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Really? I could've gotten the Peninsula for the same price, but from what I read on TripAdvisor and other stuff, Pan Pacific was rated higher, with newer facilities and amenities and stuff. What would you say is the best hotel in town?
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Feb 8, 2013 02:20
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Shangri-La, by far. Ascott is also very nice. Both are by Makati / Fort Bonifacio which is the upscale business area, but Ascott is on top of a mall. Mind, Pan pacific isn't bad as a guest (like the Hyatt, it's pretty nice), it's the surrounding real estate that makes it lovely. The hotel is fine & has some nice views of the bay. Also, like the Heritage hotel, there's a good chance hookers will be in the lobby.
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Feb 8, 2013 02:51
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drat, Shangri-La was in the running too. I just skipped it because the Shangri-las in Hong Kong are kind of lovely and I think Robert Kuok is a dick.
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Feb 8, 2013 03:04
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ReindeerF posted:Nooo Finch! Nooooooo! I have to take care of business in the real world. As in, hopefully sell mine. Failing that I need to oversee a few projects that will continue to fund my "I'll live wherever the hell I want to" lifestyle, and I can't do that from here. I'll be back, though!
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Feb 8, 2013 03:06
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Bloodnose posted:drat, Shangri-La was in the running too. I just skipped it because the Shangri-las in Hong Kong are kind of lovely and I think Robert Kuok is a dick. Pan Pacific will do in a pinch, though. as long as you're not there for a month. FYI it will just vindicate everything ReindeerF said about Manila, though. It's kind of funny. Can rec a ton of food in the area.
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Feb 8, 2013 03:19
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Well great. Send me a PM. Every little bit helps. I've been reading Wikivoyage, but I suspect at least some parts of it are horrifically outdated. The Ermita page lists some things will be happening in June 2009, in future tense. So, again, anyone who's local and wants to meet up to volunteer some expertise, I'll buy a drink or a meal or whatever.
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Feb 8, 2013 03:35
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don't have plats but you can hit me up with a cell? 09175944132
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Feb 8, 2013 03:56
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Sure. I assume SIM cards are easy to get at the airport or convenience stores? When Viettel in Hanoi gave me a week of unlimited 3G for like $15 USD, that was the most awesome thing ever. And since I get in after midnight tonight, I'll make the call tomorrow.
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Feb 8, 2013 04:07
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yeah. you can do that or take a cab into the mall of asia and look for a SMART store. There's Globe, too. I recommend SMART, it has more coverage for some reason. (despite being the "lesser" network) Both offer pre-paid. Unlimited data (UNLI XXX plans) for a month for $25; they have a weekly plan that's like $10 or $12 too. The SIM card will run you ~40 peso / $1. (edit: text, don't call. I rarely answer voice calls due to the # of phone scammers here unless I know the number ahead of time)
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Feb 8, 2013 04:24
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Oh wow, you picked Pan Pacific over Peninsula and Shangri-La? That's sort of hilarious. Malate has decent eats though. Anyways, shoot me a text on 09277403042 if you want to grab a beer or something. Or PM.
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Feb 8, 2013 04:46
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Bloodnose posted:Sure. I assume SIM cards are easy to get at the airport or convenience stores? When Viettel in Hanoi gave me a week of unlimited 3G for like $15 USD, that was the most awesome thing ever. Yeah, it's pretty easy to get a prepaid sim here. Go for a Smart sim, get a couple of 500PHP (~$12.27) reload cards, key them into your smartphone, and you'll be pretty much set. You can get 1GB of data for 499PHP, good for 30 days, by texting 'ON 499' to 2200. Another 250PHP gets you 100 call minutes to all networks, including back to HK if you wish (text CALL250 to 5908). I might be free tomorrow as well. I'll PM you my mobile number. E: goonmeet in Manila woop woop anakha fucked around with this message at 04:50 on Feb 8, 2013 |
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Feb 8, 2013 04:48
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Yeah! Now we got goons coming out of the woodwork. Even if Manila is a Mad Max hellscape, a bunch of goons can make it a good time.
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Feb 8, 2013 05:01
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Another Earthquake off Solomon Islands, 7.0 this time. Starting to reconsider if it's a good idea to go climb into the hub of an active volcano tomorrow
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Feb 8, 2013 14:27
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How difficult is it to get a visa to myanmar at the moment? Should I do it from Bangkok or can I do it from further north? I'll be in Thailand in a couple of weeks and I want to know to what extent I'll have to plan ahead or if I can just rock up.
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Feb 8, 2013 20:39
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https://www.myanmarevisa.gov.mm/ EDIT: Ah poo poo, they put the site back up, but the application is "undergoing beta testing" argh. Sorry about that. I thought they had it live again. It appears they have a VOA at the airport in Yangon, if you're flying. I'd google around for verification, though. Otherwise, it's the usual apply in Bangkok and get it back in a day or so deal from what I've heard. This thread seems pretty realistic (starting with post #11): http://bit.ly/128GaRl God save me for linking to that awful site. ReindeerF fucked around with this message at 21:21 on Feb 8, 2013 |
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Feb 8, 2013 21:15
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ReindeerF posted:https://www.myanmarevisa.gov.mm/ Thank you; I should have mentioned that I had already checked the e-visa site.
