hey YouTube Alex here and in today's video I want to ask the question what do I not like about the Philippines this is of course a controversial question right because I'm a foreigner I'm an American I am living
here in the Philippines as a tourist exploring the country and overall I love the Philippines the people here are super welcoming they're super kind I often feel that a bad day in the Philippines is better than a good
day in the United States where I'm from all that being said said life here is not perfect it's not Paradise contrary to what some vloggers will put out there there's some challenges here like there are in any country
and I thought I'd discuss some of the challenges that I have here this video is not meant to disparage the Philippines this video is not meant to disparage any Filipino people this video is not meant to disparage anyone
here I love the Philippines let me be very clear about that I'll say it one more time I love the Philippines this is in my opinion the most beautiful country in the world with among the friendliest people in
the world and with each of these criticisms I have a positive counterbalance I don't look at any place as perfect or imperfect rather that there are tradeoffs and every aspect of life so I hope you enjoy this video
and without further Ado let's get into it reason number five is the other foreigners the other expats I often say we're not sitting our best over here and you'll find that to be the case if you you talk
to enough xats some guys are great guys like Mike guys like Paul these guys are doing it right they're making a positive impression on the country they're helping to increase tourism there's other guys that you'll meet here that
are totally socially inept they have high conflict personalities they may have personality disorders they've got dependencies they've got these issues such that they don't fit in back home they don't fit in here because the culture here is tolerant
and accepting then they get away with stuff here they would never get away with back home they're just difficult people and a lot of expats are this way I mean for some of us we run into enough of
our fellow expats here in the Philippines we don't want to meet anymore I'm becoming more and more selective of the guys that I hang out with and the places I go there's some places that I really liked to
go when I first got here and now I realize they attract the crazies and those places while they have their own appeal I don't want to go hang out with those people because it's just not a pleasant experience
I I'm going to run into some xats Behaving Badly some Paras some people who are running away from something for some reason the expat communities here it can be especially toxic I think in some cases more so than
any other country that I've lived in or visited if you know why or if you have a sense of why that is let us know down in the comments below but yeah you meet a lot of guys here
who they're just they are just unpleasant to be around unpleasant to talk to you wouldn't have been friends with them back home and you wish they had stay stayed back home instead of bringing their problems over here Brad
Dev one of my favorite Thailand YouTubers says a Thai person might rip you off for hundred bot about $3 and xat will sell you a business that doesn't exist and so that's one of the things you have to
be on guard here to me more so than any Filipino I've met is I have to be on guard about other foreigners some of these guys are great A lot of them are not a lot of them have
some serious problems and they're here to try to run away from them them maybe they have a criminal record maybe they have some Financial Obligations they're trying to get away from maybe they've got debts back home maybe they
burned all their Bridges back home there's some guys that when you ask them why they're here they've always got a vague answer they're super guarded oh well you know I'm here because I'm here they'll give you these circular
answers where you're wondering dude why can't you just answer the question what did you do that you can't just answer a simple question make something up like that's the weird part to me is some of them can't even
make something up they've got to like talk in circles and flip it back on you and they'll answer your question with another question you meet a lot of strange expats here in the Philippines and out of all the
reasons that I don't like the Philippines that is the first one that comes to mind not the worst dealing with some of these guys is really frustrating and eventually if you stand an area long enough you'll figure out
who you do and don't want to be around there's plenty of guys here in dag Getti I don't want to be around I don't want to hang around them it's nothing personal it's just we're not going to get
along and us hanging out is a waste of our time seen and heard about much more XA conflict here in the Philippines than I did in any other country I've been to whether it be Spain whether it be
Thailand whether it be Cambodia if you come here be prepared for some straight up weirdos where they're seeking a place where people will Overlook their interpersonal issues finally I have the experience why are they willing to accept that
guy and I realized well they're willing to accept me they're probably willing to accept a guy like that reason number four a slow pace if you spend any measurable amount of time here and you're coming from the US
you're coming from the UK you will inevitably run into a situation where you're just shaking your head like why is this taking so long I have that experience periodically less so since I've adjusted more to it but there
