MARCH 2004

I'd like to thank all the readers that sent me messages wishing me a quick recovery from my operation but it was postponed because it was discovered that I had a lung infection that had to be cleared up first.  Now, in a few minutes I will be heading for the hospital for admittance and a second try in getting the procedure.  I regret that I was not able to get this column finished as I have had a splitting headache for a number of days and it is bad this morning, so much so that I just can't finish before heading out to PIH. 

SEEKING JUSTICE - A SLOW PROCESS

In past columns I have mentioned the murder of Steven Davis and the ongoing efforts by his mother to seek justice by having those involved arrested and prosecuted.  It has taken time and money but the latest information sent to me by Margaret Davis indicates that progress is being made.  I only wish that someone could have done the same for Owen Dolan but maybe we will get to see a small victory over a justice system here in the Philippines that could care less about solving a murder case when a foreigner is the victim.

"Hello, I do so hope your surgery went well, and everything still functions!

At last I can tell you that Stevens wife Evelyn Davis has a warrant of arrest out for her. She is charged with conspiracy to murder. It has taken over 18 months and £40.000 pounds to achieve this. Very soon justice will be done. Can I thank you sincerely from the bottom of my heart for your interest and kind words throughout this tragic event. I will send you all my thoughts and the whole story when I feel I can do. For now we are just hoping and praying she gets what she deserves. I enclose a picture of her to use if they haven't found her by the time your next post goes out. Maybe, just maybe, someone will recognize her around town. Once again thank you so very much."

TIDBITS

The picture of the Miss Australian Day Fiesta contest, Jenny, generated a lot of interest for the "special" picture I did not print.  I was happy to accommodate the many requests received and hope that when in town you folks remember to stop by Honey Ko's bar and let the lovely lady know that you enjoyed her picture.

The Judges

By the way, one of the judges at the Miss Australia Day contest was a bit disappointed that I did not include his picture since, in the past, he has avoided my camera.  It just so happens that I was so pleased with the pictures of Jenny that I omitted this particular photo but will include it now.  The judges did work hard and did a fine job, especially since they were asked to help at the last minute.  Priscilla the Horse was one of the judges so naturally, I agreed with her selections.  The lone male, John R. represented the male analysis and I have no idea who the third judge in the middle was.  All three judges appeared to have worked well together and there was very little spread in the voting between the three of them.  Well done judges, please excuse this one month delay in recognizing your fine contribution to the success of the beauty contest. 

Hidden Vale Sports Resort appears to be on track to improve their facility and be able to offer new memberships in the near future.  They recently hosted a very successful open house that was well attended.  There remains many original members that have been hedging their bets to see how things are progressing and have not paid their dues for many months.  The grace period for paying past dues has been extended a number of times but 15 Mar 04 will be the final date to pay back dues.  After this date, those in arrears will be dropped as members.  New memberships, when offered will be considerably higher than the original offerings.

In a previous column last year I had written that I was not all that impressed with the Korean run Club Amore and I felt that the management was not very friendly towards its customers.  Since then I have noticed a few comments on the various message boards that led me to believe that my initial feelings were close to the mark.  Last month one lad posted an experience that he went through when he took a lady out for the evening from that club and experienced a disappearing act from the lady.  He made a couple of mistakes, the main one being that the girl talked him into getting her girlfriend out of a different bar and that is not always such a good idea.  His final words of a pretty detailed report summed up what is not a rare occurrence at Club Amore in that he wrote "So I got screwed and got hella to much runaround after I was sure that AC had an honorable refund policy for runaways. Guess it was my fault for letting her out of my sight. Oh, but the hottie from Blue Nile made up for that."  Now, I was surprised to read that he thought that there was an honorable refund policy for "runaways" as this is applicable in only a few clubs in town and then only if you can talk to someone higher up then the Mamasans.  It was good to read though, that he bounced back after a visit to the Blue Nile, one of those clubs in town that does look after its customers.

