If you have to use a taxi to get up to the embassy Sean, make a point of paying a bit extra and asking the taxi to hang around for you as it's the back of beyond and really hard to get another taxi to take you back down to the Paranaque/Pasay area. If you take a look at that embassy link you can see Upper McKinley Road, the problem is there is no way to get across the main C5 highway near the top right of the map and Upper McKinley Road does not get a lot of traffic. I'll need to get those contact details for Dhren, can't find them anywhere. Also if you zoom out a bit from the embassy you will see one of the major war memorials the Manila American Cemetery, as a tourist I would love to have visited there but I've never gotten round to it, you might fancy seeing it, the entrance is up at the roundabout that Old Lawton Ave runs up too, you would not want to do it on foot.
I have my appointment at the Embassy at 9am, so when I get out I plan to give a quick tour of the US cemetary you mentioned. Seen a few pictures on Flickr of it on a nice sunny day and I would like to see it. I'm guessing to get there for 9am I really need to plan on getting there for 8.30am If I don't have a lift sorted I will give Dhren a call... Thanks
Given that the sun rises at about 5am, I think I will be wide awake and getting ready at around 6am. I don't think there will be a problem and just in case I will set an alarm.
I always take a UK mains stripblock with room for 5 plugs to slot in. I put a Filipino plug on the end of it when I get there. I have one with a 3m x 3 core cable so the stripblock can lay easily on the floor or hang somewhere safe if there is a chance of any water getting in. This way all UK plugs fit into it and no need to buy loads of travel plugs I also carry a small white Filipino 3 pin adapter that you can easily buy in the hardware stores. Essential.
Many years ago I took over a few UK strip blocks to make life easier for me when I was there, but I also found it is pretty easy to buy strip blocks over there that accommodate everything in one device, not as reliable or safe as ours though. The best thing especially for computers and camera chargers and so on is to get the native Philippines cable over there, for example kettle plug on one end and Philippine standard wall plug on the other, a lot less messing around But yes the small white Philippines adapter cubes are absolutely essential too. Sean has a lot of stuff committed to his baggage allowance already and it all adds weight but of course it's a hassle first day you arrive if you don't have access to power for your gadgets, tricky choice, easier when you have extra baggage allowance not so easy if you don't.
Yeah, I think I will be using a Filipino adapter, though thinking of surges and what not perhaps I should only use my laptop when it is running off of its own battery life? Letting it charge whilst switched off???
Given that Li-Ion batteries can catch fire, I think I would probably want to be near the laptop, should it catch fire - more chance of putting out the fire before it causes real damage. You could also use extension leads with surge protection, such as the one below and fit a Philippines plug on the lead... http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/...m=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE&pf_rd_r=0XD7RH9EEARDSTSV0Y8H
I think it is something inherent in the manufacturing process, rather than a particular manufacturer. Dell, Toshiba and Lenovo are three laptop manufacturers I know of that have had Li-Ion battery recalls. When I wanted to send a kiddies laptop to the Philippines this Xmas, DHL initially refused, unless the battery was removed - they assumed it had Li-Ion batteries, but it only used Alkaline batteries. I think it should be safe to send Li-Ion batteries through the post if the are fully discharged, but I think courier companies (such as DHL) may still want to see the battery separate to the unit that it powers. DHL do seem happy to transport items (such as Amazon Kindle) which do not have an easily removable battery; in that instance, I would definitely ensure the battery was discharged. DHL would also only allow one Li-Ion battery per package, but accepted my package which contained both an Amazon Kindle (fixed battery) and a mobile phone (removable battery) as longs as the mobile phone battery was not left in the phone.
Not sure I would worry too much about that, brown outs are a regular thing over there and our computer has survived them all for 6 years since the last time I upgraded it. Plus I suspect that your power adapter transformer will offer some small amount of protection (within reason).
All Lithium ion batteries are potentially dangerous Dom, Lithium is a highly reactive metal, like Sodium, drop some in some water and watch it fizzle, not quite as much as Sodium but it will sizzle round and eventually ignite the hydrogen it generates. As Howerd says they have all had battery recalls at some point, but I would trust a manufacturers battery over a cheap after market one every time, just a damn shame that the manufacturer ones cost an arm and a leg
Bring the Thread Back on Track... Here is the latest information from the British Embassy in the Philippines on applying for a CNI acceptable to the Philippines Authorities... http://uk.sitestat.com/fcoweb/uking.../resources/en/word/consular/2010/cni-2011-sep (open in Word or compatible word processor)
Sean, two months is easily enough time to get married. I checked and we got married 39 days after arriving and had 11 days relaxing before I flew back to the UK.
I only had 3 weeks to do the deed in... Everything was organized from the start.... the first 10 days were hectic, but then it eased off, just before the wedding. It can be done, if one is prepared to do online legwork, and the mrs is willing to run around doing the various errands, book.. Pay deposits, get the dresses organized, barongs Tagalog, buttonholes, favours... blah, blah, blah.......
I will be spending 2 weeks in Manila, then onto Mindanao to sort everything else out, possibly via Cebu.. Followed by a final trip to Cebu before heading back to Manila. And with luck I will see Bohol at some point!
