Babes, how did you get here

A 17 year old girl boards a plane from Botswana to Malaysia. She doesn't know a single person. She's never been to Asia. At the airport, she breaks down crying. Two decades later, she's built businesses across three continents, survived COVID lockdown separated from her partner, raised a global child who sleeps in her bed, and found home in a city she once visited on holiday. Pearl left Botswana at 17 with a scholarship and a dream to escape the shadow of eight older siblings. In Malaysia, she discovered herself through modeling, events, and the freedom to be loud, independent, and unapologetically her. Six years in Singapore followed, then a "temporary" move to Cape Town in 2019 while pregnant. COVID hit. Borders closed. Her Finnish partner was turned away at the airport. For seven months, she was alone with a newborn, a nanny, and a house renovation that wouldn't end. Now she runs fashion and landscaping businesses in South Africa, navigates race dynamics as a Black woman and foreigner, co sleeps with her six year old son, refuses to teach him her native language (yet), and questions whether she's parenting too softly compared to the strict, spanking filled childhood she fled. ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ 🔥 What we cover: Leaving Botswana at 17 and crying in Kuala Lumpur airport Boarding school, A levels, and discovering freedom in Malaysia Culture shock: from African food to Asian spice Going home changed and realizing she'd never move back Six years in Singapore and meeting her Finnish partner COVID lockdown: seven months alone with a newborn in Cape Town Her partner turned away at the airport, separated for months Why Cape Town became home: nature, ease, and opportunity Raising a global child who speaks English but not Setswana Co sleeping with her son and why she won't stop Breaking the cycle: no spanking, no yelling, gentle parenting struggles Starting fashion and landscaping businesses in South Africa Race and business: being Black, foreign, and female in Cape Town The segregation she sees in restaurants and social spaces Public school trauma vs private school privilege The unglamorous truth about moving abroad Motherhood reality: it's harder than she ever imagined The surrogate question: would she have another child? Interracial love and dating across cultures in Asia Why she'd never date someone from her own country The alcohol conversation: teaching kids at home vs sneaking out Having children at 50: selfish or a second chance? Her life on a postcard: champagne by the beach at 8am ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ 🎧 About the show — "Babes, How Did You Get Here?" Hosted by entrepreneur & former Miss Jamaica April Jackson, this podcast explores the raw, emotional, and often uncomfortable stories behind people who chose a life elsewhere. New episodes every week from around the world. ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ ⏱️ CHAPTERS: Chapters 00:00:00 Introduction: From Botswana to Cape Town via Singapore 00:01:32 COVID Lockdown: Separated and Stranded 00:02:24 Leaving Home at 17: The Malaysia Journey Begins 00:03:12 Airport Breakdown: The Reality of Moving Abroad 00:04:03 From Modeling to Events: Finding Her Path in Asia 00:04:21 Culture Shock: Botswana vs Malaysia 00:05:26 Going Home Changed: The First Visit Back 00:08:07 Dreams Deferred: Why Botswana Couldn't Hold Her 00:09:14 Singapore Years: Six Years in the Lion City 00:10:41 Meeting Across Cultures: A Finnish-Botswana Love Story 00:12:02 Cape Town Calling: Why This City Became Home 00:13:15 Raising a Global Child: Language, Culture, and Identity 00:16:21 Breaking the Cycle: Parenting Differently 00:35:11 The Transformation: Eight Months in Asia 00:26:21 Fashion and Landscaping: Building Business in South Africa 00:29:10 Race and Business: Navigating South African Dynamics 00:40:48 The Education Debate: Public School Trauma vs Private School Privilege 00:46:57 Moving Abroad: The Unglamorous Truth 00:17:38 Motherhood Reality Check: It's Not What She Expected 01:19:47 The Surrogate Question: Body, Time, and Future Children 01:17:50 Interracial Love: Finding Connection Beyond Borders 01:16:47 Co-Sleeping and Connection: Parenting Philosophy 01:27:13 The Age Debate: Having Children at 50 and Beyond 01:33:30 Life on a Postcard: Champagne by the Beach #Botswana #CapeTown #SouthAfrica #ExpatLife #Malaysia #Singapore #MovingAbroad #COVIDLockdown #Motherhood #GentleParenting #CoSleeping #InterracialRelationship #GlobalChild #RaisingKidsAbroad #BlackWomanInBusiness #FashionBusiness #Entrepreneurship #RaceInSouthAfrica #CultureShock #LeavingHome #BoardingSchool #AsianExpat #AfricanAbroad #Podcast #AprilJackson #BabesHowDidYouGetHere #FindingHome #ModernMotherhood #LifeAbroad #BuildingCommunity #StartingOver #BreakingTheCycle

A Japanese man dreams of becoming a professional footballer. A street gang attack derails everything at 17. He ends up in Cambodia, survives testicular cancer, navigates divorce, and discovers his life purpose through photography, community, and human connection. Shunsuke, known as Taki, was on track to become a professional footballer in Japan when a random act of violence shattered his ankle and his dream. One day before his trial, a street gang attacked him, leaving him with a broken ankle and torn ligaments. But what could have been the end became a beginning. From advertising executive in Tokyo to country director in Phnom Penh, Taki traded the suffocating pressure of Japanese corporate culture for the chaotic freedom of Cambodia. He built a community through photography, nerd nights, and football, documented everyday life in the streets of Phnom Penh, and gained 50,000 Instagram followers overnight with a single photo of his son. But life abroad wasn't easy. Divorce. Distance from his children. And then, testicular cancer. He went through chemotherapy in Phnom Penh, lost all his hair, kept working, and rang the bell cancer free on Christmas Eve 2023. Now, nine years into his Cambodian life, Taki is building a creative co op called Hitonami, mobilizing photographers, designers, and change makers to solve social issues through creativity and purpose. ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ 🔥 What we cover: From football dreams to street gang violence at 17 The doctor who healed him in 2 months and changed his philosophy Finding his attacker at Yokohama Station and getting revenge Why he chose Cambodia over Europe or America First impressions: red soil, tuk tuks, and BBQ on the streets The generous man who was killed and finding purpose through photography Building community through Nerd Night as an outsider Living in Japan vs Cambodia: the crushing weight of social norms The Instagram photo that got him 50K followers overnight Divorce, distance, and raising kids from another country Testicular cancer diagnosis and chemotherapy in Phnom Penh Losing hair, gaining perspective, and ringing the bell cancer free Lifestyle changes: quitting smoking, drinking less, cooking more Why he'll never go back to Japan Starting Hitonami: a creative co op with purpose Online scams, mafia, and social issues in Cambodia The privilege of risk and entrepreneurship realities Life purpose: meeting people and widening perspectives ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ ⚠️ REAL TALK: This episode is about resilience, reinvention, and refusing to give up. It's about what happens when your dream gets taken away, when your body betrays you, when your family is thousands of miles away, and you still choose to keep going. Whether you've ever thought about leaving your home country, survived something that nearly broke you, or wondered what it really takes to start over in a place where nobody knows you — this conversation will challenge you, inspire you, and remind you that life is about the people you meet and the perspectives you gain. ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ 💬 TELL US IN THE COMMENTS: Would you move to a country you'd never visited before? Have you ever had a dream taken away from you? What would your life postcard look like? Drop your thoughts below 👇 We read every single one. 🔁 Share this with someone who needs to hear this story. ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ 🎧 About the show — "Babes, How Did You Get Here?" Hosted by entrepreneur & former Miss Jamaica April Jackson, this podcast explores the raw, emotional, and often uncomfortable stories behind people who chose a life elsewhere. New episodes every week from around the world. ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ ⏱️ CHAPTERS: Chapters 00:01:46 Living in Japan vs Cambodia: The Pressure of Social Norms 00:04:42 The Street Gang Attack That Ended His Football Career 00:09:05 The Doctor Who Healed Him in 2 Months Instead of 10 00:15:43 Revenge at Yokohama Station: Finding the Gang Member 00:19:51 Why He Chose Cambodia Over Europe or America 00:21:59 First Impressions: Red Soil, Tuk Tuks & BBQ on the Streets 00:29:46 The Generous Who Was Killed & Finding His Purpose Through Photography 00:24:36 Nerd Night & Building Community as an Outsider 00:28:13 The Instagram Photo That Got Him 50K Followers Overnight 00:37:48 Divorce, Distance & Raising Kids From Another Country 00:47:40 Starting Hitonami: A Creative Co op With Purpose #Cambodia #Japan #PhnomPenh #ExpatLife #CancerSurvivor #Reinvention #Photography #Entrepreneurship #LeavingJapan #SoutheastAsia #TesticularCancer #Chemotherapy #Divorce #RaisingKidsAbroad #CreativeCommunity #SocialChange #LifeAbroad #JapaneseExpat #CambodiaLife #Podcast #AprilJackson #BabesHowDidYouGetHere #LifePurpose #HumanConnection #StartingOver #BuildingCommunity #CancerFree #ModernMigration

