Living in the Philippines

April 8, 2024

Getting History Straight

By David Haldane April 8, 2024 Ever since moving into our house overlooking the ocean in Northern Mindanao, I’ve believed the spot was […]

April 1, 2024

A Dead Man’s Cap

By David Haldane April 1, 2024 The closest I’ve ever been to a violent Filipino revolutionary was wearing his cap. It happened three years […]

March 26, 2024

Nailed to a Cross

By David Haldane March 24, 2024 I vividly remember the first time I ever set foot in a Catholic Church. I must […]

March 18, 2024

Digital Nomads

By David Haldane March 18, 2024 I should have been there. Billed as the Philippine’s first Digital Nomad Summit scheduled on Siargao Island last […]

February 26, 2024

Taking a Break for Heartbreak

By David Haldane Feb. 26, 2024 It was the worst night of my life. I had just learned that my (now-ex) Filipino wife had […]

February 11, 2024

A Late Reinvention

A true story of true love, no matter how truly unconventional The Manila Times Sunday Magazine 11 Feb 2024 BY DAVID HALDANE IT started […]

January 29, 2024

White Privilege

By David Haldane Jan. 29, 2024 It was an easy experiment with predictable results. First my Filipino sister-in-law entered the mall. As always, the […]

January 22, 2024

Eating Dogs

By David Haldane Jan. 22, 2024 I’ve never tasted it. Those who have say it’s like chicken. And to make it less bland, they […]

January 8, 2024

Sputtering Solar

By David Haldane Jan. 8, 2024 If only the sputtering would stop. It attacks suddenly, like an enemy soldier watching from a nearby bush. […]

November 9, 2023

Water

By David Haldane Nov. 9, 2023 I was lathered to the gills, about to step under the spigot, when the darned thing choked up. […]

October 26, 2023

Anxiety

By David Haldane October 26, 2023 I was having dinner with a Filipino friend at a Manila restaurant recently when he pulled out […]

September 7, 2023

Reverse Diaspora

By David Haldane Sept. 7, 2023 The videos made my stomach churn. They depicted water literally gushing down the streets, almost overturning cars. “Oh […]