OVERVIEW
Angeles City is considred to be the best deal in the Philippines. Go-Go bars are plentiful and the bar fines are the lowest: 1,000 pesos for the whole night (although some ladies will try to short change you by only going “short time” – the bars will not back you up if that happens).
Getting to Balibago, Angeles City
Taxi to Victory Liner. Exit the airport customs/arrival hall into the lobby. Go to the escalator to the arrival level (upstairs), or go outside and look for the stairs to the upper level. Look for the city taxis.Before you get in one, make sure that the driver will use his meter, and not insist on a flat rate (which will always be higher than a metered rate).
Just say “Meter?” If you need to repeat, ask “Do you have a meter? Is it working? Are you going to use it?” He may ask you where you are going. You say “Victory Liner in Pasay City” (pronounced PA-sigh). It should be P40 – P60 for this taxi fare, depending upon traffic conditions.
Once you get to the Victory Liner terminal, find the ticket window for the Dagupan Aircon Bus (daag-oo-paan) Just say “Dau” (da-oo) to the ticket seller. The ticket will be marked for KM100, and will cost about P70, and will also be marked with a seat number. The ride takes two hours, longer if the traffic is bad.
If the bus is already there, board and get comfortable. The conductor will stow your luggage under the bus. Take care, when the luggage compartment is opened, that your luggage is not removed while someone else’s luggage is being put on.
If you arrive too late to get a city taxi: Get an airport taxi on the arrival level. Expect to pay P100 to P150 to Victory Liner. Last bus to Dagupan is around 10:30PM. Don’t try to use Victory Liner if you’re leaving the airport after 9:30 PM.
Once you get to Dau, the bus will stop at the Mabalacat Bus Terminal. Get out, collect your luggage, and you can find a tric (if you have luggage) near the front of the terminal, or walk over to MacArthur Hiway and get a jeep (if you only have a carry on). If this is your first time, get a tric, because the driver will know where your hotel is.
If you arrive too late to use Victory Liner: Hire a taxi all the way to Angeles City. Prepare to negotiate. Fees may range from P700 to 1,500.just would like to add a not asia guide says a taxi from airport to AC is about p1,500 this is not the case now it is more like p3,500 so best to land early and get the aircon bus at vitory it is the cheepest way the cost is now p136 from vitory to dau.the taxi at airport are p70 just to get in now and then on meter it is around p4 per km outside taxi will try to charge p500 but can get for p350 if have to take one thats not on the meter the price are from my trip june 2009.Angeles city is not going down hill some bars have been closed but thats because the police closed for haveing under age girls but it is said more a way for them to get cash this said new bars are being opend and old ones being dune up there is lots of building work new mcds to eat in at the bottom of fields the place is changing all the time.tric drivers are bad and best to stay away not all are out to get you and can be fun to ride on but best if with a pinoy but not safe if your alone short trips should only pay them like p20,pure gold is best place to buy food its cheeper than clarks sm thats if you are in an apartment and want to cook your own food and if staying long time there it will work out best to have your own apartment can get not to bad 2 bed from p4,500 but ones with swiming pools just of fields or clarks can pay more like p25,000per mounth,so look around to find one that fits your price and needs.dress smart be nice and you will be loved like a god but dont get taken in many will try to take all they can from you so if someone offers to help be very carefull or just walk away and if its a tric driver run away.jeepnys are the best way to get around though i walked to most places with no trouble.if you are eating out go to sm clarks it has some good clean places and more to a western tastes but for me i loved siting out side my apartment with a sam mig to drink and eating balut a must try for the brave when there
OVERVIEW:
Angeles is a two hour bus ride north of Manila, the capital of the Philippines. Angeles was the former home of the U.S. Clark Air Force Base. The military base was vacated in June 1991, due to the volcanic eruption of Mt. Pinatubo. Pinatubo practically wiped out the entire city, filling it with white volcanic ash. While the base was active (before June 1991), there were more than 200 bars and over 12,000 Filipina bar girls (LBFM or “Little Brown Fucking Machines” as the GI’s called them) working as dancers, waitresses, entertainers, etc., making Angeles one of the world’s largest and most active red light district. After the bases shut down (June 1991), the night life practically died, but not completely. But by 1995 it had already began to make it’s come back. Currently, there are currently more than fifty-five active bars with anywhere from 20 to 40 girls per bar, enough to keep you well satisfied throughout your stay. Angeles City is without a doubt the hottest place in the Philippines to chase girls. In fact, it is one of the hottest places in the entire world to chase women. It is one of the best places to find yourself a Filipina girlfriend or wife. The town is just packed out with more girls, all of whom love foreigners, more than you can imagine. If you come to the Philippines, but miss Angeles, it would be analogous to a young kid traveling for his first time to America and not going to Disneyland. Angeles is truly the Disneyland for adults in the Philippines.
THE BEST TIME to come to Angeles City in terms of chasing girls is anytime of the year. The bars are always packed out with girls. Of course, during the peak season (Christmas through New Years) you will see more tourists. But even then, the girls way outnumber the guys. Weather wise, December, January, and February are the best times to come as that is the cool season. June to September is when the rains hit hard. Actually, a great time as there are no tourists and you’ll have all the girls to yourself.
HOLIDAYS:
There is only one weekend, namely Easter weekend, in which the bars close. Even on Christmas and New Year’s, most bars stay open. Holidays in the Philippines can be very exciting and interesting. For example, on New Years Eve, you will have fireworks going off for about 24 hours all over the country. You don’t want to be in Manila for this loud and festive occasion unless you like hearing bombs go off every minute and enjoy having firecrackers, cherry bombs and M-80’s thrown at you while you walk down the street. For a Vietnam Vet, maybe but not me. Then there’s Easter where in some of the provinces they nail people to a wooden cross with real nails through their real hands. Not to mention the people marching through town and whipping themselves until they bleed. I hope Christmas is a little nicer, yet I heard they eat the reindeer after it’s all over.
TIME CHANGE
The Philippines is 16 hours ahead of west coast time. Remember to change that to 15 hours during daylight savings time.
FLIGHT TIME
Traveling to the Philippines from the U.S. will take anywhere from is 18 to 24 hours depending on stopovers and where you are flying from. Some of the stopovers will include countries such as Korea if flying on Korean airlines, Japan if flying on Thai Air, and Hawaii, all depending on the airlines you take and the hubs they use.
AIRFARE
Depending on time of year, from the West Coast, $299-$650. From the Midwest to east coast it can go as high as $1,200r/t. Check with your travel agent or call Eric Dexter for special deals on tickets to Asia.
AIRLINES
Airlines that flies to the Philippines are All Nippon, Philippines, Cathy Pacific, China Air (Taiwan), Korean Air, Singapore Airline, Northwest.
COURIER FLIGHTS
Courier Flights are flights where you are the COURIER for baggage or a package for a courier company. You do not have the right to take check-in baggage. In exchange for the cheap ticket, ranging from FREE TO $300. You give up the rights to your baggage allowance. These are round trip flights. You have the dates preset prior to leaving. You cannot change the return date!!! If you decide you need to stay just one day longer, you will lose your deposit of about $500.00 (depends on the company.) The length of your stay will be determined by the courier company. They have week, two week and month stays, depending on the company and time of the year. You will SAVE HUNDREDS OF DOLLARS BY FLYING COURIER.
PASSPORT/VISA/ENTERING
A Passport will be needed to enter and exit The Philippines . You don’t need a visa if you will be staying in The Philippines for less than 21 days.
If you lose your passport abroad it can be a nightmare. To avoid getting ruining your vacation make sure you make copies of the inside of your passport, the first page where all the info on you is printed. Make 3-4 copies and stick one in your fanny pack, one in your suitcase, etc. This way if you lose the passport, you can go to the American Embassy and show the copy to them to prove you are who you say are without going through a lot of red tape and waiting. If your passport will expire in 6 months or less, it is recommended you obtain a new passport before traveling. They may not let you into the country or grant you a visa if your passport will expire in less than 6 months.
Visas
If you’re flying into the Philippines from another country, you must enter through the Manila international airport. To enter the Philippines, you must have a valid passport. If you’re passport is due to expire in 6 months or less, you should apply for a new passport before booking your flight to the Philippines. The Philippine immigration will not grant you a visa and may not even permit you to enter the country if your passport will expire in less than 6 months. No visa is required to enter the Philippines. You may stay, without a visa, for a maximum of 21 days. If you wish to stay longer, you may obtain a visa, either before you arrive in the Philippines or after. If you visit your local Philippine Consulate in the U.S., you can obtain a visa (for about $25) which will allow you to stay in the Philippines for 59 days. If you’re already entered the Philippines without a visa, you can obtain a visa for one or two months (or longer) at the Swagman Travel agency in Manila, Subic, La Union, or Angeles City. It will take about a week to process, so be prepared for the Swagman people to hold your passport for at least 7 working days (This may be a problem if you’re cashing Travelers Checks as many banks require a passport as an ID. So be aware of that). To obtain a visa in Manila, take a taxi to the Swagman hotel in Ermita and at the hotel, upstairs they have their travel agency that will process your visa. As stated above, you will need to leave your passport with them, so be aware you will have no passport until the visa is processed. The price is about $20 (depending on the exchange rate at the time) for a one month stay; slightly higher for a two month stay.
Your can to stay 21days without a visa if there you can add up to 59days its so easy just take your passport to a travel agent the best i found was majemah travel and tours on aguss st just oposit johnys store on mac athur hi-way it takes one day and cost p4,500 p4,000 for visa they charge p500 addmin but so farst and friendly and they also can get great deals on flights.ive found its cheeper for me now to book 1way ticket with them from uk to manila and when i want to come home just get ticket home also if you have just got married take your nso marriage docs with you and when you land hand over with passport and ask for a 1yr stamp and of course need to hand over pasos but works out cheeper than travel agents
I checked all the official websites about the visa requirements and fees for the Philippines and i have to respond to the above report, posted by Mark. The fee to extend the 21 days visa into a 59 days visa is only 1000 pesos if u go yourself to the immigration office in Manila or any big city close by to u. And it doesnt take more then an hour to get it so i think its a good way to save some money rather then giving that huge commision to a travel agency. Those are just a rip off for the naive western traveler… come on guys, we`ve got better things to do with our money overthere. Actually u can get that extension right there in the airport when u arrive, they have an immigration office there and its just a simple formality to do it, it will save u time and worries later!After the 59 days u can get monthly extensions wich cost 500 pesos each, up to 6 month total stay. Again, do it yourself and save money, stop spoiling those locals and ruining the paradise for our children or the budget travelers. Reading the posts about asian countries it never ceases to amaze me the lack of negotiation skills of the western travelers. Most of the prices they pay for hotels, girls, taxi etc. are outrageously high for that part of the world. Always remember my friends that average income in South East Asia is about 30 dollars a month, that is 1 dollar A DAY! Of course in the big cities the income is higher then that but still ridiculously small, like 4-5 bucks a day in average. Next week i`m leaving for PI and Thailand and i promise to give u a feed back about how much is possible to negociate the prices overthere, especially with the girls and that is ofcourse without having to cut down on quality or time or anything.
Visa extension procedures and taxes have changed as of March 2010!!! We still have the 21 days for free but after that when we extend there is a P 5000 fee for an national ID card wich is now mandatory to get. U will be told about it there and basicaly have to pay extra for that card wich in exchange would help u open a bank account there or can be used as an ID. The card is valid for one year only….wich is basically another rip off. Been through this and saw the reaction on everyones faces there at the immigration in Mandaue, Cebu City..
Longer Stay
If you wish to reside in the Philippines for more than two months, you can obtain further visa extensions at the Swagman, ad infinitum. However, be aware after six months of stay, there will be taxes you have to pay at the airport.
Entering The Country
When you disembark from the plane, walk quickly down the long corridor. The reason for this is that there will be a line that you will have to wait on to show your passport to an immigration officer. The quicker you get on line, the quicker you will be able go through customs and then enter the country.
GETTING TO ANGELES CITY
Once you fly into the Philippines, you will land in Manila. From the Manila airport, it will take about two hours (depending on traffic) to get to Angeles City. There are three ways to get to Angeles from the airport:
1)The best way to get to AC (Angeles City) is to take the authorized airport taxi located inside the airport terminal, right before you exit onto the street. The taxi booths look similar to car rental booths you would find in most major airports. While you can usually bargain for most items in the Philippines, the taxi booths usually are stubborn about offering discounts. Expect to pay as much as 1,500 pesos ($30) for a private taxi – expensive, but well worth it.
2)Take the authorized airport taxi to the Swagman hotel in Ermita, Manila. From there, take the Swagman Fly the Bus (departure time: 11:30 a.m., 3:30 p.m., 8 p.m.) to Angeles. The cost is about $6. The bus will drop you off at the Swagman hotel in Angeles. You will need to take a tric, a three-wheeled motorbike taxi, to get from there to the hotel of your choice. This is only a recommended way if you’ve been to AC several times and are on a budget.
3) If you like to live dangerously, you can take the authorized airport taxi to any bus station in Manila. From there, take either the Philippine Rabbit or Victory Liner bus to Dau, a small town next to Angeles. (The bus does not stop in Angeles). The ride will cost only a few dollars. From Dau, take a Tric (local motorbike taxi) to your hotel in Angeles. That will cost another $1 or $2. Make sure you bargain with the asshole tric drivers, as they are notorious for overcharging tourists. Also, be sure you check with the bus attendant to remind you to get off at Dau. If you miss that stop, you have our sympathies. God knows where you’ll end up, only to make you wish you spent the extra cash and took a private airport taxi. Warning: Filipino locals will steal your valuables on the public bus while you are not looking. This makes the bus ride quite unpleasant knowing the minute you shut your eyes to relax, some asshole Filipino may be digging through your pockets or bags. You won’t have that problem if you take a private taxi or ride the Swagman bus.
HOTELS:
There are a variety of mid-range hotels to stay in during your vacation in Angeles. You won’t find any five star hotels, except the Holiday Inn which is very far from the bars (located inside the Clark Air Force Base). The closest you will get to four star is the Oasis, located next to the Clarkton hotel on Fields avenue. The hotel is really nice and has an excellent restaurant and huge swimming pool. The problem though is the location. You have to walk a ways just to get out of the hotel grounds (outside the hotel is a residential area where the US officers once resided; you have to walk through that to get to the street). Then you either have to take a Jeepney or Tric (see section on transportation), which is about six minutes away. This can get quite obnoxious as you usually end up going back and forth from your hotel to the bars during the day and night. However, many will put up with the distance because they like the hotel and restaurant. The Oasis hotel’s exact address is Oasis Hotel, Clarkville Compound, Clark Perimeter Road, Balibago, Angeles City, Philippines 2009. PH: (63-45) 892-6275-8. FAX: (63-45) 322-3164 or 322-1309. Email: oasishtl@datelnet.net. http://222.datelnet.net/-oasishtl. Room rates run around $40 to $50 per night.
