BEING A BLACK TOURIST
A few weeks ago, I got a pop up message, a photo memory alert, watching through the picture slides, I almost had a tear drop. Memories about my last trip, the one right before the Covid worldwide shut down. For a moment in time, I was living vicariously through the pictures, feeling grateful to have explored this part of the world. Let me gist you about this trip, an amazing discovery of the Caribbean islands – St Vincent and the Grenadines.
St Vincent, city view from Fort Charlotte
Upon landing all I could see was water, blue waters like in the magazines and travel websites. The trip from the airport to the hotel was quite unique, cars had the wheels to the right and the road curves were steep, but the driver knew the island well. The street food was as good as one would expect. The people are welcoming, and treat you like family. Hairoun or strong rhum punch are a classic order at the bars, taste great, quite in expensive and will get you buzzing in minutes.
For such a small island there is so much to visit and we had to do it ALL. From the Downview water fall; the site visit of the pirate of the Caribbean movie set; Panoramic view of Vincy from Fort Charlotte; the botanical garden, the market, the village… name it, we did it! One of my own personal achievement: climbing up Mount La Soufriere. In the evening we hit the town for the night life; not very busy, yet much fun. We mingled, danced with the locals and enjoyed our time.
Beach days were memorable; we went to a different beach each time, there are so many and are all fascinating. A real escapade, where fantasies become. I only had to close my eyes to feel the waves lift my heavy bum a few metres and have sand fill the inner most parts of me.
Being there, with people of the same colour as me, yet being different. However listening to their history and stories… a revelation of shared valued was imminent.
From the country side through the smaller islands we visited, the people are welcoming. I was amazed not to say flabbergasted at their kindness and hospitality. Genuine interest in knowing the person(me), discover where you come from and share with you how they live as locals on the island, a beauty as is. Yes, they too stay amazed about the beauty of the Island and all that it offers. Their kindness and simplicity in loving life touched me immensely and I could not be more grateful for this travel experience.
Thinking back about how enlightening this trip was, I asked: why do people like myself not travel more ?
Is it in our culture ? I remember when I was younger, if ever we travelled out of town, we will go to our own house in the village; In cities where we had no house, we stayed at a family member’s home; a house my parent believed we will be treated same as home. How does this then translate to us immigrants today around the world?
The cliché : black people don’t travel !?!
The stigma that Africans do not travel to places especially where they have no family maybe true. We are not accustomed to it; it is not just in our culture. Traveling to place you know no one could be scary. Could the cost of travelling be a reason ? Travelling has an expensive connotation to it! I am sure most people think they don’t have the finances for it! Often, guilt may arise if money is spent on a vacation rather than sent back home to help family, buy land (the new « it » project ), build on land and or invest in a project.
Our culture evolves and it is being redefined through generations. We as millennials have broken those mindless boundaries with the usage of social media in our daily routines.
Millennial + Social Media = YOLO (You Only Live Once)
Social media has reformed our culture and cultivated our interest for travelling. As millennials, we have opened our minds to new horizons and travel possibilities. This is true, especially since social media has demystified travelling to new places where you know no one, and sometimes not even the language. Seeing on social media, young energetic, vibrant persons like yourself travelling and going to places; is all the boost and inspiration one needs to feel like I can do it too.
Us millennial we care about our self quite a lot; we are conscious about our well being: psychological and mental. In search of our true selves, we are opened to do more fun stuffs. Our parents had a mindset of their own: they cared about others more than themselves. We are financially independent at a younger age compared to our parents; plus we also have less responsibilities when it comes to taking care of other family members.
Does this makes us SELFISH ? YES, selfish and narcissistic. We always have to be the prettiest, we want the best thing for us, have the latest make up, latest iPhone, drive the best car and the reason: you got to LOVE YOURSELF FIRST.
Would we have it any other way? I can only answer for me: no, yes, maybe, depends 😉
Being a black tourist has brought me much fun memories and experiences. I wouldn’t want my money back. Getting to know new people, make new friends, discover places, learn about new culture… knowing more is enriching. Travelling is now part of my self care routine. Being relaxed, distracted from real life hardship for a moment in time is an opportunity I most value and do not take for granted.
Sunset Admiration 
Miam… snack o’clock
The spirit of traveling needs to be cultivated, watered and fertilized. It is okay if travelling is not your thing. Find what makes you happy, set time and money aside for it.
Berthe Carine
#Selfcare
I just love the flow of the story. I was
reading it and couldn’t stop. I could feel
my self at the authors place. I could also
relate many events to my last trip
before the COVID.
Really thank FAMEAMAZONE for
share this little article which gave a
smile, little bit of joy and brought lovely
memories back.
Our pleasure! Glad you enjoyed it 😊
je nai pas tout compris dans le texte
mais jai retenu kil faut bcp voyager☺️
☺️☺️
C’est l’essentiel 😉
Woooow!! Covid please just pack ur
bags and leave! I already have my
next enjoyment destination
I would say african people are more
concerned instead of black people .
I love this article! First of all, it makes me
want to travel to Saint Vincent and the
Grenadines! From what you described, it
seems to be a great destination to visit! I love
the pictures! The island looks so beautiful! I
am putting it on my travel destinations list! I
also loved how this article educated us about
why some people in our community don’t
travel to new destinations and how it
demystified some of those reasons and
encouraged us all to travel by mentioning
some of the benefits of traveling. Traveling is
really therapeutic. Thank you for this great
read!
while reading your blog, I was reminiscing about the last time I travelled abroad, the
perks of vacation, disconnect from the weekly 9 to 5 toll and being worry-free💆🏾♂️….
