Trip report Jan/Feb 2025 - Cebu & beyond - Research if an elderly gay retiree can live comfortably in Cebu

[bkkmfj2648]

3 hours ago, Olddaddy said:

I did personally find prices higher in the Philippines🇵🇭🇵🇭 but of course that depends where you are .

It is a mixed bag - some things are cheaper here and some are more expensive.

3 hours ago, Olddaddy said:

Is Cebu budget higher than say Jomtien?

so far it is cheaper - but mainly because I don't have access to my almost daily 4 hands massages.

4 hand massages are extremely difficult to organize here because of the conservative Catholic shame issue that is almost everywhere here.  Nobody can know that you would even do this type of work and/or activity.  I am now in day 29 of my 62 day visit here and I have only had two 4 hands massages and that was because the 2 that I did have were 2 gay couples - so there was 1.) no shame factor, 2.) I must hide what I do from everybody factor.

Consequently, my daily budget is much lower here - but that is because of this cultural anomaly - whereas, in Thailand, which is predominately a Buddhist country, they don't play this mental torture of shame game.  Thai people are more open minded.  We also need to factor in that in Pattaya, almost all encounters are transactional based - with almost zero reluctance due to shame.

For me, the per person average cost for a massage here in Cebu versus what I pay back in Jomtien is almost the same:

  3.000 pesos = 51.35 USD
  2.000 baht =   59.34 USD

Now before everyone jumps up and down in an uproar that I am paying too much - yes I am aware of that.  Here in Cebu the massage offerings have been from as low as 1.000 pesos up to 5.000 pesos.  For the majority of the cases I settle at 3.000 pesos.  The thing with the low balled pricing strategy of the Filippinos is to low ball you with 1.000 pesos and then if you touch them or caress them or do anything else the price immediately starts to rapidly increase - they wait until you are erect and close to exploding.  I HATE this approach, so I negotiate for an alacarte price of 3.000 pesos - all included (which for me is lite S and/or SS activities - as I never desire H activities).  When the Filippinos start interjecting with a menu of prices during the most fun part of the massage - that ruins the moment for me as I don't like to haggle when I already have an erection.

My 2.000 baht standard price offering back in Jomtien is higher than the 1.500 standard baht offering because I want guys who are more reliable and predictable and willing to do the deed in my condo room instead of in the massage shop (as I tend to not feel clean or relaxed in the overused massage shops) and I prefer to pay a slight premium to have everything take place in the comforts of my condo.

3 hours ago, Olddaddy said:

Could you do a price comparison on Cebu vs Pattaya 🙏

Yes, I will prepare this price comparison at the end of my 62 day trip here when I am already back in Thailand.

We need to remember that I am comparing 3 different zones in the Cebu metro area, as follows:

• CBP - Cebu Business Park - with an inner city kind of like Pattaya city experience
• IT Park - with an inner city kind of like Pattaya city experience
• Mactan Newtown - over on Mactan island directly on the beach with a mini similarity to a Jomtien experience

@Olddaddy  Knowing you - I think that you would like IT Park in Cebu the most because it is an inner city complex that is like a GIANT university campus, with young Filippinos walking about everywhere, as they work in the gazzillion nearby office towers in the BPO - Business Process Outsourcing business.  It is quite easy to meet these youngsters - as many want to have an experience with a Western man (Europe, USA, Australia, etc.) and that main reason is because they want to experience our larger cocks.  The majority of them have smaller cocks - but on average I find them to be similar to the Thai non-Isaan guy cocks where the biggest difference is the majority of the guys here are circumcised - and sometimes those circumcisions were not done in the best way - leaving what I call a turkey gobble of extra skin on their cocks - but these are only like less than 10% of the guys that I have met here.  I have also met many Filippino guys with very nice big cocks.

3 hours ago, Olddaddy said:

I might head to Cebu in March for a few days again ,I wasn't that impressed last time because of constant beep beep noises 

I would say that here within the "compound" of CBP and now IT Park that the beep noises are quite limited.  These beep noises are mostly emanating from the many jeepneys (bahtbus) who beep their horns to try to get customers.  The bahtbuses back in Pattaya / Jomtien also beep their horns for marketing purposes.  Then the second biggest culprit are the Cebu taxis - who beep their horns to try to get customers.

[bkkmfj2648]

Day 21 (18 January 2025)

 

Big move day so I go to breakfast early for the transition from CBP – Cebu Business Park to the Cebu IT Park neighborhood.  I ventured over to the nearby Spence Cafe & Kitchen.    https://www.facebook.com/SpenceCebu

I see that it opens at 7:00am and the Ayala mall does not open until 10am and my checkout is at 11am – so eating here is a perfect solution.  I ordered a typical Filipino breakfast plate, with homemade corned beef, fried bananas with eggs and danggit (local rabbitfish). The fried bananas were yummy.

Check out is 11am from the Cityscape Grand Tower AirBnB and check-in is at 2pm at the Avida Riala Tower.  I am in contact with the Avida Riala owner to see if I can get an earlier check-in and she suggests that I just come right away and leave my luggage with the security team and go have lunch in IT Park.