Next to the Oasis is the Clarkton Hotel which just recently renovated their rooms. The rooms are nice, but the prices are a bit high ($25 and up). However, you do get a decent breakfast buffet included with your room, so that may make it worth it. Also, the Clarkton does have a good swimming pool, the only gym in town with air conditioning (the air con is noisier than hell), and a very friendly and helpful staff. Like the Oasis, which is right next door, the main disadvantage of staying at the Clarkton is the distance. You will need to take a Jeepney or Tric to get to the bars (it’s about a six minute ride to the main area where the bars are located). As stated above, this can get obnoxious as you go back and forth several times a day from your hotel to the bars or other parts of Angeles. The Clarkton hotel is located at 620 Don Jico avenue (same street as Fields actually, but the name changes as you drive up the street – don’t ask why!), Clarkview, Balibago, Angeles City 2009. PH: (63-45) 8926272-3. FAX: (63-45) 625-6887. Email: cts-clfn@mozcom.com. It’s advised you make reservations if you are coming in November to January.
The best hotel to stay in Angeles, in terms of location, comfort, and swimming pool is the new extended rooms at the back end of the Orchid Inn. Don’t stay in the older rooms in the front of the hotel as they are worn out. The new rooms, completed as of October 1999, are really nice. The new swimming pool is also quite nice. It’s huge. Best of all, the location can’t be beat. You walk right outside your room and most of the bars and several restaurants are right there at your fingertip, within a moments walk. You can’t really ask for more. Well, I guess you could ask for a lower price as 950 pesos, almost $25, is a bit steep
The America hotel has great rooms and a decent pool. A standard room, which is very large and has a very comfortable bed will run you about $25. If you have the cash, go for the VIP or executive for up to $50. They are fantastic. The main disadvantage of the America is it takes about ten to twelve minutes to walk to the bars. You can grab a Jeepney or Tric and that will get you there a lot sooner. But, as is the case with the other hotels far removed from the main strip, it’s starts to get to be a pain-in-the ass when you have to go back and forth from your hotel to the bars or restaurants. Be careful of bugs in this hotel. They do not spray as often as they should and you can get some pretty nasty bites that will stay with you for a long time.
The Phoenix hotel well liked by many, is located on Fields avenue, up from the Petron gas station (about a five minute Jeepney ride from the main strip). I’ve never stayed there, but all the girls seem to rave about the hotel. It has a decent swimming pool and the rooms go for around $15 to $25, typical of what you will be paying in Angeles for a decent hotel. But still the location is a hassle. You have to take either a Jeepney or Tric to get back and forth from the bars.
Other Hotels: There are several other hotel options in Angeles, such as the Vegas, the Premier, Captain Cook and several others. However, the hotels I named above are in the best location and should serve to provide a decent room. If you find yourself coming in high season (December to January) and can’t find a room in the hotels that are walking distance to the bars, then you will have to resort to the other hotels.
HOTEL TIPS:
All the hotels, with the exception of the Holiday Inn, will let you bring as many female guests to your room as you like. If any hotel ever asks for a surcharge to bring a girl with you to spend the night, tell them you’ll be checking out the next day and you will warn all your friends not to come there. The surcharge will suddenly disappear. Charging to bring a female guest is unheard of in Angeles and if any hotel tries to charge you extra for bringing a guest, tell them to fuck off. I’ve never had this happen to me. But if it does, don’t let them get away with it.
Security and Safety Tips:
Angeles is a pretty tame town. Provided you stay along Fields where all the bars are and you don’t wonder down some dark alley after 2 a.m., you’ll probably have no problems. I’ve walked the streets at all hours of the night and, knock on wood, have never had any problems. But I should qualify that by saying I dress dirt poor, carry very little money and I don’t get drunk. A drunken tourist is target number one for robbers. Girls also walk the street (even children at times) after midnight and if they have no problem, neither should you. Here are some basic rules to follow while visiting Angeles:
1. Never wear any fancy jewelry, fake or not. In fact, don’t wear any jewelry at all, except perhaps a plastic watch. Leave all your gold at home or in your hotel safe deposit box. In short, dress poor.
2. Don’t carry more than $50 at any one time, unless you are planning on taking more than one girl back to your hotel at the same time. In that case, take up to $100 in pesos with you. Keep your large bills in your back pocket and the smaller bills in front. There are people who will pick pocket you on the Jeepney if you go downtown Angeles, so I would not carry any large bills with me on that trip at all. Actually, if you are going downtown to shop in the afternoon (don’t go at night), you don’t need to carry more than 1,000 pesos. There’s not much to buy.
3. Don’t walk the streets late at night too drunk (i.e., after 1 a.m., when the bars start shutting down). If you must get loaded, try to work your way towards, rather than away from, your hotel as the hour gets late. The closer you are to your hotel when drunk, the better. If you know you’ll be drinking a lot, limit the amount of money you will be carrying in your pocket (if you’re not going to bar fine, 1,000 pesos is more than enough for one night) . If you must carry more than 1,000 or 2,000 pesos, keep your large bills (500/1,000 note pesos) in your back pocket and small change in front. That way, when you reach into your pockets to pay your bill at the bars, you won’t be pulling out what looks like large amounts of money. There is nothing worse than a drunk reaching into his pocket to pay his bill and a wad of 500 and 1,000 note peso bills spills out. Anyone who handles his money that way is bound to lose it and will certainly attract the wrong crowd.
4. Keep all valuables and documents, including your passport, plane ticket, and of course, money, in the hotel safe deposit box.
5. Never befriend any Filipino man on the streets, no matter how nice or courteous they are. Never make friends with any Filipino men, don’t carry on a conversation with them, don’t do business with them, don’t go anywhere with them, and don’t ever let any Filipino man into your hotel room (accept obviously an employee of the hotel), etc. Not to say all Filipino men are bad, but there are enough con artists and hustlers to make it worth avoiding everyone. Note: the common scam is for a Filipina man on the street to approach you saying, “Hey, remember me? I was…” He’ll tell you he was your taxi driver, the brother of the girl you dated the other night, the security guard at the hotel, or any other bullshit line he can think of. He will then try to talk you into a card game (in which you will lose every dime you own) or invite you to his house (where you’ll end up paying all his debts). DON’T TRUST ANY FILIPINO MAN AND DON’T BEFRIEND ANY OF THEM, PERIOD!
Obviously, you can say hello to the security guard or doorman at your hotel and wave goodbye to the driver who drops you off at your hotel from the airport. Most likely, the guy who works at your hotel will not mess with you because he knows you could lodge a complaint to his boss if need be, last thing he wants. Certainly you can chat with a Filipino man who works at the travel agency or the waiter at a restaurant. But if anyone, including those just mentioned, offers you any type of assistance or friendship during their time off (like a bus driver offering to show you the sites after work), say, “No.” Period. The Filipino men are not to be trusted. Get that through your head.
6. Do not go to any Filipina’s house during the evening, unless you know her very well. Yes, you can and should go visit at least one or two girl’s homes in the afternoon, to see how they live. But if a girl asks you to go visit her home at night, well, I smell a rat. Don’t go. After living here for two years, not one girl has invited me to her home at night. If she did, I would decline (unless it was my steady girlfriend, of course).
7. If and when you get back to your hotel with a girl, take all your money out of your pocket and hide it either in your suitcase (best if you have a small pad lock) or in a dirty sock, stuffed away in your bags. Do this while she is in the toilet or while her eyes are glued on the TV set. Most girls will not pick pocket in your room, but a few might, so best to be safe rather than sorry. Note: some girls have a habit of stealing small items, like a lighter, a walkman, a hairbrush, etc., so if you have any of those that are of real value (like an expensive watch), keep it under lock and key. (I always travel with a briefcase that has a combination lock and store my small valuables there).
SCAMS:
There is always some tourist who falls for the line from a Filipino man, “Hey, remember me? I’m the guy who drove you home last night, when you were drunk. Hey! Can you now pay me for the ride…” Or “Hi, how you doing? You’re staying at the Clarkton hotel right? I work there. I’m the cook. .. Say, why don’t we go over to my place for a game of cards.”
If any Filipino man approaches you on the street with any of these type of lines or with an extended hand to shake, ignore the guy as if he doesn’t even exist. Don’t shake his hand, don’t say hello, don’t even say, “No”. Just keep walking and ignore him as if he doesn’t exist. Why? Because he is most likely a hustler who will try to con you into a card game or some other situation in which you will lose the very shirt off your back, if it were possible. Stay away and ignore any Filipino man who comes up to you on the street.
Most of the hustlers will be found right on Fields avenue outside and around Margaritaville. They will also be hanging around Johnny’s market on Macarthur Blvd, even during the daytime.
Be cautious of taking two girls to your room. Sometimes they work as a team and as one is making love to you, the other is searching through your pants and room for valuables. Also, when the maid comes to clean the room, do not have valuables lying around, like money, jewelry, cameras, etc. She may not take the stuff, but when she leaves the room to go down the hall to get something, someone passing by will go in your room real quick and take whatever is in clear view. Sound paranoia? Good. Better to be paranoid than empty handed.
VACCINATIONS
Not required for entry into The Philippines. Immunizations for tetanus, polio, rabies, typhoid, tuberculosis, Japanese encephalitis and hepatitis are advisable (but not essential) before travel to Southeast Asia. For more information on risks and precautions please read the advice section in the “Facts for Travelers” pages of Philippines Travel Websites. Personally, I never get shots when I go to The Philippines, but if you want to stay on the very safe side, check with your doctor and see about getting Hepatitis shots. Also you can check this website to see what other precautionary measures you can take while traveling to the The Philippines. travel
SHORT TIME HOTELS:
There are several short time hotels or what the Filipinos call the “drive in” hotels in Angeles. These hotels are designed so a person can drive his car right into the hotel and then walk to his room without being seen. The way it works is each room has it’s own curtained or blocked off garage. When a car pulls up, the attendant leads the car to a vacant garage and then the car drives in. The attendant then closes the curtains (or garage doors) and the customer and his girl can walk directly into the hotel room without anyone seeing him. Obviously, the type of people that are coming to these type of hotel rooms are men with wives, steady girlfriends, political officials or anyone else who wants to fuck in secret. The room rates are usually set for a flat three hours (i.e., short time), then an additional fee is added for every hour after that. There is an all night rate, but from what I’ve seen, few customers come to spend the entire night. Most guests are married men coming just to fuck behind their wife’s back and get out without getting caught. The most interesting short time hotel is the Rainbow which has a Jacuzzi in the deluxe rooms. The price is around $7 for three hours in the deluxe room. The Rainbow is off of Macarthur Highway, about a ten minute Tric ride from the main strip of bars along Fields avenue. To get there, you will need to take a Tric as the Jeepneys don’t go there and it’s way too far to walk. Any Tric driver will know where it is. The price for the Tric will be 30-40 pesos. Be sure to agree on the price before you get in the Tric.
Probably the most popular short time hotel is the Raj, just a block away from blow job alley. It’s kind of a dive, so I really don’t recommend going there, unless you don’t mind fucking in a sleazy room. The rates are dirt cheap, around $5 for three hours. They also play American trash porno’s on the barely viewable TV’s. The air con’s look like something you’d find in an old warehouse that has been vacated for twenty years. I’ve used the rooms a couple of times. Actually, go there one time with a girl. Then take this into consideration when you walk in the room. Compared to where most girls live, the hotel room is like a king’s palace.
SHORT TIME HOTEL TIP: Most likely, unless you are bringing your wife or girlfriend with you to Angeles, you won’t need to make use of the short time hotels. On the other hand, because it is so easy to get involved with a girl in Angeles, if you find yourself in a situation where your girl won’t leave your hotel room, yet you want to fuck another girl, you now know how to go about it. I’ve used the short time hotel rooms several times and it’s great knowing you’ve got your steady back in your first hotel and here you are secretly screwing another girl in the same town in another hotel. How many of you get to do that in your home in the states? I didn’t think so. Come on out to Angeles. It’s truly a man’s world.
YOUR VISA EXPIRES 21 days from the first day you entered the country. You may get an extension at the Swagman travel agency located on Fields Ave., next door to Margaritaville.
HOW MUCH MONEY will be needed will depend on you personally and your budget of course. Figure on spending $100 a day. I doubt you’ll actually spend that much, but better to have more money than run out, that is for sure. Some guys have their ATM cards and take money out as they need it. The first time I came to the Philippines, I brought $2,000. I was only planning on being here for a few weeks. I ended up staying two months and drained myself to the last cent. Believe me, you don’t want to be in a situation where you are dead broke, especially if you are traveling alone. So budget yourself so you have at least $100 per day and simply bring back home any change you have leftover. Most likely you will spend about $70 a day. Unless you plan on screwing two to three girls a day out of the air conditioned bars. If that’s on your mind, maybe $125 would be best as a precaution.
Let’s figure hypothetically a day in Angeles and we’ll figure a little high as well. Room will cost you about $25 a night, food will cost ( 2 meals a day with snacks and drinks) $25 a day, jeepneys and trics about $2 a day, a girlfriend each night about $25. Total is about $80 a day.
MONEY EXCHANGE
Once you arrive in Angeles, you have five places you can exchange your money:
1. Never exchange your money with a Filipino man who approaches you on the street or who is not working behind a counter. You will get cheated, either by receiving counterfeit bills or short changed. If any Filipino man approaches you on the street with either a handshake or a smile saying, “Friend, remember me?, Say nothing and ignore him just as if you never saw him. He will then move on to some other sucker he can scam.
2. Hotels will exchange your dollar into pesos, but they typically give you a slightly smaller rate than the banks, usually about one peso less per dollar. To get the best rate, you’ll need to go to the banks or exchange booths.
3. Money exchange booths will be found on Fields avenue, right up the street from Margarita restaurant. Just walk past Margarita, past the AGFA photo shop and in a minute you will see the exchange booths, all clustered together on the same side of the street. The rates do vary slightly from booth to booth, so ask first before you exchange your money. The booths are open all day and most close by 10 p.m., a few stay open until midnight.
Norma’s money exchange booth gives good rates. Norma’s is located on Teodoro street, a side street off of Fields, right below Margarita restaurant. Ask any Filipina girl on the street and she can point the direction or even walk you there. I wouldn’t ask a Filipino man as you never know who you are informing you have a lot of money in your pocket. I suggest you exchange your money during the daytime and immediately go back to your hotel to deposit the bulk of your cash into the hotel safe deposit box.
4. Banks are hard to find. You will need to go to Macarthur Blvd and either go to Dau (the next town over) or go towards downtown Angeles. I don’t like the idea of leaving the tourist strip (i.e., along Fields where all the bars are) with a lot of cash, so my suggestion is you stick with either your hotel or best, the money exchange booths. If you must go to Dau or downtown with cash, take a Filipina girl with you. Take a Tric. Jeepneys have a lot of Filipino men who pick pocket tourists.
