what brings you here to Dumaguete?
1:10 I came here because I want to see Dumaguete. I heard a lot of stories about Dumaguete, that's why I came here and met Grielle. Is this your first time here in Dubai?
1:24 It's my first time so far. It's very good. I like Dumaguete. A lot of American food. Very interesting. Where are you from?
1:32 Actually, that's a good question. Currently, I'm living in Iloilo City, but I came from Leyte. The city of typhoons. I meet a lot of nice people from Leyte.
1:46 How is it different living in Iloilo versus Leyte? Actually, Iloilo is nice, very clean, very peaceful, and not so crowded. There are no typhoons in Iloilo City, it's not always raining, and there's no flood, unlike in my hometown where I think every month there's a typhoon. Also, in Iloilo, there are a lot of shopping malls, that's why I love Iloilo.
2:14 You prefer the weather in Iloilo? Yeah, I like it. Then sometimes the outage is also not good there in Iloilo City, but I still love it. And the food is very clean.
2:30 What time of year does the weather get kind of bad in Leyte? When do you have a typhoon in Leyte?
2:39 Last year, we had a very bad typhoon during October. My parents' house was destroyed. It was signal number three, and that one pointed to Southern Leyte. My parents' house lost its roof, and there was no electricity for one month. It was very difficult that time.
3:04 No electricity for one month or two months? I think. And then the water was also very difficult because my province before was very difficult with water. They had to buy water, and even when they went to the city, the water was out. The food was also very limited.
3:23 A lot of people leave because of the weather. Mostly they move to Manila. When they live for holidays, they will come over to my hometown to see the family.
3:34 Have any of your siblings also moved away from Leyte? I have only two sisters living in Manila because they're working.
3:41 They're working in Manila? Yeah, they're working because in my province, the pay is very cheap, only like 200 a day. So they decided to work in Manila. But so far, my sister has a nice job in Manila. She's a professional teacher, but for now, she works in finance at the school.
4:03 How long has she lived in Manila? I think she's already lived there for two years, if I'm not mistaken. Two years. Yeah. She's on my channel; I interviewed her. Definitely check her channel out, guys, Jane the Ultimate Filipina.
4:19 I know you mentioned you lived abroad. What brought you back here to the Philippines?
4:22 I think it's my time to come back here to the Philippines. I think eight years of working and sacrificing for my family is good enough for me. My boyfriend and I also talked about settling down here in the Philippines so that we can live together. We were in an LDR for two years; it was so tiring.
4:47 I'm sure you missed your family and also your culture and the Filipino foods. Yes, the adobo. They don't have it, or it's not good. My mom's adobo is very good because the adobo in Singapore is too sweet. They have very sweet adobo there; it's too sweet.
5:05 I see. What do you like to do for fun now that you're back in the Philippines?
5:07 Actually, I just finished studying caregiver. And then after I studied caregiver, I volunteered myself in a nursing home without salary for three months. And then after I volunteered in the nursing home, I studied driving school so that I have a driving license.
5:31 And so, your plan is soon you will work as a caregiver? Yeah, I will apply in the hospital. So, what's your plan after you complete your volunteering?
5:43 Next week, I will apply in the hospital if they are looking for a caregiver, or if I apply in the hospital, I can be a nursing assistant or nursing aid.
5:55 If you work in the nursing home as a caregiver? Yeah. But I'm also trying to apply in the call center because I have friends working in the call center. She's a manager, but I will apply also there. Whichever one calls me first.
6:10 You have friends working in a call center? Yeah. Uh, I see. She's my neighbor in Iloilo. Oh, okay. In Iloilo. Yeah. So they have call centers in Iloilo? A lot. I stay in the business park, which is the call center area. A lot of call centers there. Yeah. I think it's good for me. And I just walk to the call center office.
6:34 What companies do they work for? Do you know? Or if I apply, I monitor TikTok. Oh, okay. TikTok followers, then if they wear, they dance, or they wear very inappropriate things, especially if there are children. I need to... Oh, you moderate like nudity? I will tell them like that. I will comment to the followers or the TikTok people in the social media.
7:06 Oh, I see. But you prefer to work as a caregiver than the call center?