So, I take her advice and go out to the lobby at 11am and I ask the security team to fetch me a taxi as there is total chaos outside in the city streets – as we are in day 1 of the SINULOG festival, which has already commenced, and via the Grab app it is useless to get a taxi.  After 40 minutes, the security guys are able to commandeer a taxi for me (I tipped them very well, as they have always been kind and helpful to me even though I caught a few smirks when I had some guests come to keep me company in my room) and off we go to IT Park.  We arrive around 1:15pm, as the traffic was very intense for this short journey, as the distance is only 2km.

Just as I was getting out of my taxi, the owner of the IT Park AirBnB texts me via the AirBnB app that my room is already ready and that I can go straight up.  But I first need to register myself with the security team with my passport and to compile the standard security check in form.

I am overjoyed, as I find a true desk and desk chair and I see that I can hookup my laptop directly to the TV to use it as a giant monitor so that I can finally start this trip report for our forum.  Unfortunately, there is no balcony, as I have found it very difficult within the Cebu city limits to find AirBnB and/or Booking.com condos with balconies.

Below is a nice pic from the window of the view of the city facing northeast bound with Mactan island at the extreme top where you can see where Mactan island ends at its northern most terminus point.

Meanwhile, Mr. Lan from Heesay, texts me to say that we should meet today in my new condo to discuss him being my tour guide for SINULOG.  This was a BIG surprise, as I had put the idea out to him some days prior but he was non-committal.  So, he came to my room so that we could:

• Discuss tomorrow’s SINULOG parade logistics, strategy, and viewing,
• Get reacquainted in my bed, as he saw that I was already tense from the packing and then unpacking and move to the new condo.

He is an amazing man and very sexy.  All went well --> until the “fork-it” moment!!

Mr. Lan takes a shower and he urgently calls me into the bathroom to show me that the shower stopped working properly.  Mr. Lan being Mr. Macho is now laying on the floor naked so that he can put his eyes underneath the water spigot nozzle to see why it won’t stay in the upright position – which then allows the water to go upwards into the on-the-wall water heater and then out through the shower nozzle.  After 30 minutes of no success, we decided to “fork-it”, shove a kitchen fork into the device to force it to stay in the upright position.

Now the shower works properly at the expense of not being able to have water from the spigot – which I do not desire anyway.  I cannot yet notify the landlord, because tomorrow is the BIG SINULOG parade day – so this will be something to resolve = post SINULOG.

Mr. Lan leaves and I go for a nice walk in the IT Park complex and eat dinner.

 

Day 21 (18 January 2025) concluded.

 

[Olddaddy]

2 hours ago, bkkmfj2648 said:

3.000 pesos = 51.35 USD
  2.000 baht =   59.34 USD

I have no knowledge of American money but it looks like 1000 pesos is around 600 Thai baht ?

Good value actually 

 

[floridarob]

2 hours ago, bkkmfj2648 said:

so I negotiate for an alacarte price of 3.000 pesos

3000 is on the high end that I'll settle with twitter guys with a ton of followers that are in high demand and is "short time" not per hour.... so many ask per hour and I have to explain the short time, long time concept and keep in mind this in in Manila..... And boy do I make them earn that money with me, lol

This .... just happened with me in Playa del Carmen, Mexico...everyone was wanting by the hour, this will be the norm I think everywhere before we know it, sadly.

App guys I offer 1,000- 200 PHP.....

[bkkmfj2648]

1 hour ago, floridarob said:

so many ask per hour and I have to explain the short time, long time concept

I always tell them that I want a 90 minute meeting and I don't let the conversation get into hourly rates here in the Philippines or back in Thailand.

I will NOT tolerate this hourly rate concept.  For me, it is a rate for a job - without time constraints.  Generally, for me, 90 minutes is good enough - 1 hour massage + 30 minutes of edging and then I am happy and content.  Easy peasy.

If they get into an hourly rate discussion then I use the fun word that they use here in the Philippines = PASS --> which is another way to say NEXT or I move on.

 

[bkkmfj2648]

Day 22 (19 January 2025) – the BIG day = SINULOG parade

https://www.facebook.com/SinulogFoundationOfficial/

Finally, the big day has arrived.  I meet Mr. Lan in the lobby of my building at 8am sharp.

We easily get a Grab car (I expected worse – but in this case the early bird gets the worm) and then the driver and Mr. Lan get into an intense conversation in Cebuano about where is the best drop off point – as the city government has blocked off access by 1km to the roads around the parade route.  The negotiated drop off point was near the Cebu Doctors’ University Hospital, where we can easily walk the rest of the way to the Fuente Osmeña Circle.  We plant ourselves there and it is about 8:45am and we see them preparing the parade for its supposed commencement at 9am.   Hahahahaha.  It was partly cloudy so it was tolerable.

Finally, around 10:30am, the parade starts to move – but ever so slowly.  I ask Mr. Lan – what is going on?  Is this normal?  He laughs and says to me, “Welome to Filippino time!!” and he has a BIG grin on his face and the many people near us who heard me ask him that question all smiled at me.  Unfortunately, by now the cloud cover moved away and by 11:30am the full sun is blasting us and there was no cover where we were.  So, Mr. Lan says to me, when the police were looking the other way, to slide myself underneath the rope barrier (that separates the spectators from the parade participants) and we take that opportunity to take some precious parade photos as we are right next to them and they are also dying in the intense heat with a snails pace parade movement.  We eventually work our way into the physical Fuente circle – where there is tree cover and remain there until around 2:30pm, when I just told Mr. Lan – ok, I have seen enough – let us go eat and drink some cooling refreshments.