From Montreal's Michelin Dreams to Kingston's Reality: A Chef's Raw Journey of Sacrifice, Survival & Starting Over In this powerful episode of 'Babes, How Did You Get Here?', April sits down with Chef Matthew — a celebrated Canadian chef who walked away from TV fame, two thriving restaurants, and financial security in Montreal to rebuild his entire life in Jamaica with just $60,000, a French bulldog, and Japanese knives. This isn't your typical expat story. It's raw, unfiltered, and deeply honest — about addiction, recovery, reinvention, and what it really takes to start over in a country that tests you at every turn. 🔪 From rehab to restaurants: How cooking saved his life (and became his new addiction) 💰 The sacrifice: Leaving two restaurants, a TV career & financial stability at 34 ✈️ Arrival in Jamaica: Detained at customs, partnership collapsed, sleeping with a machete 🍌 Surviving on nothing: Banana & oatmeal breakfasts, tomato sandwiches, $100 left in his pocket 🌀 Hurricane Beryl: The storm that saved him from deportation 📄 The bureaucracy: 8 months to get a work permit, navigating Jamaica's "fuckery" 🍽️ Building a reputation: His first dinner, $1,000 from mom, and earning his place 💔 Dating in Jamaica: Culture shock, rent requests, and redefining what he's looking for 🏡 Finding home: Why Kingston feels more like himself than Montreal ever did 🇯🇲 Earning your place: What it means to truly belong in Jamaica Matthew opens up about the toxic hospitality industry, his relationship with weed and alcohol, why he'll never open a high-end restaurant in Jamaica (yet), and how moving here forced him to redefine success, happiness, and what it means to feel at home. 📚 For more details on parenting course: https://april-s-site-fcfd.thinkific.com This is more than a chef's story. It's about choosing yourself when everything falls apart. It's about trusting the process even when you're down to your last dollar. It's about finding peace in discomfort and building a life that honors who you really are — not who you thought you should be. Whether you've ever thought about leaving everything behind, struggled with addiction and reinvention, or wondered what it takes to truly belong somewhere new — this episode will challenge you, inspire you, and remind you that sometimes the hardest journeys lead to the most honest versions of ourselves. 👉 Don't forget to like, comment, and subscribe for more real-life stories of courage, transformation, and finding home far from where you started. #ChefLife #Jamaica #ExpatLife #HowDidYouGetHere #AprilJackson #Montreal #CanadianChef #StartingOver #Recovery #AddictionRecovery #KingstonJamaica #CaribbeanLife #Reinvention #ChefStories #RealStories #Podcast #LifeAbroad #Sacrifice #FindingHome #JamaicanCulture

What happens when a Korean girl who dreamed of being Oprah lands in Kingston, speaking zero patois, knowing nothing about Jamaica except what Google told her — and decides to stay longer than planned? 📚 To join the Parenting community: https://april-s-site-fcfd.thinkific.com In this warm and deeply personal episode of "Babes, How Did You Get Here?", April sits down with Herim — a South Korea-born UN Volunteer, content creator, and Korean food pop-up queen who: Googled her way into a UNESCO job in Jamaica Sold out 180 portions of bibimbap in an hour Learned to be proud of where she's from by living somewhere that celebrates itself unapologetically From leaving home at 14 to chase an Oprah-sized dream, to living in New Zealand, New York, and Boston, to choosing Jamaica over Fiji and Mongolia (even though it was her third choice), Herim opens up about belonging, identity, the $100 grocery bill that shocked her, and why she stopped using her English name after years of trying to fit in. We talk about: ✈️ Leaving South Korea at 14 because Oprah's story on a plane to Switzerland changed everything 🎓 High school in New Zealand, university in Boston, and always knowing she'd leave home 🇺🇸 Losing her US work visa after a year and returning to Korea in a quarter-life crisis 🌍 Applying to the UN Volunteers Program and picking Jamaica as her third choice — based on the job, not the country 📊 Googling "safety Jamaica", seeing the homicide stats, then talking to real people and deciding to see for herself 🛫 The 25-hour journey from her island in South Korea to Kingston (and why her mom thought Jamaica was in Africa) 🥥 Arriving in June during hurricane season: heat, humidity, and a $40 grocery bill for eggs, chicken, and coconut water 🛒 Shopping at Coronation Market, missing Korean food for the first time, and stuffing ingredients into her suitcase from the US 🍚 Hosting two sold-out Korean food pop-ups — 60, then 180 portions of kimchi fried rice, bibimbap, tteokbokki & hotteok How Jamaicans' pride in their culture made her more proud to be Korean 🎉 Her first Grand Gala: a stadium full of black, green, and gold, gospel, Bob Marley, and an energy she'd never felt before 🪪 Why she stopped using her English name "Henna" and started introducing herself as Herim — "clever forest", the name her Buddhist monk grandfather gave her 🏝️ Why she extended her stay in Jamaica — and why she's now moving to Bulgaria 💑 Long distance with her boyfriend in the US for three years — and how Jamaica actually made it easier 🌊 Her "postcard moment": alone on a Caribbean beach, relaxed and content, with big cities, diverse people and food swirling around her like an AI-generated dream This isn't just a UN volunteer story. It's about: Choosing to be called by your real name Learning to be proud of your culture by seeing how others celebrate theirs Realizing that home isn't always where you're born — sometimes it's where people make you feel like you belong It's about $1,500 grapes, sorrel with ginger, juicy patties over Tasty (yes, we're judging), and why Jamaicans wearing flags everywhere made a Korean girl finally understand what pride looks like. Whether you're thinking about working abroad, wondering what it's like to be Asian in Jamaica, or you just love stories of reinvention, resilience, and refusing to shrink your name to make others comfortable — this episode will inspire you, make you hungry, and maybe convince you to trust real people over Google stats. 💬 Tell us in the comments: Have you ever changed your name to fit in? Would you move to a country you knew nothing about for the right job? 👀 🎧 About the show – "Babes, How Did You Get Here?" Hosted by entrepreneur & former Miss Jamaica April Jackson, this podcast dives into real, unfiltered stories of people who left the script — swapping comfort for courage and choosing a life "elsewhere". New episodes every week from around the world. Chapters: Chapters 00:00:00 Introduction: A Korean Journey to the Caribbean 00:00:50 Leaving Home at 14: The Oprah-Inspired Dream 00:04:47 The US Work Visa Crisis and Returning to Korea 00:07:25 Finding Purpose: The Path to the United Nations 00:09:51 The Application: Fiji, Mongolia, or Jamaica? 00:12:27 The Decision: Safety, Distance, and Belonging 00:20:25 Arrival and First Impressions: Heat, Humidity, and Housing 00:25:21 Sharing Korean Culture Through Food 00:32:17 Life in Jamaica: Relationships, Carnival, and Community 00:34:47 Lessons Learned: Pride, Culture, and What's Next 00:35:46 From Henna to Herim: Reclaiming Identity 00:41:02 The Grand Gala: Understanding Jamaican Pride #howdidyougethere #AprilJackson #KoreanInJamaica #JamaicaLiving #ExpatLife #UNVolunteers #UNESCO #SouthKorea #KoreanFood #PopUpDinner #KingstonJamaica #DigitalNomad #CulturalIdentity #Bibimbap #Tteokbokki #GrandGala #JamaicanPride #AsianInJamaica #Reinvention #RealStories #Podcast #FindingHome #CoronationMarket #LifeAbroad #Bulgaria #CaribbeanLife #ThirdChoice

He came to South Africa for a wedding. He stayed for 10 years — and never looked back. From being invisible in England to becoming a household name across 4 continents, Hakeem Kae-Kazim tells the most unfiltered version of his story yet. Racism in the UK industry. Surviving a car crash in the Namibian desert. Delivering his own baby at 2AM on his couch. Choosing Africa over Hollywood. This episode goes there. ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ What we cover: Arriving in South Africa for a wedding — and never leaving Why Black actors are quietly escaping England The glass ceiling nobody in the UK wants to admit exists Becoming famous overnight from one TV commercial Don Cheadle inviting him to his house as a nobody The car crash in Namibia that changed everything Delivering his own baby at 2AM with his bare hands Why he chose Cape Town over Hollywood Growing up Nigerian in England — and being told to forget his roots What Africa gave him that England never could The truth about apartheid's shadow still living in South Africa AI, the future of acting, and what nobody in Hollywood is saying Raising three daughters across 4 countries Why he will never move back to England ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ REAL TALK: This episode will make you question everything. Some will relate to every single word. Others will strongly disagree. But whether you agree or not — this conversation forces real questions about race, identity, ambition, fatherhood, and what people are silently searching for when they leave home. ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ TELL US IN THE COMMENTS: Would YOU ever leave your country and never look back? Do you think England gives Black creatives a fair chance? Has living abroad changed the way you see "home"? Drop your thoughts below 👇 We read every single one. Share this with someone secretly thinking about leaving the UK. ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ About the show — "Babes, How Did You Get Here?" Hosted by entrepreneur & former Miss Jamaica April Jackson, this podcast explores the raw, emotional, and often uncomfortable stories behind people who chose a life elsewhere. New episodes every week from around the world. ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ #SouthAfrica #BlackBritish #ExpatLife #LeavingEngland #HakeemKaeKazim #Africa #HotelRwanda #BlackActors #Nollywood #MovingAbroad #Diaspora #Podcast #AprilJackson #BabesHowDidYouGetHere #UKvsAfrica #LifeAbroad #NigerianBritish #BlackExcellence #Fatherhood #Acting #BlackDiaspora #Identity #Hollywood #CapeTowen #AfricanCulture #BlackCreatives

Two Canadian kids land in Jamaica at 8 and 9 years old. No choice. No warning. No idea what was coming. Ten years later, they're still here — navigating identity, belonging, and what it means to grow up between worlds. Alexandra and Scarlett moved to Jamaica from Montreal in 2015. One day they were eating dumplings in Canada, the next they were the only white kids at Mona Prep, getting swarmed by classmates who wanted to touch their hair. They went from closed Canadian school buildings to open air classrooms with grills and shutters. From musical theatre and soccer to Junior School Challenge Quiz and memorizing Jamaican proverbs at 6:45 AM. From being tourists at all inclusives to representing Jamaica internationally in equestrian competitions. Now 19 and 17, they've built entire lives here. Alexandra teaches piano, stage manages productions, and is launching her own children's performing arts camp. Scarlett rides horses competitively and wears the Jamaican flag abroad — even though she's not technically Jamaican. But the question remains: where do they actually belong? In this honest and surprisingly funny conversation, they talk about what it's really like to grow up in a country you didn't choose, build a career in a place with fewer competitors, and navigate identity when you're not quite Canadian anymore but not fully Jamaican either. ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ 🔥 What we cover: Moving to Jamaica at 8 and 9 with no real explanation Being the first white kids many classmates had ever seen The culture shock of open air schools and touching hair Junior School Challenge Quiz and memorizing Jamaican history at 6 AM Learning patois proverbs and current affairs to compete Representing Jamaica internationally in equestrian sports Teaching piano in Jamaica vs competing in Canada Why it's easier to build a creative career here The trauma of finding maggots in a school patty Juicy vs Tasty patty debate (and why one of them will never eat patties) Curry goat vs oxtail (it's about price and consistency) Sorrel vs eggnog at Christmas What they miss about Canada (dumplings and musical theatre) What they'll miss about Jamaica when they leave Growing up between cultures and not fully belonging to either Where home actually is after 10 years abroad ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ ⚠️ REAL TALK: This episode is about what happens when kids don't get a choice. It's about adapting, surviving, and eventually thriving in a place that wasn't part of the plan. It's about building identity when you're caught between two worlds, and realizing that "home" might not be a place at all. Whether you moved as a kid, raised third culture kids, or have ever felt like you don't fully belong anywhere — this conversation will make you laugh, think, and maybe reconsider what it really means to call a place home. ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ 💬 TELL US IN THE COMMENTS: Did you move countries as a kid? Do you think kids adapt easier than adults? Where do you actually feel like you belong? Drop your thoughts below 👇 We read every single one. 🔁 Share this with someone who grew up between cultures. ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ 🎧 About the show — \"Babes, How Did You Get Here?\" Hosted by entrepreneur & former Miss Jamaica April Jackson, this podcast explores the raw, emotional, and often uncomfortable stories behind people who chose a life elsewhere. New episodes every week from around the world. ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ ⏱️ CHAPTERS: #Jamaica #Canada #ThirdCultureKids #ExpatLife #MovingAbroad #GrowingUpAbroad #MonaPrep #JamaicanIdentity #CanadianExpats #Kingston #LifeInJamaica #CulturalIdentity #BelongingNowhere #Podcast #AprilJackson #BabesHowDidYouGetHere #RaisingKidsAbroad #ExpatKids #JamaicaLife #IdentityCrisis #BetweenWorlds #HomeIsWhereYouMakeIt #PerformingArts #EquestrianLife #ModernMigration

