Home | About | Manila Concerts/Events | Food Reviews | Travel Philippines

Hello creatures!
Welcome to the official website of Stuck in the Philippines!
Click the tabs above to explore our site. Constructive criticisms are highly appreciated.

My name is Kristian. This is my first blog and it first started out as travel blog. But then I started involving my love for the entertainment scene mainly the movies and concerts scene.

A Japanese delight in the Philippines! Nihonbashi ...
Stuck In The Philippines New Twitter Profile Design
Dine in at Chef Laudico Guevarra's
Hungry? Try some Filipino Comfort Food
IHOP Philippines Food Review
Tips for Filipino travelers
Tips on your first job in the Philippines
Summer in Mayumi, Batangas
Pacquiao vs Bradley 2 Rematch (April 13 - Philippi...
My 1975 experience (The 1975 Live in Manila)
Archives 03/14/11 03/15/11 03/16/11 03/17/11 03/18/11 03/19/11 03/20/11 03/21/11 03/22/11 03/23/11 03/25/11 05/03/11 05/04/11 05/07/11 05/09/11 06/06/11 07/04/11 07/08/11 07/12/11 07/13/11 07/14/11 07/15/11 07/18/11 07/21/11 07/25/11 07/27/11 07/28/11 07/29/11 07/30/11 08/01/11 08/02/11 08/03/11 08/04/11 08/05/11 08/06/11 08/08/11 08/09/11 08/10/11 08/11/11 08/12/11 08/14/11 08/15/11 08/16/11 08/17/11 08/18/11 08/19/11 08/20/11 08/21/11 08/22/11 08/23/11 08/24/11 08/25/11 08/26/11 08/27/11 08/30/11 09/01/11 09/02/11 09/03/11 09/06/11 09/07/11 09/08/11 09/09/11 09/13/11 09/14/11 09/16/11 09/19/11 09/20/11 09/21/11 09/22/11 09/23/11 09/26/11 09/28/11 10/05/11 10/06/11 10/07/11 10/09/11 10/12/11 10/14/11 10/18/11 10/19/11 10/20/11 10/21/11 10/22/11 10/25/11 10/26/11 10/27/11 10/31/11 11/05/11 11/08/11 11/11/11 11/12/11 11/15/11 11/16/11 11/17/11 11/18/11 11/22/11 11/23/11 12/02/11 12/07/11 12/13/11 12/15/11 12/16/11 12/19/11 12/23/11 12/25/11 12/26/11 01/05/12 01/07/12 01/18/12 01/19/12 01/20/12 01/21/12 01/22/12 01/27/12 01/30/12 02/14/12 02/18/12 02/19/12 02/21/12 02/23/12 03/10/12 03/11/12 03/16/12 03/20/12 04/04/12 04/07/12 04/09/12 04/12/12 06/07/12 06/30/12 06/05/13 04/10/14 04/12/14 04/14/14 04/15/14 04/16/14 04/18/14 04/19/14 04/20/14 04/23/14 04/27/14

I never had any experience working as a call center agent and in the call center universe we were referred to as the "Call center virgins". In my opinion, I find that a degrading remark but to be fair I did not have a clue on what the call center industry was about. I was excited because I was wondering how the people are in a call center environment. I was excited on how to mingle with real Filipinos brought up from the motherland. I did have Filipino friends but they weren't culturally Filipino.

Being in a call center environment was challenging. As any job, we all had to go undergo training. The training lasted for two months on which I passed. I guess that English as my first language and experiencing life in the states gave me an advantage. It was no late November, 2009 when we were put on to full gear and I was with my team, Team Jojo. Now first of all, Jojo is one the nicest people you'll ever meet and one of the best team leaders I ever had! He's the kind of person that would understand you and kept the team like glue.

In the beginning, I had trouble coping up because I could not blend with nobody. It was hard since I was already culture shocked and I was feeling homesick at the same time. I just wanted to go home and be with my real family and friends. I was happy in the states and I did not understand why I had to visit the Philippines. But as time flew by, I started getting along with my team and started to get to know the people around me. They weren't bad at all! I have to say that I do miss my team, Jen, Ate Sol, Ate May to name a few. I had some great times there, and  joined the HSBC Dance crew as Hypnotics.

The call center industry has it's pro's and con's. Pro's is that your earning more and in the process have a lot of benefits with a good company. The con's would be the night-shift hours that can make you sick often and it's unhealthy for the human body. It can get quite boring and to deal irate customers can be a pain. In either case, I was happy, and I did enjoy my time at HSBC, Alabang.

In Laguna, with Team Jojo

It was July 16, 2010  that I unexpectedly left Team Jojo and HSBC. I decided that I did not want to stay in a call industry forever and there was something special destined for me. It was hard at first but after a few days to myself, I decided it was time to leave HSBC. It's now or never. I never really had the time to say goodbye but I will cherish the memories that I had with Team Jojo. I wonder how they are? I hope they are doing well. I closed my final chapter with HSBC and opened up a new chapter in my life in the Philippines.

Labels: Call Center, Job hunting, Philippines

Since I was stuck in the Philippines, I figured I have to do something worthwhile. If your a Filipino who grew up abroad, I guess we all have this mentality that we need to be our own person. I figured since I am a U.S graduate, I thought that being in a western university would give me an advantage and that means a good job with a high pay!. Boy! Was I excited!

