[yankeetravels]

I've only been to the Philippines in SEA so I'll chime in where I can. When I was in your shoes last year, I was deciding between Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam, and the Philippines for my first SEA country. I ended up going with the Philippines because it has the friendliest language barrier of the four. It's also one of the less populated expat countries if that matters to you.

Talking to other guys in the region, they seem to agree with Que that Bangkok is the friendliest SEA city for beginners. It's apparently the most developed of the bunch while having great nightlife, plenty of other expats on the ground if you like some familiarity, and according to airbnb the bang for buck in accommodation is superb. Saigon has a pretty big expat scene and bang for buck accommodation as well according to airbnb and reports.

My pitch for Manila would be that as a rookie traveler, having people that speak your language is a nice asset to have on the road plus you can still do day game in the malls and night game in the nicer clubs while still standing out. For western convenience, BGC and Makati will make you feel like you're in the first world while still getting the cultural experience if you walk around other sections of the city.