A Japanese man dreams of becoming a professional footballer. A street gang attack derails everything at 17. He ends up in Cambodia, survives testicular cancer, navigates divorce, and discovers his life purpose through photography, community, and human connection. Shunsuke, known as Taki, was on track to become a professional footballer in Japan when a random act of violence shattered his ankle and his dream. One day before his trial, a street gang attacked him, leaving him with a broken ankle and torn ligaments. But what could have been the end became a beginning. From advertising executive in Tokyo to country director in Phnom Penh, Taki traded the suffocating pressure of Japanese corporate culture for the chaotic freedom of Cambodia. He built a community through photography, nerd nights, and football, documented everyday life in the streets of Phnom Penh, and gained 50,000 Instagram followers overnight with a single photo of his son. But life abroad wasn't easy. Divorce. Distance from his children. And then, testicular cancer. He went through chemotherapy in Phnom Penh, lost all his hair, kept working, and rang the bell cancer free on Christmas Eve 2023. Now, nine years into his Cambodian life, Taki is building a creative co op called Hitonami, mobilizing photographers, designers, and change makers to solve social issues through creativity and purpose. ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ 🔥 What we cover: From football dreams to street gang violence at 17 The doctor who healed him in 2 months and changed his philosophy Finding his attacker at Yokohama Station and getting revenge Why he chose Cambodia over Europe or America First impressions: red soil, tuk tuks, and BBQ on the streets The generous man who was killed and finding purpose through photography Building community through Nerd Night as an outsider Living in Japan vs Cambodia: the crushing weight of social norms The Instagram photo that got him 50K followers overnight Divorce, distance, and raising kids from another country Testicular cancer diagnosis and chemotherapy in Phnom Penh Losing hair, gaining perspective, and ringing the bell cancer free Lifestyle changes: quitting smoking, drinking less, cooking more Why he'll never go back to Japan Starting Hitonami: a creative co op with purpose Online scams, mafia, and social issues in Cambodia The privilege of risk and entrepreneurship realities Life purpose: meeting people and widening perspectives ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ ⚠️ REAL TALK: This episode is about resilience, reinvention, and refusing to give up. It's about what happens when your dream gets taken away, when your body betrays you, when your family is thousands of miles away, and you still choose to keep going. Whether you've ever thought about leaving your home country, survived something that nearly broke you, or wondered what it really takes to start over in a place where nobody knows you — this conversation will challenge you, inspire you, and remind you that life is about the people you meet and the perspectives you gain. ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ 💬 TELL US IN THE COMMENTS: Would you move to a country you'd never visited before? Have you ever had a dream taken away from you? What would your life postcard look like? Drop your thoughts below 👇 We read every single one. 🔁 Share this with someone who needs to hear this story. ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ 🎧 About the show — "Babes, How Did You Get Here?" Hosted by entrepreneur & former Miss Jamaica April Jackson, this podcast explores the raw, emotional, and often uncomfortable stories behind people who chose a life elsewhere. New episodes every week from around the world. ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ ⏱️ CHAPTERS: Chapters 00:01:46 Living in Japan vs Cambodia: The Pressure of Social Norms 00:04:42 The Street Gang Attack That Ended His Football Career 00:09:05 The Doctor Who Healed Him in 2 Months Instead of 10 00:15:43 Revenge at Yokohama Station: Finding the Gang Member 00:19:51 Why He Chose Cambodia Over Europe or America 00:21:59 First Impressions: Red Soil, Tuk Tuks & BBQ on the Streets 00:29:46 The Generous Who Was Killed & Finding His Purpose Through Photography 00:24:36 Nerd Night & Building Community as an Outsider 00:28:13 The Instagram Photo That Got Him 50K Followers Overnight 00:37:48 Divorce, Distance & Raising Kids From Another Country 00:47:40 Starting Hitonami: A Creative Co op With Purpose #Cambodia #Japan #PhnomPenh #ExpatLife #CancerSurvivor #Reinvention #Photography #Entrepreneurship #LeavingJapan #SoutheastAsia #TesticularCancer #Chemotherapy #Divorce #RaisingKidsAbroad #CreativeCommunity #SocialChange #LifeAbroad #JapaneseExpat #CambodiaLife #Podcast #AprilJackson #BabesHowDidYouGetHere #LifePurpose #HumanConnection #StartingOver #BuildingCommunity #CancerFree #ModernMigration

A Black British woman leaves London with two suitcases, no job, nowhere to live — and builds an entirely new life in Dubai. What started as a one-year plan turned into nine years abroad, multiple careers, identity shifts, burnout, reinvention, and one brutally honest realization: “I’d NEVER raise Black children in London.” Kai Charles grew up in West London, worked corporate jobs at companies like The Economist, and dreamed of building a music career. But despite doing everything “right” — good grades, university, stable career — something still felt deeply wrong. So she left. In this raw, controversial, and deeply honest conversation, Kai opens up about the realities of leaving the UK, the emotional cost of migration, Black British identity, why Dubai felt safer than London, and the uncomfortable truths many people are too scared to say out loud. From surviving Dubai with no plan, no apartment, and only £4,000 in savings… to navigating the music industry, COVID lockdowns, corporate burnout, loneliness abroad, and the question of whether “home” still feels like home — this episode goes there. ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ 🔥 What we cover: Leaving London with no job and no apartment Why corporate life felt “soul destroying” Working at The Economist before quitting everything Trying to survive as an independent singer in Dubai The hidden reality of gig culture and artist burnout Why Dubai felt safer than the UK The culture shock of raising children in Dubai “I’d NEVER raise Black children in London” The difference between Black British and Caribbean identity Why so many ambitious people are quietly leaving the UK COVID in Dubai vs London: why she chose to stay The loneliness nobody talks about when moving abroad Why London now feels “slow, unsafe and depressing” Soft life culture vs survival mode Why Dubai changed her forever The emotional reality of starting over abroad Building community as a Black woman overseas Why she no longer sees the UK the same way ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ ⚠️ REAL TALK: This episode will probably trigger people. Some will completely understand everything Kai is saying. Others will strongly disagree. But whether you agree or not, this conversation opens up real questions about identity, safety, ambition, burnout, race, migration, and what people are silently searching for when they leave home. ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ 💬 TELL US IN THE COMMENTS: Would YOU ever leave your country and start over? Do you think London is still a good place to raise children? Has living abroad changed the way you see “home”? Drop your thoughts below 👇 We read every single one. 🔁 Share this with someone secretly thinking about leaving the UK. ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ 🎧 About the show — "Babes, How Did You Get Here?" Hosted by entrepreneur & former Miss Jamaica April Jackson, this podcast explores the raw, emotional, and often uncomfortable stories behind people who chose a life elsewhere. New episodes every week from around the world. ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ ⏱️ CHAPTERS: ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ #Dubai #London #BlackBritish #ExpatLife #LeavingTheUK #DubaiLife #BlackWomen #MovingAbroad #SoftLife #LondonLife #BlackExcellence #Diaspora #Podcast #AprilJackson #BabesHowDidYouGetHere #UKvsDubai #LifeAbroad #BritishCulture #EntrepreneurLife #WomenWhoMove #DubaiPodcast #BlackDiaspora #Identity #SelfDevelopment #BlackProfessionals #ModernMigration