Unfortunately it didn't turn the way I expected. Filipinos here are so patriotic and prefer to hire someone who has been to local universities like University of the Philippines and La Salle. I thought this was unfair but this is the reality that I am facing. I took it as a challenge and it sure was a challenge!

I applied through newspapers Manila Bulletin, Tabloids, Star newspaper to name a few. I also signed up at job hunting websites like Jobstreet.com and JobsDB.com. I have to say it was a horrible experience and I have to admit that I was frustrated. Soon all my frustrations came on to me and I thought that my credentials were never good enough for anyone. My own country wouldn't accept me!

My training days - in front of HSBC Alabang

I decided job hunt on foot. I soon ended up at Northgate, Alabang, Muntinlupa City. I started looking for a job and I got accepted by Convergy's and HSBC, Alabang. I had the difficult decision of choosing the right job for me. It was a difficult decision since I have to decide a good career path which would lead me to success. In the end, I took the job as a call center agent as a Process Credit Executive at HSBC on September 22, 2009. Not bad for a person who has only been in the Philippines for a week! =D

Labels: Call Center, Job hunting, Philippines

I never had any experience working as a call center agent and in the call center universe we were referred to as the "Call center virgins". In my opinion, I find that a degrading remark but to be fair I did not have a clue on what the call center industry was about. I was excited because I was wondering how the people are in a call center environment. I was excited on how to mingle with real Filipinos brought up from the motherland. I did have Filipino friends but they weren't culturally Filipino.

Being in a call center environment was challenging. As any job, we all had to go undergo training. The training lasted for two months on which I passed. I guess that English as my first language and experiencing life in the states gave me an advantage. It was no late November, 2009 when we were put on to full gear and I was with my team, Team Jojo. Now first of all, Jojo is one the nicest people you'll ever meet and one of the best team leaders I ever had! He's the kind of person that would understand you and kept the team like glue.

In the beginning, I had trouble coping up because I could not blend with nobody. It was hard since I was already culture shocked and I was feeling homesick at the same time. I just wanted to go home and be with my real family and friends. I was happy in the states and I did not understand why I had to visit the Philippines. But as time flew by, I started getting along with my team and started to get to know the people around me. They weren't bad at all! I have to say that I do miss my team, Jen, Ate Sol, Ate May to name a few. I had some great times there, and  joined the HSBC Dance crew as Hypnotics.

The call center industry has it's pro's and con's. Pro's is that your earning more and in the process have a lot of benefits with a good company. The con's would be the night-shift hours that can make you sick often and it's unhealthy for the human body. It can get quite boring and to deal irate customers can be a pain. In either case, I was happy, and I did enjoy my time at HSBC, Alabang.

In Laguna, with Team Jojo

It was July 16, 2010  that I unexpectedly left Team Jojo and HSBC. I decided that I did not want to stay in a call industry forever and there was something special destined for me. It was hard at first but after a few days to myself, I decided it was time to leave HSBC. It's now or never. I never really had the time to say goodbye but I will cherish the memories that I had with Team Jojo. I wonder how they are? I hope they are doing well. I closed my final chapter with HSBC and opened up a new chapter in my life in the Philippines.

Labels: Call Center, Job hunting, Philippines

Since I was stuck in the Philippines, I figured I have to do something worthwhile. If your a Filipino who grew up abroad, I guess we all have this mentality that we need to be our own person. I figured since I am a U.S graduate, I thought that being in a western university would give me an advantage and that means a good job with a high pay!. Boy! Was I excited!

Unfortunately it didn't turn the way I expected. Filipinos here are so patriotic and prefer to hire someone who has been to local universities like University of the Philippines and La Salle. I thought this was unfair but this is the reality that I am facing. I took it as a challenge and it sure was a challenge!

I applied through newspapers Manila Bulletin, Tabloids, Star newspaper to name a few. I also signed up at job hunting websites like Jobstreet.com and JobsDB.com. I have to say it was a horrible experience and I have to admit that I was frustrated. Soon all my frustrations came on to me and I thought that my credentials were never good enough for anyone. My own country wouldn't accept me!

My training days - in front of HSBC Alabang

I decided job hunt on foot. I soon ended up at Northgate, Alabang, Muntinlupa City. I started looking for a job and I got accepted by Convergy's and HSBC, Alabang. I had the difficult decision of choosing the right job for me. It was a difficult decision since I have to decide a good career path which would lead me to success. In the end, I took the job as a call center agent as a Process Credit Executive at HSBC on September 22, 2009. Not bad for a person who has only been in the Philippines for a week! =D

Labels: Call Center, Job hunting, Philippines

April Events
The Cranberries Live in Manila @ SMART Araneta Coliseum (April 10, 2012)
LMFAO Live in Manila @ SMART Araneta Coliseum (April 11, 2012)
Taking Back Sunday Live in Manila @ Sky Dome (Apr 13, 2012)
Israel Houghton and Planetshakers Live in Manila @ SMART Araneta Coliseum (Apr 21, 2012)
Avenged Sevenfold Live in Manila @ SMART Araneta Coliseum (Apr 26, 2012)
Vertical Horizon and Ed Kowalczyk Live in Manila @ SMART Araneta Coliseum (Apr 28, 2012)

May Events
Lifehouse Live in Manila @ SMART Araneta Coliseum (May 26, 2012)
Taylor Dayne and Edwin McCain Live in Manila and Cebu @ Waterfront Hotel (May 30, 2012)

Buffalo Wings N Things, click here