Why I became an Expat
I get a lot of questions about how I could leave the USA and move to another land where I have no family and no friends. A couple of days ago I received an email asking if I would be returning to the states since Obama won the election.
My leaving the US had nothing to do with politics, I do greatly prefer American politics. There are lots of reasons why people leave their home land and most of the time it is not because they have issues with their home land. I think in most cases, the people that leave their home countries for that reason will find plenty to not like in their new country.
Before I say why I’m in the Philippines, I’ll start with a definition from Wikipedia:
An expatriate (in abbreviated form, expat) is a person temporarily or permanently residing in a country and culture other than that of the person’s upbringing or legal residence. The word comes from the Latin ex (out of) and patria (country, fatherland).
Some expats intentionally spell it as expatriot to show their displeasure toward their homeland. I miss the US but not enough to return there to live. Many, if not most expats are ex-military and are very pro US. As they travel the world, they learn about other alternatives and most return after they reach retirement.
I’m in the Philippines for two reasons, finances and Filipina.
The women here are awesome, not only do they look great but if you treat them well, they will return it. They really appreciate being treated as an equal, heck they resist it to some extent. Of course there are exceptions. The main reason is I can’t afford to live in my homeland on my retirement income.
Now I could, but things would be pretty bleak. Dating is expensive and that would be difficult and most American women are looking for men that are a lot different than I am. So in a nutshell, that’s why I’m now living in the Philippines and I don’t see anything that’s likely to change that.
I recently wrote an article about why people become expats living in the Philippines. To view it visit Live In The Philippines.
I suspect that retirment as an expat is going to be a growing trend. There are magazines and many websites dedicated to the subject. There are a lot of scams too, so be careful about what you read.
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I like the truth in this article. You say it out loud without being afraid to be judged.
North american women are demanding but they also provide income to a familly and contribute to a better living standard but many men find it hard to have a financial rival at home.
Personally I don’t mind to have a working wife for as long as there is peace at home.
The reality however is different, life is complicated, we live in a very fast paced, consumer oriented, egocentric society, what in my opinion is unsustainable and will eventually be our ultimate demise. That is why I am planning to leave Canada and will most likely settle in a country like Philippines.
It is not paradise, that I know, but at least I will try it.
Keep on writing Rusty, I like your articles.
I have to disagree, my friend. It is paradise, well unless it has to be prefect.
I don’t mind having another income earner at all and would never see them as a rival. I encourage Jessie to make money online, for her benefit as well as ours. I wish she made 10 times what I make. I don’t see that as her only value. I’ve been in relationships where that was the only value to me from the other person as they offered nothing else. Jessie has things going on that make her better at things other than making money. She’s often afraid I will be angry over one of her limitations. That’s her culture, not mine. People can no more help who they are than they can prevent bone cancer by willing it away but that’s another issue.
My view is when it comes to American women that I don’t possess what they generally are looking for at least not the women I tend to be interested in.
I do think that in the Philippines that old saying that men are still men and woman are still women is true, I make no judgment on that. I will say that I lean toward pro-feminist. I hope Jessie thinks I treat her with respect and equal to me. She may actually be smarter than me. I may be more capable than she though.
I don’t get American women usually flirting with me, I usually get rejected by them before I get started. There is one to two exceptions, at least she let me get started. Others? Things didn’t go so well.
First time my X and I separated I ran ads on the web. When I posted my picture, no one responded to my ads. When I removed my picture, I was flooded with responses. They didn’t last long though.
Here, I don’t get treated that way. At least not to the point of being excluded by 99% of the female population. In fact, when I go out women often look at me with great amount of desire. That’s not mostly based on my looks but big people here are often seen as attractive. When your basic needs in life have not been met, one’s perspective on what looks good tends to change. With that said, when I was 20 pounds lighter I got even more flirts. I have to get that back off as flirting is my favorite pastime I think. LOL
Your right though, I’m not afraid to state things the way I see them. Doesn’t mean I right, but I’ve learned the hard way, all I can be is me. Without any doubt, me is more accepted here.
I do recommend the Philippines but another country that seems to hold promise is Indonesia. Problem is it is mostly Muslim and I’m going to fit in better with a Christian culture. Muslims always say I must convert to their religion.
This reply is partly in reference to Robert’s concerns re-the world economy imploding. I have a question for you: You’re retired right? So you have fixed income (plus whatever you’ll earn on the side). This probably sounds like a silly question, but how much it would affect you really, other than the fluctuations between the US$ and the peso? I mean the landlord is not gonna raise your rent just because the country is in recession. I watch the exchange rate every night. The AU$ has plummeted so fast, it’s not funny. When I visited PI last year, I was getting Php41.00 for every AU$1. Now it’s between Php29-31.00. Hope it doesn’t come down any further. Have you seen much signs of recession in Bogo?
hello rusty
I have been reading you for a time. do you have kids in the us? do you ever get to talk with them? i thought i saw a picture of a boy and girl before. it must be hard to leave them behind. i like your writing.
Tiffnay!
Thank you and I’m thrilled ot have you here and joining in. I hope you’ll joiin in more and share your experiences and straighten me out when I’m wrong.
Probably the main thing I’ve learned about the Philippines is that any thing I learn may not apply to the rest of the islands. Which is great as far as I’m concerned.
Yes I have to “kids” one is 30 and runs his own business on the side while working for a paint shop. He restores classic cars. The ones I’ve seen are just awesomme! He didn’t get that from, I’m a danger when it comes to cars, now computers I can work on. He’s kind of hard to talk to as he doesn’t like to do it much. But we had a good chat a month or so and it was very nice.
Like me, my daughter hates phones. We email fairly often. I didn’t get to see them much when I was in the states, which is a major source of heart ache for me but part of the circumstance that led up to me being able to come here and I’m really happy. Never been so happy and my kids see it and are happy for me which is nice.
I hope to go back in the next year and a half and will see them then. My daughter is in med school. Not to be a doctor but to be a vocational therapist. She’s starting her in hospital work now. Unlike me, she’s very outgoing and full of energy.
Trying to live in the US on my retirement income with my medical issues would have left me living in near poverty and alone. So this was the only choice for me and I just happened to find a wonderful woman too.