Slowly but surely the wheels of justice are turning in the right direction in the case of the Steven Davis murder.  I am more than happy to share the following words from his mother in England who has worked so hard to get this far.  By the way, she was advised by the English Counsel not to visit the Philippines because Evelyn might try to charge her with abduction of the children and also, her life might be in danger.

The wife ( suspect)

To our dearest friends,

  We are delighted to be able to tell you that Stevens wife Evelyn is now in residence in Manilla City Jail having been arrested at 13.02 GMT today. The way we feel is truly difficult to describe at this precise moment............

Alan, Margaret

"Well, we got her Harry. She was arrested in Bataan today whilst in hiding with yet another boyfriend, At last we are seeing justice working, after 18 months of pushing and paying! We have been told she will get a minimum of a life sentence with no chance of parole. The likelihood is that she will get two life sentences or the death penalty;   Either way she will get what she deserves. It doesn't bring Steven back, but maybe, just maybe it will make people think before doing such evil things. We were always going to get her, no question about that. Many thanks for your support. The children continue to thrive here.

Margaret and Alan Davis

Class Studies

Would you believe that the Bahay Bata Children's Center rugby team was invited to the Alabang Country Club in Manila last 14 Feb to compete in a youth rugby tournament and they emerged as the champions?  What a proud bunch of boys they were and these are lads that did not know what rugby was when they were abandoned on the streets of Angeles City not too many months ago.  Thanks to the facilities offered at the Hidden Vale Sports Club and the many dedicated hours of coaching by Sports Director, Damien, a fine boy's team was developed.  This was their taste of competition and all who saw them perform were surprised and very impressed.  Folks, whenever you visit Angeles City please take the time to visit this Children's Center and don't worry about how to get there, contact me, at the Hotel Las Casa or Mark Smith at the Road House and we will be glad to get you out there.  The boys love to see visitors and we need your support to keep this worthwhile project going.  Any donation is appreciated, whether it is money, clothes, books, toiletries, non-prescriptions medicines or just your time. 

The Center

Oh dear, me out of whack?  No way, as I did not write that comment about the peso because I never get that deeply into economics.  But, reader John R. went to the trouble to write in his observations so deserves a bit of space here.  Could this be an item for debate? 

"In your article regarding the Peso devaluation your data was out of whack. I returned to the Philippines in Jan of '97 when the peso was still at 26 to the dollar. It wasn't until September of '97 when the peso started to slide with other SEA currencies. The peso briefly dropped to a low of 55.10 to the dollar in '97 and the bars in A.C. took advantage
of this to screw the customers and doubled Barfine and drink prices. Although the peso recovered almost overnight to 39 to the dollar the bars never reduced prices. In '98 the peso continued to slip to the point where it is today."

How quickly a year passes!  Last Feb 18^th Mark Smith celebrated another birthday and I was able to get a photo of him and girlie together.  Girlie has worked with Mark for 14 years, two in Manila and 12 in Angeles City and their combined efforts have made the Roadhouse one of the better run establishments on Fields Ave.   The only reason Mark does not show any signs of aging is because of Jack Daniels and it was a pleasure to buy him my one annual drink.  See you next year Mark!  Congrats.

Someone wrote and told me to check out the Blue Fox as they were supposed to have a bunch of new ladies that moved over from Bahama Mama's.  I must have picked the wrong night as there were not that many dancers on stage, only two customers in attendance, two of the dancers were fat and the cashier was busy eating a bowl of noodles.  I left, feeling a bit disappointed but then I saw pictures on the message board of a whole bunch of ladies on stage having fun and I am now confused.  The comments on the board were favorable and the pictures looked great so where the hell were they the night I went in?  For sure, I will return for another look and if I find those ladies that were hiding from me I will get a few pictures for next month.  By the way folks, try not to complain about people smoking in the bars here as so far, the mickey mouse rules they are imposing in the States does not apply here and any loud complaints will be met with a bunch of guys lighting up, even those who don't smoke and quite possibly the owner handing out cigars.  I recognize the perils of second hand smoke and I am happy that I do not smoke, it is a nasty habit but in this town, a wise man does not even suggest that a customer put out his cigarette.  Some ventilation systems are not as good as others so if the smoke gets too heavy for you, just finish your drink, smile, exit the place and gulp up some fresh air.