7:11 Maybe the call center is okay. I just try, but I really don't like call centers because I don't like to sleep late. Oh, yeah, night shifts are not good. Also, during the daytime, I cannot sleep, so I prefer to work daytime instead of nighttime.
7:28 That's a common complaint then for people working in the call center: the hours are really late night work. So I cannot handle that. And also, it's not good for the health if you don't sleep during nighttime. I prefer to work daytime, but I'll try if I can handle that one because I used to sleep at night.
7:50 Sleep at night time, like during the daytime because I'm going to sleep. I don't know. I have a bit of insomnia. Yeah, I agree. I think it's healthier to sleep at nighttime and work during the daytime.
8:02 Have you met with any other vloggers here in Dumaguete? Yeah, I met GCL in the Philippines and my retired friend, Sir Mike and Alex and Janet, the wife of Sir Mike. I met them so far. I met them already for the first time.
8:21 And you talked about how it's hard to find a flight back to Iloilo. Can you talk a bit about that?
8:26 Yeah, okay. If you want to come here to Dumaguete from Iloilo, you need to check the ticket first because they have a flight only once a month from Iloilo to Dumaguete or Dumaguete to Iloilo. So it's not every day flights from here to Iloilo. Just once a month, you need to schedule for that. But if you want to ride a ferry or RORO, you can go there every day. There's travel every day by ferry.
8:53 Have you taken the RORO? No. Oh, no. When I was working in Manila, I rode it, but it was very long. Oh, you worked in Manila?
9:01 Yeah, I worked for eight years in Manila. I thought you were in Singapore. I worked in Manila first, then I worked in Singapore. So I'm a breadwinner in my family. So I work hard for them.
9:12 I decided to work abroad because I really thought that my salary in Manila is enough, but it's not. Yeah, you could earn more in Singapore. Earn like times five, I think. My salary in Singapore is like 30,000 or 35,000. But in Manila, just only 10,000. So which is enough because I finished my sister's college also when I was working in Manila.
9:38 Your sister studied teaching? No, I have two sisters who finished college already. The other one is in food technology. And then the one I interviewed on my channel, she also graduated with a teacher education degree, but now she's a professional teacher.
9:58 For my hard work. That's so nice of you to help support your family members to improve their education and find a better job. And I built their house also because in my hometown, there are always typhoons. So I changed their house to concrete with a strong roof because the roof flies off every time there's a typhoon. So it's not good. So now, thankfully, they won't worry anymore because they already have a nice house.
10:32 How much does it cost to add a nice roof? Actually, it depends on the how many meters the house is. I spent 70,000 pesos. I don't know how much in dollars, but it's 70,000 pesos. And that way, the roof stays on the house. Yeah.
10:46 Yeah. It's nice. And also, I chose that a bit cheaper. A bit cheaper because you can buy also more expensive ones, like 200k, I think. Very expensive. That's a lot. That's very expensive. And then the typhoon only will destroy the roof. So it's okay as long as they have a strong roof now rather than the cheap one.
11:09 You're building a house now in Leyte? The one is for me and my boyfriend's house, but my parents' house is finished already. I built for them when I was working in Singapore. That's why I worked a little bit longer there.
11:24 How did you meet your boyfriend? We met online. Oh, very nice. Yeah, I met him on a dating site, and then he decided to visit during COVID. We knew each other online, and then after COVID, he went to Singapore. We met in Singapore.
11:42 In Singapore, we met. He kept coming back for five times, and then after that, because he wanted me to come back to the Philippines, but I did not agree because I was still building my parents' house and my sister was studying. I said I wanted to renew for another two years before I settled down because I didn't want to marry him or stay with him if my parents' house was not yet done. I didn't want to worry, so he agreed to that. And then, so far, last year I came back here.
12:12 Yeah, I'm sure you are glad to come back here. Yeah, I'm happy to come back here because it's very stressful overseas. Singapore is a stressful place to live. It's not stress; I like it there, but as a domestic helper, it's very tiring, especially if there's a party. You need to work late. It's very tiring; that's why I'm very skinny now. It's risky as a domestic helper. You don't have much rest, and you can rest late. It's not good.
