I agree with all you have said Terpe. I visited Butuan 9 times in three years and a few more places in Mindanao, felt very comfortable there and made quite a few friends. That is why my plans are to retire there. You just have to get used to their way of life and show respect to people and they will respect you back.

There are some horror stories that come out of the Philippines, but you can find that here too - just open any paper here or watch the news. You can just as easily get killed or robbed here - in fact it is getting worse here. And like you mentioned, there is not half as much stress in the Philippines as living in the UK, personally speaking.