have been times at the store where I just gave up my cart ah you know what it's not worth the weight I don't want that I don't need it that badly to stand here for 15 20 30 45
minutes I've done a lot of waiting some places are worse than others some times of day are worse than others some stores are better or worse than others if you come to the Philippines be prepared for a slow
pace be prepared for things to take a lot longer than what you're accustomed to it's something that still bugs me sometimes at restaurants for example where you place your order and they slip in at the last second oh
sir it'll be 30 minutes I don't know almost like they don't want to tell you that before you order not that it's a big deal to me like it's not even that it's a big deal I always bring
my laptop I have things that I could be doing while I wait it's almost like sometimes they know that that's going to be a bother for some people they're used to guys being impatient and they still have to
get that information in there and so that's a big one where you're thinking why not just let me know in advance like some people they may have some other obligation some kind of appointment to make and they would
just say oh okay well it's not a good fit for me right now I'll come back tomorrow I'll come back tonight after my appointment whatever it may be it's not just the slow or Pace it's like the having
to overreact later to deal with it or having to constantly course correct for tourists who are used to faster paced Lifestyles I'm used to going to a restaurant especially like a fast casual restaurant from the time I walk
in the door to the time I get my food is usually like 5 minutes or less sometimes I'm going back to work sometimes I'm out the door already it's not this like okay sir it'll be a while okay
I mean there have been times where I've waited like an hour for takeout that is unheard of in the United States if it was that extreme like if they were super short staffed and somebody called out they would
let you know like at the start of the conversation hey I just want to let you know it's going to be an hour just be prepared cuz we're super under staffed tonight but in some cases I don't get
that notice I just don't hear anything and I just sit there and sit there and I keep looking up and I keep looking up and eventually I get my takeout but you're almost in some cases feel like you're
held hostage by the slow pace here because in that case I can't leave I've already given them my money I can't just go off to another establishment I may be planning to go home after that basically I'm stuck
there so sometimes a slow pace not only does it bug you from an efficiency perspective where you're used to things being super efficient back in the US but you also get kind of Trapped like okay I've got to
get these items at the store okay I could either give these items up or I could give up 30 minutes of time or 45 minutes of time oh I placed a takeout order I can either give up my
food or I can give up an indeterminate amount of time sometimes unfortunately it's not always like that but the inconsistency there with the pacing it does get frustrating sometimes I mean drivers purchase snacks in traffic it's so different
from what I'm used to where drivers in the US there's so many restrictions and a push for deadlines and people trying to do things as efficiently as possible they don't stop for anything unless they're legally mandated to stop
and typically they're not snacking or eating either so that was something to get used to is sometimes traffic here is so thick and slows people down so much that it takes on this character of its own where it's
like okay we expect to be stuck in traffic so people in the community will be like okay well these people are stuck in traffic let's go sell them stuff so that's another thing you'll see here is that the
traffic is so slow paced that you will see people vending to drivers and that's not as common in the US I've seen it a little bit in the US but not not as much as here that's another element
of the slower paced life that you do see here which it could be frustrating I mean having a driver pull over to do something of personal interest I want to go home like I don't want to stop for
this I just want to go home be prepared if you come here to the Philippines that things are not going to move at the same pace you're used to in the United States you're going to find yourself shaking
your head why are they doing it this way why are they doing it that way there's a much more way to do things why don't they just do it the more efficient way and some people will say oh
don't complain if you don't like it go somewhere else we're trained to be efficient like the guys who can afford to stay here in the Philippines many of them have gotten their finances in order especially for younger guys
they're trained to be efficient like at work when we're working we're managed to be more effective to be more efficient and there's penalties for doing things inefficiently so we're trained to have this attitude of getting things done as
fast as we can and so when we see people doing things in a way that's less time efficient than what we're used to it immediately triggers those memories of working and being pressured to do things better where here
there is at times more of a Manana culture there's more of a social element I see people socializing all the time and there's probably part of me that envies that right where you know back in the US we're