12:44 I'm happy to come back here to the Philippines now and I find a better job here. Even though the salary is not big enough, as long as I have a job, it's for my experience also to work in the hospital. When the house is finished being built, you'll work in Lee, Southern Lee. We will move to Southern Lee and then I'll try also to apply there in the hospital while I'm in Lee because I don't want to always depend on my boyfriend, especially if he's already a senior citizen. So I want to work. Even though he doesn't want my salary, I work for myself or to help my family also.
13:24 You want to help your family. I don't want to depend always on his income for my future also. I want to work. You can get some good experience, and if you need to make extra money, you have that option because you have a skill set and you have a resume. That's why that's the purpose I studied caregiver. But actually, I did not finish college. I did not study college. That's why I just took the vocational.
13:51 How long does it take to become a caregiver? Actually, the caregiver course is six to four months, but I studied only two months because I learned the skills very fast. So I learned very fast. That's why I finished only two months. Then after that, I applied to the nursing home. So I worked for three months longer as a volunteer than I studied at the nursing home.
14:18 I'm curious, are the Filipinos that are staying there? There are two American elderly. Yes, there are two nursing homes, and the other is public. Yes, we have patients from Australia and Canada.
14:33 Wow, so they have foreigners coming to live here in the Philippines and nursing homes. Yes, nursing homes are very expensive in Australia, Canada, and the US. A foreigner pays double the price. For example, a Filipino pays 50, and then an American pays 100k per month.
14:51 Yes, per month. Because of the food, like a bit special. Yes, and they also have made also in the nursing home. So, does that include their food and Okay, I think the medicine, I'm not sure if the medicine belongs because I did not ask about that.
15:08 Got it. Yes, just the monthly income, how much you pay. Yes, only because if it's air-conditioned, you pay higher. If it's electric fan, I think I heard 45k if it's electric fan. But if you're American, you cannot handle the electric fan because it's very hot.
15:29 Yes. Mhm. How long do you think it will be until your house is finished? They do the maget in Lee. How long does the house build take? Uh, the one we have been starting to build, but we bought the land. They already have the bricks, you know, the bricks. There are bricks already.
15:46 But for now, we haven't started because we are processing the tax declaration, all the paperwork before we proceed with that one. Because we want to settle everything before we proceed with building the house. Yes, because it's a lot of work. I think I need to pay 60,000 for the lawyer to process the documents. Yes, it's a lot of work.
16:06 So, I, yes, it's a lot of work. Yes, I need to wait for maybe three to six months until the documents are finished.
16:20 It's difficult to buy land if you are not the owner because you process everything. But I hired a lawyer so that she can process that easier for me. Yes.
16:29 So, once you get started, how long do you think it takes to build the house if there's money? I think only months. Yes, one month. Minimum one year. Oh, one year. One year. Minimum one year. Yes.
16:42 But the one I built my mom's house, I think it only took eight months. Yes, eight months only because I worked overseas. Before I started building my mom's house, I bought all the materials first. So I bought all the materials and then I proceeded to pay the laborers. Yes.
17:00 And so, you already know the builder? Yes. Some are my relatives. Oh, your relatives. So they'll do a good job for you. Yes. It's nice. Even though he did not study college, but he built the house very well. I put it on my channel, the orange color, that's one. Yes.
17:19 So if anybody's looking to build in Lee, they should reach out to you. Yes. Even the new one now, we hired him also because he built a house well. Even though he didn't study engineering or what, it's not a college degree, but he's very smart with the house. Yes.
17:34 He must be hardworking. Yes. How many people does it take to build a house? The time my mom's house was built, we had six people. Two were the main builders, and the rest were laborers. Yes, they're called masons. The first one really built the house, but the others, the rest, you just have to get the sand, the bricks, the water.
18:07 That one, I paid 400 a day, but the other one, the foreman, is 600. 600 a day. Expensive, a lot of money. If you build a house, you need to save money first before you start building the house. Yes, to finish it very fast if you have money.
18:29 How much did the house cost in total? Only my mom's house cost 900,000 pesos. I don't know. Okay. Almost a dollar. It's 900,000 pesos. It's not a million. And I'm sure it's a normal house. Yes. Yes, just a normal one. Then my parents' house has a basement. The basement. Yes.
