- Speaker #0
Jessica, Wagwan! Wagwan?
- Speaker #1
Nice! It's nice! Even though on your Instagram story you said something else, I'm like, woo! He was cursing. Yeah, yeah, the famous Jamaican curse word, B.C. And I was like, oh my God! Anyway, Wagwan is good. Exactly.
- Speaker #0
So, we are in Jamaica, obviously. Welcome! Yeah, so, you do a lot of things. You are a guide, you have a YouTube channel, you do... Okay, but let's start from the beginning. If I get it, you lived in Europe when you were a child and you get back to Jamaica about like 10 years ago. But why?
- Speaker #1
That's the question. Why would I live in Europe, right? So I, my mother is Swiss. I was born in Switzerland. My father is Jamaican. So I have family in Jamaica and I have family in Switzerland. But when I grew up in Switzerland, it was always I was born and grew up in Switzerland. I don't look Swiss, but that's where I was born. So it was always like, where are you from? Yeah, but where are you actually from? You know, so even from a little child and I had like a little afro, they were always in my ears. Can I touch it? So maybe some consciously I always was made feel that I'm not from there like or when they were angry at me they would be like go home where you come from oh and I'm like but I'm from here like you know yeah maybe from there it's thumbs that I was like well I was very interested in learning about my my other side of history in terms of culture and just Where is Jamaica? What's the culture about Jamaica? Because I did not know. They just said, I'm from there, you know, go home. You know, and then, but we didn't have the money to travel. And because, I mean, now traveling is a little more affordable, but you know, a couple years back, back, back. It was quite pricey, and it's not only me, you know, we have two sisters and I have a brother. So, yeah, so it's family, you know. So basically then I was like, yeah, it was when you get to earn your money, you can buy your ticket and then you can visit your, you know, my grandmother and grandfather and my family in Jamaica. So that was like, make some money and you're gonna visit Jamaica, right? So then now, I visited Jamaica for the first time and I was, I think, 14 or something. or 15 I'm not sure I don't fully remember but somewhere there and I spent the summer with my grandmother I loved it, loved it, loved it, loved it, like I didn't want it to come back okay so where I'm from is Portland and that is really like the seaside coast ocean like white sand beach palm trees so the Swiss girl from the alps This big ocean, we don't even have an ocean in Switzerland, right? So it was just, loved it, loved it, loved it. I can go into more and more details, but I don't want to have the entire interview about that part. But there is more to the story in terms of, you know, your identity. You know, you search an identity. You're like, well, you know, what am I, who am I, you know? And I think a lot of people can relate who are having two cultures. Who are group. who grew up in two cultures i think it's a common thing if you grew up in one country and your parents are from another country so you're always in between kind of vibe so i know guys who are grew up like this probably can you know relate so i made it here and i was like love love love love from then every year i tried to save money and i worked like summer jobs and then i i i got my ticket and then i visit my family and i want to stay here yeah but what are you going to work and what are you going to do and that yeah that's always a problem for the parents exactly okay so i finished my school and then i had no money of course so even after school i could still not have to study so i still could not um really come to jamaica so i started to work but then i entered sports so i then was in the national team yes well where where where where where and um So then my objective was really like chasing medals. And then so that was kind of my priority at that time. I'm not necessarily, you know, home and living in Jamaica. But then now. The more I approached retirement, sports retirement, I was like, you know, what's about this Jamaica? You know, it's still here in my heart and in my veins. I really want to move to Jamaica. And I don't want to be 65 when I do that. I want to do that while I'm young. About, you know, 11 years ago, I came. I packed up my stuff. I said, pack. And I came here and it's 11 years now.
- Speaker #0
Oh, so karate was a big part of your life and you were doing competitions, you traveled a lot.
- Speaker #1
Yeah, that was my life. And actually I trained in France for a club in France and I fought also for a club in France. Okay. So yeah, I did the Passe, opened the Paris and all of that in karate. So yeah, that's where I learned French. Yeah. Well, the same tip-tipper.
- Speaker #0
Exactly what I learned there. Hey friends in France,
- Speaker #1
hi! Take care! If ever... Because that's it.
