Moving to a new Asian country is daunting and unless you’ve had the luxury of exploring it from corner to corner, where you choose to settle can either be a blessing or your undoing.This article will introduce you to our slice of heaven, situated in the Albay province in Luzon. Before we dive into why we think this location ticks all the boxes, let’s take a quick look at what you’ll face on arrival in the Philippines and the choices you will need to make.
Have girlfriend, won’t travel!
Most foreigners will jump the gun, opting to find themselves a spouse or girlfriend first before deciding to settle in the Philippines. some get lucky and find the perfect partners, others end up broke and homeless on the sidewalk. It’s an all too common occurrence and although you might not like to hear this, the reason it happens is usually ignorance and gullibility on the part of the foreigner.
Most Filipina’s searching for a boyfriend or spouse live either with, or in close proximity to their family. Filipino families are a tight knit unit that support each other and often a house will home three or four generations. Even if they don’t live at home, odds are they will take you back there and if you’re looking to settle here, you’re going to have in-laws to deal with, often a stone’s throw away and sometimes even under the same roof.
While it’s great to have family around, the physical location of the family may not suit your specific needs. If you’re older and require ready access to medicines and doctors, need high speed internet, want to go surfing, or simply hike up a mountain, these locations may not tick any of your boxes, company aside.
Discuss this with your partner and opt for a location that suits both of you. If she really cares for you, moving to new area won’t be a deal breaker and mom, dad and the family can come and visit. My advice to new arrivals would be to spend some time on your own first, travel, perhaps with a friend, and get to know the areas.
Got that seaside bug?
Most foreigners do, and although its fantastic to spend time at the coast, living there comes with a list of drawbacks. Mostly heat, heat and more heat. If you opt for a busy area like Subic or San Juan prices for properties are going to be prohibitive, with seaside ground in popular areas fetching on average six times more than property situated inland. Busy area’s are, well…, by definition, busy. Expect a fast paced life, jam packed shops and malls, doctors, and packed public transport. And then the holiday season comes…
Night clubs and bars proliferate the busier areas, and if this is your scene, then the coast is a great choice, but the clubs come at a cost, both financially and healthwise. With large expat communities in the bigger areas, drinking with your mates can literally be the death of you, and Filipino’s can be forgiven for assuming the only hobby foreigners have is drinking. Alcohol is cheap here, ridiculously so, and an easy trap to fall into.
Also worth keeping in mind, many of the bars are frequented by pretty young women/men on the prowl for their next drunken victim/husband/boyfriend. So while the seaside has a lot to offer, there are a myriad reasons why opting for an inland location is preferable.
We think we’ve found the perfect spot. Read on to learn more about the Bicol region of Luzon, and in particular, a province called Albay.
Albay
Situated in the southern section of Luzon in the area referred to as Bicol, the province of Albay covers a total land area of 2,575.77 square kilometres. It is bordered by coast on either side. Its total population, according a 2020 census hovered around 1,374,768 people.
Geographically, the area is home to Mt. Mayon, an active stratovolcano that stands at around 2,462 metres, with its adjacent sister volcano (dormant) Mt. Masaraga, a forested, sharp-topped, mountain with an elevation of 1,328 metres. The two volcanos’ sit directly on the Pacific Ring of fire, and Mayon regularly provides spectacular eruptions, on rotations of around 5 years.
The capital of the area, Legazpi, is built around the foothills of the volcano, and approximately 35 km to the north, along the Manila Highway, you will enter the City of Ligao. It is here, overlooking Mt. Mayon and Mt. Masaraga, in lush green valleys filled with rice fields and surrounded by low mountain ranges, that we buy and develop land for Go East and our clients. Read on to learn more about this small city, its geographic situation and why we feel it just cannot be beaten in terms of what it has to offer.
Facts and Figures
Ligao City (check the arrow on the map above), with a geographical area of 442 square kilometres is home to around 120 000 people. It consists of 55 barangays, stretching from the city center, inland (situated on the Pan-Philippine Highway) to the coastal town of Pio Duran. It is 27 km’s away from the area’s capital city of Legazpi, and around 500 km’s away from Manila.
The coastal towns of Tabaco and Pio Duran (both an hours drive away) flank it on either side and in terms of geographical location, it is as close to the center of the Philippines as it is possible to get. A new international airport, Daraga International serves the area and is around 35 minutes drive from Ligao city center, with flights to Manila taking around 90 minutes.
Amenities
Boasting a huge new provincial hospital and various other medical facilities, Ligao ticks all the boxes for those in retirement. More specialised medical care is available in Legazpi, a 45 minute drive from Ligao. The city boasts numerous restaurant’s, hotels, guesthouses and a wide variety of shopping venues, and again, Legazpi offers large Western style malls, perfect for day trips out or weekend getaways.
There is an extensive police presence in the city, and foreigners can wander around freely, even after hours, with no concern for their safety. The local councils are well organized and the city is well run, with continuous upgrades and improvements to infrastructure. While foreign faces are definitely on the increase, we’re still pretty much a rarity here, unlike larger areas like Subic, where you’ll be pointedly ignored.
There are tons of sights and attractions to visit, Mayon aside and with areas like the petrified village in Daraga ( a victim of Volcanic flow), waterfalls, sandy beaches, waterparks and beautiful hikes through areas like Mt. Masaraga, there is a never ending list of activities to enjoy.
One of the aspects that makes Ligao so appealing, location aside, is the fact that things work here. Permit applications, vehicle licensing etc, all within city limits, and as functional as is possible within the convoluted systems in the Philippines. Add to this the benefit of not having to stand in queues for hours and it’s a win-win. Foreigners can also access a Bureau of Immigration office in Legazpi for assistance and visa renewals.
Local banks are well represented with BDO, PNB, Metro Bank and Land Bank, along with smaller independent co-operatives and cash points are distributed throughout the city. Fresh fish, pork, beef, chicken and fresh vegetables and fruit can be purchased from a large outdoor wet market in the city center that also offers a host of other products.
Lifestyle
Quiet and laid back. Ligao is historically an agricultural economy and while that is gradually changing, the area still retains its rural farming charm. Barangays only two or three minutes drive from the city center are nestled in rice fields, in small valleys surround by mountains covered in coconuts, bananas and natural forest. There is a proliferation of bird species and you can expect to wake to the twitter of birds most mornings or fall asleep in the evening to the sound of bullfrogs after the rains.
Socially, the locals are incredibly welcoming of foreigners, and we strongly encourage new arrivals to integrate with local communities. Fiestas are held in each barangay every year over two or three days, to honor their patron saints and the ensuing festivities of food, drink and song can be intoxicating, noisy and fantastic fun.
Temperature wise, the climate here is as good as it gets. With higher rainfall because of the surrounding mountain ranges, the area is generally a lot cooler than most regions, and air conditioners are only really needed for a few weeks out of the year. Go East also builds our homes to ensure they retain internal temperatures and are insulated against the heat.
Transport
There is a steady stream of buses that flows between Legazpi and Manila and these can be booked throughout the day, although we recommend a night booking. You can also flag these down along the road to catch an airconditioned ride to Legazpi. White MiniVans run out of the city center to Legazpi and are also air conditioned. At around 80 pesos one-way they offer great value and they will drop you after an hour long trip at the SM Mall in Old Albay, part of Legazpi.