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Feb 8, 2013 21:27
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What's the best combination of mix fruit shake ever? I came up with pineapple, lemon, and watermelon which is pretty amazing, but I'm not familiar enough with all these flavours that I rarely come across at home, like mangosteen, or guava
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Feb 9, 2013 11:22
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I'm not a huge shake person, but I really like coconut, banana, mango and pineapple.
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Feb 9, 2013 11:30
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Manila's not so bad so far. Intramuros and Chinatown were cool. The language stuff is freaking me out. How everyone can speak English and the directions on my phone card flow seamlessly in and out of Tagalog. My girlfriend has already been mistaken for Filipino, just like she passed for Korean and Vietnamese in those respective countries.
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Feb 9, 2013 11:45
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ante posted:What's the best combination of mix fruit shake ever? My favorite is dragonfruit mango. The girlfriend and I call it a boxfish shake - yellow with black dots.
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Feb 9, 2013 12:23
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My favorite time in Manila was my first week or so there, discovering the town and how little it had to offer, heh. Intramuros, Remedios Circle, Chinatown, Makati, Ortigas - but I repeat myself - okay you're done! It's sort of like a dystopia imagined by John Hughes, where everyone from the middle class and above spend their entire social lives, from birth 'til death, locked in malls while no suffering ever appears on film. If you meet any locals, see if they know the story behind Roxas, which is symbolic of Manila's trajectory historically. Massive project by Imelda and wealthy locals to create a Rodeo Drive for Manila that involved reclaimed land, a huge cultural center, luring in tons of international hotels and chains and it all collapsed as her hubby was run out of office. Now it's like the set of Escape From New York, but you still have to go down there for travel poo poo and embassies, sadly.
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Feb 9, 2013 12:27
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ante posted:What's the best combination of mix fruit shake ever? I prefer apple, pineapple, watermelon, and lemon... nomnomnom.
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Feb 9, 2013 12:36
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Bloodnose - i was in the middle of replying to you and my driver hit a speed bump, thus causing me to hit 'delete' instead. please text me again lol
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Feb 9, 2013 12:53
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holy poo poo so many goons up in this dive shop
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Feb 9, 2013 14:12
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Manila goon meet is imminen!  At Howzat sports bar. Corner of Mercado st and Calderon st in Makati. Goons are showing up around 10.
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Feb 9, 2013 14:44
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Danger Will Robinson! https://www.dropbox.com/s/ay2gpwu9f8um8jv/Photo%20Feb%2009%2C%2021%2022%2033.jpg
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Feb 9, 2013 15:25
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Bloodnose posted:Manila's not so bad so far. Intramuros and Chinatown were cool. The language stuff is freaking me out. How everyone can speak English and the directions on my phone card flow seamlessly in and out of Tagalog. Korean? really? Koreans are usually good at sniffing out the 'impure'
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Feb 9, 2013 17:17
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Bloodnose posted:Manila's not so bad so far. Intramuros and Chinatown were cool. The language stuff is freaking me out. How everyone can speak English and the directions on my phone card flow seamlessly in and out of Tagalog. Pinoys code-switch like motherfuckers. Actually, many provincianos that found their fortune in Metro Manila know at least three languages: their native provincial language, Filipino, and English. I guess it comes with the Philippines being a confederation of multiple tribes, "united" by colonization and the resulting revolutions.
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Feb 9, 2013 20:23
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That was my experience. The craziest seemed to be the guy I knew from Zamboanga, who knew Tagalog, English, Spanish, Arabic and, he said, two local tribal languages (his word). He wasn't particularly highly educated, just had to know all of these to get around he said. Everyone else just spoke English, Tagalog and Ilocano or English, Tagalog and Cebuano or something. Cebuano is prettier, that's one thing the Cebu crowd are right about, heh. I remember reading a number of long articles from Cebuano speakers about how they were forced to learn Tagalog and how it's still considered a point of contention between the major populations on Visayas and Luzon. Tagalog is not a pleasing language on the ears. It's not as bad as Yiddish, German, Dutch, Afrikaans, Cantonese, Singlish and various Arab dialects I've encountered as it doesn't seem to require yelling at, and interrupting everyone all the time, but it's not very endearing with that popcorn cadence. Conversely, my Pinoy friends all tell me that speaking English makes their nose hurt, which they'll swear is true. If we can all agree to poo poo on one another's languages I can respect that - seems a lot more honest than the alternative, heh. What a fascinating multicultural world we live in!