- Speaker #0
She speaks French. Yes, yes. And you were good at it because you won medals.
- Speaker #1
Yes, I'm a former European champion. Yes, in 2013. It's amazing.
- Speaker #0
You're a champion. Yeah, yeah. And now you do not practice anymore?
- Speaker #1
Not anymore. I after I won the title, I actually came here and then I fought for Jamaica as well. So I qualified for the Pan American Games and that was actually the first female athlete in karate to do so for Jamaica. But then I injured my knee and that was the same year to qualify for Olympics in Tokyo. Oh yes, I was in the run. You would do? Okay yes. So there was You know, you can qualify in many ways, either point system or you become Pan American champion or you know, blah, blah, blah. So Pan American champion was one route. I qualified to go to the Pan American Games and then I got injured in my ACL and then I was injured.
- Speaker #0
Okay, so you do another thing and another thing is that before you talk about the guide stream, the first thing you post on your Instagram account was about...
- Speaker #1
sports.
- Speaker #0
Why?
- Speaker #1
You know my account was first it was my athletic account. Okay. Over time I changed it but it started with only karate content. Only karate and Instagram was not that big. Yeah at the beginning. 10-15 years ago you know it was not all that like now. Oh yeah. So I was not really that big on Instagram. But the content was really karate.
- Speaker #0
Oh, about karate. And suddenly you post also about fitness. And then I moved to fitness. Ah, you moved.
- Speaker #1
Okay. Because that was another way how to make money was being a fitness instructor and being a martial arts instructor. But that alone, you know, you do a little everything. I do, you know. So yeah, I did fitness for a while. And then the content changed to fitness. And yes, I guess Instagram is just like I'm growing and changing. Like my life is growing and changing into other directions. So does my Instagram account, you know.
- Speaker #0
It's a reflection of your life.
- Speaker #1
Yes, yes, yes.
- Speaker #0
And when you opened your icons, did you imagine yourself as a content creator?
- Speaker #1
Oh my god! Oh my god! No, that's COVID. COVID did that. Ah, okay. Yeah, content creation really started with COVID. So there's two things. I started to be an account manager for Instagram. Like manage accounts for artists, companies. That is the reason. Yeah. But then sometimes I needed to, I did not always know. What's the trend and I have to test. So I always use my private account to test. Instagram is always changing. I cannot use the company's account and be like, let me find out how this works. So I use my private account because I really don't care. So I was like, you know, playing around and testing out the trends before I went over to a company's accounts or whatever. And then I go there, you know. So while I tested out, my account grew.
- Speaker #0
Well, yeah.
- Speaker #1
So yeah, I do a cloud manager and I was a tour guide but we're gonna get there. So I was at home, no work, and then people were like, you know, YouTube and blah, blah, blah. And I was like, what am I going to do on YouTube? So I had my first birthday. And we couldn't have, we couldn't meet like more than ten people or something. You know, so I was like, all right, only five people. It changed every week. Anyway, so we met and I was like talking to my friend, like, can we go spare? fishing for my birthday because it's not a lot of people we cooked by the seaside and it's like just five of us so no problem it was covered right and i videoed that i was excited to see myself the diving to see the others i'm like yes i can make content because you have to like it you know yeah you have to really enjoy the the whatever you do on youtube you have to enjoy it because if not it's going to be difficult so that was my first video Look here, I did not know how to edit.
- Speaker #0
Okay. For me,
- Speaker #1
it was like you put me in an airplane, in a cockpit of an airplane. When I opened an editing program, to me that was like this. I was like, what is this?
- Speaker #0
Yes, that was new for you.
- Speaker #1
It was new. And then YouTube University, ah yeah, we learned everything on YouTube. So I learned, I learned, I learned. It took me weeks for my first video.
- Speaker #0
Okay,
- Speaker #1
I did not know how to put the video from the camera out of the way to my laptop. See where I was? Like how do I get there? And then from there, where do I find the footage? All right, I get it. Now from there, how do I do the audio? How do I copy it? Well,
- Speaker #0
something...
