Author: Reekay V.
Since 2012 I’ve been traveling through various islands of the Philippines as a full-time Expat and spent 1999 living in Vietnam.
Share with me my ongoing adventures of life in the Philippines. Hopefully you find my observations helpful in your own adventures.
— Reekay
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Expat Health Insurance Quote.. https://bit.ly/expat-health-insurance-quote
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In this video I discuss, “What Is, “Living The Dream” To You? – Philippines – Thailand -Vietnam”
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Living the dream would probably be some place in SEA if I had the freedom to travel….now that dream is a nightmare….don’t want to live in a LOCKED DOWN country regardless of all it’s perks….Thanks for your videos Henry, Reekay, Enrique..I admire your work ethic.
I appreciate that! thanks! 🙂
Owning a bar kind of turns the happy in happy hour on its head. You’re there to serve the drunks, not to be the drunk.
For me living the dream would be living in the Philippines in the season escape the cold weather of the north hemisphere basically I enjoy Japan but sometimes I just like to relax and live a simple life
Outstanding look at reality. US life is NOT FOR ME!
The Philippines is also NOT the place to be either.
Good advice for you my friend. MOVE out of the Philippines NOW!
How ironic that her dream was to come to the US and your dream was to leave it.:)
what i have found my experience most of ladies, 20-40, looking for a something serious, also having kids
my plan is to move to davao, also live my dream, filipina, weather, tropical fruit, friendly people, can’t wait to start my next chapter of life @ 50
SE Asia looks like a lot of fun but I’m too addicted to the lifestyle in the USA
Q: if an American expat marries a Filapina as you mentioned in this video, does he have to get an anullment in the Phils or can he get an american divorce from her?
bud brown, reekay, ned, bill,(pizza guy) and the new, Mark the everyman has story are my regular youtubers of choice.
The “trajectory” of that Saigon lady involved using YOU for an American green card. You dodged a scam.
Yes, here in the west women have great expectation. I’m talking all types of women here, and they offer a man very little for what they expect.
Thank you for the video. But imo the video should be entitled “Relationships”, not “Living The Dream”. I guess that is what living the dream is to you, and more power to you. I think God, quiet, friends, a swim in the ocean, taking a walk, taking a nap, reading a good book, etc. To me, living the dream begins with a lot of honest soul searching. Then you will know what you are after. If it turns out that a relationship is at the top of your list, great.
Yes, I, too, am tired of the USA rat race. I had a good run, great job, nice big house in N. California, good friends and good fun. The downside is the women are impossible to make happy. Been to Thailand, Vietnam and 23 other countries but at 65 PH is the best for me: English, beautiful young girl who wants to make me happy, a culture that respects law, police, elderly, school and people in general. Just a great attitude towards life there. So poor and yet so happy. Thanks, Reekay. See you soon in Cebu, my friend.
TRUE STORY:
When I was born in 1962, my father, his brother and wife decided to leave Cuba to NYC to open a bakery while my mom and I stayed. All 3 of them slept in the storage room for 4 years after which then my father got my mom and I out of Cuba and we moved to Queens. My uncle and his wife stayed in Manhattan as he was always a very shrewd business man who invested heavily in real estate (buildings and condos in NYC and even 600 acres in Orlando, Florida!) while continuing making money like crazy!
One time right before Walt Disney decided to create Disney World in Orlando, Florida, Mr. Disney offered my uncle $45 MILLION for the 600 acres of land and my uncle said NO WAY to him! Obviously, Mr. Disney bought other land nearby and opened the park in 1972. My uncle and his wife were so CHEAP that they built an old small house in the middle of all that land with cows to save on their taxes and have their taxes so low. One day he was doing some roof repair by himself wearing no hat and collapsed under the very hot and humid Florida sun. He died of brain hemorrhaging. She inherited the whole land and ALL his real estate and NEVER, EVER gave one penny NOR one piece of land to my father for helping them out with the bakery business! They also never had kids.
I have worked hard all my life because my father worked hard all his life. More importantly, he brought me here to the USA at a very young age to get a quality education and to be anything I wanted to be. Thanks dad!
