Originally Posted by
joroco
In some ways my own story is similar. Met girlfriend on internet, visited a few weeks later, saw how poor her family were, offered financial assistance. Then, after I returned my gf (now wife) asked for 100,000 pesos so papa could buy a multi-cab, and told me it costs 150,000. So I did, but he has been able to work ever since. He later told me he paid 90,000 for it!!
Likewise, bought a house, and have been paying the bills ever since, about 3,000 a month, plus another 7,000 to live on. But that is only the theory because every month there has been a problem, the cost of rice has doubled, the cost of fuel has risen by 40%, and so and so on.
I dare say many other foreigners have similar stories. It's not cheap, but the best advice is to avoid girls who continually ask for money right from the start of a relationship. I blocked half a dozen of them on the internet before I met Cristina. Most of us are willing to spend money not just on our partner, but the family too. But we all have different financial circumstances, and the family has to understand that. Too many filipinos see the West as a pot of honey where we are all rich, like the people they see in movies etc. Many fail to appreciate the cost of living in the UK. For example, many rent plots for a few hundred pesos a month and build their own house, while here, my mortgage is over 100,000 pesos a month.
I think as long as you let them know where you stand they will listen and understand.
By the way, I almost forgot to mention, Cristina has her visa at last!! She got a call from the embassy and sent her passport there two weeks ago. They were going to send it back by courier, but last time that happened (with the visa refusal), it took so long it made us late for her appeal. So she flew this week to Manila to collect it along with her CFO stamp (UK acclimatisation course). And she will be here on the 22nd August. So we're both happy as larry right now!