It used to be the Meat Co., located next to the Stampede and it enjoyed a bit of good business for quite a while but lately had fallen on hard times.  Now, ole toothless Jerry of Jerry's Café fame is turning it into a girlie bar.  Just what Stampede needs, a girlie bar right next to them right after they renovated the place and went with the girls as well.  Maybe they will compliment each other and one wonders what new innovations Jerry will come up with for his bar.  He is famous for offering food at very reasonable prices, will this policy extend to his ladies as well?  Should be interesting!

TAPS to be played for favorite son, Don Jones who passed away in his sleep 19 Feb.  Don was a first class gentlemen who liked a bit of a drink and the occasional company of a lovely lady.  His favorite place to hold court was Roy's Bar and a wake was held there for him last 25 Feb.  A huge gathering of friends were in attendance and if Don was watching, no doubt he would break out in his impish smile and say "well done Mates, I'll owe you a drink when you get to join me in a few years". 

One can never be too careful when entertaining a lady that works in a bar.  So often, everything goes OK but there are those that are out to grab a quick buck from an innocent victim.  Such was the case last month when a Japanese tourist that has been coming to Angeles City for 15 years without any problems was beset by a blackmail scam.  This gentlemen had reached an agreement with a lady in that she agreed to stay overnight with him (gosh, it is hard to get around the "no-no" word) and while she was resting he continued to do a bit of barhopping.  Around 0200 he returned to his hotel and the lady left between 0600-0700 hrs but returned later with the police.  Oh dear, surprise, surprise, she was claiming rape.  This lady put on a show of hysterical crying, yelling, falling down while at the police station that I thought she was auditioning for a TV show.  She had a co-worker that was holding and consoling her all the time.  To make a long story short, she agreed to drop charges for P50, 000 but accepted a compromise payoff of P20, 000.  When she and her friend went back to her place of employment and was questioned there by the Mamasan and owner, her sympathetic friend admitted that it was all a blackmail scam dreamed up by the friend.  They were both fired, of course, but the friend did not care as she uttered her parting words of "I don't care that you fired me, I have all the money!"  What is the lesson here?  Hell, I don't know other than to try and be very careful who you end up with after a night on the town.  In this case the customer did everything right, he asked the right questions, coordinated with management prior to leaving the bar but still ended up being a victim.

As I write this column the peso rate is P56.20 to the dollar and that is a darn good rate.  Presently, your dollars will go a lot further here than in Thailand and I suspect the rate will depreciate more as we get closer to election time.  I have heard that the Thai government is getting ready to make the bars close down at midnight but I have not been able to confirm that.  Does this mean that more tourists will be coming to Angeles City for fun and games, maybe?  It is hard to tell, but think about it.  I admit that there is more to do and see in Thailand, especially, culturally, and what computer nerd can pass up the PonTip (sp?) computer/software giant of a store in Bangkok but I have always felt that to completely enjoy a holiday in this part of the world, try to do both places, Thailand and Philippines.  I do not want to get into a pissing contest as to which place is better than the other, as I like them both.  Since I live and do business here in Angeles City, of course I am going to promote this destination but being a realist, I accept that Thailand is also a good draw.  My choice - do both then enjoy, enjoy, and enjoy some more then go home to work and save up some more money for your next visit.  Anyone who has not been here to Angeles City or to Bangkok/Pattaya has no idea what they are missing.  One word of advice though, when visiting either destination, please do not leave your "common sense" home, be careful, be happy and be safe! 

Here's a new concept. Mo has leased Treasure Island/Buccaneer to his former manager. Troy's taken over the entire operation and Mo will stay involved in helping out when needed. TI recently hired longtime AC mamasan, Mommy Rose. She worked for Mo at Lollipop and came over in late January bringing quite a few of her 'girls'. TI will continue to host their SOBs and the Aftermath party. Word is that Mo will offer a similar lease plan for Kokomo's.