A Black British woman leaves London with two suitcases, no job, nowhere to live — and builds an entirely new life in Dubai. What started as a one-year plan turned into nine years abroad, multiple careers, identity shifts, burnout, reinvention, and one brutally honest realization: “I’d NEVER raise Black children in London.” Kai Charles grew up in West London, worked corporate jobs at companies like The Economist, and dreamed of building a music career. But despite doing everything “right” — good grades, university, stable career — something still felt deeply wrong. So she left. In this raw, controversial, and deeply honest conversation, Kai opens up about the realities of leaving the UK, the emotional cost of migration, Black British identity, why Dubai felt safer than London, and the uncomfortable truths many people are too scared to say out loud. From surviving Dubai with no plan, no apartment, and only £4,000 in savings… to navigating the music industry, COVID lockdowns, corporate burnout, loneliness abroad, and the question of whether “home” still feels like home — this episode goes there. ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ 🔥 What we cover: Leaving London with no job and no apartment Why corporate life felt “soul destroying” Working at The Economist before quitting everything Trying to survive as an independent singer in Dubai The hidden reality of gig culture and artist burnout Why Dubai felt safer than the UK The culture shock of raising children in Dubai “I’d NEVER raise Black children in London” The difference between Black British and Caribbean identity Why so many ambitious people are quietly leaving the UK COVID in Dubai vs London: why she chose to stay The loneliness nobody talks about when moving abroad Why London now feels “slow, unsafe and depressing” Soft life culture vs survival mode Why Dubai changed her forever The emotional reality of starting over abroad Building community as a Black woman overseas Why she no longer sees the UK the same way ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ ⚠️ REAL TALK: This episode will probably trigger people. Some will completely understand everything Kai is saying. Others will strongly disagree. But whether you agree or not, this conversation opens up real questions about identity, safety, ambition, burnout, race, migration, and what people are silently searching for when they leave home. ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ 💬 TELL US IN THE COMMENTS: Would YOU ever leave your country and start over? Do you think London is still a good place to raise children? Has living abroad changed the way you see “home”? Drop your thoughts below 👇 We read every single one. 🔁 Share this with someone secretly thinking about leaving the UK. ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ 🎧 About the show — "Babes, How Did You Get Here?" Hosted by entrepreneur & former Miss Jamaica April Jackson, this podcast explores the raw, emotional, and often uncomfortable stories behind people who chose a life elsewhere. New episodes every week from around the world. ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ ⏱️ CHAPTERS: Chapters 00:00:00 Introduction 00:01:25 Leaving London With Two Suitcases 00:04:49 Corporate Burnout & Music Dreams 00:06:16 “I Got Sick Of Being Sick In London” 00:07:38 Moving To Dubai With No Plan 00:10:57 Finding An Apartment In 5 Days 00:14:14 Why Dubai Felt Different 00:17:07 How The Dubai Music Industry Really Works 00:20:14 Sacrificing Artistry To Survive 00:21:51 Why She Quit Singing 00:23:19 COVID Destroyed The Industry 00:26:17 Why She Stayed In Dubai During Lockdown 00:28:04 Returning To London After Living Abroad 00:29:59 How Dubai Changed Her Personality 00:31:03 The Moment She Realized She’d Never Move Back 00:33:02 Why Corporate Life Never Fulfilled Her 00:39:09 Searching For Purpose Beyond Money 00:40:01 Family Reactions To Her Leaving 00:41:20 Why So Many People Are Moving To Dubai 00:43:17 Parenting, Culture Shock & Children In Dubai 00:47:47 “I’d NEVER Raise Black Children In London” 00:50:02 Why The West No Longer Feels Appealing 00:51:11 Black British Identity Explained ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ #Dubai #London #BlackBritish #ExpatLife #LeavingTheUK #DubaiLife #BlackWomen #MovingAbroad #SoftLife #LondonLife #BlackExcellence #Diaspora #Podcast #AprilJackson #BabesHowDidYouGetHere #UKvsDubai #LifeAbroad #BritishCulture #EntrepreneurLife #WomenWhoMove #DubaiPodcast #BlackDiaspora #Identity #SelfDevelopment #BlackProfessionals #ModernMigration

📚 For more details on my parenting method: https://april-s-site-fcfd.thinkific.com What happens when a London cop rises through the ranks at Scotland Yard, gets recruited to transform Jamaica's police force, and ends up staying for 20 years — building a life, a business, and a family in a country that wasn't his? 🇬🇧🇯🇲 In this powerful episode of 'Babes, How Did You Get Here?', April sits down with Mark Shields — former Deputy Commissioner of the Jamaica Constabulary Force, Scotland Yard veteran, and now a Kingston-based security entrepreneur who traded the policing career of a lifetime for Caribbean sunshine, political stability, and a whole new definition of home. From arriving in 2005 to overhaul a force riddled with corruption and fatal shootings, to walking away five years later to start his own company, Mark opens up about what it really takes to lead change in a foreign country, why he chose Jamaica over returning to the UK, and how a place he once found chaotic became the place he now defends fiercely. We talk about: 🚔 Leaving Scotland Yard to become Deputy Commissioner of the JCF — and why some colleagues thought he was crazy 📸 Arriving to find crime scenes photographed in black and white, evidence stored in wax-sealed paper bags, and zero accountability 🔧 Introducing exhibit bags, color photography, major investigation task forces, and Jamaica Eye surveillance 💔 The corruption, resistance, and weekly moments of "what the fuck am I doing here?" 🇯🇲 Why Jamaican people embraced him — even when senior officers didn't 👨‍👩‍👧 Getting divorced, remarrying a Jamaican attorney and broadcast journalist, and raising a daughter with an English accent in Kingston 💼 Walking away from policing in 2009 to start Shields Crime and Security — and why he finally became the entrepreneur he always wanted to be 🎥 Facial recognition cameras, vehicle tracking tech, and why Jamaica needs more than just "Jamaica Eye" 🚗 Why 400+ road deaths a year could be cut in half with traffic cameras — but the regulations still aren't in place 🇬🇧 Comparing UK chaos (five prime ministers since 2015, Brexit, economic disaster) to Jamaica's political and financial stability 🏡 Why his London friends are selling houses for £1.9 million — and why he can't afford to move back 🌍 The cultural differences: disorder vs. freedom, sexism, entitlement at Hillel, and why some expats love it here and others can't wait to leave 🗣️ Why he's protective of Jamaica's reputation — and why crime headlines are often irresponsible and misleading It's about political stability, economic growth, and why Jamaica in 2025 might actually be safer and saner than the UK. It's about raising a third-culture kid, defending a misunderstood island, and finding home in the last place you expected. Whether you've thought about moving to Jamaica, wondered what it's like to work in law enforcement abroad, or just want to hear a story about resilience, reinvention, and refusing to go back — this episode will challenge you, inspire you, and maybe make you rethink what "home" really means. 💬 Tell us in the comments: Have you ever stayed somewhere you only meant to visit? And would you choose Jamaica over London right now? 👀 🎧 About the show – "Babes, How Did You Get Here?" Hosted by entrepreneur & former Miss Jamaica, April Jackson, this podcast dives into the real, unfiltered stories of people who left the script — swapping comfort for courage, and choosing a life "elsewhere." 📌 Subscribe for more stories on: • Expat life, Jamaica living & building a life abroad • Law enforcement, crime, policing & justice reform • Entrepreneurship, security tech & starting a business in Jamaica • UK vs Jamaica: politics, economy & quality of life • Raising third-culture kids & navigating identity across borders • Cultural misconceptions, media narratives & defending Jamaica's reputation • Reinvention, resilience & choosing a new home. #howdidyougethere #AprilJackson #MarkShields #JamaicaLiving #ExpatLife #ScotlandYard #JCF #LawEnforcement #KingstonJamaica #UKvsJamaica #LifeAbroad #PolicingAbroad #Entrepreneurship #SecurityTech #ThirdCultureKids #Reinvention #FindingHome #CaribbeanLife #JamaicaVsUK #RealStories #Podcast #PoliticalStability #CrimeAndSecurity #BuildingALifeAbroad

What happens when a Bajan Hindu girl lands in Kingston at 18 to study physiotherapy, falls in love with a Jamaican, and 22 years later is still here — raising two daughters, running a practice, and calling Jamaica home while Barbados stays in her heart? In this heartwarming and deeply personal episode of "Babes, How Did You Get Here?", host April Jackson sits down with Jivika Lalwani-Chugani (Jivey)—a Barbados-born physiotherapist, entrepreneur, co-director, and proud Hindu mother of two—who shares the unexpected journey that took her from a university student in Kingston to building a family, a business, and a life rooted in love, tradition, and adaptability across two Caribbean islands. 📚 To join the Parenting community: https://april-s-site-fcfd.thinkific.com Jivey opens up about arriving in Jamaica at 18 to study physiotherapy at the University of the West Indies—where she fell in love with a Jamaican, extended her "one-year internship," and never left. What began as a degree turned into 22 years of marriage, two daughters, a thriving physiotherapy practice, and a life that weaves together Bajan roots, Indian culture, and Jamaican warmth in a way that feels effortless—but wasn't always easy. She talks honestly about the cultural differences between Barbados and Jamaica, the shock of seeing goats cross the road in the city, the confusion of Jamaican money ($200,000 for university supplies?!), and why she'll choose tastee patty over juicee any day. She shares what it's like to raise two daughters with completely different relationships to their Jamaican identity, how she keeps Indian traditions alive through food, festivals, and community, and why her husband's support made all the difference when she decided to take seven years off to be a stay-at-home mom. One of the most powerful moments in the episode is her return to work—just two weeks before COVID hit. After seven years of being the chauffeur, the cook, the nurse, and everything in between, Jivey stepped back into physiotherapy with fear, excitement, and a deep sense of calling. She discovered a passion for working with geriatric patients, found fulfillment in improving quality of life for the elderly, and built a part-time practice that honors her number one priority: family first, everything else secondary. She also gets real about the misconceptions people have about Jamaica (crime, safety, fear), the classism she experienced in Barbados (Sandy Lane bar service, anyone?), and why she believes Jamaicans are filled with love and warmth—something she's experienced firsthand for over two decades. From roast breadfruit and steamed fish with okra, to deep-fried okra with peanut sauce, to the cultural shock of window washers at stoplights, to raising third-culture kids who celebrate Diwali and love the beach— Jivey's story is a beautiful reminder that home is where you choose to bloom, and that love, food, and community are the threads that hold it all together. 💬 Question for you: Have you ever moved to a new country and built a whole new life? What was the hardest part? And Team Tasty or Team Juicy? 👀 If this episode resonated, like, comment, and share it with someone who needs the reminder that it's never too late to choose love, family, and a life that honors all of who you are. Chapters: Chapters 00:00:00 Intro: From Barbados to Jamaica 00:01:04 How Jivy ended up in Jamaica 00:03:17 First impressions of Jamaica 00:06:05 Becoming a mom & Indian culture 00:07:30 Food culture shock 00:10:02 Goats, cows & culture clashes 00:12:43 From stay-at-home mom back to work 00:14:30 Quickfire questions #howdidyougethere #AprilJackson #BarbadosToJamaica #expatlife #JamaicaLiving #CaribbeanLife #BajanInJamaica #IndianCulture #Hindu #Physiotherapy #Motherhood #ThirdCultureKids #StayAtHomeMom #WorkingMom #CulturalIdentity #FlyingFish #JerkChicken #TastyPatty #RoastBreadfruit #FindingHome #LoveAndFamily #CaribbeanExpat #RealStories #Podcast #Reinvention #LifeAbroad #KingstonJamaica #Diwali #FoodIsLove #ChoosingJoy

