Thanks Ricky and Fred I have looked at Makati as one of my places to definitely visit however I am worried about the city hustle and bustle there and yes Ricky I will definitely be spending a year no matter where before committing myself financially to any one place Fred I understand what you are saying about not liking a place in this instance for you its Cebu, I hate Paris and will avoid it like the plague if at all possible I cant put my finger on why? just the general feel and that from the very first day I went there many years ago, but for the moment Cebu seems to be centralized from where I can explore and ticks most of my boxes in the interim.