Moalboal beauty debuts in national pageantry

CEBU, Philippines — With Binibining Pilipinas’ recent coronation, Miss Universe Philippines 2021’s exciting reveal of its top 100 delegates, Miss World Philippines’ last-minute postponement, and Miss Philippines Earth’s (MPE) forthcoming virtual finals, pageant fever is once again all over the country.

This year’s MPE has 66 candidates vying for titles, and one of them is a beauty from Moalboal who hails from Cebu’s political Rama clan.

Charissa Rama, who studied Tourism at the University of San Carlos and was Miss CESAFI 2017, was a Binibining Cebu 2017 candidate where she represented her grandparents’ hometown of Barili. MPE is her first national pageant.

In a recent virtual interview with Pageantry Norms, the niece of celebrity manager Anabelle Rama shared what the uninitiated can expect from her hometown of Moalboal.

“The Philippines has many diving sites, but what’s so special about Moalboal is our sardines run. Here you get to swim with thousands of sardines,” she said.

Proud of her swimming skills, this beach gal said she is more than what meets the eye. “I’m into a lot of sports. Aside from swimming, running, and track-and-field, I’m also a gymnast. I started doing gymnastics in grade school.”

Rama thinks her passion for pageantry is what sets her apart from the other MPE 2021 candidates. “If something is really your passion, you won’t give up easily no matter how many times you fail,” she said.

Growing up without a father, Rama shared in the same interview that while a dad’s presence plays a significant role in any girl’s life, she thankfully had a grandfather who filled the void.

While participating in a virtual pageant will never be the same as being physically together with other participants, Rama said the set-up also offers a lot of advantages.

“We have longer time to prepare. For example, if you don’t like your performance in a specific segment, you can repeat or change it,” she pointed out.

“Unlike in live pageants, what you do on stage is what the audience will see. Since our videos are just recorded, we get to have the final say on how we want to appear in the eyes of the viewers, especially the judges.”