not paying you to hang out to see people be able to have more Leisure more socializing in their lives some of us do feel a little bit envious cuz we watched big chunks of our life go by that
we needed to sell to pay bills and to see people not have that kind of crazy look in their eyes like they got to get things done as fast as possible 24/7 365 yeah it's not just the lack
of efficiency it's also the implication that we did things super efficiently to benefit our managers or somebody else the next point point number three is the crowds if you spend any measurable amount of time here in the Philippines
especially for Americans of course I'm American Centric yes American not North American not USA American American woo you may have grown up in a suburban area like I did you may have grown up in a rural area like
some of my friends have be prepared for anywhere you go in the Philippines to have far more crowds than what you're used to in the United States probably even in Western Europe too Manila is the most densely populated
city in the world and even within the country itself outside of Manila you're going to run into people all over the place at all hours and it does make you feel safe in one sense because you know you're
not going to be isolated like if you I don't know fall down and twist your ankle or whatever happens there's going to be people around but the flip side of that is you're going to constantly be bumping into
people you're constantly going to be queuing in line with people whether it be lines to order food lines to get your food lines to sit down at a restaurant traffic itself there's always going to be waiting associ iated
with the crowds in the Philippines the economy is doing super well it's super vibrant and so people have disposable income here people have money to go spend at restaurants they have money to go shopping and they can enjoy
themselves which means that they'll probably be joining you at different things that you want to do something that really bugs me do not expect to go anywhere in the Philippines without crowds it's not easy for me to find
a place to film if you haven't guessed and part of that is just the crowds it's so densely populated I personally feel that it's harder to have privacy here I have people stop me on the street probably every
other day it's getting to be more and more frequent where hey I saw you on a vlog hey I saw you here I saw you there that's just a constant occurrence you're going to deal with crowds here you're
going to deal with anywhere where people want to go you're not going to be alone for me as more of an introvert as somebody who likes my alone time that's something I don't like uh I don't like having
to be around crowds all the time you might think oh well just go to nicer establishments well with the booming economy sometimes the nicer establishments are just as crowded as those that are more budget friendly don't expect that
oh I'm going to go spend some money and it's going to be fine no chances are it's still going to be busy you know one of the things that comes to mind is I have friends that tell me
well I used to go to these restaurants here in town 10 years ago they were full of other foreigners these days they're full of Filipinos so with the booming economy the tradeoff of that is that you're going to
deal with crowds it reminds me of the United States in the9 90s when people had more money and the culture was more friendly you'd go out and businesses would be crowded now I think you only get that sense
in the really big cities you don't really get that vibrancy in some of the smaller cities even then some of the crowds in the big cities in America they don't behave very well so difference being that Filipinos do
behave in crowds they do try to be decent but there's no way around it you're going to bump into people you're going to have to dodge people you're probably going to run into people you're probably going to accidentally
cause somebody to drop or spill something if they're not paying attention or you're not paying attention you run into them that gets old I mean in the United States especially some of the smaller towns I've lived in you
go to the store you have a big birth you go down the aisle you can take your time you're not running into people you're not having to get out of the way it's sparsely populated it's an older population
that is not as Nimble on their feet that's a big contrast for me coming here where there's tons of people and a lot of them are young so they've got a lot of energy sometimes it does get frustrating
where you're thinking I just don't want to go out and run into people step around people have to be walking around cars walking through densely packed traffic crowds are everywhere here there's no way around it unless maybe you're
in BGC I've heard the sidewalks are super wide there but for much of the country be prepared for crowds be prepared for bigger crowds than you've ever experienced more dense crowds than you've experienced be prepared you go to
the ATM oh yeah I'll just pop by the ATM there's 10 people in line trying to withraw draw their paychecks oh I'm just going to go down to the mall be prepared to wait the crowds translate to wait
time they translate to the slower Pace because you have to account for dealing with crowds back home if you go to a restaurant restaurants are so expensive in the United States nowadays if the service is halfway decent you'll