Why she sold a successful business to chase a view The 2-month move with 5 suitcases for a family of 5 Why everyone — even her best clients — predicted she'd fail Getting scammed by a French baker hired off Craigslist The Jamaican concept of "bad mind" and how it broke her team Being accused of racism in The Observer over a vanilla latte The WhatsApp group of men who watched her breastfeed Her newborn sleeping under the bakery counter Why she fired every foreign worker she ever hired Raising her kids at Mona Prep, KC, and Campion Why Jamaica's traditional diet should be a Blue Zone The expats who tried Jamaica and ran — and why she stayed Why she'd die happy never leaving this island ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ ⚠️ REAL TALK: This episode is for anyone who's ever wondered if walking away from the "good life" is worth the unknown. Ellen didn't expect any of this. She just kept saying yes to a vision nobody else could see. ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ 💬 TELL US IN THE COMMENTS: Would YOU walk away from a successful business to start over? Could you move countries in 2 months with no plan? What's the leap you're scared to take? Drop your thoughts below 👇 We read every single one. 🔁 Share this with someone who needs to hear they don't need a plan — they just need to say yes. ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ 🎧 About the show — "A Life Elsewhere" Hosted by entrepreneur & former Miss Jamaica April Jackson, this podcast dives into the raw, unfiltered stories of people who left the script — swapping comfort for courage, and choosing a life "elsewhere." 🔔 New episodes every week from around the world. ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ ⏱️ CHAPTERS: Chapters 00:05:16 Two Months From Vacation to One-Way Flight 00:13:39 Hiring a Baker Off Craigslist (The Scam That Followed) 00:30:35 Being Accused of Racism in The Observer Over a Vanilla Latte 00:42:07 The WhatsApp Group of Men Who Watched Her Breastfeed 00:55:03 The Most Surprising Thing About Moving Here 00:56:19 Why Her Lifestyle Vibrates Better in Jamaica 01:07:01 The "Wash Belly": Her Jamaican-Born Daughter 01:11:36 The Champs Color Wars & Family Loyalty 01:18:33 Coronation Market Every Thursday 01:19:48 Does Jamaica Feel Like Home? 01:29:39 Bakery Menu Influenced by Jamaica (Ackee, Sorrel Pickles, Polish Sausage) ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ #Ellen #Jamaica #Kingston #SourdoughBakery #MovingAbroad #ExpatLife #CanadianInJamaica #StartingOver #BoldMoves #CaribbeanLife #LifeElsewhere #AprilJackson #BabesHowDidYouGetHere #TravelStories #SayYes #Entrepreneur #Family

She traded London pounds for Cape Town sunshine — and her marriage has never been better. In Part 2 of this raw conversation, Desmei Collia goes deeper into what it really cost her to live in the UK — and why coming home to South Africa saved her marriage, her mental health, and her sense of self. She doesn't hold back about the subtle racism in British salons, the in-laws who didn't approve, the marriage counseling that saved her relationship, and the moment she realized she'd rather be "late" than walk past someone who needed help. In this unfiltered episode, Desmei opens up about: 🙏🏽 Why her atheist British husband became a Christian — without her ever asking ⛪ The cultural shock of British churches (and why pastors use TIMERS to preach) 💔 Marriage counseling, in-law conflicts, and the day Tom dropped out of university for her 😔 Going on antidepressants in Guernsey — and why no one warns you about expat loneliness 🇬🇧 The COVID lockdown that made her question everything about life in the UK ✂️ Being told "you're just a hairdresser" — and proving every doubter wrong 💷 Why pounds only feel valuable in third-world countries (and British people are struggling too) 🏡 The truth about foreigners buying up Cape Town property 👵🏽 The day she found an elderly man bleeding on a UK pavement — and what it taught her about Britain 💍 How returning home transformed her marriage from surviving to thriving 🌍 Why she lost friends when she came back (and why she's okay with that) 👶🏽 A message to the little girl she used to be: "Everything is going to be okay" This is not a story about giving up on the UK. This is a story about choosing yourself. From marriage counseling in Manchester to financial freedom in Cape Town, from being second-guessed in British salons to becoming the hairdresser celebrities now fly to — Desmei's return journey will make you question everything you've been told about "making it" abroad. ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ ⏱️ CHAPTERS: Chapters 00:00:00 "I prefer South African racism" (recap) 00:01:30 Talking about faith: the cultural divide 00:02:40 Her atheist husband becomes a Christian 00:03:45 Pentecostal vs Anglican: church culture shock 00:05:00 "Why are they running around the coffin?" 00:05:45 You can never figure out a British person 00:07:35 Being "too much" for her British in-laws 00:09:00 Marriage counseling saved us 00:10:30 "A man will leave his family" 00:11:10 Why Jamaicans and South Africans don't go to therapy 00:13:40 The couple who never argued (and the racist twist) 00:15:15 Why her kids will ALWAYS say "Auntie" and "Uncle" 00:16:45 The elderly man bleeding on the UK pavement 00:18:00 Picking up a stranger on the way to the interview 00:19:30 Dying alone: the British reality nobody talks about 00:21:30 "Hairdressing saved me from poverty" 00:24:00 The biggest disrespect in her marriage 00:25:30 The price of being self-employed 00:27:00 The subtle racism in British salons 00:29:30 Tom dropped out of university for her 00:32:00 The in-law conflict that almost broke them 00:34:30 Going on antidepressants in Guernsey 00:37:00 COVID lockdown and losing purpose 00:39:00 Manchester: finally being able to breathe 00:44:00 The decision to come home 00:46:00 "Don't move thinking it's a bed of roses" 00:50:00 Why people judge you for going back 00:52:30 Pounds are only valuable in third-world countries 00:57:00 Foreigners buying up Cape Town property 00:59:00 The BBC documentary problem 01:01:00 Her message to anyone thinking about going home 01:03:00 Losing friends after coming back 01:04:30 A message to her younger self 01:06:00 The dream isn't over yet 01:08:30 "30 years ago, my marriage would have been illegal" ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ 🎙️ ABOUT THE SHOW: Some people dream of living elsewhere. Other people actually pack up and do it. I'm April Jackson, traveling the world finding interesting people who have moved abroad — sharing their unfiltered truths about identity, belonging, and the true cost of a life elsewhere. ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ 💬 Would YOU move back home if you had the chance? Drop a comment below. 👉🏽 SUBSCRIBE for new episodes every week ❤️ LIKE if this conversation challenged you 🔔 Hit the bell so you don't miss the next story Share this with someone who's quietly been thinking about taking that next big leap. 💫 ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ #SouthAfrica #UKLife #InterracialMarriage #MovingBackHome #CapeTown #ReverseImmigration #BlackWomen #ColoredCommunity #MarriageCounseling #ExpatLife #MentalHealth #SelfEmployed

Babes, How Did You Get Here? | Karina: From Moscow Dance Floors to Kingston Streets – Finding Home After Dancehall Broke Her Heart What happens when a Russian hip-hop dancer falls so deeply in love with dancehall culture that she moves 6,000 miles to Jamaica—only to discover that the community she worshipped would eventually exile her, leaving her stranded between two worlds, two Jamaicas, and two versions of herself? In this raw, unfiltered, and deeply honest episode, host April Jackson sits down with Karina Galliamova—a Russian dancehall dancer, former Moscow dance instructor, and now a Kingston-based content creator who traded the grey skies of Russia for the chaos, beauty, and heartbreak of Jamaica. From her first trip in 2016 (thinking she'd get shot), to teaching dancehall across 50+ Russian cities, to surviving COVID in Jamaica, to being canceled by the very community she loved, to finding unexpected love at Carnival and building a new life in uptown Kingston—Karina's story is one of passion, resilience, cultural collision, and choosing happiness even when the dream doesn't look like you thought it would. In this episode, we discuss: Falling in Love with Dancehall: How a crush on a dancer led her into a culture she initially hated—and then couldn't live without. First Trip to Jamaica (2016): Arriving terrified, hearing gunshots in Spanish Town, and still thinking, "I wish I could stay." Life in Moscow: Teaching dancehall across Russia, traveling to 50+ cities, working with Nike and Adidas, and burning out. The Balcony Moment: Sitting in New Kingston in 2019 and randomly deciding, "I could live here." COVID and Choosing to Stay: Coming for three months in January 2020, getting the option to leave, and deciding to extend her visa and stay. The Abusive Relationship: Falling for a Jamaican man who had someone else, living a double life, and surviving emotional manipulation. Living Between Two Jamaicas: Dancehall vs. uptown, street parties vs. boat parties, and navigating class and culture shock. The Post That Changed Everything: Writing "80-90% of Jamaican dancehall dancers cheat" and getting canceled, called racist, and exiled from the community she loved. Surviving Depression: Losing her identity, her community, and her purpose—and choosing to stay in Jamaica anyway. Finding Uptown Jamaica: Meeting a Russian friend who introduced her to a completely different Kingston—one with money, boats, and no one asking her to buy them drinks. Meeting Her Boyfriend at Carnival: Seeing his "bad picture," meeting him at Kaya Fest, talking for two hours, and never leaving his place after the first visit. The Red Flags She Ignored: He had a daughter, she said she'd never date a man with kids, and then she fell in love anyway. Life in Kingston Now: Living with her boyfriend, building her social media platform, navigating "tourist tax," and learning to love ackee and breadfruit. The Cost of Living Shock: Paying 10,000 JMD for electricity in a studio with no AC, vegetables costing more than in Moscow, and realizing Jamaica is expensive. Being Russian in Jamaica: Dealing with stereotypes, being called a spy, and learning to say "I was born in Ukraine" to change the energy in the room. Home or Not?: Still asking herself if Jamaica is forever, knowing she's traumatized by her dancehall experience, but choosing happiness over comfort. Why This Story Matters This isn't just a story about moving to Jamaica or falling out of love with dancehall. It's about: Following your passion even when it leads you somewhere dangerous and unpredictable. Surviving heartbreak, exile, and depression in a foreign country—and choosing to stay anyway. Navigating cultural collision when you're white, Russian, and in love with Black culture. Finding love after trauma and learning to trust again. #HowDidYouGetHere #AprilJackson #JamaicaLiving #KingstonLife #DancehallCulture #RussianInJamaica #ExpatLife #CulturalCollision #FindingHome #Heartbreak #Reinvention #UptownJamaica #LivingAbroad #CourageOverComfort #ChoosingHappiness #MovingToJamaica #caribbeanlife Chapters 00:00:00 Introduction: The Cost of Living in Jamaica 00:00:45 Meet Karina: A Russian Dancer's Journey 00:02:15 First Trip to Jamaica: 2016 00:04:37 Falling in Love with Dancehall Culture 00:09:12 The Spanish Town Incident: A Wake-Up Call 00:13:01 The Toxic Relationship That Brought Her Back 00:01:30 COVID Times: Choosing to Stay 00:23:29 The Controversial Post That Changed Everything 00:39:05 Discovering Uptown Jamaica 00:41:46 Two Jamaicas: Inner City vs Uptown Life 00:47:52 Finding Love at Carnival 01:05:27 Tourist Tax and Daily Challenges 01:01:29 Culture Shocks: What Nobody Tells You 01:14:31 Jamaican Food Favorites and Discoveries 01:13:51 Final Thoughts: Is Jamaica Home?