Lollipop has re-opened. It's now a terrace bar located above the entrance to Kokomo's. They have several GROs. Food is available from Kokomo's and drinks are the same price as Kokomo's. Ladies drinks are P80. A Monday evening darts tournament has been started as well.

FOOT ZONE SPA

Recently I wrote about the new Spa located on the second floor of the Casino Filipino - Angeles.  A visitor to Angeles City, Michael Spradley, from Texas, on my recommendation gave it a try.  His comments are provided below.  For a reservation call 625-7838.  Believe me, I do not get any commissions from these folks but for those who want a serious foot or body massage can't go wrong with the treatment provided at the Foot Zone.

"Harry, it was great to meet you and I'm glad we had a chance to talk a couple of times.  I did follow up on your tip about the new spa and made an appointment for the next day.  Had a great massage! I've had many massages but that's the first time I've experienced the oriental girl walking on my back routine. I hope that place does well."

BODY TUNE

Priscilla the Horse, my lovely wife, (should get points for this) bought me a gift certificate for a massage at the Body Tune (The Traditional Thai Massage) located in SM Mall in San Fernando for a Valentine's gift.  Last week she finally got me motivated to go and while she shopped I submitted myself for the massage.  I elected the aroma therapy massage for one hour which includes the full body massage, shower & sauna.  It was fantastic!  I loved the sauna, they call it sauna but it was really a steam room and the shower afterwards.  The one hour body massage starts after the steam room which is for 15 minutes, quite long enough.  The price was P600, two hours would cost P1,100.  They have a full menu of various types of massage and body treatments but the list is too long to publish here.  While I was there other men were being treated but no women at that time.  I enjoyed the time and the massage, met Priscilla afterwards for lunch, then saw the movie Cold Mountain (great flick) and thought it was one fun day.  So, guys, if your lady is bugging you to take her shopping at SM, go, give her some money to shop and take the time to get your massage.  Now, I spent five years in Thailand and had many, many massages but they were a bit different than those offered here.  I doubt that Priscilla would have bought me the type of massage I used to get in Thailand but my sore bones were grateful for the soothing massage provided at Body Tune, even the piped in music was soothing.  For reservations call 045-961-6389.

US VETERAN INFORMATION

The following information applicable to US citizens here in the Philippines was forwarded to me by the local DAV office.  It is good information and should be shared with as many folks as possible:

Manila, Feb. 10 -- The United States Embassy is pleased to announce the new Electronic Visa Application Form (EVAF) for non-immigrant travelers to the United States. Designed to speed visa processing by automating data entry at the Embassy, the EVAF will be required for use by all nonimmigrant visa applicants beginning April 12, 2004. The new form must be completed on the Internet and then printed out and submitted to the Embassy in person. We encourage visa applicants to use the form prior to the mandatory date for its use.

The EVAF is an electronic form available at <http://evisaforms.state.gov/> that will make non-immigrant visa processing more efficient for both visa applicants and consular sections. Applicants will complete the DS-156 Nonimmigrant Visa Application online, print the form and a barcode page, and bring these papers along with a completed DS-157 Supplemental Nonimmigrant Visa Application form to the Embassy for their interview. Embassy personnel will scan the barcode to place the information in the computer system. This is similar to price scanners found at checkout counters in grocery stores. The Embassy does not retain or make any other use of data entered on the EVAF. Once an applicant exits the EVAF site, any data entered is no longer available to the applicant, nor is it retained in any database.

Although the U.S. Department of State only recently launched this initiative, the electronic visa application form (EVAF) has already proven to be an effective and popular tool. Already, almost 5% of all applications worldwide are submitted via EVAF, with a much higher proportion at several posts, such as Milan (98%), Osaka/Kobe (77%) and London (53%). In the Philippines, seafaring applicants have already been using the EVAF form successfully for several months.

Effective April 12, 2004, all nonimmigrant visa applications submitted by Philippine residents will be accepted only in the EVAF format. After the deadline, hand-written and typed nonimmigrant visa applications will no longer be accepted from Philippine residents of any nationality.