Here are some photos:

 

This angel had to have his wings repaired

 

 

close up shots of me in my new SINULOG parade shirt - when we snuck through the police cordon

So getting to the parade route was easy peasy, as there were not that many people.  However, around 2:30pm, when we decided to leave via Fuente Circle into where Mango Avenue begins – it was near impossible – as it was so people packed like sardines – that process was very nerve racking (because if something would have caused a stampede – it would be extremely difficult to remain on 2 feet to avoid being stepped on and crushed).  We made it out to the Mango Avenue shopping center, where I asked Mr. Lan, for purposes of this forum, for us to stop at the supposed site of the new Alpha Massage spa.  We asked everywhere and no such spa existed in this place even though it was advertised as such in a Twitter (X) feed about gay massage spas in Cebu.  So, that was a disappointment.  Anyway, we find a shortcut out of the chaos on a side street and we could finally sit down and eat some Hungarian sausages and drink some cool and refreshing just made Brazilian lemonade.  As I lived in Budapest for 8 years I asked the owner, are these really Hungarian sausages?  She blushed, and told me that no one from Hungary had visited her shop, and she told me that it is fake.  She said that in the Philippines that it is common practice to put an exotic foreign name on something and then the local people want it even more.  Anyway, I ate them and they were good but tasted more like the local lechon pork meat commonly found here in Cebu.  So, it made me wonder if the Brazilian lemonade that I was drinking (which was very good) was really Brazilian – but I was already way too tired from standing at the parade for 6 hours now to care to ask.

Enjoying a relaxing moment eating and drinking with sexy Mr. Lan

If I had to do the SINULOG parade again what would I change?

• Don't wake up so early to get a good place to watch the parade - because you will be disappointed with having to wait for more than 2.5 hours for the parade to even begin and to then only move 100 feet.
• Perhaps come later around 2pm - and instead of going to the starting point go to the ending point.
• Why?
• Then you can have more energy for the after-parade craziness when:
  • the people start dancing and partying,
  • they run around and start painting each other's faces - kind of like what they do back in Thailand during Songkran,
  • more of the gays are out and about on Mango street having fun.

Around 4pm I was already back in my condo room exhausted.  There were scheduled fireworks at 7pm back at the parade site, and at 9pm over in nearby CBP - Cebu Business Park.  So, I took a nap, thinking that I would wake up by 8pm to run over to CBP to watch the fireworks.  Well, my 63 year old body just said no and I woke up at 9pm when I heard the firework explosions outside of my condo window - but because I am facing northeast and not south - I could not see them.

 

Day 22 (19 January 2025) concluded.

[Olddaddy]

Sounds like your having more fun in the Philippines 🇵🇭😁

[macaroni21]

@bkkmfj2648 - if you're in an AirBnB, do you somehow get daily cleaning and towel change? If not, how are you able to host so frequently?

[bkkmfj2648]

28 minutes ago, macaroni21 said:

how are you able to host so frequently?

In the same way that I do it back in Jomtien.

I clean everything and I do the laundry in the condo or bring the laundry to the lobby cleaning service.

I know in a hotel that it is all taken care of for you - but I hate hotel living, as it prevents you from experiencing the real life in your chosen destination --> and that is the true purpose of my trip here = to simulate retiree life in a new destination and to be able to analyze the pros and cons of said destination versus my retiree life back in Jomtien.

[bkkmfj2648]

Also, I bought extra towels to replicate my real towel situation that I have back in Jomtien.

[bkkmfj2648]

Day 23 (20 January 2025)

Woke up and ordered a Grab car to go back to CBP to the Ayala mall to:

• Eat my usual scrumptious breakfast at the ,
• Find a solution to block the sun from entering into my new condo room as the current curtains do jack shit to block the sun from entering at 6am.  I am hyper-sensitive to sunlight, so I need it to be dark.

Here in IT Park, there is a mini Ayala mall, but it is too small for the number of people who exist in IT Park and is more crowded than I like. As I needed access to a BIG department store (i.e., Metro) I needed to return to CBP.

After breakfast, I headed to the home furnishings section (floor 6) in Metro and I started to browse for the lowest priced DARK sheets.  A sales clerk comes to help me and I tell her that I need sheets to block the sunlight for my AirBnB condo – she looks perplexed, as she insists that I instead need to buy curtains.  I try to make her understand that I am an AirBnB guest and that I don’t own the condo so I need a cheap and easy solution.  So, she wanders off, as I have noticed that the store personnel here can’t deal with non-standard solutions.  Anyway, I find some cheap dark grey (black would have been perfect but there were none to be had) and I buy them.  After setting up the grey flat bedding sheet to the window curtain rod I can see that it is still not strong enough to block the sunlight, so I add the fitted sheet, but I need to attach it to the table legs and my suitcase to make the elastic stay at the floor level to be effective.  I can report that the following morning that I did not wake up at 6 am.  Hallelujah!!