From a small New Zealand town with no traffic lights to Antarctica, East Timor war zones, Syrian roundabouts, and now Cambodia — this is the story of a simple Māori boy who built a life everywhere except where he started. John Cassidy (JC) grew up in Blenheim, New Zealand — population 20,000, zero traffic lights, and enough kids on the street to fill a rugby team. He worked in a mussel factory, had no plans for university, and definitely didn't think he'd end up flying prime ministers, coordinating COVID vaccines in South Sudan, or living in a tent surrounded by snakes in East Timor. But life had other plans. In this raw, hilarious, and deeply reflective conversation, JC walks us through 20+ years in the New Zealand Air Force, a decade in UN humanitarian aviation, and what it's like raising third culture kids while moving countries every few years. From his first flight (which made him violently sick and almost ruined his aviation dreams), to six months on ice in Antarctica watching Adélie penguins judge him, to navigating Damascus traffic with zero preparation, to being the "grocery man" smuggling supplies into Sudan during sanctions — JC's life is a masterclass in saying yes to opportunities even when you have no idea what you're doing. ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ 🔥 What we cover: Growing up in a town where seeing traffic lights was a field trip The mussel factory boss who changed his life The military interview where he froze and thought he blew it His first flight: Top Gun dreams meet vomit reality Flying prime ministers and British military across the globe Damascus 2003: Russian roulette roundabouts and lollipop wielding traffic cops Antarctica: 85 beds, 10 winter survivors, and penguins with personality East Timor in a tent: snakes, netting, and desensitization Meeting his wife in Haiti and joining the UN The 2010 Haiti earthquake: the UN's biggest single loss of life South Sudan during COVID: becoming the vaccine coordinator when no one else could do it Life in Jordan (lovely) vs Sudan (challenging): the grocery smuggling operation Cambodia: why it's safer than expected and why his kids can take tuk tuks alone Food disasters: the crab salad that took him out for 5 days Paris disappointment: why Jules Verne didn't live up to the hype Business class upgrades and the secret to getting them (hint: it's not about the shoes) Advice for expats: question your motivation or you won't survive the hard posts Identity and family: what it means to be Māori when your kids speak French and you live in Cambodia ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ ⚠️ REAL TALK: This episode is for anyone who's ever wondered if they should take the leap, move abroad, or say yes to something that scares them. JC didn't plan any of this. He just kept saying yes. ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ 💬 TELL US IN THE COMMENTS: Would YOU have gotten on that first flight after getting violently airsick? Could you live in a tent in East Timor with snakes? What's the most unexpected place life has taken you? Drop your thoughts below 👇 We read every single one. 🔁 Share this with someone who needs to hear that you don't need a plan — you just need to say yes. ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ 🎧 About the show — "Babes, How Did You Get Here?" Hosted by entrepreneur & former Miss Jamaica April Jackson, this podcast dives into the raw, unfiltered stories of people who left the script — swapping comfort for courage, and choosing a life "elsewhere." 🔔 New episodes every week from around the world. ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ ⏱️ CHAPTERS: Chapters 00:00:00 Introduction: A Simple Maori Boy from New Zealand 00:00:56 Growing Up in Blenheim: Life Without Traffic Lights 00:03:23 From Mussel Factory to Military: An Unexpected Path 00:06:24 The Interview That Changed Everything 00:12:27 First Flight Experience: When Top Gun Dreams Meet Reality 00:15:31 Global Adventures: From Prime Ministers to Antarctica 00:17:32 Damascus Memories: Lollipops and Russian Roulette Roundabouts 00:21:19 Antarctica: Six Months on Ice 00:34:26 East Timor in a Tent: Military Operations and Snake Encounters 00:39:03 Meeting His Wife and Joining the UN 00:40:27 Haiti Earthquake: The UN's Biggest Loss 00:46:01 South Sudan During COVID: Vaccines and Challenges 00:52:34 Life in Jordan and Sudan: The Grocery Man 01:00:58 Cambodia: Finding Home in Southeast Asia 01:03:02 Food Adventures: From Crab Salad Disasters to Paris Disappointments 01:06:50 Business Class Upgrades and the Art of Travel 01:14:17 Advice for Future Expats: Question Your Motivation 01:27:02 Identity and Family: What It Means to Be Maori ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ #JohnCassidy #NewZealand #MaoriPride #MilitaryLife #AirForce #UNLife #HumanitarianWork #Antarctica #EastTimor #Syria #SouthSudan #Haiti #Cambodia #ExpatLife #ThirdCultureKids #MovingAbroad #AviationLife #COVIDResponse #LifeElsewhere #BabesHowDidYouGetHere #AprilJackson #TravelStories #SayYes #AdventureLife #GlobalCitizen #Kiwi

From a small New Zealand town with no traffic lights to Antarctica, East Timor war zones, Syrian roundabouts, and now Cambodia — this is the story of a simple Māori boy who built a life everywhere except where he started. John Cassidy (JC) grew up in Blenheim, New Zealand — population 20,000, zero traffic lights, and enough kids on the street to fill a rugby team. He worked in a mussel factory, had no plans for university, and definitely didn't think he'd end up flying prime ministers, coordinating COVID vaccines in South Sudan, or living in a tent surrounded by snakes in East Timor. But life had other plans. In this raw, hilarious, and deeply reflective conversation, JC walks us through 20+ years in the New Zealand Air Force, a decade in UN humanitarian aviation, and what it's like raising third culture kids while moving countries every few years. From his first flight (which made him violently sick and almost ruined his aviation dreams), to six months on ice in Antarctica watching Adélie penguins judge him, to navigating Damascus traffic with zero preparation, to being the "grocery man" smuggling supplies into Sudan during sanctions — JC's life is a masterclass in saying yes to opportunities even when you have no idea what you're doing. ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ 🔥 What we cover: Growing up in a town where seeing traffic lights was a field trip The mussel factory boss who changed his life The military interview where he froze and thought he blew it His first flight: Top Gun dreams meet vomit reality Flying prime ministers and British military across the globe Damascus 2003: Russian roulette roundabouts and lollipop wielding traffic cops Antarctica: 85 beds, 10 winter survivors, and penguins with personality East Timor in a tent: snakes, netting, and desensitization Meeting his wife in Haiti and joining the UN The 2010 Haiti earthquake: the UN's biggest single loss of life South Sudan during COVID: becoming the vaccine coordinator when no one else could do it Life in Jordan (lovely) vs Sudan (challenging): the grocery smuggling operation Cambodia: why it's safer than expected and why his kids can take tuk tuks alone Food disasters: the crab salad that took him out for 5 days Paris disappointment: why Jules Verne didn't live up to the hype Business class upgrades and the secret to getting them (hint: it's not about the shoes) Advice for expats: question your motivation or you won't survive the hard posts Identity and family: what it means to be Māori when your kids speak French and you live in Cambodia ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ ⚠️ REAL TALK: This episode is for anyone who's ever wondered if they should take the leap, move abroad, or say yes to something that scares them. JC didn't plan any of this. He just kept saying yes. ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ 💬 TELL US IN THE COMMENTS: Would YOU have gotten on that first flight after getting violently airsick? Could you live in a tent in East Timor with snakes? What's the most unexpected place life has taken you? Drop your thoughts below 👇 We read every single one. 🔁 Share this with someone who needs to hear that you don't need a plan — you just need to say yes. ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ 🎧 About the show — "Babes, How Did You Get Here?" Hosted by entrepreneur & former Miss Jamaica April Jackson, this podcast dives into the raw, unfiltered stories of people who left the script — swapping comfort for courage, and choosing a life "elsewhere." 🔔 New episodes every week from around the world. ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ ⏱️ CHAPTERS: Chapters 00:00:00 Introduction: A Simple Maori Boy from New Zealand 00:00:56 Growing Up in Blenheim: Life Without Traffic Lights 00:03:23 From Mussel Factory to Military: An Unexpected Path 00:06:24 The Interview That Changed Everything 00:12:27 First Flight Experience: When Top Gun Dreams Meet Reality 00:15:31 Global Adventures: From Prime Ministers to Antarctica 00:17:32 Damascus Memories: Lollipops and Russian Roulette Roundabouts 00:21:19 Antarctica: Six Months on Ice 00:34:26 East Timor in a Tent: Military Operations and Snake Encounters 00:39:03 Meeting His Wife and Joining the UN 00:40:27 Haiti Earthquake: The UN's Biggest Loss 00:46:01 South Sudan During COVID: Vaccines and Challenges 00:52:34 Life in Jordan and Sudan: The Grocery Man 01:00:58 Cambodia: Finding Home in Southeast Asia 01:03:02 Food Adventures: From Crab Salad Disasters to Paris Disappointments 01:06:50 Business Class Upgrades and the Art of Travel 01:14:17 Advice for Future Expats: Question Your Motivation 01:27:02 Identity and Family: What It Means to Be Maori ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ #JohnCassidy #NewZealand #MaoriPride #MilitaryLife #AirForce #UNLife #HumanitarianWork #Antarctica #EastTimor #Syria #SouthSudan #Haiti #Cambodia #ExpatLife #ThirdCultureKids #MovingAbroad #AviationLife #COVIDResponse #LifeElsewhere #BabesHowDidYouGetHere #AprilJackson #TravelStories #SayYes #AdventureLife #GlobalCitizen #Kiwi