5. Kokomo’s and Margarita restaurant both will exchange your TC’s and cash. However, I should warn you the rates, especially at Kokomo’s are extremely poor. Best you stick with the money exchange booths, unless you
Getting Around
The local transportation in Angeles is the tric, a three wheeled motorbike. Tric drivers are notorious for overcharging tourists. Either avoid them completely or at least bargain the price before getting in. A ride from the main strip on Fields to Clarkton hotel and vicinity should not be more than 20 Pesos. Remember, the same ride on a jeepney will cost you only 3-4 Pesos.
To catch a jeepney, stand anywhere along the street in the direction the jeepney is going and wave the driver down. Those jeeps are small and silver/grey. Climb in the passenger seat (if it’s open) or in the back. There is room for eight people back there. Don’t be shy; it’s normal to be pressed up against the other passengers.
LODGING
Anchorage Inn
280 Real Street, across from Orchid Inn
A bare-bones hotel for the budget traveler. Convenient if you need a room in a hurry. Rates: standard P545, deluxe P575,
super deluxe P675.
Telefax (63)(45) 322-4363.
e-mail: beeline@kokomoz.com.
Bonanza Resort Hotel
1734 San Pablo Street, Mt. View, Balibago
Phone from Overseas: (63) (45) 332-1082, (63) (45) 892-0055
Phone/Fax from Overseas: 63 (45) 332-1372
Phone From Philippines: (045) 892-0055, (045) 332-1082
Phone/Fax from Philippines: (045) 332- 1372
e-mail: bonanza@ag.triasia.net
The Clarkton
620 Don Juico Avenue, down the street from the Oasis Hotel
Pool, good food and 24-hour room service. Email, phone and fax service in the lobby. High-security safe deposit boxes.
Telephones in rooms. Friendly staff. Go-go bar. Single deluxe room: P1100. Suite: P1800 or P2000.
e-mail clarkton@datelnet.net.
Oasis Hotel
Clarkville Compound, Clark Perimeter Road
Standard room: 1700p. Junion suite: 2300p.
Phone: (63)(045) 322-3301 thru 3305
Fax: (63)(045) 322-3164
www.oasishotel.com.ph
Orchid Inn
109 Raymond St
Phone: 63-45-322-0370; Fax: 63-45-322-2790
e-mail: orchid@datelnet.net
http://www.orchid-inn.com
Park Chicago
Near Lollipop, Splash, and Confetti’s bars. The hotel has a go-go bar called Cuddle’s. Rooms from P700 to P1,090.
Phone: (63)(45) 892-0249.
Phoenix Hotel
e-mail: phoenixh@mozcom.com
Sunset Garden/Premier Hotel
Swagman
Located east of the strip area on S.L. Orosa Street, Diamond Subdivision
24-hour bar and restaurant, pool, travel agency. swimming pool. Rooms start at $25.
Phone: (63)(45) 322-5133.
e-mail: bookings@swaggy.com.
Tropicana
151 Fields Avenue, Balibago
No telephones in the rooms but a phone is available at the front desk. Go-go bar (Misty’s) on the premises. Deluxe and VIP
rooms available. Rooms start at P600.
Phone: (63)(45) 332-1821 or 332-1822, Fax: (63) (045) 892-0121
e-mail: cyber@cyberairbroker.com.
Vegas Hotel
Rooms have mini-bar fridge fully stocked for your convenience, and include cable TV and king or queen size beds. Prices range from P1,195 (deluxe) to P2,995 (suite).
DINING
Max’s Chicken
In Dau, near the turn off for the Expressway, about 2 km from Fields Ave.
The menu is mainly local Philippine delights: Fried Chicken, Kare Kare, Sweet Potato, etc.
Peking House
On McArthur Hiway, only 10 mins. walk from Fields Ave.
Molly Malone’s
In the same building as Tropicana Hotel and Misty’s Bar, on Lower Fields Ave.
Four-course meal, serve yourself, at a fixed price of 200 Pesos.
INTERNET CAFE/LAUNDRY
Rick’s Cafe
Located in the entertainment area in Balibago
Open 7 AM to 4PM, every day. Rates to use computers: P60 per hour (no minimum charge)
Secretarial services available. Laundry service also available: 30 Pesos per kilo, wash and fold. 40-45 Pesos per kilo for wash and press.
GO-GO BARS
Most of the bars in Angeles City are located in the area of Fields Ave. and A. Santos. Typical Barfine: 1000 Pesos, no tip. If you can talk a woman into coming over to your hotel before/after work, a 200-peso tip for short time or 300 for all night will suffice. The following is a list of recommended bars.
Angels
Bananitas
Brown Sugar
Champagne
Confetti’s
Crystal Lady
Honey Kos
Insomnia
Kokomos
Stinger
Superstar
Thunderball
Treasure Island
VooDoo
Y Bar
Tipping
Tipping is expected in the Philippines. Some of the better Hotels and Restaurant include both service and tax, check your bill. Most of the places around Fields Ave. and McArthur Blvd. expect a tip, but dont specify. Angeles is a “Cheap Charlie” town, a throwback to its GI days. Probably 80% of guys do NOT tip, either in bars or restaurants. Depending on service, its cool to leave 5-10 % in restaurants, and leave coins or small notes in bars.
Your Hotel is a little different, you are going to need a little help sometimes, or a favor. Take some small gifts with you, chocolates, toys or small bottles of perfume. Give the receptionist a box of candy etc. on your arrival, and it greases the wheels for your stay. Similarly, handing out a few goodies in your favorite bars, puts you in their good books. If you run out, Johnnys on McArthur, or JJs at checkpoint, have plenty of stock of small treats.
If girls dont have much money, food, drink even cigarettes are top of the list. Give them sweets and chocolates, its a luxury or a treat for their children.
Trikes are the mode of transport for most tourists, or hired motorcycles. NEVER, EVER tip a trike driver. He is already charging you double the Filipino price. Trikes located outside Hotels or places like Margaritaville, usually carry a sticker, to say they are approved. Use them, and attempt to negotiate ‘special rates’. To go from , say, Clarkton Hotel to the Bars on Fields is maybe 2 kms, offer 30 pesos, they will ask 60. It may seem petty, but if you pay big ,or tip big, you will unbalance the fragile, local economy. The next customers will be asked for what YOU just paid.
Barfines
A bar fine is a fee you pay to a bar to take a bar girl back with you to your hotel (to screw, of course). The bar fine in most bars will run you about $20 (1,000+ pesos). You pay in advance, to either the mamasan (i.e., bar manager), the girl herself or waitress.
I suggest you pay the mamasan so there is no confusion as to what will transpire when you go back to your hotel. Sometimes you may get either a “cherry girl” (i.e. a virgin who won’t let you screw her) or a girl who’s on the rag (in which case she won’t let you screw her). You also may get a girl who will let you have sex, but then pulls a short time (i.e, goes home or back to the bar right after you cum). With the mamasan present, most of whom speak English quite well, you can confirm the girl is not cherry, is not on the rag, and will sleep all night, leaving your place around noon, rather than 6 a.m. or someother ungodly hour of the morning. (Make sure the girl does not have to go to hygiene the next morning or she will take off by 8 a.m.)
Understand when you pay the bar fine, you are not legally paying for sex. The bar fine is only a fee so you can take the girl out of the bar to leave with you. Few bars (except on “blow road”) guarantee these days the girl will let you screw her. If you get a girl that won’t let you touch her, most bars will not give you your money back, at least not without you raising hell. Therefore, be sure to pick your girl carefully and make sure she agrees to do everything your heart desires, before paying the bar fine.
On the overall subject of the bars, the barfine remains at 1000 pisos per night, just below 20 US dollars at current exchange. However, just as a note of interest, the legalities of just what the “barfine” is, has changed. Legally, there is no barfine. In the past, the “barfine” was legally a compensation for the girl leaving the bar and therefore the bar losing an employee for the night. As Mac has said, it never was legally a ‘sexual’ arrangement. The new laws, however are different. The bar cannot let someone “barfine a girl” techniqually. However, and try to follow me here, part of the girl’s job description is to entice the customer’s to buy ladie’s drinks, for which she and the bar split the commission. The bar CAN grant the girl a bonus for selling a certain quota of ladie’s drinks. The bonus? The rest of the night off! The quota of drinks? Gee, probably around ten or so, adding up to around, oh, roughly 1000 Pisos! And if a customer wants to buy her all t! en at once, that’s up to him, of course! What she does with her night off, then, is up to her! Or, to quote Mac, “up to you………” This is just the legalities. The reality is still the same. Follow Mac and Eric’s advice, sweettalk the girl of your choice, decide in advance what will take place (if anything), then pay the barfine to mamasan (or sometimes a waitress, who will total up your beer tab at the same time), and away you go!
It’s been a year since my last visit to SE Asia, but I’ve never tipped a bar girl in Thailand or the Philippines. On a few occasions I’ve given a Thai girl 100B for a taxi home the next day, but that hasn’t happened much. I know some guys like to tip the ladies, but when I read the Dexter/Horn book I thought it said not to.
Anyway, about 75% of the ladies ask me to bar fine them again the next night so I think if you treat them nice (and they like you) the tip (or lack thereof) doesn’t bother them at all.
I’ve had only one lady come out and ask me for a tip. I was shocked since she went with me after the bars had closed (in Bangkok) and set the price at 1,500B for long-time (about 2:30AM to 8:00AM). I smiled and told her “If you’re hungry I’ll buy you breakfast, but you should be tipping me because I did more than half the work.” She laughed and said no thanks to breakfast and left the room asking if I would bar fine her again the next night. I guess you can’t blame a girl for trying.
Looks like the original writer, a long term resident of Angeles, of this advice may have already posted this on the locked “Sneak Outs” folder but it’s such a great message here it is:
Here are the techniques of the not so rich and deprived denizens of Angeles. I don’t advocate sneak outs but I think its unfair that only locals generally know about this taboo subject, leaving the tourists high and dry. For those of you who are unfamiliar with the term sneak out, it means bypassing the barfine in some way shape or form. Disclaimer: I provide this information purely for educational purposes, it is not designed to promote nor in any way encourage sneak outs and is purely information deseminated in order to help stamp out the evil practice. Let’s all work together to stamp out sneak outs. Barowners are hard-working, God-fearing family men who work selflessly for the good of the downtrodden. Amen, hallelujah, kumbaya m’lord, etc.
1. THE LADIES DRINK SNEAK OUT. This is the most common sneak out. Guy buys or rents a cellphone. He barhops, buying many girls ladies drinks. In the process, he always gives her his cellphone number and gets hers. Then he exchanges numerous mindless text messages that sound like bad Hallmark cards until he finally INVITES the girl over for swimming or some other sorry excuse for barfineless afternoon sex. Sex and swimming begin with the same letter so its just a typo in the text message, okay?
2. THE I’M NOT DOING ANYTHING SNEAK OUT. This is a variant of #1. Same technique, except when the girl asks in text as she inevitably will “what are you doing now?” instead of telling the truth and saying that he is masturbating with one hand and texting with the other, the local texts back “nothing”. Girl then invites herself over. For some deluded yokels, this lets them feel less guilty about the sneak out since the girl suggested it.
3. THE GIRLFRIEND SNEAK OUT. This sneak out requires that the sneaker outer first pay the barfine of the girl once or twice. After that a relationship is built and the yokel can then explain he’d rather pay the “money to the girl” rather than half of it to the bar. In reality, the sneaker outer is saying he’d rather just pay less for a barfine, but the girls aren’t so good at math, so they don’t get it. Sometimes the yokel tells the girl that she is his girlfriend. Most of them believe it even though they know the yokel’s wife and other girlfriends. It doesn’t say anywhere in the bible that a man can’t have many girlfriends, after all.
4. THE MUSIC BOX SNEAK OUT. This is perhaps the most pathetic of sneak outs, patented by a former yokel who was a master of pathos. This technique requires that the sneaker outer find the girls stay in and then hang out beneath the window of the stay in, calling up to the girls and trying to entice one of them to sleep in his flea ridden bed instead of on bamboo slats. A tip is rarely involved, since the sneaker outer is providing a service.
5. THE MARRIAGE SNEAK OUT. This technique was perfected by a well-known AC2 board member. The sneaker outer simply finds a girl and offers to marry her. It’s highly effective, since the girl can hardly say no to the sneak out, but it has the downside of tying the sneaker outer down, likely in perpetuity.
6. THE CELLPHONE SNEAK OUT. Every girl wants a cellphone. This technique exploits that desire. The sneaker outer offers to buy the girl a cellphone, then uses the cellphone to arrange sneak outs with the girl. Since the girl is dying of gratitude for her new cellphone, it’s highly effective. You do need to take into account that the cellphone sets you back 7-8 barfines, so you need to get 7-8 sneakouts to break even, but after that, everything is gravy, as they say.
7. THE WHERE YOU GOING SNEAK OUT. This is another common sneakout, perhaps the second most popular. The would be sneaker outer buys ladies drinks or chats up the girls around town. The girls can’t help but ask what the guy is doing later. It’s a rule in the Philippines. When the girl asks the magic question, the guy says “I’ll be at Margarita at 3 am. Understand? I’ll be at Margarita 3 am tonight. Big hand on the 12. Little hand on the 3. Understand? Tonight. understand?” After 4-5 repetitions, the girl usually comes up with the idea that the guy is going to be at Margarita at 3 am and decides to meet the guy there.
8. THE HOTEL KEY/APARTMENT SNEAK OUT. The would be sneaker outer simply let’s girls know where he lives or stays. This can be done through things as advanced as business cards or as simple as carrying around a hotel key and “accidentally” dropping it in front of girls. Surprise surprise, girls start magically appearing at the sneaker outers door more promptly than a Dominoe’s Pizza and with the same free delivery charge (aka, no barfine).
9. THE HUMANITARIAN SNEAK OUT. This is a devious little sneak out, since it masquerades as a mission of mercy. The sneaker outer chats up the girls and eventually finds one that needs to go to the doctor or the dentist or needs a ride to SM Mega Mall to buy a Winnie the Pooh cellphone cover or something. If the bar owner or papasan finds out about it, there’s plausible deniability built in since this is a mercy mission not a barfine. However, on the way back from the doctor or wherever, the sneaker outer simply “drops by” his house and happens to “need something” in the bedroom and “wants to show the girl his new Backstreet Boys CD”. The rest is history.
10. Last but not least, the BAROWNER SNEAK OUT. Barowner asks little miss bad girl to report to his office because she was dancing listlessly or used too much toilet paper in the bar CR or chewed gum on a tuesday or some such flimsy excuse for a rule violation. Barowner procedes to disclipine bad girl with his genitalia. No barfine is paid and the girl says nothing because her mind is stuck in an endless loop: she just fucked the barowner so she needs to report that to the barowner but she just fucked the barowner so she needs to report that to the barowner but she just fucked the barowner… you get the picture.
There are more but my fingers are cramping. Remember, DO NOT DO THIS. DO NOT BUY A CELLPHONE AND SNEAK GIRLS OUT LIKE ALL THE LOCALS DO. It is wrong and I don’t condone it.
And my response to the posted message above:
My friends and I are GUILTY of this “sneak out” methods ever since we arrived in the Philippines in 1980. It’s the natural thing to do of course and we NEVER felt guilty doing it.