The U.S. Embassy in Manila encourages visa applicants to benefit from this very efficient and user-friendly form. Please note that only the DS-156 standard application can be completed using EVAF. Applicants must complete the required DS-157 by hand after paying the visa fee at a designated branch of the Bank of the Philippine Islands or Citibank. The DS-157 is then attached to the electronic visa application form and barcode page along with any other supplemental forms. After completing the EVAF and DS-157 (with MRV fee validation at the back), applicants may call the call center to proceed with their nonimmigrant visa application.

PHILIPPINE INTERNATIONAL HOSPITAL (PIH)

Last month I received a message from John Cummings, Margarita Station, who I have the utmost respect for and value his advice and criticisms from time to time.  He asked how I could support the PIH, especially since he had just gone through a horror story with them.  I replied that I had no problem supporting PIH and that like any facility that deals with the public, one must deal with complaints as well as compliments.  I was concerned about the "horror story" part of his message though and when someone forwarded me his comments posted in his newsletter I was concerned and went to visit the PIH Administrator, Jack McDonald who I have found to be very cooperative in answering any questions I might have about the PIH.  After Jack looked into the incident that John was referring to, I was given a full explanation and I recommended that Jack send a detailed letter to John and if possible, could he forward me a copy so I could include it here.  One very valuable bit of information came out of all this that is applicable to anyone residing in the Philippines that has a "Willmaker" or as is often called, a living will where instructions are given that an individual does not want to be kept on life support.  I was not aware that in the Philippines the law requires that a patient be "brain dead" before the plug is pulled and to do otherwise is nearly impossible.  It appears that the only way around this is avoid being on life support because once on that system the law must be followed.  If life support is started then to get off it one must seek discharge from the hospital and then if necessary, be readmitted or transferred to another hospital for maintenance without life support being started.  This information is making me look a bit harder at what I have to do to avoid the type of incident as described below.  I think the answer to JC is comprehensive and should answer any questions anyone who read John's newsletter might have.  I will stress, again, that Mr. McDonald is always available to answer any questions, or complaints about PIH.  If there are any errors in procedures, corrective action will be taken.  Remember, this is a new hospital and many of the staff are used to the Philippine way of doing business and adjusting to a Stateside standard takes a bit of training.

"JC, we have never met.  This is Jack McDonald of the Philippine International Hospital.  I laud your effort in encouraging the expats including retirees to get their affairs in order.  Nothing is more frustrating than attempting to help a widow or family when the deceased has done little or nothing to prepare for the inevitable.  I also appreciate the efforts of your employees to provide assistance to someone they didnt even know.

In your previous newsletter you cited several cases which we were unable to address because we could not identify them.  However, for this specific case you cited in your newsletter of 2/7, Id like to give you the facts from the Philippine International Hospital perspective.

It is our policy for emergency care to treat the patient regardless.  If the patient cannot expect to pay his bill here, he or she will still be treated and stabilized.  Once that situation has been reached, they will be transported to their hospital of choice.  We do not and did not ask for a cash deposit of P50,000.  As standard business practice the patient or assistant normally signs a statement acknowledging their obligation to pay.

WillMaker is tailored to the laws of each State in the US.  It does not contain requirements unique to any country outside the US, but uses the specific requirements of the State of residence.  Therefore, we try to follow such a document to the best of our ability but must remain within the laws and Department of Health regulations and protocols of the Philippines.  As I explained to the sister in Washington and to Aida and Mort, the local protocol requires that a physician and a neurologist diagnose the patient as irreversibly brain dead in order to disconnect life support systems at the request of the family.  That is in accordance with the Philippine Neurological Association standard practice.  Since this patient was not in that condition and was in fact showing some improvement (urine output, stable vital signs and brain stem activity), the only alternative was to discharge the patient at the request of the Next of Kin against medical advice, and this is what we did in this case.

The patient was immediately admitted to the ICU on January 16 with subsequent diagnoses of acute renal failure with hyperkalemia (potassium excess), chronic liver disease, acute respiratory failure, multiple organ failure, diabetes, and hypothyroidism (subnormal activity of the thyroid).  The only operation our staff performed during the entire period of confinement was insertion of a catheter for dialysis.  As we usually do for private patients being admitted, we asked for and received our standard P10,000 admission fee.  This is then deducted from the total bill.  Two days later on Sunday, Aida voluntarily paid P50,000 in cash.  This payment was also deducted from the initial bill.