She got told her skin was "the greatest sin" she could have. 😳 Asian schools refused to hire her. Modeling agencies offered her $150 while white girls got $1,500. Strangers DM'd her "go back to Africa with your black self." Her response? She built an empire anyway. 🎤⬇️ In this BEST-OF cut of 'Babes, How Did You Get Here?', April Jackson sits down with Abigail — a Trinidad & Tobago educator who Googled "easiest place to get a job in Asia," booked a one-way flight to Cambodia at 23, and built a life in a country where nobody knows Jamaica exists, Bob Marley is "young people's music," and being dark-skinned literally costs you 10x less. 🇹🇹🇰🇭 This is the unfiltered cut — only the moments that made us pause, gasp, and replay. No fluff. No filler. Just the raw truth about being a Black woman in Asia. ⚡ — 🔥 What you'll see in this best-of: 🚫 Being told "no school in China will hire you, you're black" — straight to her face 💸 The modeling agency that priced her at $150 while white girls got $1,500 — for the same "job" 😡 The racist DM "go back to Africa" — and her LEGENDARY clapback 🎤 Her brutal response to a US immigration officer who wouldn't stop questioning her 🌑 Colorism in Asia: bleaching billboards, "cover up or you'll get darker" ✈️ The 3-day journey from Cambodia to Trinidad — because $3,000 flights weren't an option 🇹🇹 Building a name for Trinidad in a country that thought it was an African nation 👩‍🏫 Teaching kids from 4 different countries who speak ZERO English (and somehow making it work) 💔 The s*x industry in Cambodia: cards slipped under hotel doors within 20 minutes of arrival — ⚠️ FAIR WARNING: this episode is uncensored. She doesn't sugarcoat what it's like to be a Black Caribbean woman in Southeast Asia. Some viewers will be uncomfortable. Good. That's the point. — 💬 TELL US IN THE COMMENTS: Would YOU have accepted the $150 "hostess job"? Was Abigail too aggressive with the racists in her DMs — or exactly right? Drop your honest take 👇 We read every single one. 🔁 Share this with someone who needs to hear that you don't have to accept less than you deserve. — 🎧 About the show — "Babes, How Did You Get Here?" Hosted by entrepreneur & former Miss Jamaica April Jackson, this podcast dives into the raw, unfiltered stories of women who left the script — swapping comfort for courage, and choosing a life "elsewhere." 🔔 New episodes every week from around the world. — 📌 Watch the FULL uncensored interview here: 👉 https://youtu.be/It2Y2VDnRG8?si=24cPGGnRVRbARVsV — ⏱️ TIMESTAMPS — Best Of moments: Chapters 00:00:00 From Trinidad to Cambodia in one Google search 00:01:42 Telling her family "I'm leaving — indefinitely" 00:02:53 Visa nightmares: border denials & Bangkok runs 00:05:04 The Cambodian woman who didn't believe Trinidad existed 00:05:45 Fighting at the Thai embassy: "Which African country?" 00:07:29 The 3-day journey from Cambodia to Trinidad 00:09:22 Disrespected at her own country's immigration 00:10:31 Her bag pack home after 2 years 7 months away 00:14:32 Why some kids LIKE being punished in the corner 00:17:08 Why she'll never teach kindergarten again 00:19:46 Drop them in China for a year — the language hack 00:21:27 "My skin is the greatest sin I could have" 00:24:53 The viral comment: "Go back to Africa with your black self" 00:26:10 Cards slipped under her hotel door within 20 minutes 00:27:21 Why so many Cambodian women have no other options — #BestOf #AprilJackson #BlackInAsia #Colorism #CambodiaLiving #TeachingAbroad #ExpatLife #BlackWomenAbroad #TrinidadAndTobago #Caribbean #Racism #Clapback #Savage #BlackGirlMagic #HonestConversations #BlackExcellence #WomenWhoTravel #LifeInAsia #PhnomPenh #ContentCreator #ExpatWoman #StandingUpForYourself #KnowYourWorth #DigitalNomad #howdidyougethere

Join us LIVE for a Premiere + Q&A: we're dropping Desmei's full story — growing up in a Cape Town township, marrying a white British man, and why she chose South African racism over 7 years of British "politeness." April is here live. Drop your questions in the chat — ASK HER LIVE (interracial marriage, moving abroad, UK vs SA, culture shock, apartheid generation, race, identity, what didn't make the final cut, and more). ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ What we'll cover LIVE: 🎬 The story behind the interview — how we met Desmei 🔥 Why she prefers South African racism over British politeness 💍 The illegal marriage: interracial love across generations 🇬🇧 UK life: what nobody tells you about moving there 🗣️ Racism vs classism: April's take after hearing Desmei's story 🎙️ Behind-the-scenes moments that didn't make the cut 💬 LIVE Q&A: your questions answered in real time ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ ⏰ Set your reminder. Comments are OPEN. 💬 Already have a question for April? Drop it below and she'll answer it live. 👉🏽 SUBSCRIBE + hit the 🔔 so you don't miss the Premiere.

She left Cape Town for love. 7 years later, she fled the UK and never looked back. Desmei Collia grew up in a township in Cape Town, South Africa. Her mother worked as a domestic worker — cleaning white people's houses — just to put food on the table. Desmei had no money, no university education, and no examples of success around her. Most of her childhood friends became prostitutes, drug addicts, or alcoholics. But she had one thing they didn't: the fire. In this raw and unfiltered conversation, Desmei opens up about: 🔥 Why she PREFERS South African racism over British "politeness" 💍 Meeting her white British husband — a marriage that would have been ILLEGAL 30 years ago 🇬🇧 The shock of watching a WHITE woman clean her house in the UK 💔 Losing her older sister the first year she moved abroad — and why she only took 1 week off 🏚️ Growing up in poverty while her husband grew up skiing in Canada 🗣️ The hidden classism and racism in England that no one talks about ✊🏽 What it really means to be "Colored" in South Africa (and why it's NOT the same as "mixed race") 💰 Why she says "you can't teach the fire" — and why her family is still stuck 🙏🏽 How her mother — who lived through apartheid — accepted her white husband without a word This is not a sad story. This is a success story. From a Cape Town township to a British husband, from cleaning salon floors to becoming a senior hairdresser, from 7 years in the UK to coming home stronger — Desmei's journey will challenge everything you think you know about immigration, interracial relationships, race, and ambition. ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ ⏱️ CHAPTERS: Chapters 00:00:00 "I prefer South African racism" 00:01:36 Meet Desmei: From Cape Town to the UK and back 00:02:45 Growing up in a township with a domestic worker mother 00:05:00 Why she didn't go to university 00:07:20 The two paths: academia or the streets 00:09:20 Breaking into the hair industry from the bottom 00:11:20 "I always knew I'd be somebody" 00:15:30 Losing her sister the year she moved abroad 00:17:30 Meeting her white British husband 00:21:00 Two different worlds: township vs privilege 00:24:00 The racism her husband couldn't see 00:27:00 South African racism vs British racism 00:29:00 What it means to be "Colored" 00:33:00 Moving to the UK for love 00:38:00 First impressions of England 00:41:00 "I prefer South African racism" (the full story) 00:47:00 Poverty in the UK nobody sees 00:49:00 A white woman cleaned her house for the first time 00:55:00 What white South Africans become in the UK 00:58:00 The day no one gave up their seat for an elder ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ 🎙️ ABOUT THE SHOW: Some people dream of living elsewhere. Other people actually pack up and do it. I'm April Jackson, traveling the world finding interesting people who have moved abroad — sharing their unfiltered truths about identity, belonging, and the true cost of a life elsewhere. ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ 💬 What would YOU have done in Desmei's shoes? Drop a comment below. 👉🏽 SUBSCRIBE for new episodes every week ❤️ LIKE if this conversation challenged you 🔔 Hit the bell so you don't miss the next story Share this with someone who's quietly been thinking about taking that next big leap. 💫 ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ #SouthAfrica #UKLife #InterracialMarriage #MovingAbroad #Apartheid #CapeTown #ImmigrationStory #BlackWomen #ColoredCommunity #RaceInUK