I mean when a beer costs P11 and bars sell it for P30 to P50 with more profit on draft beer, and a rum & coke costs maybe P4 to P6 and it’s sold P35 to P50 also isn’t that enough profit to be able to afford to hire a few dancers at P120 to P200 / day?
I have usually chosen to give the Filipina bargirls cash instead of buying them a silly, overpriced “ladies drink” so they KNOW I’m another “duck” tourist with too little time and too much money.
It seems to me NOW for the last five or more years the bar owners are more successful at brainwashing their dancers about “loyalty” with threats of blacklisting them from employment with other bars should they participate in “sneak out” behavior etc. etc. One reason the bar owners and managers are getting away with this PIMPLIKE behavior is there are partnerships who “own” (lease ) up a half dozen bars. And another reason is the Filipino national hobby of GOSSIP and snitching ( often by “accident” ).
As for me I follow the VFM ( value for money ) attitude, VERY seldom paying retail for ANYTHING .
I STRONGLY believe that tourists following spending habits in undeveloped countries as if they’re at home comparing prices to their own INFLATED COST OF LIVING does surely RUIN a travel destination. For example now, the Asian men from Korea, Taiwan, and Japan who think U$50 is cheap and a reasonable price to pay for a young girl working in a bar has helped raise the cost of getting laid in Manila. And the SAME thing could happen in AC; what if tourists who pay U$5 for a beer at home think P100 for a cold San MIguel beer is CHEAP ??? Everything’s price will begin to go UP and UP!!!
Transportation
Only one Taxi company in AC, Simsons operating around Checkpoint and Main Gate. Not bad, but most people use trikes and jeeps. In jeeps you will occasionally get ‘dipped’. There are some good pickpockets in the RP. Prices are low ,only 4 pesos per ride, use only if necessary.
Motorcycles can be hired from Ricks cafe or Keds and outside Blackjack Bar for as little as 400 per day, depending on size. Longer periods get discount. Just leave your passport details and a deposit. Nice if you want to ride up the river bed to Pinatubo, or go over to Barrio Baretto, even Subic Bay is only 90 mins. away.
Security
Finally,NEVER get into an empty jeep.
NEVER get into a jeep with no destination on the side.
NEVER get into a jeep with only two or three Filipinos inside.Mixed company is good, male company is not.
If the driver of your jeep or trike, says he just wants to go and collect someone/something bail out as soon as he slows down. Chances are, he is taking you to visit his ‘friends’, or trying to get you into a card game
Medical
Hospitals
Medical facilities in Ac are quite good. The University Hospital is possibly the best in the Philippines. Clean facilities, English speaking, well qualified Doctors and Surgeons etc. From Fields Ave. its only a 40 peso trike ride to the hospital, but for quick good treatment, a lot of tourists and girls use Dr De Guzman on Fields Ave, opposite Rick’s Cafe. Well set up, all the necessities.
About 2 hours away, Makati Medical Center the best hospital in the country — offers a complete regional medical center. Health insurance policies that include basic dental checkup, an annual physical, emergency medical treatment, private room, etc. are available starting at P 4,000 per year. (Yes, that’s about $90 per year).
Drug Stores
On McArthur HiWay, there are a number of Drug Stores (Chemists in UK),with a qualified Pharmacist in attendance. A few of these chemists also have a doctor in the rear of the premises. They can be seen without appointment, and will give both treatment and prescriptions, to be used at the front store.
They are mostly located between the bottom of Fields and Savers Mall, approx 300 metres covering about 10 of them. On the same strip ,there are X Ray centres,with resident radiologists, urologists and a whole host of Dentists.
Dentists
The best of the Dentists is probably Narciso, a family of about 5 dentists. Dentistry is a fraction of the price one pays in the west. I had 13 caps for my wife completed for 7,800 pesos ($155.) It could have been done cheaper, or gone more up-market. Certainly, a LOT of guys combine a holiday with dentistry.
Medical Insurance
Blue Cross is not accepted. Credit Cards of most denominations are. Some guys have been known to claim on their holiday insurance, for “emergency” medical treatment.
Plastic Surgery
Another lesser known item is Plastic Surgery, in RP. A boob job can be done for around $1,000. Occasionally cheaper ops are possible, but its better going to the top end of the market.
Internet Cafes
Rick’s Cafe
Rick’s is located on Fileds Ave. next door to La Bambas, down the street from Kokomo’s. They have ten 56k pentium computers on line all the time. P60 per hour (no minimum charge), or you can purchase a $10, $25, $50, or $100 gift certificate with your credit card for your loved one, or you can buy a pre-activated cell phone for your sweet heart. They’ll even deliver it with your special message. They’ll then e-mail you the phone number. Their operator also now has her own computer to do your secretarial work if you don’t have time, so stop by for all of your office needs. The office has all of the latest programs for your work. They can also download your pictures from your digital camera for you. (This is done in Rick’s office not in the internet office, so only 8 to 5 for picture downloading.)
Color printing at 1440 dpi available, scanning, photocopying, faxing, computer works, open 7am to 4am every day of the year. Overseas calls are about the cheapest in town, US, Germany, Switzerland, Japan, Korea: P79 a minute.
Kokomo’s
Fields Avenue corner A. Santos Street
Angeles City, Philippines
Telephone: 63.45.892.0509/Fax:63.45.892.13
email: bizcenter@kokomoz.com
They have 7 Pentium III computers all linked via our internal network. Usage rates are competitively priced.
The computers have the latest versions of all common business programs, and their staff are fully versed in their
use.
Ruskins on Lower Fields, just below Mistys and Tropicana. They charge 1 peso per minute, but have a surprisingly good menu as well, Norwegian Salmon Steaks with a lemon and garlic sauce for instance. Cable TV, air con, bar and a couple of cuties (not bar girls).
RESTAURANTS
The two most popular restaurants in Angeles are Margaritaville and Kokomo’s, both located on Fields avenue. Both restaurants are open 24 hours and offer a fairly decent menu selection. Neither restaurant is air conditioned, so when it’s hot outside (which is almost all the time, especially the late afternoon), you can’t get no relief from the heat.
By the way, before I forget, Kokomo’s just put in a open air bar and swimming pool/Jacuzzi in the back of the restaurant which is really nice. So if you and your Filipina girlfriend are tired of playing in the the hotel room, take her to Kokomo’s for a drink and a dip in the pool or Jacuzzi. Or come alone and flirt with the occasional girls that hang out in the late afternoon heat. Warning: Don’t open your eyes under water when you swim in any pool as they harbor lots of bacteria. A lot of the girls pee in the pool; they still haven’t figured out that you do those things in the toilet. Bless their hearts!
Oasis Hotel Restaurant, actually, their Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday night buffets are excellent. They are expensive (for the Philippines), but in my eyes worth every penny. The Wednesday thru Friday buffet will run you about 374 pesos ($9.35) and the Saturday buffet, which features pretty good prime rib, will run you 524 pesos ($13.10). The dinner buffet includes a all-you-can-eat salad bar, soup of the day, scrumptious appetizers, a wide selection of main courses including chicken, beef and lots of pork (a Filipino favorite), fresh fruits and cakes for desert. No place to go on a diet, that is for sure. Pig out! The buffet begins at 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. and 6 p.m. till 10 p.m. Try to get there early as possible if you go for dinner, to assure a table. If you are a vegetarian, it has the best salad bar in town. You can get the salad bar ala carte for, I believe, about $2.
Salvatore’s, located on Fields, right next to Illusions bar, serves fairly decent Italian food. The price is inexpensive (110 pesos for a medium size pizza) and the quality is not bad. Try the garlic bread and Lasagna dish, as well as the meatballs and spaghetti, as it’s really good. Best of all, the restaurant is air conditioned, so you can escape from the tropical heat while you eat. Open from 11 p.m. to 2 p.m. for lunch and 6 p.m. to 11 p.m. for dinner.
Max’s Chicken is probably the most popular restaurant in the Philippines. It’s a bit of a hassle to get to as you have to take a Jeepney to Dau, the next town over from Angeles. Best you have your Filipina girlfriend accompany you on the first trip out (she’ll love it!). Just tell her you want to go to Max’s chicken in Dau. Make sure you take the Jeepney, not a Tric. What to order? Start with a green (sour) or ripe (sweet) mango shake (49 pesos or $1.22). Yum! Then order a bowl of soup, the Sotanghon Caldo, which is a noodle soup with ham and mild spices. I usually end up ordering the Fiesta Plate, which includes a small portion of fried chicken (not too greasy), rice and a Filipino styled burrito (filled with coconut) which I suggest you order fried, not fresh. If you like cooked vegetables, get the Pinabet (115 pesos or $2.87) which is very nice. If you’re still thirsty, order the iced tea shake which is very good. The total bill for this meal will be 316 pesos or about $7.90. Most of the people coming to Max’s are rich, family type Filipinos. So dress up a little (again, tennis shoes, shorts and a nice t-shirt will do fine). It’s well air conditioned and probably, next to the Oasis, the nicest restaurant you’ll find in town.
Jerusalem, right next to the Tropicana hotel serves authentic Middle Eastern food. They don’t have many customers, so I wouldn’t be surprised if they are out of business when you get there. It’s a small and cozy air conditioned restaurant. Try the falafel sandwich (35 pesos or just under $1) which is quite good. Also, ask for the spiced pickles which are spicy and delicious (free!). They usually have daily specials. See 73 the menu or ask the waitress.
Tombo in Dau has a Tuesday night, all you can eat Japanese buffet for 299 pesos ($7.47). The food is pretty good and clean. The air conditioning units are old and worn, but better than fans. Get there right at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, as it gets crowded fast and the food disappears quick. To get there, take the Jeepney to Dau (take your Filipina girlfriend first trip out so she can help you get there) and tell the driver to let you off at Tombo. There’s a big, well lit sign. It’s on the right hand side. Across the street is BPI (Bank of the Philippines Islands). Right past it is McDonald’s if you change your mind and want junk food instead. There’s also a McDonald’s at the Saver’s Mall, on Macarthur Blvd., heading towards downtown Angeles. Have your Filipina girl take you there in the afternoon for lunch. The food is American standard and the air conditioning is cold.
Molly Malones, inside The Tropicana hotel used to have a decent all you can eat buffet. Then the Australian chef left end of 1998, and when they hired a Filipino chef, as to be expected, he fucked it up. The food quality went way down hill. I haven’t eaten there for months, possibly over a year. But you might like it, so check it out. Lunch starts at noon and dinner at 6 p.m. The price is around $5. The buffet is mostly Australian food, and usually includes mashed potatoes, roast beef, roast pork (which the Filipinos love), fried or sautéed chicken, a small salad and dessert bar and daily specials.
The Chinese Peking House restaurant is located on Macarthur Blvd., walking distance from the main bars. Just walk all way past the Tropicana on Fields avenue until it ends on Macarthur Blvd. Turn right and keep walking for about five minutes. You’ll see it on the right hand side, same side you are walking on. The restaurant itself is nicely decorated and the air conditioning is good. The food is okay. Order the special meal and for about $5 you’ll get a cup of egg drop soup, mixed vegetables (fried), fried rice and a small serving of fried chicken. The meal includes a soft drink, but oddly enough, they won’t bring you one unless you ask for it. Even stranger is the fact the special meal is nowhere to be found on the menu. I’m still trying to remember how I found out there is such a thing. It’s a nice restaurant to take your date to.
Dexter’s Favorite Meal is the “Lechon Chicken” or barbecue chicken that is cooked on the outside barbecues, some along Fields Ave. and Macarthur Blvd. They set up their barbecues only at night. If you’re eating with your girlfriend, order a whole chicken and take it back to the Orchid Inn air-conditioned restaurant. Order and bowl of rice and a couple of sodas. The chicken is out of this world and I’ve never gotten sick once from the food. All this will cost about $5.
Black Jack: Renovated in 2000. Karaoke. It attracts the German/Swiss crowd. Try the restaurant.
TRANSPORTATION in Angeles City is pretty simple. If you stay at any of the hotels near the main strip, such as the Tropicana, the Orchid Inn, the Anchorage Inn, or the Park Chicago hotel, you will be within walking distance from all the main bars, the restaurants and all the shops. There will be no need to make use of any of the local transportation, just walk.
There are three modes of transportation within Angeles:
1. The Tric (short for motorized tricycle) is the most popular form of transportation, among the locals that is. It’s also the most obnoxious, dangerous and expensive. Tric drivers are the scum of Angeles and if they lined them all up and shot them, I would only extend my arms to applaud. The Trics are extremely noisy and fill the air with their exhaust fumes. The drivers are the lowest humans on this planet and not to be trusted. They will scam you for every peso they can get out of you and then some. The Trics in Angeles charge tourists up to ten times the fare one would normally pay and they would charge even more if they could get away with it. So my suggestion is unless absolutely necessary, stay off of them.
2. Jeepneys run up and down Fields avenue (and all the other main streets) all day and night
long. They are basically oversized converted army jeeps that function as buses. Passengers ride in the back or front, getting on and off as the Jeepney paces up and down it’s assigned path. The Jeepney is open air, meaning it has no windows on the sides. When the rains come, the driver will release a plastic curtain on the sides to protect the passengers from getting wet. The Jeepney costs 3 pesos (price just went up half a peso recently) or fifty pesos if you ask the driver for a special. A special ride means the driver will divert from his assigned path and take you directly to your hotel (or whenever you want to go). Since most hotels are on Fields (or a moments walk away) and the Jeepneys run up and down Fields, you most likely will never make use of the “special” ride.
To catch a Jeepney on the open street (they can stop anywhere), just wave one down as it comes at you. It will stop, you get in the back (or the front if unoccupied). When you get in, you must pay 3 pesos to the driver. Hand the money to him if he’s close enough to you. If not, just pass the money to whoever is sitting next to you and they will pass it on to the driver. If you don’t have change, the driver will give you your change back (if he doesn’t, just as you are about to get off, ask him, “Where’s my change?”). To get off the Jeepney, you can either knock on the ceiling or say in Tagalog, “Para” which means, “Stop”. Or you can name the location, such as the name of the hotel you want off at and the driver will stop there.
The Jeepney begins it’s route at the check point (see photo). From there it goes either up Fields avenue (heading towards the Oasis hotel) or in the opposite direction, down Fields to downtown. At first, it can be quite confusing finding the check point and loading onto the right Jeepney. So I suggest you have your Filipina girlfriend help you the first few times until you get used to it. Of course, if you stay at the hotels in the center of the main drag (i.e., Orchid Inn, Park Chicago, Anchorage or Tropicana), everything will be walking distance. You won’t need to take a Jeepney.
3. Private meter taxis are few and far between. They are basically good for going on the former U.S. military base if you want, for example, to check out the expensive Holiday Inn hotel (the swimming pool is fantastic, but the rooms are very costly). I’ve never used the private meter taxis and probably never will.