The request to Aida to obtain medicines not available here was a serious error by our staff.  Our hospital policy is to obtain such medication for the patient if it is not available in our pharmacy.  If we dont have it, we get it.  (For outpatients if we dont have it, we will get it and deliver it to their home.)  Hopefully we will not make this mistake again.  Of note, I reimbursed Aida for those monies and added that amount to the hospital bill.

Here is the sequence of events which you described as a roller coaster.  The sister contacted our Finance and Billing Office on Thursday, 1/22. During the conversation she indicated her desire to remove the patient from life support.  She provided an e-mail address, and I personally responded the next day, attaching the attending physicians written diagnosis.  I said I would forward to her the medical protocol as soon as I received it from our medico-legal expert.  On Saturday I received that information by text, left my family at a childs birthday party, and returned to my office and sent to her an e-mail listing the requirements for a written waiver.  I also indicated I would provide the required diagnosis by our neurologist.  On Sunday I provided that information and one additional statement required in the waiver.

Later Sunday night I received her first response, and she indicated that she would send via FedEx the patients Health Care Directive (Living Will) and Durable Power of Attorney.  She also sent a copy of her passport.  FedEx told her that it would arrive on Monday, but I assume they meant Monday her time as the documents arrived Tuesday via your business office.  The patients desires were clear based on the State of Washington laws and he designated his sister as his agent.  However, she did not include the written direction including the information I had requested.  Later that same day I sent her a draft letter to sign for that purpose via e-mail.  Incidentally, I have no problem with the Yahoo e-mail address that I made to separate hospital business from my personal e-mail account.  Its not clear to me why that is an issue with you.  I also have no idea what the problem was with her sending the document to us by fax, as our machines have been operating and receiving continually.  When her signed letter was received subsequently as an e-mail attachment early Wednesday evening, we still had the issue of the doctors diagnosis.  The two doctors said that ethically they could not make the diagnosis of brain dead.  Since we were now at an impasse, I provided to the sister for her signature a draft letter request to discharge the patient against medical advice.  That was all explained to Aida, Mort and the girlfriend.  When that document was received from the sister late Thursday afternoon, we discharged the patient within two hours.  Since Aida was not available, the girlfriend signed a promissory note for the balance.

The original plan was to send the patient to his home.  However, Aida and the girlfriend did not feel they could cope with that situation at home, so found a local hospital with an available private room.  They told me that their intention was to transport and admit the patient there, where he would not be connected to life support.  From time of discharge about 5:30 PM Thursday 1/29, we received no other communication other than payment of the final bill on 2/3.

Regarding your comment about the cost, note that his entire stay was spent in the ICU  with use of oxygen, respirators, heart monitors, dialysis, and nebulization and attendance by nine physicians.  The initial bill was paid on 2/28.  This was compiled at Aidas request in somewhat of a hurry.  We did not have time to check the patients chart to determine all the expenses.  Thus the final bill for one day also included some items that were for the entire period of confinement, including respirator and heart monitor usage.  The remainder of the final days bill was not out of line with the previous days.  Also you did not mention that I discounted the final bill that they paid by over 15%, even though Aida had a check for the original amount.

Our doctors also take issue with your statement that the patient was seldom visited and that no procedures were performed during that time last day.  The primary physicians checked the patient two or three times each day for the entire time of confinement, and were frequently consulted by phone, including the last day.  The patient was on continuous dialysis until discharge.

It is not appropriate for me to discuss what occurred after discharge from this facility.

Can we do it better next time?  Most assuredly, as this was a first for us.  However, one must consider the necessity to correspond and obtain written direction from the Next of Kin overseas.  Based on this, all reasonable haste was used.

Please forward this information to the addressees of your newsletter.  I would be happy to discuss any of this with you in person at your convenience.  I can be reached at 625-6401 Ext 111."