Later in the night, I meet up with Mr. B so that we can go to the famous Sugbo Mercado food market that is famous here in IT Park.  As it is Monday, Sugbo Mercado is unfortunately closed.  Monday's are a strange day in Cebu - pools are all closed for maintenance and cleaning and also the biggest food market in all of Cebu is closed on Monday.  Please tell me why?  What is special about Monday?  What do pools and food markets have in common regarding Mondays ??

Instead, we walk around the IT Park grounds and then decide to eat in the 4^th floor Ayala mall Food Choices food court.

Food was good, as was my time with the adorable Mr. B.  We planned a nice adventure for tomorrow.  Stay tuned.

No massages or extra-curricular activities today.

 

Day 23 (20 January 2025) concluded.

 

[bkkmfj2648]

Day 24 (21 January 2025)

Eat breakfast in my room (7-Eleven stuff), as I need to meet Mr. B at 9am in the lobby.

We hire a Grab car to take us to the famous, Buwakan Ni Alejandra gardens, which are far up into the mountains above Cebu into the next district = Balamban, which is a 1 hour drive away.  Mr. B negotiates a fixed price of 5,000 pesos (~ $86  USD), for the driver to accommodate our touring needs and to turn off the Grab meter.

https://www.facebook.com/BuwakanNiAlejandra/

After 1 hour, we arrive here and at first it looks like a rip-off, as there is only a small narrow passageway just to the right of my position in the below photo – but that narrow walkway opens up into an amazing spectacle – even with rainbow walkways.  The entrance fee is: 100 pesos (~ $1.71 USD)

Instead of a yellow brick road there is a rainbow path to lead you through these lovely gardens.

The air is so fresh and fragrant from the odors of all of the many beautiful plants.

We took way too many wonderful photos that I should not crowd our gayguides blog space with – but if you want to see a random FB video of this place, please check it out below  – 3 minutes of joy.

https://www.facebook.com/cebunibaiph/videos/buwakan-ni-alejandra-in-balamban-cebu-buwakan-ni-alejandra-is-one-of-the-beautif/1926549487776494/

We continue our journey down the mountain side back towards Cebu stopping off at the famous La Parisienne Sky.   https://www.facebook.com/laparisiennesky/

 

By now we were famished, and so, we had to have a wonderful late lunch.  Upon walking into the restaurant, Mr. B gets excited and tells me emphatically, please take my picture with this Filipina lady that was standing in the foyer.  I gladly do it and there is somewhat of a commotion.  When we get to our table overlooking Cebu city down below, Mr. B tells me that the lady is a famous personality in the region that he comes from so I was very happy for him to have had this “rubbing elbows” opportunity with a local star.

Back of the restaurant approaching from the parking lot.

The view from our outside lunch table was amazing and breathtaking.  I prepared the below zoomed in 2 photos to give you a panorama view of Cebu City, nearby Mactan island, and off in the distance Olango island.  To appreciate the below 2 photos you may need to ZOOM in with your browser.

Here is the view from our outside lunch table.

Our meals were excellent and we were lucky to have a fortunately nice weather day.

**Note that there is a 200 peso fee per person to enter the La Parisienne Sky restaurant.  However, as this fee charge is labeled as "consumable", it can be deducted from any food, beverages, souvenir shopping, etc. that you may consume during your visit.  At first I did not like this concept, but its purpose is to avoid that this beautiful place is not over-run by large bus tour groups passing through for only 10 minutes to get a selfie and ruining your dining experience.  This "consumable" concept, perhaps only unique to the Philippines, will come up later in this trip report.

 

Our Grab driver takes us back to my condo in IT Park, and that ends my great morning and afternoon adventure with Mr. B.

Took a little rest and after all of that delightful garden fresh mountain air – my little brother woke up and said to me give me some edging action.  So, I found Mr. Dak on Grindr and invited him to my room for my standard 90 minute massage + edging fun.  I paid my now Cebu standard fee of 3.000 pesos (~ $51 USD).   All was good as Mr. Dak is a masculine type of guy with a nice cut cock who had great massage skills.

Went to sleep feeling very satisfied from a great day in Cebu.

 

Day 24 (21 January 2025) concluded.

 

[floridarob]

2 hours ago, bkkmfj2648 said:

We hire a Grab car to take us to the famous, Buwakan Ni Alejandra gardens, which are far up into the mountains above Cebu into the next district = Balamban, which is a 1 hour drive away.  Mr. B negotiates a fixed price of 5,000 pesos (~ $86  USD), for the driver to accommodate our touring needs and to turn off the Grab meter

The apps track your GPS, they say for your safety, but I read somewhere that is to know of situations like this.... whenever I've done this, I turn my phone off so they can't confirm that I'm with their driver. How strict they are with this, I don't know.... but they know you and the driver are traveling together otherwise.

[bkkmfj2648]

37 minutes ago, floridarob said:

The apps track your GPS, they say for your safety, but I read somewhere that is to know of situations like this..

But aren't the Grab drivers freelance instead of contract employees?

The cars that I get when I use the app here in Cebu are private cars.

So, if they can track via GPS that we made a private tour - what can they do about it?

Is there not freedom to go offline (terminate the ride) and do what we want?

I just want to be aware of any potential ramifications.

The primary reason why we did this on this day was because when I entered the desired destination = "Buwakan Ni Alejandra", the app replied that it was out of their network and out of their service range.

so, we had no choice but to negotiate privately with the driver.

