This as-told-to story is based on a conversation with Bob Martin, an American expat who lived in the Philippines for 20 years. It's been edited for length and clarity.
The Philippines is one of Asia's top tourist destinations. In 2019, some 8.3 million people visited the country. It's known for its gorgeous natural landscape including white-sand beaches in Boracay, the Chocolate Hills in Bohol, and some of the best dive sites in the world in Palawan. These are just a few of the reasons why so many Americans have chosen to settle down here. These days, there are close to 300,000 US citizens living in the Philippines.
I moved to the Philippines in the late 1990s with my wife. She's Filipina, and after living in the US for a decade, we moved to her hometown, Davao City. I was looking for a new adventure and found it in the Philippines.
My wife and I recently moved back to the US, but these days, I miss the Philippines. Over the years I traveled to many places where few foreigners have ever been, including Basilan and Tawi Tawi, and other remote parts of the country, where lush islands are surrounded by the crystal-blue sea.
Over the years, I watched visitors make the same mistakes while traveling around the Philippines. Here are seven of the most common mistakes I spotted and how they can be avoided.