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Feb 9, 2013 20:33
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There's a distinction that most Filipinos don't bring up often enough: Tagalog is actually a provincial language, specifically of the region where Manila is and several neighboring provinces; it's just that Manila ended up as the capital due to the Spanish basing their power there and the revolutionary government deciding on the dialect as the country's official language. I've never heard the term outside of academia but the concept of "Imperial Manila" is very much a thing because the politics, business, and much of the culture of the country itself is sucked and concentrated in the city. It explains a lot about why Metro Manila is the way it is, and I don't blame the Visayans or the Mindanaoans for their dislike of it. Filipino as most know it is basically Tagalog with plenty of loan words from Spanish, Chinese, and various other languages that have had a presence in Central Luzon. Stuff like sapatos from the Spanish word for shoes (zapatos) or even slang like tiangge which, I think, comes from a Chinese shop greeting. I don't blame you if you think it doesn't sound nice because I personally don't like how it flows; everything just starts blurring together really badly when I hear extended passages of Filipino being spoken. So much for being a patriot 
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Feb 9, 2013 20:57
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The greatest revenge I can imagine would be for some clever, wealthy nation to just give citizenship to the entire middle and lower classes of the Philippines, suck all that talent out and leave the rich fucks who run the place floundering around with no one to occupy their feudal economic and political systems. Granted, there's plenty wrong at all levels of any society, but the Philippines is the worst place I've ever been for the feeling of, "Jesus, all these great, hard-working and talented people stuck in this lovely shell of a society." Even places like Cambodia, as poor as they are, are moving in a positive direction. Almost every Filipino I know well enough for them to speak openly says the same thing: it's hosed, we hate it and we can't seem to fix it no matter what we try, so we just sigh and take it. That's a pretty short paraphrasing of a lot longer set of discussions about people power and corruption and colonialism and everything else, of course.
ReindeerF fucked around with this message at 21:14 on Feb 9, 2013 |
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Feb 9, 2013 21:11
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I'm reminded of something I once concluded whenever relatives came home and told us stories about working abroad: that Filipinos are awesome everywhere except in the Philippines. Plenty of stuff that is both telling, sad, and straight-up wrong in that statement, and not just the obvious. That aside though: this is the tourism thread, not the D&D one so don't be put down by these sordid details and enjoy the Philippines! Just not in Metro Manila if you can avoid it.
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Feb 9, 2013 21:26
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On that note, I'll recommend Davao City on Mindanao. Fantastic lechon (oddly?) and you can jot out to some great islands on the ferry - even all the way to Indonesia, as I recall. I've not been to anywhere else on Mindanao, but even my local friends would tell me that it's maybe not the best place to roam freely (I can't say). What I can say is that Davao City is like an oasis compared to Manila. Organized, clean, seemingly well-functioning, has some infrastructure, largely crime-free for day to day getting around and so on. I very much enjoyed my trip there and made it a point not to ask anyone how they kept it so clean and orderly ("lotta holes in the desert..."). It's also supposedly the largest city in the world in terms of land area, but that's not really something that matters when you're there, heh.
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Feb 9, 2013 21:32
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Happy Year of the Water Snake everyone! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=22Q43lo8FZ4 I spent ten minutes picking out the best oranges I could find this morning. God bless fruitcake Chinese traditions. \/\/\/ Meanwhile, Pinoy hotel bands and their coordinated dance routines need to be put on some kind of Geneva Convention ban list. ReindeerF fucked around with this message at 03:52 on Feb 10, 2013 |
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Feb 10, 2013 03:03
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Also: Filipinos make cover bands so good, that any local band will burst into flames when put into direct competition
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Feb 10, 2013 03:08
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Hey, here's one for the locals. I was riding my bike way out across the Tha Chin river today and I had some time to think about poo poo, so my mind wandered to, "What's the most tourist facepalm thing you've seen someone do in Thailand that's also not completely stereotypical?" So, for example, putting your feet on poo poo or asking for chopsticks with everything is incredibly touristy, but also totally stereotypical, so it doesn't count. I was rummaging through my addled brain for something that's outside of the norm of stereotypes that I've seen and the best I can come up with is backpackers buying the monk food plates while waiting for a bus or something and then eating them while sitting on the sidewalk. Anyone else?
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Feb 11, 2013 07:26
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Swimming in floodwater on Khao San Road during the 2011 flood.
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Feb 11, 2013 07:30
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Guess I missed a goon meet. Flying into Manila on Thursday. 
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Feb 11, 2013 09:13
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I didn't see Patia mentioned in the OP. Is that a no go tourist zone or something? Or am I thinking about a different place in a different part of Asia?
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Feb 11, 2013 09:20
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Herr Tog posted:I didn't see Patia mentioned in the OP. Is that a no go tourist zone or something? Or am I thinking about a different place in a different part of Asia? Patia is in Colombia, according to wikipedia. Do you mean Pattaya? don't go there it's gross
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Feb 11, 2013 09:29
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