[bkkmfj2648]

Day 25 (22 January 2025)

Breakfast in IT Park – trying to get a new routine going in my new neighborhood.

I forgot to mention that the guy from yesterday, Mr. Dak, who massaged me, got carried away with both my coconut massage lotion and edging lube – by removing the tops of both bottles and pouring it all over me.  He was truly crazy.  Consequently, today I decide to venture over to a sexy shop, to:

• Have this experience in Cebu – a conservative Catholic country,
• Restock my supply.

Take a Grab car over to the Pink Bunny adult store, which is located over in the “red light” district of Cebu = Mango avenue.

https://pinkbunny.ph/

Two very kind ladies were working inside and they were very eager to help me and to even cross sell me stuff that I did not want.  I told them that I was looking for massage cream and lubricant.  They had both so I chose the Eros lubricant, as that was the brand that I used back in Budapest and then the only massage cream that they had was a Crunchy Mousse – let’s see how that one turns out. 

Then they were obsessed on cross selling me:  dildo, vibrator, jack pack, etc.  I kept saying no thanks.  But I did cave in on this “Happy King” capsules that are supposed to make you hard as a rock.  Some of you may remember that I went through 6 months of experiments with TRT (Testosterone Replacement Therapy), Shockwave Therapy, MSsculpt ischiocavernous muscle therapy, etcetra --> related thread is here at:

Consequently, I am very open minded to try new things – as the 2 ladies promised me “hard” results if I took the “Happy King” natural ingredient pills.  I have yet to try them – but I will share any positive results if acquired.

Today’s purchases at the Cebu Pink Bunny

In the end, I was quite impressed with their variety of offerings and kind customer service.  Good to know these important types of products exist in a potential retiree destination.

Returned to the CBP Ayala mall for lunch by foot – as I wanted to gain some courage and on-the-street foot exposure from the “red light” district back to CBP.  It was non eventful, but I have to give this part of the city a bad rating from an elderly retiree’s need to have good sidewalks.  They were often in bad shape or non-existent, where you just had to walk in the street and negotiate with the oncoming traffic.  However, if as a retiree, you would limit yourself to the enclaves of CBP (Cebu Business Park) and IT Park – the sidewalks in these 2 neighborhoods are near excellent = but the moment you walk out of the borders of these 2 areas – you get into a nasty sidewalk situation – hence better to travel by Grab or Move It.

Went back to my condo room to make a big dent on these trip report updates.  Then afterwards over to what has become my favorite eating place in IT Park = Wolflink, for dinner.

Why?  I really like this concept of artisan prepared meats in a type of hot pot cast iron bowl.  They are very yummy, affordable, and fun to eat.

No massages or other extra-curricular activities today.

 

Day 25 (22 January 2025) concluded.

 

[bkkmfj2648]

Day 26 (23 January 2025)

Booked a Grab car and I went to the Ayala mall to eat lunch – and I discovered what was new for me a beautiful nice outdoor garden area up on the 4^th floor, known as the, Rooftop Garden Level to eat.  After 25 days here it is amazing to still discover new things about this humongous mall.  Prior to this moment I was always eating in the lovely external Terraces Gardens down on the ground floor.

Went to get my hair colored, but I returned to the Salon de Rose – but to the non-barbershop part and they gladly colored my hair.  This coloring was better than the one that I had at the Mr. Edward Scissorhands shop, as the color that they chose was the EXACT color that my hair colorist uses back in Jomtien.  So, again I was very happy.

Afterwards, I looked to no avail for a pair of neon green striped sneakers (they were my favorite) that I bought 2 years ago in Pattaya that are now starting to fall apart.  As the neon green color has fallen out of fashion – I may need to forget about this color.

Back to my room to work on my posts for this trip report.

No massages or extra-curricular activities today.

 

Day 26 (23 January 2025) concluded.

[bkkmfj2648]

Day 27 (24 January 2025)

Today I have my FIRST experience getting my tourist visa extended at the main Cebu immigration office, as my initial 30 day tourist granted to me at the airport is set to expire.  Here is what I did:

1.       Watch this short 3 minute YouTube video of a guy who recently extended his tourist visa in Cebu:  

 

2.       Take Grab car (or any other suitable transportation to the GMall (aka Gaisano Malls)) and go to the 2^nd floor, and you will see the Bureau of Immigration (BI) office.  This BI office opens at 9am – even though the mall does not open until 10am.  You just tell the security guard that you need to enter the mall to go to immigration and they will let you in.  When you get off of the escalator you will see the BI office off in the distance – ignore the left side of the BI office – as that is the exit side and walk to the extreme right side so that you are in front of the Information Desk.  If you approach the office on the left side, you may encounter some opportunists (fixers), who want to help you for a fee, and will ask you to give them your passport.  I strongly suggest that you don’t do this.

3.       The Information Desk will give you an Extension of Temporary Visitor’s Visa form for you to complete over at one of the sit down areas that are nearby in the mall.  You will need your own pen.

If you want to see the form in advance, here is a direct link to the BI web page – valid as of 28-Jan-2025:  https://immigration.gov.ph/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/IRD04.QF_.004-CGAF-FOR-EXTENSION-OF-STAY-OF-TEMPORARY-VISITORS-VISA-1.pdf

Note that on the application form in the Contact Information section it asked for a Mobile Number in the Philippines, which I did not have, as I bought the Airalo eSIM, which is a data only plan without a phone number.  So, I left this part of the form blank and the immigration people did not make a fuss or even ask any questions.