Starbucks is antiamerican. They don’t support the military, 2009 they said that, the year I was in Iraq. Screw them, never waste your money with them, idiot.
Another fantastic video. It just so happens that my dream is similar to yours and the motorcycle guy.
My dream is to go the Philippines and find a wife. I’ve never been there yet also wanted to check out Thailand Cambodia and Vietnam.
I’d love to travel Asia but the quality of Healthcare seems low. Here in the US it seems very space age. Saved me a time or two. In Asia I may have died. The food in Asia seems like it would be full of mercury and Raid. Instead of organic pure stuff.
For me living the dream is living on a tropical island with a great loving wife. Relaxing and doing whatever I want and not having to worry about getting up and going to work anymore. Retirement has been a dream for me and I have enjoyed my life here in the Philippines for the last 6 years.
I’m not open to a serious, committed relationship leading to marriage with some lady with kid’s
Great topic. 11:30 (visa petitions) is just a form of hypergamy. 20:25 is traditional male utility. 29:50 she’s not yours it’s just your turn. 27:20 it costs a ton of sugar or sweet promises like the locals. 39:00 (no kids), even you thought impossible in earlier videos. Today, it’s fans-only. IMHO, there’s no casual romance unless the man is young and hot or loaded with money. Peace.
Feel like the part about seeing opportunities pass you by and become “off limits” really resonates with me especially when we talked. How do you really know or determine for yourself then when to keep exploring or to settle down?
it’s long been my mantra, “there is no love without risk.”
the future, and any relationship, never comes with a guarantee. at some point we each have to decide when is the right time to pull the trigger and ‘go for it’.. often by faith even after vetting a person out for over a year.
As Joe says: “Why buy when you can rent.”
Great video
Glad you enjoyed it
boss u back Philippines again ? vietnam better or philiphines?
both are awesome, for different reasons. i wanted to stay in vietnam, but after meeting my g/f, Vi.. i’m happy with her here. 🙂
Very well sed
Living the dream means to be based in a society where the women are not obese and brainwashed against men. I guess that would be numbers 3 or 4.
That is the situation here in Washington state
My dream is living in a philippines province,with simple life ,my own property built to me and wifes spec,with 2 kids and some decent weather.Im well on way to achieving this so feel blessed Reekay.Great vlog mate.
Sounds great!
I would definitely love riding a motorcycle on some of those crooked mountain roads. That would be a blast.
That would be cool!
Living the dream is to make an income 100% online and not be location dependent. I sell online and offline and inventory has always kept me from being 100% free. Working on becoming 100% online so i can just take off the next month to a new Air bnb in another city, island or even country in southeast asia. Also living the dream is that Covid would go away and no more Chinese viruses so we have that type of freedom back again.
How do you get into that stuff?
But that is still working and you can’t retire. Bad dream.
More sage advice!!!
I appreciate that! thanks! 🙂
Reekay what can I do to get my Filipino wife to America I miss her so much
since you are already married, you could begin the process of a usa spousal visa. i’ll give you a link that has more info on that.
or, you could talk to the PH embassy or consulate in your area to see about getting a visa to enter the PH based on your marriage to a Filipina.
https://www.visajourney.com/
Excellent video. Do you know what are the requirements to get a resident visa or something of that sort like a long term visa for Thailand?
i’ll give you a link with more info on the SRRV visa. however, at this time no new applications are being taken. the website will announce when they will begin processing again.
https://pra.gov.ph/srrv/
Just want to get back over there and live a quite peaceful life. Maybe with a dog or two.
I convert atheists and Mormons and others to being Christian. I don’t even have a firm believe in the afterlife. Every miracle in the Bible is a stumbling block for me. But this is living the dream.
Man, you’re cooking in this video. No. 3 was it, yeah, that’s me, or hope so anyway, still in the west ‘n it kinda sucks. Sure, you can do business with people, you can order coffee, but when it comes to meeting people socially, it’s just not a good scene. I can tell the stuff about dating people and see them end up with someone else is a topic more close to you. It’s an interesting perspective though, never thought of it like that. Now, for me, if I can get some time away and some (moderate) drinking outside of the family, that’s really all I ask, that’s really all I’ve ever asked for’n it used to work in the West, but no more.
