The Philippines is driving me nuts....

They make a good cake there!

The last time we went to the Phils in Jan/Feb was so bad.

Our daughter was hospitalised with vomiting and diarrhoea. She had to have a saline drip-feed put into her arm.
She has been to her grandparents' island twice now and on both occasions had to be rushed off by pump boat to the hospital on the mainland.
Our son also had the same problem, but a little less severe so didn't have to go to hospital.

However he became unconscious and turned blue just before we flew home.
When my wife turned and cried holding his limp little body it was truly shocking to us.
I quickly grabbed the tabo from the toilet and threw some water on him and he regained consciousness immediately.
He has BHS (breath holding syndrome) and we had him checked over in the UK as soon as we arrived home. It affects 5% of kids and they usually grow out of it between 2 and 3 years of age.
With all the hassle of travelling in Phils and these recent problems we will not be going over there fo a while.

The difference between tourists & residents. Been here now going on 8 years. Dont get ripped off. Dont get sick. Dont live in dirty city. Lots of top class resorts if I want nearby but they are full of tourists so I go to the plentiful beaches around, which are pretty quiet during the day as Pinoys wait until the sun is going down. You could not give me enough money to go back to the UK and I wouldn't go to The Canaries or Spanish resorts again either. Too fake & commercialized........oh & full of tourists

Spain is a very big country and there are many places without tourists, but you have to try to speak Spanish and, more importantly, be adventurous!
If you get away from the coast it is a different world, oh and it is clean too
"The difference between tourists & residents." is true in Spain also.
BTW, I think you would see Phils differently if you took very young English kids with you! It was our decision but we learnt a lesson and we will not go there again for a long time. My wife thinks the same and she is Filipina.
There are good hospitals everywhere in the UK too