Note that the form will also ask you if you desire “Express” service – click this check box if you want your updated tourist visa within a couple of hours instead of some days later.

1.       Return to the Information Counter and show the BI person your completed form and passport.  He will stamp the extension form if all is good and tell you to go to the Assessment Counter where they calculate how much you need to pay and they will also take your passport and extension form from you and put it into their work queue.

2.       With the receipt given to you by the Assessment Counter you then need to proceed to the Cashier window to pay the fees – see below for fee calculations.

3.       You now wait for your name to be called so that you can then go to the Releasing window to pickup your passport and sign a register book that you are claiming your passport.

Note that you will not receive an additional stamp in your passport but instead an important piece of paper, “Official Receipt”, which now has printed:  VISA VALID UNTIL :  XX XXX XXXX    KEEP this document in your passport in the same page as the tourist visa stamp that you received at the airport.  Note that this first extension only gives you an additional 29 days, whereas, the original entry tourist visa that you obtained at the airport gave you 30 days.

I performed all of the above steps and I was in and out of immigration in just 1 hour and 20 minutes – not bad for someone doing it all by themselves.  Back in Jomtien, this would be a nightmare and that is why I always use an agent in Thailand to streamline as much as is possible when I need to deal with Thai immigration.

So, I left the BI office as a happy camper.

Ate lunch again at the Ayala mall and then returned to my room.  Now I was feeling horny so I hired a sexy macho straight guy for a 2 hands massage.  I should have known that trouble was brewing when he would not remove his underwear.  His massage was excellent as well as his edging skills.  I was very happy.  But, he became angry when it came time to pay him, as we agreed to the standard 3.000 pesos and I showed him in the app our chat transcript.  He became even more angry and insisted that I pay him 7.000 pesos because I touched his nipples during the massage.  He raised his voice and then I raised my voice and I showed him my pants pockets which only had another 1,200 pesos in random banknotes that he begrudgingly accepted as I showed him the door.  No violence occurred – as I felt that it was definitely heading that way – but the good news is that they cannot enter the condo complex without giving up their National ID card – so I would have ran downstairs to security should the situation have escalated further.  What is weird is that during the massage this guy was chatting and laughing non stop and it felt like the beginnings of a new friendship.  I would have definitely rehired him as he was near excellent in his massage and edging skills.  So, I just don’t understand this Dr. Jeckell and Mr. Hyde bad transformative behavior. 

Any ideas ?

This is day 26 and only my 2^nd bad encounter out of around 13 encounters to date.

 

Day 27 (24 January 2025) concluded.

 

[12is12]

BKK,

During my long weekend stay in cebu, I got the impression that traffic there was almost as bad as in manila. You OTOH don't seem to be traffic-suffering.

Was I mistaken?

[floridarob]

8 hours ago, bkkmfj2648 said:

I just want to be aware of any potential ramifications.

I'm not sure, in the article where it mentioned GPS sharing it mentioned that it could lead to driver sanctions or being booted from the platform. Any of the drivers I've booked off meter, were totally unaware of this.... maybe a scare tactic or looking for habitual abusers?

[bkkmfj2648]

8 minutes ago, 12is12 said:

During my long weekend stay in cebu, I got the impression that traffic there was almost as bad as in manila. You OTOH don't seem to be traffic-suffering.

Was I mistaken?

I have not found the traffic to be any worse than what I experience when I leave Jomtien and go into Pattaya city - especially if I go into the heart of Pattaya city.

We need to remember that you visited Cebu during the SINULOG weekend when 4 million visitors invaded the city and even I had great difficulties in the traffic on the 18th and 19th of January.  Therefore, this excess Cebu traffic I view as being an anomaly - as it was linked to a once a year event.

Please note that I have intentionally structured this Cebu trip into 2 parts:

Part 1 - to live in Cebu city (CBP and IT Park) as this would closely resemble the intensity of Pattaya City.

Part 2 - which I will start tomorrow - to live in Mactan Newtown - over at the beach area to simulate a Jomtien like retiree living experience here in Cebu.  I am anticipating that this area will have light traffic like we have in Jomtien - as it is isolated from the havoc of Pattaya/Central Cebu city.

[EricV]

Thanks for the great, detailed trip report - fun to read & very helpful...

I'd recommend to get a local eSIM with phone number and data - for longer stays, a local number is very helpful and it's cheaper too. GOMO (brand of Globe, largest PHL telecom) offers a 5G eSIM (works via app, similar to Airalo) with local number and 30GB data for PHP399 ($7), data "never expires" whatever that means, but at least a year... You can convert data to call/text as needed... Installing the app & esim was easy...

Enjoy the rest of your stay, looking forward to hearing about your Mactan experience...

[bkkmfj2648]

Day 28 (25 January 2025) 

Quick breakfast in my room because I woke up horny and a gay couple came to my room at 11am.  I met them on Grindr the previous evening but I had already booked the previous evening’s psycho, that I told them to come on the following morning.

