Exploring the Philippine Islands
Honestly, Deeply, and Firsthand
Welcome to my new website!
I just wanted to offer you a brief welcome and encourage you to take a few moments to get acquainted with the new website organization. I think you’ll find it pretty self-explanatory, but just in case, a navigation guide is provided below.
I rebuilt this site because the old one was no longer telling the truth. When I started writing about the Philippines, I wrote what I knew at the time. Some of it held up. A lot of it did not. Prices had shifted. Policies had changed. Whole neighborhoods I’d written about looked nothing like my paragraphs anymore. Worst of all, some of the older pieces sounded less like me than they should have.
So I went back to work. I rewrote 27 of those older articles from the ground up. Not light edits. Full rewrites, with fresh reporting, current 2026 context, and a clearer point of view in every line. If you’ve been here before, much of what you remember remains. It just reads differently now. Sharper, where it should be sharp. Quieter, where I should have been listening. And honest about the things I did not get right the first time.
The rewritten pieces all carry a “rewritten” tag. I have added a temporary drop-down menu to the Home page option on the menu above. If you go there and hover over it, you will see a ‘Rewritten’ menu item you can click to view all rewritten content in one place. Categories assigned to each post will drive navigation. Take your time here. Read what catches you. Then decide for yourself. Do these people sound like real Filipinos, or like extras in someone else’s vacation? That is the standard I’m trying to hold myself to. I would rather you tell me I missed than be told I sounded right.
Welcome to ocarramedia.com! And please feel free to leave me any feedback you would like.
Rich
About Me
I’ve been visiting the Philippines since 1978, and what started as a traveler’s curiosity grew into a second home, a family, and a writing mission. Today, I run Exploring The Philippine Islands, built on the promise of “Honestly, Deeply, and Firsthand.”
My corner of the Philippines is the Visayas Region, where I chose to put down roots in Mabinay, Negros Island. Over nearly five decades, I’ve learned the difference between how the Philippines is marketed to tourists and how it actually lives and breathes.
Before writing full-time, I spent 30 years in IT consulting with Ford Motor Company, DaimlerChrysler, General Motors, and many others. Prior to that, I spent 20 years in the U.S. Air Force, most of it working as a Technical Inteligence Analyst. This was all work that sharpened my eye for how things actually function versus how they’re supposed to. I bring that same rigor to every article I write.
Navigation Guides
Lifestyle & Living
Islands & Regions
Three regions. Hundreds of islands. Each earns its own story. Deep dive guides organized by Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao - not by tourist rank.
Culture & Food
Plan Your Trip
Global Travel
Occasional dispatches from across the Asia-Pacific region, from someone who has been on the road since the 1970s. Never know what we might find here.
Contact Us
A question. A comment. A story worth telling. Rich reads every message.
Recent Posts
Best Family Travel in the Philippines: Why Pitstop Towns Beat Famous Beaches
Manila Tourist Safety Guide: Why Dense Cities Protect Travelers Better Than Isolation