John J. McDonald, Jr. (Jack)

Administrator
Philippine International Hospital

WHY I USE PIH

It is not just Harry the Horse that will stand up for Health Visions and PIH but many other people in town as well.  Many of the readers of this column know Mo, the man behind Kokomo's and this is what he writes:

There's no question in my mind where I'd go - PIH. There's a serious difference between price and cost and nowhere is that difference more important than in health care - especially if it's you or someone you care about. I've worked in every major hospital in the Philippines and many in Thailand, Singapore, Hong Kong and Malaysia. PIH can't compete with the likes of St. Luke's, Makati Medical Center, Doctor's Hospital or Medical City in Manila. It was not designed to. It's a 1st class regional HOSPITAL.

They don't even use the words 'medical center' to describe themselves.

The things that strike me about it:

1. It's clean. No, IT'S SPOTLESS! Even some of the institutions mentioned above can't make that claim.

2. Equipment. They are fully equipped with CT, MRI, Ultrasound (Doppler), C-Arm angio, conventional X-ray, top laboratory facilities, new surgical suites, state of the art ICU and a brand new central supply (sterilization facility).

3. Staff. I've met several of their attending staff and all are well trained. BTW, many are on the staff of AUF, AMC and Mt. Carmel (the other good hospitals in the area). Many have received post graduate training abroad. The nurses are as professional as any I've met in the region.

4. Location. In a life threatening situation, you want to get there as quickly as possible. Even if price is an issue, the extra 20 minutes it takes to get to AUF or 40 minutes to Mt. Carmel will seem like a lifetime. And that's exactly what it might turn into.

5. Management. The hospital is run by a top group of professional managers. The have 3 foreigners who control the operation. As you can see from Jack McDonald's reply to JC, they know their stuff, are not afraid to admit when they make a mistake and are totally committed to providing the best health care possible.

BAMBINO'S ITALIAN RESTAURANT

Terrific deserts

A new Italian restaurant on Perimeter Road (near Jerry's Café) opened its door to the public last month, named Bambino's Ristorante, open from 1100 to 2300 hrs daily.  They serve lunch and dinner and feature a very extensive menu.  Four or five specials a day are offered and they change every day at a cost of from two to three hundred pesos.  The owners are from the East Coast of the US, Guido, from Seaford, Long Island and Sal from New Jersey and both of them have, for many years, dreamed of opening their own restaurant and now, in Angeles City, that dream is a reality.  Friends for 28 years they married Filipinas, a wise choice, and both wives join in to help make the business work.  They make their own dough and bake fresh bread every day, as well as offering some fantastic looking cakes and pies.  Naturally the menu is Italian, the décor is Italian and the pizza offerings have that East Coast taste, especially their specialty, the Sicilian Pizza which is rectangle rather than round and prepared New York style.  I won't get into details on food preparation and what is good and what is not for everyone has their own idea of how certain foods should taste.  I was able to stop by on Valentine 's Day and witnessed a full house of happy diners enjoying a fine buffet capped off with some delicious deserts.   Guido told me that their objective is to offer fine Italian dining at reasonable prices and it appears that he has had a fine start in that direction.

THE STICK MAN

There are a number of places in Angeles City for the avid pool players to purchase custom made pool cues but the place I always like to recommend is Black Tamaraw and pool maker Titus.  He makes sticks from 17 - 27 oz with prices ranging from P1800 to P5,500 for quality sticks but special custom designs can reach P20,000 or more.  I am not a good pool player so I am not that fussy about the cue I use but many of you coming here to visit are looking for a good cue to take back to the States with you.  Titus is only one of three or four folks in this area that are known for good craftsmanship so by all means, shop around but if you end up at the Black Tamaraw, mention that Harry the Horse sent you, maybe, and that is a big maybe, you may get a good discount.

Titus

Sorry for the short column this month.  I had more to add but just can't get to it.  I am on my way to hospital with a splitting headache that I have had for 5 days and just can't write anymore or get to work with the photos.  Hopefully I will be able to put all the items I could not get to in my Apr column.