be seated immediately you'll be able to order your meal you'll get your meal in an efficient manner here because a lot more people can afford to go to restaurants then you're going to wait I mean something else I
don't like about the crowds you feel like you're going to trip over people one of the things that comes to mind that people say is you know somebody is experienced in the Philippines because they start looking down instead
of looking up and that's cuz you got kids running around you got debris in the way you got the presence of humanity in your midst and if you look up you're liable to trip over something whether it be
a dog a cat toys a kid who knows what could be in the way but due to the crowding you don't have the same freedom of movement that you're probably used to if you're an American where we're used
to having the ability to go out move around at ease drive on big wide roads and really have that freedom of movement so for me coming from the US where I'm used to my personal space I'm used to
people giving me a wide birth it's been an adjustment to have people get close to they would they stand closer behind you in line cuz they're just used to being around lots of people I've heard people explain it
to me Filipinos usually grow up in small homes and living in close proximity to their families they might have 10 people in a two room room house and so for them crowds aren't a big deal Crowds Are a
way of life but for me I'm not used to that when I grew up I had my own bedroom I'm accustomed to having personal space I'm not used to people standing close to me in line I'm not used
to the crowds being everywhere I'm not used to an environment where people don't mind running into each other people standing close to me in line bumping into people at the store having to sidestep people having to dodge people
it just gets old it really does and with crowds comes noise which will be the last reason so stay tuned in this video to get to my top reason I don't like the Philippines almost anytime you got people
you got noise the Philippines is no exception the next reason is infrastructure the infrastructure is simply not comparable now the US used to have really good infrastructure not so much these days the infrastructure in the Philippines is not
always on point we have brown outs here something I don't like is getting a notice hey there's going to be a brown out this day of the week from 6:00 a.m. until 6 PM you're just not going to
have electricity you're not going to have wireless internet that's not a thing in the United States even in California with its grid problems I've never experienced a brown out occasionally where I grew up in the southern us we'd
have tornadoes that would knock power out typically it'd come back on within a few hours we'd light some candles and that would be sufficient to exist until the power came back on I've heard that in South Africa they
have load shedding I don't know if it's the same thing here be prepared for infrastructure challenges it's same with walking around I'm accustomed to Northern California especially San Francisco area where I could walk around easily San Francisco is
super walkable the suburbs are also very walkable you can easily get to Parks restaurants businesses cars generally respect pedestrians very nice to be a pedestrian here you're going to bust your ankles here you're going to step up and
down there's not going to be a clear crosswalk people are not necessar going to want to stop for you in the crosswalk a lot of people are good about it it's not the same pedestrian first culture that you
might be used to in the United States if you're from New York Boston San Francisco these cities have solid pedestrian infrastructure for me I walk anyway cuz I need the exercise but I'd be lying if I said I
enjoy it as much as I enjoy walking around cities like San Francisco and other walkable cities in the Bay Area I don't like when I'm in the Philippines I'm walking on a sidewalk and the sidewalk just disappears you're
wondering what happened to the rest of it that's something that can bug me also the Philippines being a developing country infrastructure is often a work in progress they're working on it they're trying to put it in it takes
time the United States has already been built as a friend of mine says back home here they're still building things and so yeah you might be walking down a street and the sidewalk is really good for like half
of it and then the second half of it is gravel and you're stepping down and it's not necessarily designed for people to walk around it's oriented toward motorbikes and that makes sense I mean people here got to ride
motorbikes to work it's how they commute most people ain't walking to work here so that's something to keep in mind if you do want to come here it's not just the physical infrastructure of walking around but also the
brown knuts I mean it's a reason why before I go to bed most nights I try to charge up all my devices in case there's a brown out at least I've got my cell phone as a hot spot
my laptop's charged up so I can still be productive that's something to be aware of if you live in an area that does get brown outs is hey you may have some infrastructure challenges that you need to be
mindful of it's certainly been an adjustment for me because the power goes out in the US I've lived in different parts of the country that's a big deal people are furious people are calling it's just something that you
have to accept about living here all these reasons have been bad but this is the one that takes the cake and that is the noise if you live in the Philippines and you're expecting peace and quiet you will