Shopping Spots:
Johnny’s Supermarket on McArthur Highway is good. You can shop on Clark Base at the PX. Duty Free shopping is available to all visitors during the first 2 days in the country (passport needed). You can also shop at Savers Mall and Genra Mall.
SHOOTING VIDEO/TAKING PHOTOS
Some of the girls like it and some don’t. It is highly recommended that you don’t try to take hidden video of the girls while having sex with them. It pisses them off to no end. It may result in her having the police summoned to the room. The ones that agree will usually ask for more money on top of the original amount agreed for having sex with them. Some won’t care and will do it because they like you. As long as you have copies of their i.d’s showing that they are eighteen you will be fine taking them back into the U.S.
BEACHES
The four most popular beaches are: a) Boracay (the best!), b) Puerto Gallera (not too bad), c) La Union (almost worth it), and d) Subic Bay (are you sure you want to come here?). If you go to Boracay or Puerto Gallera, it is advised you bring a Filipina girl with you as the night life is pretty dead. La Union and Subic has enough bars with girls for you to survive alone. If you are traveling to the PI for the first time, it’s best to go first to Angeles, get a girlfriend, and then she can accompany you as you explore the beaches. Most girls make great guides. For mountain coolness, many Filipinos vacation in Baguio where the weather is actually cool enough where you don’t need to run your air conditioner at night. For more information, check out our member’s section for details on all the sin cities.
TRANSVESTITES
You should be aware that Santos street is also the hangout for the “billy-boys” or transvestites. I guess they fit in will with the name Blow Road as they also specialize in oral sex (yuck!). Most of them hang on the left side of the street as you walk from Fields towards the blow job bars. However, since they intermix with the bars on the left side that also have real women, you should learn how to spot them. It’s pretty easy, unless you’ve had a lot to drink. How to recognize them?
First, true Filipina women are typically very short, around five feet or under. The transvestites, being men, are much taller, five foot six and up. So if what appears to be a woman approaches you and you notice that she is nearly as tall as you, watch out! Oddly enough, the transvestites, as tall as they are, persist in wearing high heels. I understand they want to dress as women, but being men they are already tall enough; wearing high heels makes them even taller and therefore more obvious. I would have thought they would wear shoes a little flatter to disguise their height, but they don’t. For that reason, it’s usually pretty easy to spot them a mile away. In short, any woman who is unusually tall (5 and a half feet or taller), beware of.
Secondly, the transvestites, being men, cannot imitate the softness and high pitched sound of a woman’s voice (that’s because they are men). So the transvestite will try to disguise his voice by either speaking with a whisper, a very soft tone, or a falsetto (i.e., a fake high pitched sound). So if you hear someone whisper or say in a high pitched voice, “Hello. Where you go?” you know what you are dealing with.
Third, since most of them cannot ‘afford to have the operation where they surgically remove the penis and carve it into a vagina, the transvestites will desire only oral sex, rather than intercourse. So if the emphasis of the conversation is, “I give you good blow job”, that is your red alert. However, being that most of them hang on blow road, there is not much of a distinction between them and the girls, as the girls are also aggressively pushing their line of work: “I give you good blow job.”
Forth, the transvestites are usually quite ugly up close. After all, they are men and a man’s face, no matter how much make-up you put on it, will still take on a masculine appearance (although some of the transvestites amazingly look feminine). To hide this, it’s not unusual for the transvestites to hang out where the lighting is low. Since Santos street is not well lit up, it’s a perfect place to hang out. Even more so if you hang out just far enough away from the lighting of the bars on Santos so you don’t stand out. In short, anyone who calls out to you from a dark corner, beware!
Fifth, the transvestites have masculine hands. They are aggressive and if you let them, will come right up to you and touch you. If you touch their hand, it will be unusually large; Filipina girls typically have very small hands, much like that of a twelve year old girl in the states. So if a “woman” holds your hand and it’s thick like that of a man, beware!
SAFE SEX in the Philippines should be practiced at all times, and anywhere else you travel in the world. Condoms should be worn at all times, even when you’re sleeping. I’m wearing one now as I type this report. Buy your condoms in the U.S.A. before you go to the Philippines. The ones made in Asia are made to fit Asian men and you know what that means. Bring enough condoms to screw two to three girls a day. Yes, sex is that readily available. Unfortunately, condoms are not requested by all of the girls in the Philippines due to their inner desire to father your children and their childish beliefs that getting the clap “could not happen to me”. While it’s true HIV remains almost non-existent in the Philippines, STD’s (sexually transmitted diseases such as herpes, genital warts, the clap, etc.) still run rampant. While condoms are certainly no guarantee of protection, they are better than nothing. If you find the latex uncomfortable, try the natural lambskin which are heat sensitive and extremely difficult to break. If you must go without condoms, use the withdrawal method to reduce the risk of pregnancy and passing of some STD’s. Always wash and pee after sex.
SENDING HER HOME
I LOVE YOU…NOW SEND ME MONEY. It never ceases to amaze me how many guys are stupid enough to believe after they have left the country, the bar girl they remain in touch and support financially will actually quit the bar and have stopped prostituting themselves. The fact remains that once a bar girl, always a bar girl, with little exception. What that means is once you leave the country, the bar girl of your dreams will continue to prostitute herself and sleep with other guys. I know, you’re thinking, “But my girl is special and she would not do that.” Bullshit! You’re living in a dream world, pal. Having lived in Angeles for over two years, I say with complete confidence that the very girl you held in your hands the night before you left the country will either be dropping her panties for me or another horny tourist the following night, ad infinitum. While she may quit the bar (only to give the false appearance she is no longer working as a bar girl), the fact is she will eventually (out of boredom) return to the bar or another and continue her same lifestyle. Why? Because she likes it. This is the nature of the bar girl and if you think otherwise, you are living in a world of fantasy.
LANGUAGE
The Language spoken in The Philippines is Tagalog (Filipino) The English language is taught in the Philippines from the first grade on. Of course, if the girl is from a poor family, which most are, schooling will be limited as well as their English vocabulary. Most of the girls speak passable English. Most of the people that work in the hotels and restaurants speak a great deal of English. There are more funny and interesting stories regarding the language barrier and what you’ll encounter while you’re over there in the “Panties Down Before Money Down” Philippine Guide book in the book section of this site. All in all the “language of love” is spoken EVERYWHERE!
JET LAG
goes hand in hand with traveling, especially internationally and can be quite strenuous. Besides the long flight, sleeping in a strange bed in a foreign country can lead to insomnia. If you don’t sleep well, you will get sick. Therefore, to help you adjust, you might ask your doctor to prescribe some valiums or other sleeping pills to help you sleep. My doctor gave me valiums for the long plane ride and they worked fantastic. I’d pop a 10 mg. just as the plane took off and within thirty minutes, I was sleeping like a baby. Four hours later I woke up and popped another valium and again woke up almost exactly four hours later. One more valium, and I was a confirmed drug addict …just kidding. But the third valium did work to knock me out for another four hours and next thing you know, there I was landing in the Manila airport. Sleeping on the plane sure makes the trip so much more bearable. The valiums also came in handy the first few nights as I was so excited on my first few trips, I just couldn’t fall asleep. Consult your doctor on insomnia during travel.
FALLING IN LOVE:
If you fall in love with a bar girl and wish to stay in contact with her after you depart the Philippines, you can buy her a mobile phone. That way you can call her any time you wish. Why not get her a land line phone? Because they are extremely difficult to get (because most lines are already taken). While there is nothing nicer than dialing up your sweetheart from abroad and hearing her tell you in Tagalog, “Mahal Tika” (I love you), bear in mind most of the girls, if not all of them, will be saying that while in the arms of another man. Once a bar girl, always a bar girl, meaning she will continue to fuck other guys no matter what you do to try to persuade her otherwise. Buying her a mobile phone and sending her money is no guarantee she will remain faithful once you are out of the country. On the contrary, she will use that very phone to give out to other guys so they can call her and get door-to-door fucking service. Send her too much money and she will fuck other guys for free, rather than charge them. This is the reality of life in the Philippines and if you think otherwise, you’ll living in a dream world.
WILL SHE CHEAT ON YOU
WILL SHE REALLY CHEAT ON ME AFTER I LEAVE? Yes, after you leave Angeles, the bar girl of your dreams, regardless of how much money you send or how much she appeared to be in love with you, will continue to fuck other guys. How do I know that? You’re probably thinking, “Yeah, you’re just saying that because you fell in love with a bar girl and caught her with another guy. So now you’re pissed and think they are all like that.” No, you’re wrong. I know this because I lived in Angeles for over two years and fucked countless girls who, the week before, were in bed with their boyfriend who has now left the country. Once he leaves, the girl is either knocking on my door or my neighbors door, ready and willing to do the wild thing. Once the boyfriend returns, the girl no longer knocks on our door. However, the minute he’s out of the country again, she’s back again at my house or my neighbors, dropping her panties. These are not isolated cases, but day-to-day, normal incidences I see happen all the time. Ask any guy who has lived in Angeles and he will confirm the same report. Thinking your bar girl will not fuck other guys while you are abroad is as silly as thinking the waitress at the restaurant who served you, once you pay your bill and leave, will not take orders from another customer. Wake up to reality! The bar girls are all fucking behind their boyfriends backs and there is little you can do to stop it. Bad news for you (if you’re now in love and supporting a bar girl), good news for us guys who live here (as we get those chicks to drop their panties often for free, thanks to your money keeping them well taken care of). Harsh reality, but it’s our job to report it like it is. Still thinking of supporting a bar girl? Go ahead, but don’t kid yourself into thinking she’s not dropping her panties for other guys while you are away. Why does she do it? She likes to fuck. That’s why they call them LBFM or Little Brown Fucking Machines.
FIANCÉE VISA
not difficult at all. Anyone can do the paperwork and you don’t need an attorney if you just buy the necessary book or access the information from the internet. From the day you file your papers in the U.S. to the day she is in your house, providing there are no problems, it could take between 3-5 months. The book, “How To Get Your Filipina Fiancee to The U.S.” can be purchased on our website. Just click on “Books” on the home page and you can order on line at any time, or join our member’s section and read it on line.
LEGAL AGE WARNING:
American citizens or permanent residents should note that it is illegal to travel to other countries with the “intent” of engaging in sex with persons under the age of sixteen (16). (U.S. Criminal Code 18 U.S.C. Section 2423b). Other countries, such as Canada, France and Germany have similar laws. Under the American law, actually engaging in sex with someone under the age of sixteen is not even necessary for a conviction under the law. Being caught soliciting a minor, having nude pictures of foreign minors, or even possessing fantasy correspondence could provide the necessary elements for a conviction where proof of travel (a passport stamp, a plane ticket) also exists. This may sound far-fetched to some readers, but it is reality under the law. “Intent” is proven from circumstantial evidence and the law presumes that one generally intends the consequences of one’s acts. For American citizens and permanent residents, the punishment for traveling with the intent of engaging in sex with persons under sixteen is as severe as actually engaging in sex with minors in the U.S. Thus if one travels with the intent of engaging in sex with a minor between the ages of twelve and sixteen, the minimum mandatory jail sentence is two to three years. If one travels with the intent of engaging in sex with a minor under the age of twelve, the minimum punishment is somewhere around eight years. There is no parole for those convicted of federal crimes and convicts must serve 85% of their sentences. Obviously, readers of this book who seek out underage girls (i.e., under 16) for the purposes of sex (outside of marriage) do so at their peril.
COMMUNICATING BACK HOME:
Besides making a long distance call from your hotel room, Angeles has a number of places to go to get in touch with the outside world. Internet cafes area all over Angeles. In the Kokomos bar and Margaritaville Bar there are internet rooms where you can send emails, faxes or make a long distance call. Our favorite place is Rick’s Cafe on Fields Ave., next to La Bamba’s Bar.
LAUNDRY in Angeles is cheap to have done. There are a number of places that will do your laundry and either have it done in 24 hours or a few hours, depending on where you go. Some go by the weight of the clothes and some go by each piece that needs to be cleaned. The hotels will clean your laundry also, but the charge will be slightly higher than if you took the laundry in yourself to one of the places. Try the Friendship laundry on Fields Ave.
ELECTRICAL CURRENT
The Philippines is both, 110V and 220V. Watch out! Because in the very same hotel room you stay in, on the very same side of the wall, can be two sockets, one is 110V and the other 220V. I learned my lesson the hard way (twice, now) when I blew out two video lights; I thought I was plugging into a IIOV circuit. Watch out what you are plugging into. TIP: Go to an electronic store and buy a voltage tester, there a couple of dollars. You stick the tester into the socket and it tells you if its 110v or 220v.
SAFE DEPOSIT BOXES:
If you leave all your money in your room or take it with you as you bar hop, you are a fool. Always secure your valuables in the hotel safe deposit box. Be sure to check the hours the box is open. Some hotels will not let you access the safe deposit box after 9 p.m. This is because the manager leaves to go home and the desk clerk is not trusted with the key. However, some hotels will let you access your box 24 hours a day. Check with the hotel. You don’t want to be stuck with no money late at night (i.e., if you decide to do some late night bar hopping). Knowing when you can access your valuables in the safe deposit box can be critical. Suppose, for example, your flight departs at 6 a.m. the next morning. So you awake at 4:30 a.m, and as you check out at 5:00 a.m, you need to access your box to get at your money, passport, airline ticket, etc. But the safe is not open till 7:00 a.m. So now you’re in the frustrating position of having to catch a plane but you can’t leave because you can’t remove your passport and money out of the box! Of course, if you knew this ahead of time, you would have emptied your box the night before so you could leave on time the following morning. Another example. You check into the hotel after midnight. You have a few thousand dollars in cash that you wish to deposit in your box, but the safe deposit box cannot be accessed between midnight and 6 a.m . So what are you going to do? You want to go out bar hopping, but there’s no way you’re going to take thousands of dollars with you and no way you’ll leave that much cash in the room. So you’re stuck to stay in your hotel alone till morning when you can deposit your money.
TRAVELERS CHEQUES/CREDIT CARDS
Does not get the higher exchange rate as it does in Thailand. Travelers checks can be changed in Manila in most banks or with money changers. The rate for travelers checks is 5% to 10% lower than the rate for cash. Purchase receipts for the travelers checks as well as a passport are required for cashing. The checks are only accepted if signed at the counter of the bank or money changer. In the provinces, it can sometimes be difficult to change travelers checks. Many banking companies which accept travelers checks in Manila do not so in their provincial branches. In the provinces, the best place to change is a local Philippine National Bank or a Central Bank in larger cities. Cash advances in dollars can be obtained with an American Express Card at American Express, and with a Visa Card at Bank of America. Cash advances in pesos can be obtained.
Credit Cards are accepted in most big hotels, shops and restaurants. The smallest little shops do not, and neither do the girls. They also charge… 3% for MC and Visa, 5% for AMEX. VISA is the best. Leave your AMEX at home. The smartest card to bring is your ATM!! It is the best exchange rate as well. Also, you may want to call your bank that holds your credit card account and let them know that you will be out of the country and which country. Sometimes credit card companies will deny you access to your card, thinking that your card was stolen and someone else is using your card in that country. It happened to me in Rio De Janeiro. If you take enough cash with you, you will not really ever have to use it. Personally, I use it for all of my hotel stays and some meals.