They also sell sex related stuff and I ordered 1 bottle of Japanese lubricant from them as I was curious to try it as I had never used Japanese lubricant before.

I notice that the more Filipinos that I meet in the apps I am finding that they are more industrious, in that they don’t only offer you a massage and/or sex, they also want to cross sell other products to you, which can include; lube, massage oils, poppers, sexual enhancers, etcetra. 

This gay couple explained to me their situation.  The younger one (perhaps he was 28) works in one of the many gazillion BPOs here in Cebu and unfortunately, these Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) companies do not pay very well, as the starting salary can be between 13,000 to 15,000 pesos ( ~ $222.53 - $256.49 per month), so the guys resort to massage and/or sex work to help augment their monthly income. The older guy (perhaps he was 34) used to work in real estate but told me that the competition is fierce (too many real estate agents in the workforce) and the required sales quota targets creates too much stress, so he left that business to do massage/sex work full time.  Furthermore, the older one told me that he imports sex related products from other countries and then sells them to his clients to augment his full time massage/sex income.  I was impressed.

So, they give me a nice massage with my massage cream and then we move to what the locals call, “ES” = extra services, part of the massage and I had ordered edging only and I was quoted 5.000 pesos ( ~ $85.46 USD) for a 4 hands massage + happy ending.  Well, they started to get crazy to do oral and I learned my lesson from the previous encounters, that the Filipinos are good at milking you for additional money, as if to be on a RyanAir flight.  So, they wanted to suck my cock and I kept saying that I am ok with the happy ending edging only.  Well they started to beg and then I conceded but I wanted to know what would this cost and they told me that I could have, the Japanese lube, 4 hands massage, oral, and edging for an all inclusive price of 6.000 pesos ( ~ $102.64 USD), so for only an additional 1.000 pesos ( ~ $17.18 USD) I said ok.  They were so happy and now I was back to my on average rate of 3.000 pesos per guy – but this time I got some Japanese lube included.

--> But, I have to say, that I do not like this constant Filipino approach to interrupt the fun part of the sexual activities to start their upselling activities during the event.  I find it like watching a TV show and the scene gets hot and you cannot wait for the next thing to happen - and then they break for a commercial.  That really ruins the event.  I do try hard to be clear in my app chats about what I want, but these guys are always looking for ways to upsell and get more value added business out of you.  But if you loose your erection in this marketing process - is that a good business practice ?

All went well, everybody had his orgasm and everybody was happy.  They left and then I went over to the CBP Ayala mall to have lunch up on my new favorite 4^th floor rooftop gardens terrace at the very good Brizket restaurant.

Day 28 (25 January 2025) concluded.

 

Day 29 (26 January 2025) 

Extended my   eSIM subscription, as my initial 30 day subscription will expire soon.  I acknowledge the suggestion by our forum member, @EricV, who suggested that I just bite the bullet and get a GOMO 

local SIM card with phone number included, as that price that he quoted is truly remarkable – but that forum message came to me today, 29 January and I had already extended my Airalo eSIM on 26 January – this forum update.  But, @EricV is correct, that if you are going to have a long stay here in the Philippines (more than 30 days) than it is more prudent to go this GOMO route   https://www.gomo.ph/get-gomo-sim/

than with the Airalo eSIM solution.  I had never heard of GOMO before, so now I am enlightened.

This is what I love about our forum is that all of us share our individual experiences and we can learn and benefit from each other.

At 4pm I asked Mr. B to come to my IT Park condo room (no not to have sex – him and I, we have a platonic true friendship, and he also offers me tour guide opportunities) so that we could discuss what am I going to do with myself after 6 Februray 2025, when my to-be Mactan Newtown condo will expire??  Well, we agree, that Mr. B. and I, we will fly over to Boracay for 4 nights (neither of us has been there yet), so that the both of us can have an outside of Cebu experience.  After I conclude my time in Mactan Newtown, I will have completed my objective of discovering the possibility of retiree life here in Cebu and I have decided that I should use the remainder of my time to transition into tourist mode and go see other non-Cebu places.

So, Mr. B and I, we book our flight for 8 February to fly to Boracay in an evening flight, to coincide with when Mr. B will finish his afternoon hotel shift.  As all of this was spontaneous and last minute it took us like 3 hours in total to book the flights (the easy part) and then to find a suitable hotel on the White Sands beach within the confines of the famous Stations 1, 2, and 3.  We managed to accomplish our objective.  Let me tell you that Boracay is not cheap and is a very expensive highly sought after tourist destination.

Then, I said to Mr. B, I am famished, let us try to finally eat at the famous Sugbo Mercado market that is here in the Cebu IT Park.  It was a Sunday night, and as we learned the hard way on our last attempt, it is not a Monday night and it should be open.

Well it was open and SUPER packed. 

One of my assessments about life in the Cebu IT Park neighborhood is that whoever built this campus did not anticipate that it would be such a BIG success.  Consequently, with all of the gazillion BPOs that have become an integral part of the success of IT Park, it has created a campus that is now over-crowded with all of the BPO workforce and their families and others who want to live in IT Park.  In my opinion, the smaller Ayala mall that they built within IT Park is just too small and consequently often too crowded.  Also, there should be more than 1 Sugbo Mercato (outdoor foot court), as 1 is just not enough to support all the people that are here.  So, I think that soon, whoever is in charge of IT Park, is going to have to take a hard look at what should you do when you build such a large IT Park and it becomes too successful?

