Filipinos tend to be clannish. Could be a good thing or a bad depending on one's perspective
Intellectual =/= intelligence.
Intrapersonal intelligence: Philosophy, psychology and theology are often of interest to people with intrapersonal intelligence. They are quintessentially introspective.
Interpersonal intelligence: People with Interpersonal intelligence thrive with social interaction. They are enthusiastic and lively.
Intellectualism is mostly nonexistent here. Interpersonal intelligence is far more honed than anything (Phils being texting capital of the world).
A 145 IQ pinoy would rather crack jokes with you that discuss philosophy. Chances are you've met one, but wasn't able to tell. The so called intellectuals tend to parrot SJW/liberal talking points, not worth the time.
I'm sorry if that has been your experience; I myself have only 1 or 2 people that I can talk about deep stuff... but too much introspection leads to blackpilling which in turn causes me depression so I'd prefer someone I can have a laugh with.
I've been away from this forum for awhile and so I wanted to check in and say hello. I'm still in the Philippines as an American expat with my Filipina. We got a big house that she and my four stepdaughters are in love with. It is three tall stories and looks like a villa you might see in Italy. The house is leased and my expenses are strained now. An extremely wealthy friend of her family made this possible for us. The joke is that if he pulled out all of his money from the local bank, it would fail!
I have been craving good conversation and some intellectual thought since coming here. I developed a friendship with my partner's brother in law, who has a master's in education and is a public school teacher. The guy has worked overseas, speaks fluent English and has lots of fun stories about his misadventures as a "lady's man." He has a young son who often visits us. He and my partner's sister have a strained relationship, but they plan to fairly soon start on building their house. But they must first evict the family that is squatting on the land!
My partner has a small army of cousins, though most of them only have very basic educations and backgrounds. But they are still good men and I admire their bond with each other and their respect for their family. I have developed a good friendship with two of them, one a salesman at Home Depot, and the other a computer repair technician. I don't see them relocating to the west.
Something I've noticed and that they complain about, is that if you are a low or even mid level worker in the Philippines, pay tends to be very low. A blue collar worker in a trade who would do well in America, does not make that much over here. To my surprise, many of my partner's young cousins, though in their late twenties, are still single and childless, rather than married with kids. This seems to be both due to a lack of job earning power, and also because they seem gun-shy about the big responsibilities of family. They seem to enjoy meeting together after work, and drinking soda laced with liquor, as they talk about life or surf the net on their phones. The older and more successful cousins have generally married and have kids.
The cousins said they have a monthly tradition (pre-pandemic) of once a month going on a day hike together. Usually about a dozen guys, and I was invited. I love hiking and so I was delighted and accepted. It only took two years for this invitation to happen! Lol
Our family doctor seems to always enjoy seeing me, and discussed how one of his sister's is now married to an American and that they live in my home state. I'm nobody special but I feel a little bit like a minor celebrity in my area here. But in Manilla I'm just another visitor from America or Europe. My next door neighbor is a wealthy business owner who does not deign to speak with me, but instead looks at me and my family with a certain haughty disapproval. Supposedly, his house has been sold, and in a few months a family from either Taiwan or South Korea will be moving in (my Filipino spy was bad at remembering the details), which should be interesting. I'm rooting for Taiwanese so we can discuss the rising potential threat of China, while my four stepdaughters want Koreans, with basically the boy band BTS moving in! Lol