WHAT TO BRING
Items like condoms. Figure at least two a day. Don’t plan on buying them in the Philippines, the quality is of low grade. Next, I would take some vitamins and some and anti-acid pills, Pepto Bismal, Tylenol, Calamine Lotion for bug bites, foot powder and jock itch powder. The humidity does weird things to you over there. I would also take some small gift items to give out to your girlfriends you will meet and date. Items like candies, soaps, perfumes, shampoos. Any item that is from America is looked at as a terrific gift, even if it’s a Snickers candy bar (which will melt in your pocket if you’re carrying it around in the heat of the afternoon. Pictures of your home, car, personal items that you have back home, even a picture of your dog or cat. The girls love looking at pictures from America. Show a bar girl a house in Beverly Hills, tell them that is where you live, and you’ll have a steady girl for the remainder of your trip.
CLOTHING: The key is to dress light and casual as the weather is both hot and humid. Throughout the town, whether in the bars or along the streets, tourists dress very casual, even often sloppy (to ward off robbers). I always wear either sandals or tennis shoes, shorts, and a t-shirt. During the cool season I might wear a pair of jeans at night. At the Oasis hotel they may look at you with a frown on your face if you enter their nice dining room in a pair of sandals, tank top and swimsuit. Even there a t-shirt, tennis shoes and shorts is acceptable (but no tank tops). During the daytime, it can get extremely hot and dusty. If it rains, it’s going to cool off, but the streets get easily flooded and muddy. So in either case, sandals or old tennis shoes work the best, a nylon swimsuit (not the bikini type), and a tank top also will keep you comfortable. Again, this is not the town to dress up in. Remember, many of the streets are not paved, but are composed of dirt and loose rocks. You’ll ruin your shoes and get dust and/or mud all over your pants as you walk around town, so dress accordingly. IMPORTANT TIP: Never wear tennis shoes without socks as you will get the worse case of athlete’s feet you’ve ever experienced. During the heat of the day, you will see the Filipina girls walking around with umbrellas to ward off the scorching sun.
YOUR PERSONAL APPEARANCE will not have a lot to do with your success with the ladies. Not to say you need not shave or shower before hitting the bars, but the fact is as a rich foreigner, you will appear attractive no matter how you dress. Your most attractive commodity is your smile and warmness, showing what a nice guy you are deep down inside. Appear fun and happy to be with and you will command an army of women. Look depressed or unhappy and the girls will run from you.
BARS AND REPORTS (The bars are listed below are in Alphabetical order.)
Note: Bar names change often as new owners come and go. It would be impossible to give an up-to-date listing of bars, so the following is to taken more as a guideline rather than an exact listing of all bars.
Aries (new).
Big Cleopatra: Recently acquired by the Voodoo Group. This is the largest go-go bar in town. Hans, the manager, has moved on to Mirrors. The variety show is gone. The bar is totally changed inside. The stage has been lowered and the shape modified so you can see everything from the booths. A pool table has been added as well. 15 new dancers have been added and the music changed.
Blue Dolphin is Located on Fields Ave. Ladies drinks are P100 and beers are P40.
Bubbles 2 (renamed Thunderball) Located between Top Hat and Bonafacio’s Dental Clinic, and across the street and down a little ways from Misty’s.
Butterfly: Located just a bit down the alley behind Illusions. This place goes up and down. Sometimes they have some great staff and other times it’s atrocious. Right now, it’s in between
Byrd Cage: Open 6/99. Nice bar. Small and cozy. There is a round stage with 5 or so dancers. They probably have 13 girls total. “Good cold beer but the quality of the staff has declined since it opened.
Caddy shack.
Champagne: At times an excellent bar. SEXY uniforms. Located on Fields Avenue (in the former Bubba’s Cocktail Lounge building), it has been one of the top clubs in Angeles since it opened several years ago. With some of the best dancers in Angeles, great management, and a computerized music system with JBL speakers, it is a “must stop” on any bar hop in Angeles City. Champagne has some spectacular waitresses who are very friendly after hours given the right persuasion.
Charlie’s Place. Located on “Blow Job” alley. All the girls specialize in the art of oral sex.
Cleopatra’s The largest Bar in Angeles City. With renovated interior and beautiful Dancers it is the place to be in Angeles City. Open from 6pm til 2am. Happy hour till 8 PM featuring 2 for 1 prices on Imported spirits all local mix and beer P35. Huge Modern Stage with 30+ Dancers Lots of intimate booth seating.
Club Fantastic: Another bar left over from the base days. It’s a large place with between 8 and 10 dancers, but the quality varies. “It should be renamed Club FAT FARM.. As you go through the clubs you might see one or two overweight dancers, but in Club Cellulite there was only one or two averaged weight dancers. The best thing about Club Mega-Big is the waitresses.
Cockatoo: Former names: Grandeur, Love Heart’s. After being closed for some operating infractions, the Korean owners sold it to an American. It’s very small inside, the music is much too loud and it can get very smoky. The girls are only average. Located across from Kokomo’s.
Confetti’s: The former Night Out. There is a large stage and often many dancers.
Cuddle’s: Located on the ground floor of the Park Chicago Hotel. They now have 40+ girls and all are very friendly and there were a lot of cute ones. The atmosphere inside the bar is very nice. It’s a very open area and very well air-conditioned. They also offer food if you want to eat your dinner. Be warned, the mushroom sauce on the schnitzel is cheddar cheese with some chopped mushrooms tossed in. We took as many pictures as we liked and had a good time. Some cute dancers. The place is a dozen or so steps out of the way and often gets overlooked. Opens at 1:00 PM. “Friendly staff, friendly dancers. This bar has some comfortable lounges very near the front of the stage and it is kind of nice to cuddle up to a few of the cuties whilst you watch the action on the stage. When it comes to girls this was the best bar by far on this particular visit.
DMZ Bar: Just renovated. Smallest go-go bar in town. It has 2 pool tables and a snack menu. Run by a former US Marine. Pool tables stay busy most of the evening. Renovated, with the dance floor now in the center of the main room. The quality of the girls is fair to poor. Not one good looker in the place. The girls push very hard for drinks. “TOO MANY CHERRY GIRLS!!!!! The ones that were not cherries were not very attractive. Drink
9/15/01 Update: Vietnam vet “Tic” has been in business here since time began. Part bar, part shrine to the U.S. Marine Corps. 2 pool tables. Friendly girls and some real characters.
Dolphin Street Bar: The old Happy Hooker. A tiny club with an occasional stunner.
Dunk Shot (at Marlim Mansions Hotel): Dunk Shot moved from a relatively small bar to a very large building across the street. It’s huge. Probably 10X what they had in Marlin Mansions. And here’s the interesting part of the saga. They charge P100 for a local drink and I have no idea about ladies drink prices or TG fees, but am sure it’s proportional to the local drink charge. Stick to Fields Ave. You’ll save a bundle. Oh yea, the show consists of 1 girl dancing at a time taking 20 minutes to get her gear off.
Dusk till Dawn (formerly Cozy Cleo): Up and down. Small, cozy, fun girls. Owned by the Voodoo Group.
Flying Machine is located on Fields Ave. Ladies Drinks are P80 and San Miguel’s are P35.
Garfields Last Stand: Around the corner from the Phoenix Hotel.
Golden Gate: Under new management, again. Good music. Average lineup.
Honey Ko’s is located on Juico St. Ladies drinks are P75 and San Miguel’s are P35.
Honey Mo’s: I went to this place and got fucking mauled by FIVE ugly chicks who insisted on pulling my dick out of my pants and massaging it the moment I sat down. At one time all five had their hands on my crank. Unfortunately, I left my camera at home, as this was certainly a Kodak moment. All were in competition to see who got to blow me in the back room for 1000p. Dim and dirty place. If you like your sexual encounters as sordid and emotionless as possible, you may find heaven. Unlike other places in Angeles, Honey Mo’s has all nude dancing on stage. Not a big draw if you ask me, as all the women here were substandard in looks and morals.
Illusions: A popular manager and a lively atmosphere make this a favorite bar of many Angeles regulars.
Jolly Frog: Located around the corner from the Phoenix Hotel. Jolly Frog is owned by the former Silver Fox owner and BOTH are really good right now
Kokomo’s: Something like Margarita Station (a big restaurant and bar with a couple of pool tables and no aircon). Open from 9 AM to 4 AM. Besides the restaurant and bar, it has an internet center, laundry service and a beauty shop/barber shop. Internet access in the business center is not reliable. It’s slow and often not working. “Like Margarita an extensive menu, but the service and the food a notch down from Margarita. The only drawback is the Queen Bee Travel Agent there. The girls working in there don’t seem to know their ass from a hole in the ground.
King of Diamonds: Best of the Voodoo Group bars at the moment. Many say this is the best bar in town. Some busty dancers. Popular. The manager, Andrew, does a professional job. “The best looking girls in town. Well stocked with a nice display of ladies.
Kitten Club: Open 7/00. The old Valhalla. “The Kitten Club is a very clean and well decor place. The girls are great looking as well. They won’t allow photos so I think the manager is losing some free advertisement. The only shots you could take would be very tasteful so I am not sure what the problem is but then that is his call. Not too many dancers in here and hardly any were good looking.
LaBamba: A favorite bar and has been since 1997. Nicely laid out with comfortable seating close to the dancers. The management keeps the stage packed with some of the best girls in town. Great music and lively atmosphere. #1 bar in town for daytime action (the place to be at 2:00 PM). Long known as a daytime bar, the management has added some top-shelf evening staff and LaBamba is now a contender for best evening bar. This bar may not be a good choice for the timid. The girls can be aggressive in soliciting drinks and at times are outright pushy.
9/15/01 Update: La Bamba- Still the favorite American hangout and almost always packed- friendly girls and a festive atmosphere. Good time American rock music. Hasn’t changed in 3 years.
Last Stand/Garfields: The sign on the door reads “Warm Beer, Ugly Women, We Cheat Tourists”. Nothing could be further from the truth. More of a daytime bar, has an attentive staff of very pretty and very sweet youngsters who change uniforms every day. Your beer will NOT go un-refreshed for one second.
Lollipop: Often a party-like atmosphere. Some beautiful dancers and waitresses. Steve, the former manager is now GM of the entire Voodoo Group’s bar operation. One pool table. Ugliest uniforms in town. They have a lot of dancers, the music is good and the girls very active. Very good body painting videos.
Loveboat (formerly Titanic): The bar is upscale with great music and air conditioning. Loveboat has a balcony (upper deck) that’s not much use for watching the dancers, but seems to be popular as a place to get to know the girls much better. It used to have the best lineup of the Voodoo Group bars, but that honor now belongs to King of Diamonds.
Margarita Station (the old Margaritaville): This is not a go-go bar, but a bar/restaurant hangout. It does a brisk business and is popular with many locals. Each and every day the place is packed with people. Maybe it’s their clientele that draws in a crowd or their good food or their margaritas or the women? Their menu is very extensive. You’ll probably find something you like. They also have a laundry service, an internet center and a great web site. Still the #1 the place in town happening 24/7. Service a number one. Great place to hit late if you are still out in the wee AM hours. My favorite here is the Chicken Fried Steak, also any kind of breakfast really good, also prices look the same as they have for quite a few years. Also Filipino and Thai dishes.” “The best Thai food in town.” “Let me tell you, at 6 AM, the only girls hanging around MS are either the waitresses (who aren’t available) or a complete bunch of dogs.
Massage & Bath (new).
Midnight Rodeo: Looks inviting, but has ugly inattentive waitresses and pretty slummy. Pass this one by.
Mirage (the old Private Dancer): Purchased by the Voodoo Group 8/00. They knocked some holes in the wall and it now connects with Voodoo. It’s open until 5:00 AM.
Mirrors Bar is located in the Clarkton Hotel.
Misty’s (Part of Tropicana hotel). It’s one of the best bars in town. Opens at 4 PM. Happy hour 4 – 7 PM. Closes at 2 AM. “The quality of girls in here is of a very high standard.” Great air-con and seating.
Nero’s Forum: Open 10/00. Large bar. It’s very popular, though the lineup could stand some improvement. “One of the really nice places on Fields. It’s bigger than Volcano and the interior is absolutely first class. Nice lay out, way to crowed for the girls that work there. The stage is set very high so that as you drink you are looking straight up at the dancers. Suspended from the ceiling are spinning disks of colored lights. Thick mist sprays from the ceiling as well, jets of smoke, enhancing the mood of excitement. The stage is situated in the middle of the reasonably large room, which is somewhat dark. Sit there to be at the center of the action. I saw one dancer who teasingly kept flashing her soft swath brown promise land by jerking down her panty bottoms. Don’t blink your eyes though, or you’ll miss the free treat. Booths set off by Roman columns line the walls. Sit there to cuddle in relative privacy. It is located near the east end of Fields Avenue, across from Misty’s and close to Top Hat and Valentine’s.
9/15/01 update: Open less than a year, this place is bigger than most Bangkok go-go’s and has all the cheezy trappings of Ceasars Palace. TONS OF CHICKS. If you cant find a hottie for you here, you must be gay.
Nite Club is located in the Hotel Marquis. Ladies drinks are P75 and San Miguel’s are P35.
Papillion: A bar under Birds of Paradise, this is one of the classiest bars in town. It’s a copy of a Makati bar, but they’ve maintained Angeles City prices. The stage is floor level. “The selection was not particularly impressive but there is a nice atmosphere in here and lots of dark little corners to watch the world go by together with your honey ko. The show in Papillion is pretty good and the dance routines are impressive. Ironically, unlike it’s name sake in Manila there is very little pressure to buy ladies drinks.
Peco Pete’s: Around the corner from the Phoenix Hotel.
Pink Pussycat (cheapest bar fine in town).
Private Dancer Too (nice remodeling job and cheapest drinks in town). The old Cheerleaders. Completely redone inside. It’s gone to karaoke.
Rhapsody: Open 1/00. Formerly Panama Jack’s, it’s been enlarged and renovated. There is no atmosphere and the dancers look a lot older than the other bar. Its definitely worth a look-especially the Show on Wednesday night 9-30pm.
Rick’s Cafe: Videos throughout the day. It has a nice internet center. I used it once when Kokomo’s was off-line. My page came right up and I made a print using their color printer.
Roadhouse: One of the most unique bars in Angeles City. Literally transported piece by piece from Ermita, Roadhouse was one of the first bars to open after Pinatubo. The staff are efficient and friendly and they have the best rock and roll video collection and sound system in town. Has gone down hill fast. The girls seem to think that they are doing you a favor by sitting down and talking to you.
Roy’s Bar is located on Raymond St. and the ladies drinks are P60.
Shano’s: Open 9/00. The old Octopussy. Aussie bar
Silver Fox: Around the corner from the Phoenix Hotel.