On the other hand, the CBP (Cebu Business Park) is just the right size and mix of BPOs, residents, and size of what is available (malls, condos, parks, etc.) and on offer.

Day 29 (26 January 2025) concluded.

 

[Travelingguy]

I do not have any interest in living as an expat, but I do find this report and the thought that goes into how to evaluate possible destinations very interesting.  The adventures and the misadventures.  I love to travel, but I like where I live. Keep the stories and the observations coming..

[khaolakguy]

1 hour ago, Travelingguy said:

I do not have any interest in living as an expat, but I do find this report and the thought that goes into how to evaluate possible destinations very interesting.  The adventures and the misadventures.  I love to travel, but I like where I live. Keep the stories and the observations coming..

+1

[bkkmfj2648]

Day 30 (27 January 2025) 

Breakfast in the room and work some more on my trip report writeup and postings.

Go to my now favorite place for lunch, Wolflink, and I order my favorite dish, Wolf’s Stew, as shown below:

https://www.facebook.com/wolflinkph

Which is made from a Korean spicy stew with Wolflink’s smoked meats, ramen, kimchi, egg & cheese and vegetables.  It is a nice slightly spicy mix and is fun to eat, as you need to pull your food from the bubbling still on fire hot cast iron pot into your plate with the spoon and/or tongs.  It is truly yummy and a fun eating experience.

Later in the evening, I go to the 8^th Avenue Comedy Club, that was recommended to me by Mr. Lan (he has been my occasional sexy masseur and more importantly he was featured in the SINULOG segment of this trip report as my bodyguard / tour guide on that day).  I arrive slightly before 9pm and I wait outside for Mr. B to arrive.  The city is eerily quiet after the SINULOG crescendo.

https://www.facebook.com/8thAvenueComedyBar/

 

We go in and there is only 1 other table with customers.  Mr. B wants to sit off to the side – but I convince him to let us sit in the table that is directly in front of the stage (more fun).  There is a ladyboy singing karaoke and Mr. B and I, we order a bucket of beers.  This club has a 2.000 peso ( ~ $34.27 USD) consumable charge (minimum that you need to spend to see the show).  The bucket of beers costs 600 pesos. 

I am thinking to myself – oh no, I will need to get very drunk to spend those 2.000 pesos.  But that worry would soon go away.

I fire up the Heesay app to see if Mr. Lan is online and he is and I tell him to come and join us, since it was thanks to him that we discovered this fun place.

 

Before we know it, Mr. Lan is already up on the stage, as he is a regular in this club, as he loves to sing to his hearts content – and he is a good singer.  So, tonight, I find out many things about sexy Mr. Lan – he was a pre-covid actor on Philippine TV, singer, masseur, body guard (is constantly in the gym), and tour guide.  What more could one ask for in a guy??

As Mr. Lan knows everyone at the Club, soon they are joining us at the table and then my fears of having to drink 2.000 pesos of beer went away as my consumable quota was by the end of the night over quota and made the bar and staff happy – as it had been a very slow Monday night.

And then during the evening – shortly before midnight – we discover the BIGGEST and most important news of the night.  Mr. B, confides in secret that it is his birthday today but does not want anyone to know.  So, when Mr. B was looking at his FB feed I whispered into the ladyboy’s ear that it was Mr. B’s birthday (I slipped a blue bank note into her hands as a reward for this favor) and could she arrange something on the stage.

Before we know it, all of the ladyboys are up on the stage singing happy birthday to our adorable Mr. B and he is quite surprised and I believe that he enjoyed all of this extra attention ->  until they insisted that he sing some karaoke with them.  He refused as he does not like this kind of activity but it was fun anyway.

So, the ladyboys turn their attention to me – oh no – and get me to sing the only song that I know - (I Can't Get No) Satisfaction by The Rolling Stones.  As I already had a few drinks, there were few customers in the club, and by now Mr. Lan had probably already sang 10 songs, I had to just do it (as I do not like karaoke – but tonight was a special exception).

After that disaster, they tried to get me back up onto the stage – but that was it for this old retiree.  You just got to know when to STOP.   Hahahaha

Before the grand finale, our more energetic ladyboy performers decide to let lose and jump around everywhere, as evidenced in the below 2 short video clips.

Unfortunately, the 2nd part of the above video fails on upload - so just try to imagine these 2 jumping all over the place and making you laugh histerically.

So, it was a great night out in Cebu with my 2 friends, Mr. B and Mr. Lan.  So, as a retiree in Cebu, there is fun to be had and as you can see, the locals are friendly, which can allow you to create new friendships and to avoid that lonely retiree feeling in a new country.

I would put this 8th Avenue Comedy Club in a similar category as the previously reviewed Cebu Cave Bar.  The primary differences are:

Cebu Cave Bar is owned and operated by the drag queen ladyboy performers and its audience is primarily gay.

8th Avenue Comedy Club is owned by a heterosexual man who is very gay friendly - but the targeted audience here is anyone who likes drag queen karaoke entertainment - so gay, bi, straight are all welcome.  Note that this bar is all decked out with our gay rainbow flag everywhere.

 

Day 30 (27 January 2025) concluded.