Student Testimonial (Hideyui Aoki)

Student's name: Hideyui Aoki

1. Safety of the city

I feel certain that Davao city is very safe.  Due to the Islamic extremists who used to be based in Marawi city in Mindanao, many people are concerned for the safety here in Davao as well, but Davao is far away from the city of Marawi. Furthermore, President Duterte left a lot of cultural heritages for posterity when he was a mayor of Davao, and the safe community was one of them. People here say that they are proud of his legacy and this safe city, Davao. I never felt dangerous even when I was out at night.

2. Comfort and convenience of the city

First of all, prices are low. I’ve been to Manila and Cebu, and prices there are much higher than Davao. Judging by my experience, I think the prices here are around 60 % of those in Manila and 85% of those in Cebu. Taxi drivers always drive charge the fare on mete and return the exact amount of change. I haven’t experienced any rip-off here in Davao, which is prevalent in Asian countries. The urban environment is not that great alike other cities in the Philippines, but it is still tolerable.

3. Location of the school

I could call a taxi to pick me up at the school to the nearby shopping malls, so I always used taxis. The basic fare is 40 pesos which is equivalent of 90 yen and it costs around 80 pesos to the nearest mall 80 pesos. There are McDonald's and Seven-Eleven which are 5 minutes away from the school on foot.

4. Facilities of the school

I cannot say that facilities are all new here but this school is good enough to stay in. I could enjoy warm showers and I had no problem with the dormitory room. A refrigerator and an air-conditioner in the room worked fine, too. But, there are some mosquitoes, so it may be useful to bring the mosquito repellent.

5. Quality of the class

Sometimes it is depends on a teacher, but I think that there are many teachers of good quality.

6. Meal

There are many Korean home-style cuisines and they are delicious. You do not need to worry about a "hot" meal.

In general, I am satisfied here.