Splash: Open 1/00. The former Kosmos, it’s located in the old Temple of Rock/Mudbone’s building and is another of the Voodoo Group’s bars. The interior has been completely remodeled. “It is a nice bar with a good layout. They have a big pool in the back like a fish tank and the girls go swimming. It is a unique place which includes a giant fish tank which I hear have young Filipina’s swimming away at different times of the day. Unfortunately there was no one in the tank when I was there and so I missed the full experience. Needs to get a more attractive staff. No real beauties in here.
Super Star (new). Another revival bar. It’s the old Valhalla bar and is now located next to Top Hat. Nothing’s changed but the location and the interior. Club was dead and hardly any of the staff very attractive.
Stinger: Hard to say what’s happening here. Sometimes it’s great and sometimes fair. They had a reputation for having some of the freshest young girls in town, but that’s not true now. Still, you can often find a beauty in here so it’s worth stopping in for a look. “A lot of the better looking girls at Stingers seem to be cherries. There are a couple of super smokers in there that don’t go with anyone. You have to go in at the right time as the lookers get snatched quick. The staff is very pushy about selecting a girl and buying her a drink. A number of the girls are now wearing a T-back bikini together with the F@%k me black boots.
Tahitian Queen (indoor and outdoor). New Style bar (neon, brass, etc). Lots of dancers. My guess is at least 30. Well run, good music. Had a reputation for girls that would leave with you, and bolt. That’s subsided somewhat. Only bar in town with a happy hour from 9 to 10 PM. “Opening daily at 4:00 p.m., the Tahitian Queen is one of the early openers in town serving cold beer. Their beer is definitely cold, but if you plan on visiting their bar between the hours of 4:00 to 6:00, plan on sweating your ass off. Yes, their air conditioner takes a while to cool the place off. If I owned it I’d turn it on an hour before it opened so it would be cooled off. The second thing you’ll notice as you calmly sit and sweat, is that the room is very, very dark.
Temptation: The old Giant. This place isn’t bad. It’s worth a look in the door. In regards to Temptation, this is a diamond in the rough, IMO. Right next door to LaBamba, opens in the afternoon, has some nice girls with a particularly nice waitress.
The Club: Lots of locals hang out there. The place can get raunchy now and then. There are several good lookers. One problem is the number of cherry girls. I think 5 out of the 14 dancers are cherry. The Club opens in the afternoon, but it’s really an evening bar. Last time I rang the bell (6/00) it cost me only P2600. This is a fun group. Open until 4:00 AM. “Nice yellowish uniforms and a lot of energy. Many lookers but beware of the large number of cherry girls.
The Good Times Bar: This bar is located just around the corner from The Phoenix Hotel and is run by the same management as the old Rumors Bar. If anything though this is definitely a better place and in recent visits I’m pleased to report that a fair amount of attractive staff are now in place
The Jungle: (The old Connections) The inside is pretty much the same right down to the disco ball over the stage.
The Other Bar : Around the corner from the Phoenix Hotel.
Thigh-Hi Bar (9/15/01 Update) is located on Juico St. Thi Hi- Small bar with outrageous alcoholic American owner doling out free custom-made shots with names like “Cunt Juice” and “Gekko Juice” to anyone who will drink them. Dresses his girls in mini-skirts, stockings, garter belts and high heels. Never had a bad time here. Bar fines are only 900p, an astounding $18 at current rates. Look for the upward pointed naked leg sign next to the Honey Mo’s awning on Don Juicio.
Thunderball: Reopened 7/00
Thunderstruck: Restaurant and pub, only. Best Thai food in Angeles City if not the entire Philippines. The waitresses do not go out (exactly), but are allowed to get ladies drinks and sit with customers when it’s not busy. Many will meet you after work.
Top Hat: One of the largest bars in town. Sometimes some cute ones in here. Worth a look. Very comfortable and very friendly. This is a very fun and friendly place. All of the girls are very friendly and open to suggestions.
Valentines (formerly Dreams). Valentines is open in the afternoon, from 2 p.m. to 2 a.m. Happy hour is from 2p.m. to 7 p.m.
Welcome Inn: Opens at noon. Might be worth a quick visit. Becoming very popular from noon to 5 PM. Girls can get a little wild. They have a nice pool table, they open at noon, and the pressure from the waitresses is now very low.
9/15/01 Update: Very friendly staff with some real lookers. Lots of free drinks if you bar fine a girl. Mamasan Helen, at 30, is perhaps the youngest, nicest, and HOTTEST Mamasan in
town. Willing to go with customers too, if that’s your thing.
Y Bar: It is a small cozy bar. The stage is often packed full of dancers. Managed by the same folks as Champagne. The manager, Daddy Mel, is a good chap to do shooters with. His current record is 52 in one night. Have I mentioned recently that Y-Bar is the bar that has the best manager? The bar with the friendliest Mamasan? The bar with the prettiest and sexiest girls? The bar with the most professional waitresses? The bar that has its own generator in case of any brown outs?
Ziggy’s (formerly Hugs & Kisses) and Foxhole: It is unique in Angeles City. It’s a two floor structure with a dance floor on the ground level as well as one suspended above it like a balcony. At times, the girls use a circular slide to get downstairs and there is a pool table upstairs as well. Other sub-bars come and go in the building. The latest is called Foxhole.
Voodoo: 40 or so dancers, good sound system, good DJ and good videos. This is a popular bar for drinks after the other bars close. Open until 5 AM. Long stage and bright lighting makes it easy to make a selection. One could always rely on Voodoo to have lots of girls and quite a few late revelers but this was not the case this time. Admittedly Voodoo has always been a small bar so it doesn’t take many customers to make it look busy. Voodoo is now together with the old Private Dancer so we strolled around the corner and there were about 15 girls dancing away.
Volcano: Open 11/27/99. An imposing and impressive new bar with rock formations and waterfalls in front as well as inside. The nicest decorated bar in Angeles City. The Titanic on a grander scale. It’s owned by the Champagne Group. Dennis Mitchell, former general manager of the Voodoo Group, is manager. Very sexy girls here and a lot of work has gone into making this place look good. For those of you who consider yourselves to be a bit of a stud, there is a tall waitress here who is one of the most beautiful girls in AC. She plays hard to get and ‘apparently’ doesn’t go bar fine. Many attractive ladies and the sexiest waitresses and GROs in town.
Nice Place, GRO in the eve hours on lower Fields Ave. The Bacon Cheeseburger is so damn good, one of the best. Now you never really go into Woody’s unless you want a snack, read the paper or watch the a movie quietly. But invariably some girl, not usually attractive, harasses you until you are forced to buy a drink. Invariably expensive. Complaining to the loudmouthed proprietor Terry is useless.
BLOW JOB ALLEY
(Blow Road) Along Santos street, right behind La Bamba and Kokomo’s restaurant, you will find ” Blow Road” as some like to call it. It is here where you’ll find the bar girls that specialize in oral sex. My favorite bars are Queen Teller, Charlie’s Place and the new Shadow’s Bar. Lots of real sweethearts working these bars.
Keep in mind that many (but not all) of the blow job girls also, for the most part, enjoy sexual intercourse. So it’s possible to screw a blow job girl as well as getting head. However, there are a handful of “cherry girls” (i.e., virgins; at least they say they are) who, believe it or not, will give you a great blow job or hand job, but will not screw …unless you are willing to pay to break the girl’s cherry. The price to break a girl’s cherry is much lower in Santos street than in the regular air conditioned bars. The going rate for a virgin in Santos is about $300 to $400. The price is about triple in the air conditioned bars. (See the section on Cherry Girls).
Although most of the customers will enjoy a blow job right there in the bar itself, you can take the girl with you to your hotel if you prefer.
COST: If you take her for short time (i.e., an hour), the cost is roughly $10. If you wish to have her spend the entire night with you, you must pay the full bar fine fee (about $20). I have taken many a girl from Santos to my place, both for short time love affairs and for all night. Most of the girls were fantastic. I have never made use of the rooms there as I wouldn’t feel so comfortable (they are fan rooms only, so it’s hot inside). Perhaps you’ll feel the same as me, so remember you can take the girl back with you. If you do take her back to your hotel room, be sure to give her a 30 peso tip to cover her Tric ride back to the bar (unless you are staying at the Chicago, Tropicana, Anchorage or Orchid Inn, all of which are just a moments walk away).
BLOW JOB BARS
Note: again, bar names change as the management/ownership changes rapidly. The following is a guideline, not an up-to-date list (as that would be impossible since the bars change names so rapidly).
Queen Teller: Located on A. Santos Street on the right side of the road as you’re walking from Fields Avenue. Blow row. It’s best not to even look on the left side, as the Billy Boys will talk with you. The quality of girls has improved on the right side of Santos. Beware the left side of the street though unless you like guys in drag.
Shadow’s Mini Bar: Located on A. Santos Street on the right side of the road as you’re walking from Fields Avenue. Blow row. It’s a fun place to hang out and talk with other tourists. No loud music and nobody pushing lady’s drinks. The girls are very nice. This is not a fancy place. There are rooms in the back. They’re small and no aircon. All the girls here specialize on licking and sucking. Some will only provide oral service, so if you want half/half (suck/screw) make that clear up front. If you see a girl you like, you talk to her a bit. Most of the girls speak very little English. Let the girl of your choice know you want to visit the back. Pay the cashier P400. You will also pay for any drinks you ordered. They don’t seem to have any bathing facilities for the patrons.
Heaven: Blow row. “First stop….Santos street…get that first urge out of the way … after arriving at the Heaven Bar on Santos I found a great little Hoover named Vanessa and she took care of me in a matter of minutes… 400 pesos. Heaven Bar has 2 superstars working there .Louisa and Vanessa (also Arylin is quite the Hoover).
Wantok: New location. Now on Santos Street blow row.
Duke of York Tavern (blow job bar, not air conditioned)
Charlies
Aqua Hut
Black Pearl
THE BAR FINE EXPLAINED:
So what happens when you enter a bar and meet a bar girl you really like and want to spend the night with? How do you get her to leave the bar and go with you? To get a bar girl to go back with you to your hotel, you must first pay what is called the bar fine. The bar fine is kind of like renting a car for the day. You choose the car you like, you pay, and then you drive off with the car. Except in this case, you are not renting a car, but a bar girl!
Now understand this highly enforced rule: The girls are not allowed to leave the bar and go with a customer unless he first pays the bar fine. Once he does pay, the girl will immediately change into her street clothes and she is free to go with you to spend the night in your hotel. Most girls who spend the night will let you screw them. So how much will that cost you?
The going rate for the bar fine in most of the bars of Angeles, runs around $25. Once you pay the bar fine, you need not tip the girl. The bar fine is the full price you pay to take a girl home with you for the night. Tipping is always appreciated, never mandatory. (If you wish to tip a girl who spends the night, 100 pesos is a nice tip).
So exactly how does this bar fine work? Let’s say you walk into a bar, such as La Bamba, and you take a seat right center stage where you are just inches away from the dancing girls. Let’s say you see a dancer you really like. You notice that she keeps smiling at you and she reaches over from the stage where she is dancing and gets close enough to shake your hand and introduce herself. “Wow! These girls really are friendly,” so you say to yourself. The same girl then asks you what your name is, where you are from and keeps smiling and giggling. Next thing you know, one of the waitresses comes over to you and cuddles next to you. She points her finger to all the girls on stage and asks you, “Which girl do you like?” Without hesitation, you point to the dancer you just met. You then tell the waitress, “I want to pay her bar fine.” The waitress will then consult with the dancer, who will probably be in shock since most guys first flirt with the girl over a ladies drink before paying the bar fine. However, in this case we’ll just say you are in a hurry. If the girl does agree to go bar fine, what will happen next is the waitress will either herself extend her hand to take the 1,000 pesos for the bar fine (or whatever the rate is in that bar) or she will call over the Mamasan (i.e., bar manager) who will come over to you and take the money. Once the bar fine is paid, the girl will immediately go to the back room to change into her street clothes. It may take up to ten minutes or so, as some girls may go to the toilet, put on more make-up, and god knows what the hell else they are doing back there (probably praying you don’t have too big a dick!). When the girl comes out, she will come up to you and stand by your side. She’s ready to go. You then can take her back to your hotel and enjoy a night of passion and romance.
NO MONEY BACK! Unfortunately, if you bar fine a girl, have sex with her, then she leaves without spending the night, you will not get your money back. The bars policy in Angeles is “the customer is almost always wrong” and “whatever happens, don’t give them their money back.” This is one reason why many tourists who come to Angeles never return (ending up going to Thailand where you pay after sex, not before). On the bright side, most girls will not rip you off by agreeing to be bar fined, have sex, then bail on you. This is because most girls desire long term relationships, rather than short time love affairs. If you do get a girl who not only will not spend the night, but completely refuses sex, take her back to the bar immediately and ask to speak to the Mamasan. With a touch of luck, you may get your money back. If you don’t, you’ll know not to patronize that bar again.
MASSAGE
U and I
It’s located on 1st Ave. (across the park) behind the Shell gas station. Just walk down the alley and go inside. From what I’ve heard, they have 4 or 5 ladies all on the wrong side of 28. The rooms are grotty and there’s no toilet. There is no hot water. With that said, the ladies all give good massages and know how to end the procedure. Basic massage is P250 and the tip for the top off is up to you. I’ve heard that many guys give them around P300.
Liberty
This little known Gem is something to avoid unless you want to experience something as different as it gets. It’s located behind the police box on MacArthur Hwy. half way between Fields Ave. and 1st Avenue. No showers, etc. Basic service P150. Who the hell knows how much to tip.
Aqua Hut
A little way up Santos St. from Kokomo’s (shit, did it again). Clean with a nice hot water shower. Staff vary from good to ugh. From what I heard, there’s a very large lady with the first initial A who gives one of the best massages in Angeles City. Extra services are of the Santos St. variety. Price is P400. Tip is up to you.
Roman
Located 1 block past Johnnies on MacArthur and just up the street, it’s one of the higher class massage parlors. They have a Thai style fishbowl, but during the day you’re going to have to pick your attendant from a photo album. What you get is not always what you think you’re gonna get. Price varies from P400 up based upon the quality of the room you want. If your goal is some short term gratification, a regular room should be just fine.
Rumours
Located across from the Vegas Hotel. I think that it’s the same owners as the place next to Good Times. The staff are seasoned. Price for basic service P700.
Oasis Hotel
Not part of the hotel but located next door is a nice ‘health club’. You’ll need to do the photo thingie again and you’ll need to take the proper precautions about what you see is not always what you get. The good news is that the rooms are excellent and clean. Price is P400 and extras services tend to be on the high side. Be ready to negotiate but remember to smile.
Japanese/water bath massage
Going out of Kokomo’s, turn right on Fields Ave. and about half way between Santos St. and MacArthur you’ll see a sign for a Japanese massage. They scrub you from your rooter to your tooter and toes as well. The massage is good to fair. The bath is interesting because they’ve got a sub woofer attached to the tub and it vibrates the hell out of the water. Staff are usually pretty inexperienced but fun. Price P100 – 400 depending on the room. I think you can have multiple attendants.