Quite nostalgic about that era. Pardon my vocabulary, but it feels like it was a decade
away! 😂
I really hope we get back to something more normal sooner. This pandemic (new word
in my vocabulary/dictionary since March 2021 😅) is taking a heavy toll on ALL
regardless of anything!
I had the erronous assumption that being a black tourist is something I couldn’t
consciously tap into. It felt too distant for me to grasp. The thoughts of : “Why would I
spend my hard earn dollar(s) on leisure travelling”, “I Should invest on other projects
and reward myself when I get closer to retirement or a better financial situation”, “It
too expensive for me”, “I won’t benefit anything from this”, “it a waste of money” etc
etc..
After reading this article, I’m very much looking forward to reconsider and educate
myself on the topic. I neglected the benefits and kept a tunnel vision towards false
illusions . After all, as you said, we only live once.
There’s a pickup line I remember from a TV commercial saying “Nous sommes la
somme de nos expériences”. I very much like to quote it. We look at life through the
lenses of our parents, our friends, our colleagues and social media to create our own. I
believe those lenses shaped how we live.
I’m glad and thankful for reading this article, it cleared a few blur from my sight.
Thank you for sharing
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אם הייתם משקיעים בטיפול רפואי קלאסי, למה שלא תשקיעו בעיסוי מפנק ורפואי בנתניה/השרון ?
כנראה שמרבית האנשים ששומעים את המילה
« עיסוי מפנק », מעלים בדעתם
אירוע מיוחד המצדיק חגיגה מפנקת במכון עיסויים בנתניה/השרון .
במאמר זה נעמוד על סוגי העיסויים השונים הקיימים, כך שיהיה
ניתן לבחור את עיסוי נתניה הנכון ביותר עבורכם, בהתאם להעדפות ולצרכים האישיים שלכם.
המעסה מניע את המפרקים והשרירים
במטרה להפחית מהעומס המוטל על השרירים.
בשונה מטיפולים אחרים שלאורכם מפעילים כוח
ישירות על הגוף, העיסוי השוודי בנתניה/השרון מאוד עדין כאשר המעסה ניצמד
אל תנועות רכות, מעגליות ומאד עדינות.
במהלך העיסוי המפנק, המעסה מניע ומותח את
הגוף לפי מקצב של תנועות ספציפיות, בעיקר על משטח מיוחד או על רצפה.
אף על פי שעיסוי מפנק זה פחות
מתייחס למקצבים לעומת רוב סוגי המסז’ים, הוא תרפויטי מאוד ומסייע להקל
כל דפוסים של לחץ וכאבים כרוניים, בעיקר כאלו שנובעים כתוצאה
מפציעות. עיסוי מפנק בנתניה/השרון
אינו נחלתם של אנשים חילוניים בלבד.
העיסוי הפרטי בנתניה/השרון , כפי שאמרנו, הוא
עיסוי נהדר עבור אנשים שאינם ניידים או בעלי יכולות פיזית להגיע אל המקום.
יצירת האווירה כוללת מתודות מהפנג שווי
לארגון וסידור סביבת הטיפול,
הדלקת נרות ועמעום אורות לתחושת דמדומים, מוזיקה מרגיעה המושמעת בזמן העיסוי מפנק בנתניה/השרון , הדלקת קטורות
ושימוש בשמנים ריחניים להענקת תחושת רוגע, חימום החדר וכמובן
מגע העיסוי מפנק.
המוצעים לכם – מהשבדי, דרך השיאצו ועד
עיסוי בהוד השרון הרקמות, אך גם לאחר שבחרתם את סוג העיסוי, תוכלו להנחות את המעסה באשר
לעיסוי המתאים לכם ביותר. המוצעים לכם – מהשבדי,
דרך השיאצו ועד עיסוי ברעננה הרקמות,
אך גם לאחר שבחרתם את סוג העיסוי, תוכלו להנחות את המעסה באשר לעיסוי המתאים לכם ביותר.
מרגוע לנפש: מעבר ליתרונות הפיזיים המובהקים, שווה לדעת שלעשות עיסוי ארוטי בכפר סבא זאת גם דרך נפלאה ובטוחה להרגיע את הנפש שגם היא מתעייפת ונשחק בשגרה.
מחפשים דרך להתפנק בעיסוי אירוטי בכפר סבא רעננה?
לא משנה אם מדובר בסיום של מסיבת רווקים מטורפת או
בתחילתו של ערב חול פשוט, עיסוי אירוטי בכפר סבא הוא הדבר שיהפוך אותו מעוד ערב לערב שייחרט
בזיכרונך לנצח. התייעצות בפורומים:
תהיו בטוחים שממש כמוכם, עוד רבים חיפשו בעבר עיסוי ארוטי בכפר סבא ועוד רבים יחפשו זאת בעתיד.
רבים הפכו את העיסוי הזה לביקור קבע.
על כן, אנו רוצים לחלוק אתכם כמה טיפים חשובים שיעזרו לכם למצוא עיסוי ארוטי בקריית ים בכל פעם שתחפשו את השירות הזה.
כמו כן, טבילה בספא יכולה להרגיע כאבים
שונים בגוף, ומקבילה במובנים רבים למסאז’ טוב.
רבים מעידים על כך שטבילה בספא משפרת את השינה שלהם.
מרגיע את הגוף: אם גם אתם כמו ישראלים רבים החיים באזור, מרגישים שהמתח ושגרת היומיום עולים על גדותיהם, עיסוי ארוטי בבאר שבע זה משהו שבהחלט יעזור
להביא להקלה ולשחרור השרירים
שנתפסו.
Thanks for your blog, nice to read. Do not stop.