- Speaker #1
I'm copying from the bar way. Yeah, yeah. Yes.
- Speaker #0
I feel that. Yeah. So what I see is that you were testing things. And why did you become a guide? So... because you could be a fitness influencer or vlogger. Why the guide film?
- Speaker #1
So I did my education background. I studied hotel management. Okay. I'm from hospitality. So that is what I, that's my profession. Everything tourism. Okay. I live and breathe it. You tell me. Okay. Work in a lot of hotels.
- Speaker #0
That explains a lot.
- Speaker #1
I work in you name it, tourism from car rental to big hotels, reception, restaurant, managing, everything in hospitality. Personally, now I came to Jamaica, right? Always visiting my grandmother and stay in my community. I never went nowhere else. Just my grandmother's house and in this community.
- Speaker #0
Okay. So you were not exploring? No,
- Speaker #1
no, no, no, no, no. Nothing. All right. So then I wanted to explore and get to know the island. But now when I came as an adult, you know, I was independent and I could go myself. I started to go and see places, learn about Jamaican culture. I traveled to other sides of Jamaica just because I was so curious and I wanted to know for myself. And well, and now I was like, well, I know all these things. I know. I know so much maybe somebody's interested you know I speak German I speak French and and then they was just like I can yeah so I did the tour guide um it's uh it's like a certificate we have like a tour guide certificate in Jamaica so I did that okay so you made you made a certification yes okay um she would say I was just like you know you never know why not you know you know and uh So I got that certification and I started to specialize a little bit on being a translator. Both ways. So for French and German groups. English as well. But definitely I wanted to be known for French and German tours. For sure. Because sometimes... They do not speak English at all or they speak very little and they don't understand our English.
- Speaker #0
Okay, and what kind of visits are you doing with them?
- Speaker #1
Everything. So, it really depends on the tour company. Sometimes they want a guide who does their tour, which sometimes is the... the main attractions of Jamaica. That can be Bob Marley Museum, Dunn's River Falls, the Rome tour, AfriCour. You know, these are the typical tours you do when you visit Jamaica for the first time. City tour, food tour, you name it. But additionally, I would also offer like this. Where? Take someone to the river, hiking, camping. So I do that as well. Because Jamaica is very nice for hiking. We have some very wonderful hiking trails and it's still not full. It's not very full, you know. So I would love to build a bigger market, you know, in Jamaica for hiking and camping. Wow. Yeah.
- Speaker #0
I think there is a need for that. There are a lot of people that want to discover a place like that.
- Speaker #1
Yes, and heard. Yes, so this would be ecotourism. I know. So I'm a big fan of ecotourism, community tourism. And, but sometimes it's a balance. So the mainstream tourism, they want the typical, you know, which is fine. I can do it, but I can also do the other. So it really depends on what you want, you know, and we do that.
- Speaker #0
So you were talking about your YouTube channel? Yes. So you start with this, his videos. Okay. But now, I don't know how many videos you've done. How many videos are you doing in one moment?
- Speaker #1
I do one video per week. Okay. Because I work. I work. So content creation is a side thing. I don't live from it. So I work and I try to make content on the weekends.
- Speaker #0
When you have the time.
- Speaker #1
When I have the time. But soon now this job I'm having, I'm actually... This job is ending end of month. Yeah. So I do jobless. So I have more time for content creation. So who knows, maybe some people will come and cook me for a tour, you know. Yeah,
- Speaker #0
I think.
- Speaker #1
Yeah,
- Speaker #0
and I will see. Cool. You do a lot of spearfishing.
- Speaker #1
Yeah.
- Speaker #0
Why do you love that? Because you did that one time, you could chase them. Why are you still continuing?
- Speaker #1
I love it. So, well, maybe it's the athlete in me, you know, still there. Love the challenge, love the, you know. And I was very passionate about martial arts. Like martial arts was my life. 24 hours, martial arts, martial arts. And sometimes when you retire from the sports, you can have like a video, you know, empty and what are you like, what I'm doing with my life, you know, because it was so much in sports. So the fact that I was now in Jamaica helped because now that was cool and interesting and I learned so much. But I think finding a new sport where I'm passionate about, I think that was just perfect. So when I went. The first time, I didn't spear fish for the first time, so they did spear fish. I just videoed it. Okay,
- Speaker #0
you were just filming.