No, today you’re a problem, who cares if you have an income, you have to be into things, so into things, be it work, houses or apartments, or hobbies, whatever.
You can ask someone to climb K2 with you, that’s great. But to live together, have some kids and being a guy that goes out and get drunk every once in a while, no way José, then you’re an awful person, at least if you’re over 40. I wonder why that is, in my book it’s called livin’.
In the 80’s a friend to me to this 50’s style dinner, which I became a regular and friends with owner. One day I said you should open more of these. He laughed and said at one time he owned 15 in three states and his life was hell. He said I’m happy just to have this one. Too many times we fail to see how good we have it.
as some say, “less is more.” 🙂
43:17 Very interesting video, Henry! I’m wondering if a Sari-sari store it’s not a better business to have than a bar or a restaurant for an expat married with a Filipina.
@James Edwards I’m guessing some they just want to have something to do. If I become an expat in my 50s I will need a money maker until I get 60-62 years old when I will retire.
Ever notice how all the ex-pats go there to retire but they must find some sort of work and they need income???
if you plan to be home anyway, it’s an option. some challenges with inventory and credit to be addressed or it could end up being a public food pantry instead. 🙂
Are you aware of condominiums in Dumaguete similar to your condo in cebu
@Reekay’s LifeBeyondTheSea OK fantastic I’ll check it out..did you try the hydroxizine hydrochloride
duma has a main condo complex at the north-end of the boardwalk, next door to the Hayahay resto, called ‘Marina Spatial’. you can see it on the map and get info here.. https://goo.gl/maps/mHNziget2aYuckxw7
I agree with the feeling of certainty of not wanting children. With every passing year I am even more convinced that I don’t want children. Nobody believed me when I was 22 that I didn’t want kids and kept saying that I would change my mind, but here I am in my 30s and feel exactly the same way. I think more people should trust Vi when she says that she doesn’t want kids because it’s just something you know from an early age.
Mike Flair is entitled to his own opinion and belief but it’s basically that he understands he is no match for a woman 35 years younger than him and there is no way he could keep up or please one. Do he must stay with older and claim everyone else is wrong. Sad man
@Mike Flair i would LOVE for you to explain to the rest of us ‘why’ it is ‘wrong’. based on what? your opinion? that means nothing. legally? she’s 22 so, that’s not a justifiable basis. morally? based on which spiritual text?
and ‘taking advantage’? seriously? you make that accusation never having spent even 10-minutes with either of us. complete assumption just like your claim it is, “just wrong”.
there’s a word for people like you; ‘Bigot’. accusatory without cause. if you really want to gain some understanding of a relationship you haven’t a clue about, visit here;
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ih6-MbTmZsM&list=PLCCdOFKKMy362l-qSkC9SJpc9h8v-TeQH
It is OK. No one should feel pressure. Everyone is unique. Vi is entitled to her beliefs. I think the issue here is obvious: Man 35+ years older is just wrong. I know everyone says: different in Philippines, they don’t care but these is NO other place in the world like this, so guys like Reekay take advantage. We all know why.
I think that the media has conditioned us here in the US to believe that the hamster wheel life is the best life. We really don’t know how much easier and simpler life can be until we travel. A lot of people from Southeast Asia don’t fully understand just how difficult it is to keep your head above water here. While some of us in the US are wealthy in money, for the majority of our lives we are very time poor. I think that time is infinitely more valuable than money in most circumstances.
U really cant compared western women these days to other women in a positive way, of course not all are like this but most are entitled. I cant blame the women there completely, the problem is there to many desperate men to fuels their narcissisms as u can see from online dating supply and demand. What men need to do is work hard and obtain currency not women or a partner in the west, when u obtain currency ur very desirable. After traveling abroad and obtain new experience, you will learn that the women overseas are still women who respect their man and treat them with equality and empathy.
