Introduction
I was originally going to title this “Get Out of Manila”. Then I thought about adding “and the Manila Suburbs”. But I had an epiphany in that all big cities are pretty much the same. So “Get out of the Big City”. I am not saying stay away from cites, just the large ones. In the case of the Philippines cites larger than say 500,000. Unfortunately this takes a lot of tourist destinations off the list.
Let me explain my reasoning. And this really has nothing tom do with the Philippines, and more to do with the nature of big cities. Basically the big city attracts all sorts of people for the wrong reasons. If someone comes to the city from the country, they really need to ask themselves how their skill set translate. For example there is not a large demand for farming skills in the big city.
But I digress from my main point.
Living in a Smaller Town
Generally the smaller towns do not attract people like the larger cities. So they tend to have less issues with homelessness, squatters, and crime. And in this case I am referring to towns with a population of around 50,000 to 100,000 that are not a suburb of a bigger city. I see on line Ex pats complaining without end, but the majority live in the big city or one of the suburbs (most from around Manila, Quezon, Davao, Cebu, and the like).
Don’t get me wrong, all great places to visit. I just would not live there. The big city does have some amenities that people need or like. For example, in the town I live in, I can find about 80% of the stuff I am looking for on a shopping trip. But there is always that one item that I will need to go to the big city to get. But since the Philippines is bunch of islands, the big citiy is never more than an hour or two away at most. I find 50,000 to 100,000 to be the sweet spot where I can get pretty much everything I need. There are a few needs I still need to visit the big city for.
Th Small Town Attraction
What do I like about the smaller towns? People are not out hustling all the time. Every time I go to the big city it seems at least half the population is running some sort of hustle all the time. People in the smaller towns will genuinely help you with out expecting payback. My experience in the big city, a lot of people only offer to help if they think they will get something out of it.
Now I will admit the night life can be lacking in the towns, band I understand how that might be important for some of you younger folks. So yes, for that reason I can see why some younger people would want the big city.
Another big attraction of the town is cheaper prices. Especially when it comes to housing. A while back I had a need to spend a few days in Manila, and when I compared housing prices, it was more than twice as expensive. Same with a lot of restaurants, much cheaper in the small town.
Conclusion
I do want to make things clear. This is not a Filipino thing. In pretty much every country I have visited, it has been the same. Big cities are nice places to visit, but I would not want to stay there. Smaller towns are quieter, less expensive, and generally have a much nicer ambiance. But to each their own. Town life tends to are not as exciting as big city life. I, personly prefer the more laid back quieter life style. Less hassles, less complications.