- Speaker #1
Yeah, I was just filming and I was like, whoa, that's so cool. Okay. So that's how it started. Me just filming the guys spear fishing. And then I was like, I love water. Like I'm a water baby. Give me a reason I can stay in the water. Finally, I find something to do. I was just floating. but how long can I float around, right? Anyways, so I'm filming and then I was like, can I try? He's like, sure. And he gave me, you know, and I like, I missed, you know, almost. Can I try again? All right. You know, missed. Almost. Can I try again? You know? And then I, I, I didn't miss and I shot my first little fish and I was like, oh, this is amazing. My food. And I was like, I need my own spare gun now because I cannot pass them all the time. So I get my own and that's how it started.
- Speaker #0
Okay, and you continued because you like sports. That's the reason. You like the competition. No, it's not a competition, but you're doing the effort.
- Speaker #1
Yes. Raising something. Right, because being new in something... It's sometimes a little humbling, you know, you've been an expert in something. It's not always easy to be back as a beginner, you know. But I found it, I was very like, I was like, I want to get better at this. Because it's not only the handling the speargun, it's also you have to dive and hold your breath.
- Speaker #0
Yeah, that's true.
- Speaker #1
It's complicated. So there's a lot of things going on. Managing your pressure from the air, manage your breath pull, and then understanding wildlife. You know? Yeah. Yeah, because the fish, they all behave different, the fish, and you have to approach them differently. So you're hunting. because they're not just there waiting on you they hide and then i just love the fact that i could you know what i catch i eat go yes so that was another addition which i found that's amazing i can catch my own food like yeah and you also catch lobsters and we really like lobsters in los angeles yeah it's the same thing here yeah we love lobsters and it's not cheap oh
- Speaker #0
Are you a chef? No. Ah okay, it's also expensive.
- Speaker #1
Oh yes, we go to the restaurant.
- Speaker #0
Yeah, yeah. Now it's a new type,
- Speaker #1
yeah. Yeah, I have it now for breakfast. Oh. Because I go myself. Yeah,
- Speaker #0
because it's... yeah, that's true.
- Speaker #1
That's rich.
- Speaker #0
Yeah, and when you catch fish and lobster, you cook it on the beach.
- Speaker #1
Yeah. That's right.
- Speaker #0
Yeah, that's amazing. But you do not season it? Like you put it in the oil and it's good?
- Speaker #1
So now, now that's the thing. When I... first time the guys said like no man that thing go on the fire just like that i'm like no seasoning i was like no way and then i had it for the first it was so good okay the salty from salt water and then the the fire you know it gives it a little smoke smoking it's excellent okay excellent yes it's fresh yeah from the fire yeah yes yes and you know i'm a nature girlie I love outdoor, I love nature and so you're more connected and we lose so much. We lose our connection to nature. We think we need all this seasoning to the food, right? How to prepare the food and being outside and so there's so much things coming together which I just love like preparing the food and have it fresh.
- Speaker #0
It's great yeah and you're also cooked by the river and it's happening that we do not do a... in marzine like cooking by the river no no we can do barbecues by uh by sadio beach yes but not in the river jamaica we love yeah river yes we cook out by the river like
- Speaker #1
this we eat we cook there yeah yeah you really really like oh yes i live for that i catch and then i bring it to the river here i prepare and we eat. Yeah, I love it.
- Speaker #0
Aytel food, a little bit.
- Speaker #1
So in the Aytel kitchen, there's no fish. Ah, okay.
- Speaker #0
Yeah,
- Speaker #1
it's vegan. Okay,
- Speaker #0
okay.
- Speaker #1
Yeah, it's vegan. I eat fish, but I'm also vegan, so you know, but I'm pescatarian. You know, I think everybody has their own definition what they eat and what they don't eat, but in the Aytel kitchen, it's from the Rastafarian. Okay. And it means it's vegan and no seasoning. Ah, no seasoning also? I did not know that. Powder seasoning, only natural seasoning like scallion and thyme. You use natural seasoning. Natural seasoning. Very good.
