Har,har.har...It has indeed gone viral, to the suprise of the blogger no less! Na mentioned pa nga ni Mo Twister. Not suprising from where the comments came from. Dinelete yung obviouly galing sa mga JOLOGS!

Update 12th October 2011:

This post seems to have gone viral. I've had nearly 500 comments.... most still unreviewed because I read EACH ONE before accepting them. Please bear with me.

[size=2]I delete ONLY the incoherent, wholly illiterate and actually defamatory or gratuitously insulting - they are often funny, but say more about the writer than than my post - no Anonymous, I'm not a "racist faggot" and I do use my real name, LoL. However one or two are included so you can see what I mean. These insults represent about 1% of the comments, the majority of which, even when they disagree with me, are rational. Thanks for that.[/size]

I even got one comment from George Clooney (really?) - he apparently didn't get the bow to his excellent TV advert for Nescafe.... mmmh...... was it really from you George? If so, please verify and I'll publish it. I suspect someone of your eminence wouldn't bother to comment on a casual blog like this, and would also have understood the respect shown by the post. Whoever that was using his name in vain, lighten up!

I'm happy if people criticise coherently; I might (and have) learned some things. Bring it on. This blog is NOT politically correct and will never be; it is an honest reflection of my opinions...... whatever they are worth. Post your comments in similar vein and I'll publish them.

The text of the post below is unchanged, but I want to say this about my experience of the Philippines overall: I've worked there off and on since 1991. I've visited almost every part of the country, including NPA territory and Islamic parts of Mindanao. I've eaten rice with people so poor this is all they have to offer and hiked through places like Aurora. So I probably know the place fairly well, I suspect. As someone says, it is a hugely diverse country, beautiful in places, but with astounding poverty compared with many of its neighbours. I've enjoyed almost all my time there - but I DID NOT ENJOY THIS VISIT nor the Discovery Suites, and this blog reviews specific visits and my experience of them.

People have written about the good things in Manila - folks,[size=2] Makati and Greenbelt are about as representative of Manila and the Philippines as Silom Road is of Bangkok and Thailand.[/size] I've visited every part of Manila, so please don't kid me.

Specifics: NAIA Terminal 3 is NOT open except to very few international flights and some domestic. It's been in this position for YEARS and is an absolute example of the failure of the government to deal with critical problems.

Discovery Suites: I kept going back because it was always good value - duh! It no longer is good value, and I won't go back. By the way, I've stayed at the EDSA Plaza and I've stayed at the Peninsular.... in fact I've stayed all over the city. DS was good and convenient. Pity.

Racist? Ha ha! LoL I'm actually married to an Asian and have lived in Asia for well over 20 years - love it. But Asians are the most racist folk in the world - ask a Thai their opinion on Indians (khon kak - don't ask for a literal translation) and they call me "farang", which isn't so polite..... or the Chinese what they think of all the rest of the world......I'm a Big Nose (dai bize)......or in Japan a "gaijin"......like, whatever. I am indeed culturally aware and critical...... yes, opinionated. By the way, lots of folk detest Brits... so what? Get real and get over it.

Sorry if Filipinos are insulted, that wasn't my intention - but this is what I felt at the time of my visit and my OPINION, not "the truth"........