18:53 I put a basement because if there's a lot of guests, because my place to stay. Yes. Especially during festivals in my hometown, there are a lot of guests, all my relatives, so they can sleep in the basement. How many people come together when you have a festival? More than 10. Yes, more than 10 people. But if it's not a festival, they won't sleep there. They just go home after that.
19:18 What kind of festivals do you celebrate in Lee? I know different islands. Yes. Yes, it's the festival of my religion. Oh, okay. Yes, it's like that for the community festival. Oh, I see. Just today's festival. You're Catholic? Yes, I'm Catholic. Okay.
19:33 Okay. Yes. So, it's a Catholic festival. Yes, a Catholic festival. It's just like a simple celebration because you need to celebrate also for the community, for Thanksgiving also in the community. Yes. Even simple only, like family reunions also during festivals. Yes.
19:55 All the family will go home, visit the family, the parents, and your family members. They're all over the Philippines, right? Yes. Yes. Yes. Some in Manila, you're in Iloilo, your folks are in Lee. I don't have relatives in Iloilo.
20:09 But do you have relatives? Where are your relatives around? In my hometown, mostly they are in Manila. Okay. So everybody has to come from Manila to visit there. How do people travel from Manila to Lee? Flying or some they ride airplanes, some they ride a bus and transfer to Roro. Yes, the Roro, I think it's only two hours. And then by bus, because the bus will go inside to the Roro, and then all the passengers will go out and then two hours, and then transfer again to the bus. 12 hours travel if you ride the bus.
20:38 12 hours. Yes, it's very tiring. I prefer to ride an airplane because it's only one hour to the airport, and then the total is three hours from Tacloban airport to my hometown. So you fly to Tacloban and then you maybe ride a bus to your hometown or take a bike. Once you arrive at the airport, you ride a bus or van. Yes, even a motorbike, you can ride a motorbike, but it's a very long travel ride.
21:10 Longer, but very hot if you ride a motorbike. Van or bus is better, just more comfortable. Yes. Yes.
21:19 It's calling. Travel is so complicated in the Philippines. Yes, that's why it's nice if you stay in the city. Very convenient, especially if you are in the province. The road is very difficult. Our road in the province is very difficult. You can go by car, but if there's another car on the other side, you need to turn right or you need to stop because you cannot drive together. Two cars on the road because they are fixing now the road there. It's not good. So I prefer to stay in the city.
21:53 Yes. I want to respect your time today. Um, I know you have a lot going on. Can you share a bit about your channel?
22:01 Okay. Don't forget to subscribe to my channel. I advise all the retired people here in the Philippines on how to get the ultimate Filipina. So you must be careful when you get a Filipina also because it's well-known here in the Philippines that we are gold diggers. But it's not if you choose the right one. If you don't marry immediately, that's my advice on my channel. Don't marry immediately. You need to know her first. You both know each other first before you cohabitate.
22:34 Because if you don't cohabitate and you just immediately live with her, you will know the tampo, the jealousy, everything. So don't forget to subscribe to my channel. Yes, the tampo is the... But actually, the tampo is not really scary. If your girlfriend gets tampo, you just walk away, come back later. She will be okay because she's also scared you won't come back. So her tampo is like only a few.
23:01 Just ignore if she has tampoo. Yeah, that's my bias. How did you get started on YouTube? I'm just curious about Filipinas. Did you have a friend that told you about it or did you want to make a channel?
23:15 What made you want to start? Actually, I already had a channel, but I just did it for fun. That's why while I was working in Singapore, I decided to try opening a YouTube channel. But I wasn't serious because I was busy at the time.
23:32 Then I thought, oh, I think YouTube has money, so I tried. Facebook also has it, but I gave up on Facebook Reels. So I gave up with that. Then now I enjoy myself. I didn't really take my channel seriously. I just did it for fun. It's a lot of fun.
23:48 Well, thank you so much today, Jane. We really appreciate your time. We'll include a link to your channel in the description below. Guys, go ahead and check out her channel and see what it's about. Such a pleasure to have you.
24:00 Thank you for your time, Jane. You're welcome. Excellent. All right. Bye-bye, guys. See you later.
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