- Speaker #0
And your YouTube channel is not only about food. So you do blogs, you are exploring. Yes,
- Speaker #1
I do. fishing and outdoor river fishing hunting it's about your life camping the camping is common here yeah a little bit a little bit okay yeah a little bit it's it's getting more popular now okay so we have we have uh we have we have one yeah there's one campsite in the mountains okay and it's from the government it's official it's you know it's a campsite Yeah, very nice up there. But definitely we need more campsites. We need more people having land and be like, yeah, we can transform it into a campsite and do another business and make money.
- Speaker #0
Make money. Obviously. Okay.
- Speaker #1
But there are a couple of campsites and it's coming, I guess. Yeah. Slowly.
- Speaker #0
Then you will shoot two guys. In Feslope, it was just camping. Yes,
- Speaker #1
I often go camping. Camping? Yes. So depending on which side of the island you are and what you want, we can go camping.
- Speaker #0
And you were saying that your job just closed, so now you have time. But what I see is that it's a bad news, but you are seeing it in a good way.
- Speaker #1
If one door is closing, another one will open up. And if I look back in my life, I have no reason to be negative. Even if I didn't get the job or I lost the job, there was always something else coming my way. Or you have to change and adapt. And that's just life. So now I just have to practice what I preach. And you have to adapt and be open. It's sad because I was there for 10 years at the job. And it gives you security. You have a paycheck every month. So now that's a little... this is going to be my last month with a paycheck you know so you know i'm confident that that things will come my way and i can make it work yes well now things are open okay okay but as long there is no job offer i will definitely do cool time content creation and i will take any like tour guiding jobs so these are the two things i have i can do right now and i just try to build that more and then who knows maybe somebody's like oh you could be an ambassador for us so you could oh we want to work with you uh you know you never know because you you really like nature and yes all those things will come yes yes so so yeah this is my world I love this I love this yes okay and then you know that's what I love I love highlight Jame class of destination and have visitors and locals have an experience, you know, because it's not only visitors maybe haven't been here, there are also locals maybe have not been here from another side of Jamaica. You know, depending on where you are in Jamaica, you maybe have not seen everything on the other side. So there's not only visitors from overseas, you have all like local tourism as well. Okay. Yes.
- Speaker #0
It's interesting because Sometimes when people live in the place, they do not know the place. I know, right?
- Speaker #1
Yeah. Now I look back sometimes on Switzerland and I'm like, I've never been there. This, you know. For some reason, sometimes you don't travel in your own country as much. Exactly. Unless you are a traveler. Yeah. Then you explore your own country. But if you're not a traveler, sometimes you...
- Speaker #0
Yeah. It's there. In there. Little bit.
- Speaker #1
Yes.
- Speaker #0
Perfect. Okay. And my last point is that you do a lot of videos and there are people that are following you. Do they send you messages, etc. to support you?
- Speaker #1
Yes. I get messages. I get comments. I meet a lot like in real life. They say, oh, I know you from the channel. And so it's like meet and greet. So yeah. I get that.
- Speaker #0
Oh, and I saw your Airbnb comments and everyone is like, oh, she's the best guide ever. That makes you happy. Yes. Obviously.
- Speaker #1
Yeah, that's good. Yeah.
- Speaker #0
Yeah. Okay. So it was really interesting to see you.
- Speaker #1
Yes, yes. So I wish you, of course, it's your first time in Jamaica. So all the best on your travels in Jamaica. yes and of course you can just ask everything you want to know for your future travels here and what else yes if the guys want to follow me they can find me on aqua babe that's instagram and chessie.cargill that's on youtube and yeah you can patreon also you have the patreon yes yes when we can support you exactly thank you for mentioning If you want to support this girl, you can subscribe to Patreon and reach out if you're visiting Jamaica and you need a tour guide. Contact us. Yeah. Exactly.
- Speaker #0
Okay. Well, thank you again. Thank you. And see you next time.
- Speaker #1
Bye.