ABOUT THE FOOD:
After all that sex, you’re bound to work up quite an appetite. Bad news. Finding a decent restaurant in Angeles (actually, the entire Philippines for that matter) is no easy task. The problem is both the service and the food quality in the Philippines is extremely poor. I think the problem is fourfold:
a) The Filipinos don’t really import anything, so they are not bringing in any high quality food items,
b) Most of the restaurants hire Filipino cooks who, on the whole, don’t have a clue on what they are doing. It’s almost a sure guarantee if a Filipino is the cook, your food will turn out like shit.
c) The local produce and poultry is of extremely poor quality, so the restaurants are stuck with that. Just go to a local market in Angeles, such as Mr. JJ and when you gaze at the local produce, such as the carrots, the lettuce, the onions, etc., you will be in shock. Even the Robinson’s in Manila, compared for example, to the Robinson’s in Bangkok is night and day in food selection and quality.
d) The Filipinos have no sanitary laws and eat without second thought that the food is both low quality and dirty. That’s their style and as a result, that’s what we are stuck with here in Angeles City (and throughout most of the Philippines).
The following is a list of things I have learned in Angeles after four trips which I would like to share with the curious traveler.
1. One bar, one woman – If you take one chick out for the night, don’t go back to the same place the next day and try for her hot friend; not only will the first woman make an embarrassing scene but the new woman will think you are a complete pig. The whole bar will hate you, as the Filipinos despise flagrant male promiscuity as much as any woman. I have learned this the hard way. If you want to fuck as many women as possible, you must take each one from a different bar. Violate this old rule at your peril.
2. Tip the DJ’s- These people make maybe 2 dollars a night. Stuff a 50 peso note in the booth with a list of your favorite tunes and let the good times roll. “Bed of Roses”, by Bon Jovi, long forgotten in the U.S., will make the girls go bananas.
3. Caveat Emptor- ALWAYS make sure a lady agrees to what you want before bar-fining her. This includes fucking, sucking, sleeping over, and not “having menstruation”. They are under no obligation to have sex with you unless they say they will. Spend lots of time talking to a girl to make sure you don’t get a dud or a headcase. Don’t just jump at the hottest piece of ass- some of the best lays come in plain packages.
4. Look and Act Nice- It never ceases to amaze me how the nastiest old slobs in the western world seem to flock to Angeles City which is home to some of the sweetest available women alive. Misogynistic, drunken whack-job geriatric losers come here, look dirty and act like pigs, and still get girls. I pity the desperate Filipinos who go with them. I am 34 and of average appearance, but when I put on a white polo (as opposed to a smelly tank top), khakis and loafers and walk into a bar, these women act like I’m fucking Leonardo DeCaprio. I’m not joking.
Actually combing your hair, putting on some cologne and acting like a gentleman will make you the center of female attention and put you in the stratosphere of desireable men in these bars. Use nice words, say nice things, don’t cuss or make vulgar comments, and you will have any girl you want. Show some respect. Let the fuck-nut expat psychos drink alone- you will have no competition from them.
5. Regress to the 3rd Grade- The trick to relating to most Filipinas is to be FUNNY. Their humor level hovers around the 10 year old range. It takes very little to make them laugh anyway, but you can get them rolling if you resort to wacky physical humor or facial expressions. Personal tricks I use include the Donald Duck voice, fat American woman impersonations, and the handshake/fingers through the hair bit. Even rock, scissors, paper can draw a crowd. Try it, or are you too mature?
6. Bring Toys- A deck of cards, silly-putty, a puppet, electric gizmos, a squirt gun or any funny toy will make you the center of attention. These girls are BORED- just look at the exciting qualities of the other customers. Any interesting item from the west will be fascinating to them and be a great ice breaker. Start up a game of go-fish for ladies drinks and watch the whole bar join in.
7. Kill All Tric Drivers- These people are nothing but pure scum. They will try to cheat you. Take an 8-cent jeepney wherever you go and put these bastards out of business.
8. Filipinos Are A Gift From God- Check your dislike, paranoia and past experiences of shrill, opinionated, lard-assed American women at the airport; they have no place in this country. Filipinos are the sweetest, most trusting, loyal and beautiful women in the world on the outside as well as the in. They can cloak themselves from the woman defense radar of most western males and get under your skin very quickly. There is a good reason so many American men choose them to marry and breed with. They are overwhelmingly Catholic, have high morals, posses similar belief and value systems, display a very high aptitude for English and worship Caucasian features and anything American. Many are well educated and most want to leave the PI for your hometown. They are pre-programmed to fall in love with you and be your wife. I myself have been proposed to an embarrassing number of times and I am hardly a Match.com poster boy. Treat these women with the respect they deserve and you will be well rewarded.
The Santos Street BJs are P500 and P1000 if you want to take them out back to your hotel and that may or may not include a second or third one or overnight depending on the girl. It’s always my favorite place to start out in AC even though it has a “seedy” sleazy feel to it. It’s too bad there’s not an extra room for BJs or quickies in the bars which would allow you to enjoy the girls between their dancing shifts.
Although the bargirls in Manila have recently been quoting P1500 and P2000 additional to their barfines this is just too much and I laughed in their faces when they asked for that. The standard price in Asia for over 20 years has been U$10 to U$20 for a shortime depending on whether it’s on location or outside. You can add a U$20 barfine to that price in Manila but outside of Manila it’s included in the “package” .
The “blow job” bars are exactly that. They are where you go if you must have a girl who sucks dick. The way it works is you choose the girl you like (usually, she chooses you!) and then you go in the back of the bar where they have small, private rooms. There she will suck you off. The cost is about $10, depending on the exchange rate (expect about 50 pesos per US dollar).
Now, another point about the blow job bars. The girls can be bar fined out not only for short time, but for all night as well, just like in the other bars. You can also take the girl back to your hotel for short time. Just show the girl your hotel card, then pay the fee (450 pesos or so), then the girl goes with you for an hour or two. If you like her, you can have her spend the night (you’ll have to pay the full bar fine in that case, about $20).
Some of the BJ girls do claim to be virgin (i.e., cherry girls). In such a case, you won’t be able to screw her (unless you’re willing to pay the steady bar fine, about $300) or the virgin fee (rate depends on the girl). However, keep in mind many of the cherry girls a)are not really cherry, so if you are sly, you can get down their pants, b)want to lose their cherry and if they like you will give it up for free, c)will do alternate sex (i.e., up the ass).
The blow job bars are located behind Kokomo’s/La Bamba on Santos street. Technically they are open 24 hours, but the girls don’t get up till late in the afternoon.
A great attitude anf knowing how to have fun with the ladies means a lot. If you spend a little and buy some lady drinks for the girls goes a long way… It will make you a superstar.
The Bigger bars had by far the best girls, these were usually the hostesses, front door girls and waitresses.
The best were Volcano, Blue Nile, Neros Forum and Cambodia. Then Came Illusions and Brown Sugar. Stay away from Santos Street, Yuck……
It seemed that the smaller bars had the ugliest women, but everyone’s taste is different.
Hotels: We were going to stay at the Orchid, but it was full. We stayed at the Oasis, which is about a mile and a half from the bar district. It is a great hotel and the girls love it. They think you are a rock star for staying there. Prices were US $30-$50 for rooms. I thought the Orchid was a dump and everyone we talked to there said it was very loud. The Oasis also had the best restaurant in Town. We checked out the Clarkton, it was less expensive and not too bad either.
Money: The peso trades for the US dollar at $1 equaling 51.9 pesos, a great rate. Girls Bar fines were around 1000 pesos. After the night was over we tipped 500 to 1000 pesos and they loved us for it. I guess a lot of guys do not tip.
Shopping: Almost none. If you are a pool player there are a couple of great pool stick stores available. For around $50 US you can buy a stick that is worth over $1000 here in the states. Go to Ralph’s, it is one block past Kokomos on the Right. The lady that owns it is a Harvard Grad Dentist (funny). Her little dentist shop is in the back.
Food: The Oasis was like eating in a five star restaurant, everything was awesome. Breakfast Buffet 220 pesos ($4.50), lunch was around the same. Dinners were never more than $6-8, and that was for Filet Mignon. Salvatores was good for Italian, it was across from the Volcano Club. Kokomos and Margarita Station had passable Burgers and fries.
Transportation: The Jeepnies were the best deal, but they cannot get all the way into town, due to major road construction right in front of Margarita Station. They cost 4 pesos to take you anywhere. The Trike guys are a bunch of pirates, but you are stuck using them sometimes. They jack you for 40 – 50 pesos, although it is still only a buck.
We had no trouble with the locals, but it is very much a “wild west” kind of town with the dirty streets and half tumbled down structures. It makes Thailand seem like a paradise. That and the fact that there is not a whole lot to do but eat, sleep, drink and f…!
We also bought almost all the Mamasan’s drinks when we walked into a bar. This always worked out as they would buy us 2-3 more. Then all the girls would come around and you know the rest……
Bring some decent clothes, take a shower and put on some cologne. They will love you for this. There are a ton of old, fat stinky pigs there. If you are remotely well dressed, smell good and look at least ok, you will be a GOD! I know we were, and they will never forget us.
One night at Blue Nile we had a drinking contest with one Mamasan, then two Mamasan’s then all three Mamasan’s, throw in five dancers and ten waitresses, then they all started doing blow job shots off our crotches. We did this for about two hours and the whole bar stood still and watched the show. They all wanted us to take them home. Only problem was we had drank with them all and could barely walk.
Bottom Line: I liked AC, but it appeared that the town was slolwly going down hill. A lot of bars were closed. If you bar hop, they all know you and are shouting your name (they never forget) from the doorway as you walk by. There were maybe 1000 Bar girls in all. It waqs hard to find anything above a 7. In Pattaya there are so many bars that this almost never occurs. It is a small town and you have to follow the rule “One Bar–One Girl”. They are very possessive once they get you. I had a great time, but would probably choose Pattaya over AC.
Angeles City vs LOS
As a frequent traveler to Bkk, Pattaya and occasionally to Chiang Mai, I will give my 2 cents on the matter. My last trip to LOS was in May, my last trip to AC was in September.
1) The Thai women are better looking and much less likely to have a roll of fat around the middle. Every AC bar has one or two beautiful girls and a ton of average girls. You can go to 2-3 bars and not see a great looking girl.
2) AC girls seems to be getting harder and colder, making it tough to find that nice girl that you want to spend a few days with. In Pattaya, there are a ton of new girls every week.
3) I never, ever, had a Thai not perform in bed. Filipinas are known for it. The problem is the sh*tty pay-before in AC vs. the pay-after in Thailand. I will never understand this crap or why anyone would defend it.
4) AC has a much smaller selection of women than Bkk or Pattaya. Actually, AC has fewer women and fewer bars than Soi 7!
5) After 4 trips, I am about done with AC. I miss the atmosphere, the fun, the food, and the uniqueness of Pattaya. I miss the Eden Club. I miss the Thermae. I miss fishbowl massage places. I miss Soi 6 and all of those ST bars (“Rum and coke, and a BJ, please!”). I miss the friendliness of Thais (anyone who says that Filipinos are friendly has never been to Thailand).
At least AC doesn’t have Songkran.
My advice? If you haven’t been to AC in a while, go to AC and check out the new bars and relax. Otherwise, go to LOS.
Pattaya-AC comparisons
I always respect the opinions of fellow “hobbyists”, and realize that everyone has their own taste, and point of view. But, just for the benefit of those who might be trying to make up their minds from a distance, I must say that I disagree with Twister’s assessment, in just about every detail.
No question that the “amenities” in Pattaya are vastly better than those of Angeles City. But I, for one, don’t come to Asia for amenities. And it’s hard for me to imagine an experienced “hobbyist” who could work up any enthusiasm whatsoever for the current crop of girls in Pattaya.
As it happens, I’m in Pattaya at the moment, waiting to fly to Indonesia next week with a close friend…who’s been living here for 3 years, and is now in search of greener pastures. After Indonesia, he’ll be spending the next 6 months in the Philippines, with a view to relocation.
There certainly was a time — and not so long ago — when I was an enthusiastic supporter of Pattaya. Good Lord, I’m sure there are fellow-travellers who recall the days of the Baby-A-Go-Go bars…perhaps among the best in the world.
But Pattaya, right now, is the “elephant’s graveyard” of burned-out Thai hookers. The street/beach girls are utterly awful…your choice of old and nasty, or young, nasty, indifferent and money-hungry.
The go-go bars are loaded with over-priced, and “over-used” ladies…again, almost universally indifferent and uninterested in their customers.
By contrast, AC is completely a “buyer’s market”, loaded with a much younger and better-motived group of girls.
When I heard Twister say that Thais are more friendly…well, that’s just a jaw-dropping claim for most of us who’ve spent much time in the two venues. I do have lots of friends who prefer Pattaya, but even they wouldn’t make that amazing statement.
To each his own. But, for newbies, pls be advised that there is a very distinct counter-view to the one expressed by
I have some input on this subject. My experience is that the P.I. is so much poorer and because of their preoccupation with Catholicism, the women will do almost anything for money including setting you up with scammers and local on the take cops. The food in the P.I. is so greasy and made of local organ meats and old produce, compared to the fresh and full of vegetable thai food. The flip chicks are also noticeable undernourished and shorter than the Thais because of their poor diets. It is true that flip chicks also believe in the fairy tale of 1 in a thousand will find some expat to take care of them and get them a fiance visa. I work with dozens of flips in the U.S. and NONE of them have any desire to return to their land of birth. They won’t admit it but it is obvious. They are happy to have escaped the overpopulated, corrupt and polluted place that most consider a nightmare. The Thai women have no desire to locate but will be willing to travel if you are paying their fare. The flip chicks are also not as clean as the Thais. I notice they have dirtier feet than a Thai bar girl will have. I invite your comparisons.
Just add my two-cents’ worth…I was in Angeles for six weeks, Pattaya for four, and have just been in Indonesia for the past week. Frankly, of the three places, Indonesia is probably the best.
Getting here was a pain, though, and I highly recommend you skip Jakarta and start at the country’s 2nd-largest city, Surabaya. Lots of college towns, hill-towns, etc. within a 50-mile radius. My friend, who lives here, says Bandung is great, too. Fairly big city, but high and cool.
I’m sure you all realize that the US State Dept., and foreign ministries of other countries, are telling people not to come here…since the Bali bombing. That’s great for hobbyists, who can go about our business unfettered by the hordes of tourists in, say, Pattaya. No bars of the Angeles-Pattaya type, but the place is jammed with gorgeous girls who turn their heads when you walk by. Unless you’re Brad Pitt, just try to get that response in Pattaya.
And, frankly, since the terrorists are apparently planning to hit tourist spots, Pattaya must be 100 times more likely target than Surabaya.
I realize this will fall on deaf ears for 99% of our readers. But there are a few adventurous guys out there who are sick of the well-worn trails, and will get my point, precisely.
Happy hunting, in whatever venue you choose..
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