*A series of potentially stupid mistakes*

Yesterday, I was at the Manila Airport, it was noon, I was leaving for Japan in 2 hours.  First mistake, I hadn’t notified my bank or credit cards that I was going to Japan.

I had to pay immigration fees because I didn’t extend my Philippines Visa a couple of times.   The cost was P6,820 ($148), and I had about P1,700 ($37) in my pocket.  So I went looking for an ATM.  I tried a couple with no luck, and I started getting very paranoid that I wouldn’t be able to get my money.   The 2nd one that I tried didn’t even accept a withdrawal of more than 5,000, so on the 3rd ATM I was trying to play it “safe” and I only withdrew 6,000 ($130) successfully (second mistake, I should’ve withdrawn the maximum P10,000 ($217)).

Then I’m walking back to pay the immigration bill, and I think “hey, I should withdraw some extra cash just in case I have ATM troubles in Japan”.  Then I think “Nah, I don’t want my bank to give me trouble because I withdrew a strange amount and then immediately withdrew another P10,000.”  Third mistake.

After getting a snack before the flight, I arrived in Osaka at 7pm with P720.  I converted that at the currency exchange for ¥1,021 ($11.50).

Then I went to the ATM and tried to withdraw more money.  On all 3 ATM machines.  So now I’m freaking out a little.  Only ¥1,021 in my pocket, not enough for a hotel, barely enough for a train ride.

I whipped out the laptop and got online at the airport.  I tried logging into my online banking, but nope, the card has been locked out. Getting worried now.  I only have one other credit card, and a MasterCard at that.

I picked up a brochure on budget hostels at the tourist desk, and recognized some of the hotels from my online research.  So I decided to go to one of the ones that accepted a credit card.  The hotels were all located in Shin-Imamyia, in the middle of Osaka.

So, I went to get a train ticket for ¥890 ($10).  Fourth mistake.

In retrospect, I should have gone to a hotel at the airport and determined if they actually accepted my credit card!

So now I’m on a train for a good 45 minutes, freaking out, with only ¥131 ($1.50) to my name.

I get off at Shin-Imamiya station around 8:30pm, and find my way towards the budget hotels.  I stopped in a random hotel first, and asked if they can take my MasterCard.  ”Yes, but you need ¥1000 security deposit, cash only.”  *UH OH*

So I leave that hotel and continue to the destination, and finally wind up at Hotel Toyo.  Fortunately for me, they accept the credit card, and used the old-fashioned slider to record the transaction.  With my luck, it might’ve been rejected if it was processed electronically.

I ended up in a japanese style room with wifi access.  I was beat, so I went to sleep, ready to contact my bank and credit card companies in the morning.  Woke up at 7:30AM and contacted them and let them know I was in Japan.  Finally, my stupid mistakes are erased, right?

But first, I had to actually withdraw the money from an ATM.  I tried 4 ATMs near the hotel without any luck.  On the 4th ATM.  I accidentally dropped my ¥100 coin and it rolled under a machine, and I wasn’t able to fetch it out.  I had enough money for a box of crackers or something filling, and it was gone. *GULP*

So I went back to the hotel and asked, and found out about a post office ATM that was 15 minutes walking away. I headed there, and tried the ATM there, as well as 4-5 others in the area.  Even one that clearly showed a Plus sign did not read my card!  I walked back to the hotel.  I started thinking I might need to go into a bank and ask them for help directly.

I took a break, got on the internet, and found out that the Post office is supposed to be the best place for “International Cards”.  So I headed there again.  Tried the bank card again.  Nope.  Tried the VISA card.  Finally, money in my pocket at 2PM.  Imminent hobo adventure averted.  *WHEW*

This applies when you are planning on flying into the Philippines without a visa. You automatically get a 21 day visa waiver, and you can extend it every 2 months up to 16 months. At which point you can restart the process by flying out and back.

Anyways, in order to fly into the Philippines, you need a return ticket or an onward ticket. Let’s assume we don’t know when we’re flying back, if ever, so we need a throw-away onward ticket to get into the country.

Just buy the cheapest ticket you can find. I found one for about $25 on airasia.com from Clark, Philippines to Kota Kinabalu, Indonesia.

Now the next question you should be asking is “What date do I buy it for?”. Well, there’s mostly contradictory information on the forums. Some people mistakenly believe that you need to have an onward ticket that flies out 21 days later. This is WRONG.

For flying on Cebupacific Air to the Philippines, they only require an onward ticket that can be up to a YEAR in the future! I am absolutely confident the other airlines accept onward tickets a year into the future.

So buy one $25 throw-away ticket, and keep it with you for a year. This saves you money because you can fly out to visit other countries and fly back without the extra expense of multiple-throw away tickets.

Note: Make sure to PRINT OUT THE TICKET. You need to show it when you check-in.

If you plan on going to Chongqing and you can’t speak Chinese, the Hilton Hotel is a great place to stay.  You will be greeted by a friendly staff that can speak English and served by many pleasant employees.  The hotel is clean and the service is great.  The rooms are also pretty good for the price.  It’s a 5 star hotel.  I was there a number of times so I got to know the staff including the managers.  I even knew a number of bands that played in their lounge that came from the Philippines as well. 

Some of the things you might not know about the Hilton Hotel in Chongqing is that they have a KTV bar downstairs that is also a brothel.  You go there, you sing, and there are girls that come to your room to entertain.  I was with my girlfriend there, so we didn’t stay long.  So, if you are interested in that type of thing, you know that it’s available at the Hilton Hotel in Chongqing. 

Another thing that was disturbing was the windows could actually open enough so that someone could fit through them at any level of the building.  Well, one night, someone actually jumped out of their window and landed just outside my friend’s window.  He was hurt, but was able to make it to the hospital to fully recover.  This is just a warning to be careful if you plan on staying overnight at the Hilton Hotel in Chongqing. 

Nightlife in Chongqing is something that is definitely fun and exciting when you first arrive.  Everything is new, all of the neon lights perform their own light shows, and you don’t know what to expect.  The bar scene in Chongqing is fun because there are a variety of bars you can try that have their own unique look and feel.  Foreigners are welcome to all of the bars.  There are even nights where foreigners can drink all they want for free.  The best part of going to the clubs is watching live bands play.  It’s nice to see the Chinese bands play, but they are no where as good as the bands from the Philippines.  They have the experience and talent to give a good performance.  You will find bands from the Philippines in hotels, bars, and even jazz clubs.  You don’t really know they are around until you go in and see.  Most of the hotels you can stay in that are international have a band from the Philippines.  These bands usually consist of a sequencer and two singers.  Sometimes the singers can play their own instruments, but there usually isn’t enough room for them to do that.  I’ve seen Filipino bands as big as six playing in a salsa bar.  The songs they sing are catchy, so it makes for an enjoyable night.