How to survive with $5.00 for at least 3 DAYS in the Philippines

How to survive with $5.00 for at least 3 DAYS in the Philippines

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Living in the Philippines is very difficult if you are unemployed and especially if you do not have any source of income. That’s obvious because the prices of almost all goods here are mostly expensive, most particularly foods.

Careful budgeting is really necessary if you care about savings. When I heard the news about the typhoon Basyang three days ago, I planned to prepare sufficient supply of foods that could last for three days. By the way, Basyang was the tropical storm with the international name Sanba.

And as soon storm warning signal no. 1 was hoisted all over Lanao del Norte (where Iligan City is geographically situated), I went to the local market and bought my usual $5.00 food budget which could last for three days.

With just 5 USD (or 250 PHP) in my pocket, I bought 1 kilo fish, 5 eggs, some dried fish and 2 kilo of rice. This fish is locally known as Bariles and it is also known as yellow fin fish to others. It cost me 2 USD (or 100 PHP) for the entire fish.

I bought the whole fish and asked the vendor to slice it in equal proportion and I got a total 14 to 16 slices all in all. Once I got home, I cook the sliced fish as Paksiw. Paksiw is a Filipino soup-based dish which literally means “to cook and simmer in vinegar”.

This recipe is ideal if you intend to preserve the food for days. Moreover, the ingredients that you’d need for this dish is very simple. You’ll need at least vinegar and salt for this one. The vinegar I used was tuba which is vinegar extracted from coconut. I prefer using this as its sourness is milder than those in pouch.

The procedure is also simple, you’ll just cooked and simmer the sliced fish in vinegar and water with salt and small amount of grounded garlic. I added garlic to at least add aroma to our dish. Of course the proportion depends on you, for me I prefer paksiw to be salty rather than very sour.

By the way, I fried 3 slices of that yellow fin fish for my first meal that day. I was so hungry that time and so I fried it so that I could already eat. I think I don’t need to write how I fry the fish because it is so easy LOL!

Then I bought 2 kilo of rice for 2 USD or 100 PHP. The price of rice ranges from around 38 pesos to 50 pesos depending on the variety. The ones which are sold at 41 pesos are already in good quality and I usually bought this variety.

Unfortunately I forgot to take photos of the rice I bought as it was never my plan to share this here in steemit. But anyway, just for a quick update, it’s already been three days but I still got a rice supply good for 2 meals.

Also, I bought 5 pieces of eggs for 20 pesos, that’s 4 pesos each. In the Philippines, it’s really noteworthy to be a suki of a certain vendor. To be a suki you have to become a usual costumer of frequent buyer of goods from that certain vendor.

Through this, you can save when you buy goods at bulk. The eggs aren’t really large but it is still fair enough for that price. Then lastly, I bought a quarter kilo of dried fish at 30 pesos. With a quarter of this, I got a total of 12 pieces. Fair enough for very cheap price.

Dried fish is usually fried and is best served during breakfast. I always partnered it with sunny-side up egg and coffee. Thankfully, the storm has no devastating result in my place and has been already out of the Philippine area of responsibility.

You may also share in the comment section below your thoughts and your food list and budgeting plan especially during crisis and disaster. Thank you for taking the time reading my post and God bless us all!