Aroha Village

When I arrived in Cebu in 2005, I never intended to be there for more than 6 months.  Actually, after hearing my grandmother's warnings about cousins who had gone to the Philippines in the 70s and woke up daily with tarantulas in their beds and foreigners being sold into sexual slavery, I was pretty sure that I wouldn't even last one month.

I did last though.  I ended up staying so long that my visa ran out and, when I finally did leave in 2007, I was almost added to the list of foreigners who could never return again.


Since then, I have thought daily about the beauty of the land, the warmth of the people and the general good vibes I felt there.  The connection I feel to the Philippines is strong and the thought of returning to live there permanently is more than a little appealing.

The Pros to Communal Living in the Philippines
- Affordable, fertile land.  If you click on the "Financial Info" link in the labels, you can see more details on the cost of land in each location.
- Warm, friendly neighbors who may be interested in getting involved in a food garden for the shared Barangay
- Low cost of living
- The most beautiful beaches and vistas in the world
- Safety (Visayas Region)
- Proximity to developed metro areas with thriving nightlife, markets, great food, etc.
- Internet and mobile connectivity
- Guaranteed to experience the fullness of living
- A growing Permaculture community (Cabiokid) with opportunities to help expand awareness of Permaculture practices that benefit the whole community

The Cons to Communal Living in the Philippines
- Foreigners cannot own land.  This is a big one, obviously.  Corporations or partnerships that are at least 60% Filipino owned are entitled to acquire land in the Philippines. It is possible that with our family and friends who used to have citizenship, we can form a collective that falls within the scope of this law.
-Fewer ways to generate sustainable income
-Less chance of finding work outside of the community project- Applying for residency or tourist visas is a true hassle involving multiple trips to the Embassy and can be quite costly.  When you enter the Philippines, you are only allowed 21 days (compared to the 90 days you typically get in Latin America and the Caribbean).  To extend your stay you can apply for one of three types of Tourist or BusinessVisas:
       - A single-entry visa valid for 3 months which costs about $30 USD
       - A multiple-entry visa valid for 6 months which costs about $60 USD
       - A multiple-entry visa valid for one year which costs about $90 USD

$100 dollars per year for the rest of your life could start to add up, but I guess it could be worse.

Oh.  And, for the record, there were no attempts by anyone to sell me into any kind of slavery.  I also never once woke up with a tarantula in my bed - though I did once have a spider the size of my face sneak in through the window A/C unit. Win some, lose some.