The Dream is to have enough in investments and just travel around SE Asia and have a home base in the Philippines.
One guy said that American women are one of the most brainwashed people. Either they think that you’re a sexual serial killer or they have unrealistically high expectations for a male partner. Like he has to be a prince or a billionaire or something.
Dream too would be a great sex life. Some guys brag about a career of punting but I think quality is better than quantity. Not too many kids if any for example. Moderation in the money department is good too. Fake designer stuff is OK if you don’t have scads of cash to blow on the upscale stuff. Hard to tell the difference without a magnifying glass.
I am here in Cordova, Mactan because women in the US have lost their sex appeal. I like a Feminine woman. That’s the dream for me.
@lionhearted1969 Yeah, I had her tested.
Are you sure she has all X chromosomes?
Simple: just watch my YouTube Channel… Cuz if you’re not, You’re Doing it Wrong! 😉
Good topic Henry,enjoyed it.
Much appreciated
You’re Spot On…
My dream was to meet a good girl & spending my life w/ her. I met her on Messenger when I wasn’t looking for a GF & Never met a Filipina before. 9 months later she picked me up at Cebu AP. That was over 2 YRS. ago & she is behind me now. Do I dream of more for us> Yes but right now I am living my dream & so is she. Great video, thank you.
“No matter where you go, there you are” – Buckaroo Banzai
“Living the life” is not associated with a place, it is a state of mind… After you become an expat, life goes on… Nothing magical is going to happen other than you no longer live in your home country… YOU must establish a life for yourself where ever you are and be happy when you look in the mirror… Having said that, I’ve been “living the life” in Thailand for close to a decade now… Married to a wonderful woman, our financial situation is secured and we are in good health… I play golf, cycle, go to the gym, travel and enjoy the company of friends… Not really much different than in my home country…
Living the dream is having an adventure everyday in a foreign country you love,and just keep moving on until you are too old to continue…..the key is to see much of the world as possible,and revisit the places you like…..having a routine can be monotonous and boarding,just like the hamster wheel….get off it and explore the big universe out there,that my friend never gets boaring…
Man you are describing my dream
Nailed it.
My ex is Vietnamese, we had totally different dreams. She wanted to travel the world, see the sights, kids were not a priority. Im more of traditionalist guy from Oklahoma, i just want to have a family, get some land grow some crops. We tried to make it work for a couple of years but could not. My Filipina fiance’s dream is a better match, shes a provence girl very simple, can butchering chickens all that.
Interesting video, thanks for sharing.
I’d be interested to know what % of expat guys ‘living the dream’ is travel & exploration within the Philippines &/or other Asian countries?
Travel, culture, food, adventure etc etc first & a woman further down the line, unless a good one comes along the way but enjoys the same in life, travel etc etc?
Great suggestion!
My dream is to organize a low budget life of 25,000 peso a month, on a permanent basis. If your organizing a life in phils with that intention you are able to do it and live well. For example: Rent 7000, Food 5000, Internet 2000, Utilities 5000, Immigration 2000, Misc 4000. This is AFTER initial setup costs (first & last months rent, scooter, furniture etc.
Wow that’s living low income like the poor. No extras. Sad.
rent at 7,000p would need to be on a small island. check out samal. food for a month @ 5,000p would be very, very frugal. mostly filipino diet for one person.
PLease continue this topic. MY DREAM IS GIRL SEXY HELP MODEL AIRPLANES IN Phil an Thailand
I been in the Phils for close to 4 years & when I put my head down on my pillow at night I feel no worry or guilt . This is important to me & I’m currently living my dream. Covid & 2020 was tough for many but I was lucky in finding my great province girl & life is now as good as ever.
that sounds perfect. so glad for both of you.
you might make 10x more in the US then other countries but in US its going to cost you 15x more to live there
That’s incorrect there are cheaper places in the us.
Maybe it should be living “your” dream
Hello my Friend. I hope u r doing great.
yes, life is good! 😀
Good to see you do a regular video Reekay….
thanks. 🙂 hope you enjoy it.