lose your mind okay the noise here is noisier than almost any other country I've been to even the United States seems quiet by comparison and I find the United States to be generally a noisy country you've got the
people of Walmart you got the people blasting music you've got the people rolling coal you've got a generally unsophisticated attitude on the part of a large chunk of Americans here in the Philippines people associate noise with fun where
in the US we associate it with generally being an irritant I mean in my hometown rich people will move into a certain neighborhood for the culture and then they'll start complaining about the music venues being too loud and
then get the music venue shut down Nashville doesn't have near the number of music venues that it used to because people just complain about noise incessantly well here nobody complains about noise very few people here see noise as
a problem and the vast majority associate with fun if I'm having a good time I want to be noisy I want to express my joy and My Love For Life my Vigor my Vitality I'm going to do karaoke
at 1 2 a.m. I don't care who's listening I don't care who has to be up at work tomorrow I'm going to have my roosters even for no reason I'm I'm going to have multiple roosters I'm going to
have three four roosters I don't care that it's 7:00 in the morning I'm going to play Amplified music do not have an expectation of peace and quiet here in the Philippines you're going to hear Amplified Motors you're going
to hear karaoke you're going to hear roosters you're going to hear construction you're going to hear people lowing grass you're going to hear people hammering away You're going to hear people working you're going to hear people shouting any
way in which a person can reasonably make noise expect for that to happen expect for that to be a thing it's not like the US where people are going to be sympathetic if you don't like the noise you're
not going to get sympathy in most cases for not liking karaoke not liking roosters not liking people shouting or modifying their engines to be particularly loud it's just super super noisy and I've heard that this was not as
much of a problem in the past when the country was not as densely populated it's become more of an issue and expect too you go out to a restaurant doesn't matter if it's a nice restaurant you'll be thinking
oh it'll be quiet here and it'll be peaceful and then they start to get busy I guess they want to increase turnover or they want to make for a lively atmosphere and the music will start getting louder people
will start talking louder they turn it up louder until you're shouting over the music to be heard and you hear it all the time where people will go horse from having to talk so loud over music that nobody
asked for you hear the birds I've been an establishments where it was just me and a small group of friends were the only people in The Establishment the only patrons and we're sitting there having a nice relaxing conversation
and then the music comes on none of us went and asked for the music to come on nobody suggested hey wouldn't some music be good to go with this conversation okay that's not sufficient they turn it up now
we're having to talk over the loud music and inevitably one of us has to go over and say hey can you turn it down just so we can have a conversation now in America they would tell you get
lost because they're doing it to try to get you to leave it's not the same purpose people here really enjoy music they really enjoy being social having a fun environment sometimes they'll be a bit apologetic and they will
turn it down you can tell their feelings could be a bit hurt by this now I have noticed some more Western establishments western style places to not play Amplified music but even then sometimes they'll play it when they're
getting busy I think and they'll turn it up and you're thinking man I'm I'm really paying a premium to be here but with that Amplified music it's no longer a relaxing experience and so I got to find other
options to rotate through because I don't want to listen to this I want to be alone with my thoughts I want to relax I want to have a calm relaxing cup of coffee maybe get some work done maybe
do some editing maybe do some graphic design whatever it may be and that Amplified music just takes you out of it it's distracting I use noise cancelling earphones and I can often hear music through my noise cancelling earphones
it's so loud that it overrides the noise cancelling effect and I have airpods also had Bose headphones and they're a necessity if you're going to come here and you're like me and you don't love the constant Den have
some noise cancelling audio equipment it'll help take the edge off it'll help cut it down a bit it's not perfect it's not foolproof noise will still get through it makes it not quite as bad as without that technology
if you enjoyed this video If this video resonated with you let me know what you think down in the comments what bothers you about the Philippines it doesn't have to be dumag Getti specifically I think there's a lot
to love here but there's no place in the world without its challenges or things that we're not used to and these are some of the things that bug me from time to time it helps to generate an interesting
discussion when you comment down below next give us a thumbs up it helps with the YouTube algorithm and finally subscribe to the channel down below and finally subscribe to the channel down below if you want to see more
content like this and we'll see you soon bye-bye