What happens when a Dominican lawyer trades courtrooms for Caribbean vibes, lands in Jamaica pregnant, speaking zero English, and builds a whole new life from scratch? 🇩🇴🇯🇲 In this heartwarming episode of 'Babes, How Did You Get Here?', April sits down with Ysis — a Dominican Republic-born lawyer turned event planner who moved to Jamaica 18 years ago with her husband, a six-year-old son, and nothing but faith and Google searches about goats in the streets. From navigating language barriers and spicy patties to raising two boys with completely different cultural identities, Isis opens up about what it really takes to build a home in a country that wasn't yours — and why she wouldn't change a thing. We talk about: 🌍 The moment her husband asked: "Do you want to move to Jamaica?" — and she said yes without ever visiting 🤰 Arriving pregnant, no English, just vibes and a dream 🗣️ Learning a new language while raising kids in a foreign school system 🍛 Dominican food vs Jamaican food: why curry lobster made her cry (and why patties are life) 👶 Raising two sons with totally different relationships to Jamaica — one feels 100% Jamaican, the other… not so much 💼 From lawyer to stay-at-home mom to thriving event planner in Kingston 🎉 Why her 51st birthday became the launchpad for her business 👯‍♀️ Building a chosen family across cultures: Haitian, Mexican, Chilean, French, Jamaican, and beyond 💔 The hardest moment: losing her father while living abroad and grieving from a distance 🏝️ Why Blue Lagoon is paradise and the south coast has her heart 🎄 Christmas Eve Dominican style vs. Jamaican Christmas — and why she'll never shop on December 24th 🎭 Dominican Carnival (covered faces & choreography) vs. Jamaica Carnival (bikinis, feathers & vibes) ✈️ Her two rules for anyone thinking about moving to Jamaica This isn't just an expat story. It's about choosing joy over perfection, surrounding yourself with the right people, and learning to embrace a new home without comparing it to the old one. It's about motherhood across borders, grief across oceans, and finding your people in the most unexpected places. Whether you've ever thought about moving abroad, struggled to fit in somewhere new, or just love a good story about resilience, reinvention, and rum — this episode will make you laugh, cry, and maybe even crave a beef patty. 💬 Tell us in the comments: Have you ever moved to a new country? What was the hardest part? And Team Tasty or Team Juicy? 👀 — 🎧 About the show – "Babes, How Did You Get Here?" Hosted by entrepreneur & former Miss Jamaica, April Jackson, this podcast dives into the real, unfiltered stories of people who left the script — swapping comfort for courage, and choosing a life "elsewhere." New episodes every week from around the world. 📌 Subscribe for more stories on: • Life abroad, expat realities & building home in foreign places • Motherhood, identity & raising third-culture kids • Language barriers, cultural shock & finding your people • Reinvention, resilience & trusting the journey • Food, friendship & what it means to truly belong 👍 If this episode moved you, like, comment and share it with someone who needs to hear that home isn't always where you're born — it's where you choose to bloom. Chapters: Chapters 00:00:00 From Dominican Republic to Jamaica: A Leap of Faith 00:01:08 First Impressions and Early Challenges 00:03:08 Language Barriers and Finding Community 00:06:06 Raising Children Across Two Cultures 00:07:21 Food Culture Shock: Spice and Flavor 00:12:09 From Lawyer to Events Planner 00:13:58 Building a Business and Social Circle 00:23:06 The Hardest Part: Distance from Family 00:26:24 Advice for Future Expats 00:28:47 Favorite Places and Cultural Traditions #HowDidYouGetHere #AprilJackson #DominicanInJamaica #ExpatLife #JamaicaLiving #LifeAbroad #DominicanRepublic #CaribbeanLife #Motherhood #ThirdCultureKids #EventPlanner #KingstonJamaica #CulturalIdentity #Immigration #LatinasAbroad #RealStories #Podcast #Reinvention #FindingHome #ExpatMom #CaribbeanExpat #LanguageBarrier #GriefAbroad #ChoosingJoy

What happens when an Irish boy grows up in England, lands in juvenile detention at 15 after a gang fight that turned deadly, spends a year in custody waiting for a trial that eventually gets thrown out, discovers purpose in a professional kitchen under the mentorship of Michelin star chef Aaron Patterson, learns resilience working for Marco Pierre White at Wheelers in London, climbs the culinary ladder from Hamilton Hall to the French Laundry in Napa Valley, survives the chaos of high pressure kitchens where plates get smashed and egos get bruised, witnesses cultural diversity become the backbone of his identity, experiences discrimination for being Irish in England, finds spiritual awakening and trades religion for relationship with God, navigates COVID lockdowns while trying to keep his South African restaurant afloat, moves to Montana for what he thought was a dream opportunity only to be sued for $1.6 million by a powerful lawyer with CIA connections, escapes to Philadelphia and then Florida while fighting legal battles across state lines, works on the Michelin Guide launch dinners in Florida only to be let go for not delivering an instant star, gets his name tarnished and his reputation questioned, and eventually returns to Cape Town where he finds home in the mountains, the winelands, the sea, and a community of resilient people who remind him of his own? In this raw, deeply spiritual, and wildly honest episode, host April Jackson sits down with Chef Rikku—an Irish born, Michelin trained chef who has worked in some of the world's most celebrated kitchens, opened award winning restaurants across continents, and survived betrayal, lawsuits, and the brutal realities of hospitality in America—now living in Cape Town, South Africa, building a life rooted in gratitude, collaboration, and soul nourishing food. From growing up Irish in England and being stereotyped because of his surname, to getting into a violent altercation at 15 with a local gang in Leicestershire that left someone dead and him in juvenile detention for a year, to being released when none of the testimonies added up, to discovering the kitchen as a place of purpose while washing dishes at an award winning restaurant in Brooklands, to being mentored by Aaron Patterson who taught him discipline and sent him to London to toughen up, to working for Marco Pierre White at Wheelers and learning resilience through militant precision and high stakes services, to the infamous soufflé disaster where Marco threw a dish against the wall and chaos erupted mid service, to realizing that kitchens were full of artists who didn't make it, ex convicts, and immigrants from all over the world who became his brothers, to experiencing discrimination as an Irish person in the UK where hotel bookings got canceled and assumptions were made, to moving through France, Italy, the US, and eventually landing in Cape Town in 2012 after meeting a South African surfer in Bali, to consulting for top restaurants and opening Riku Chef's Counter, to COVID hitting nine months after opening and having to refund two million rand in bookings, to pivoting with wine clubs and frozen pizzas to keep staff employed, to moving to Montana for what was advertised as a noma style concept but turned out to be a private chef gig for an egotistical owner, to being sued after leaving and having his partner experience racism in a red county. Chapters 00:00:00 Introduction: An Irish Chef's Journey to South Africa 00:03:38 Growing Up Irish in England: Early Years and Family 00:05:53 The Incident: Juvenile Detention at 15 00:15:50 Finding Purpose: Discovering the Kitchen 00:25:57 Climbing the Ladder: From Hamilton Hall to Marco Pierre White 00:30:35 The Soufflé Disaster: A Service to Remember 00:38:17 Cultural Diversity and Kitchen Brotherhood 00:45:25 The Irish Experience: Discrimination and Identity 00:55:51 Spiritual Awakening: From Religion to Relationship 01:09:29 Faith Tested: Navigating Challenges with Gratitude 01:29:59 COVID and the Move to America 01:34:49 Montana Nightmare: Lawsuits and Betrayal 01:40:53 Finding Hope in Philadelphia and Florida 01:58:05 The Michelin Guide: Politics, Integrity, and Evolution 02:15:58 The Future of Kitchens: Peace, Collaboration, and Soul Food 02:21:56 Life as a Postcard: Traveling, Healing, and Happiness #HowDidYouGetHere #AprilJackson #ChefLife #MichelinStar #IrishChef #CapeTownLiving #SouthAfricaLiving #HospitalityIndustry #MarcoP ierreWhite #TheFrenchLaundry #JuvenileDetention #SpiritualAwakening #FaithJourney #RestaurantLife #CulinaryArts #ChefStories #LegalBattles #COVID19 #MontanaToCapeTown #MichelinGuide #KitchenCulture #SoulFood #Resilience #Gratitude #Entrepreneurship #TravelingChef #CulturalDiversity #IrishDiscrimination #FloridaLiving #PhiladelphiaLiving #Collaboration #NewWaveChefs

What happens when a Jamaican beauty entrepreneur leaves behind a fully booked calendar, a thriving lash and microblading academy, and everything she's built—moving to Dubai with $700, no clients, and nobody who knows her name, taking a nine to five job for the first time since college, sleeping through jet lag after years of hustle, navigating the bruised ego of being unknown in a city where she once had authority, setting high standards for relationships while refusing to settle, discovering that chivalry hits different in different cultures, teaching herself that failure isn't an option because she sold everything at a yard sale, and realizing that sometimes you have to start from scratch to build something even bigger? In this raw, vulnerable, and deeply inspiring episode, host April Jackson sits down with Shafawa Hilton—a Jamaican beauty therapist, lash artist, and founder of the Lash Accessibility Academy who left Jamaica in October with a dream bigger than her island could hold, landed in Dubai without ever visiting, and is now rebuilding her empire one conversation, one client, and one nine to five shift at a time. From growing up sheltered in a home school church routine, to being bullied at church for her teeth, to starting her beauty business in college charging students $300 JMD for eyebrows, to becoming known as the eyebrow girl on the UTech campus, to learning makeup from YouTube University, to going on a work and travel program to the US in 2017, to taking a one day lash course and a two day microblading course in Florida, to spending 10 hours on her first client, to coming back to Jamaica and doing lashes and makeup on campus for graduating students, to being approached at an expo by the owner of a top makeup school who asked if she'd ever considered teaching, to launching her academy in 2020 during COVID with five students despite everyone telling her not to, to being the first person in Jamaica to offer a seven day course with internship instead of the typical one or two day programs, to realizing her premium pricing made her inaccessible to most Jamaicans but refusing to drop her rates because she knew her value, to always feeling like she didn't quite belong in Jamaica after being trained in the States, to watching her clients in America book refills in advance while Jamaican clients struggled with the culture of maintenance, to setting a goal to save one million Jamaican dollars before leaving and getting to eight hundred grand, to having a yard sale and selling everything she owned, to boarding her first ever flight to Dubai, to realizing $700 doesn't go as far as she thought, to taking a hospitality job for stability and visa sponsorship, to experiencing the ego check of being completely unknown after being fully booked back home, to starting to lose her spark in the first two months, to going back to Jamaica in December and realizing how valuable her clients made her feel, to choosing Dubai over the US or UK because she can't do snow and her aunt already lives here, to running ads to try to get students and clients before leaving, to juggling expenses in Jamaica while trying to save for a new country, to dreaming of bringing Jamaican students abroad for exposure, to falling deeper in love with Jamaica after leaving but being okay with staying away because the earning capacity just isn't there, to refusing to let go of her roots and finding ways to squeeze her accent into conversations, to wanting children and a family but not being rigid about timelines because she's learned to be realistic. Chapters 00:00:00 Introduction: A Jamaican Beauty Entrepreneur's Journey to Dubai 00:01:05 Sheltered Beginnings: Home, School, and Church 00:01:54 From Doctor Dreams to Beauty: Finding Her Calling 00:04:37 Work and Travel: The American Experience 00:05:29 Building the Business: From Campus to Clients 00:06:06 The Teaching Revelation: Becoming an Educator 00:07:08 COVID Launch: Starting the Academy Against All Odds 00:08:06 The Premium Problem: Quality vs Affordability in Jamaica 00:09:20 The Itch to Leave: Feeling Out of Place 00:10:57 The $800,000 Goal: Preparing for the Move 00:10:22 Two Months In: Losing the Spark 00:12:55 Jamaica vs Abroad: Earning Capacity and Dreams 00:14:10 Identity and Roots: Staying Jamaican From Afar 00:18:21 The Sheltered Child: How Protection Created Fearlessness 00:19:46 Parental Support: The Foundation of Success 00:21:08 No Plan B: The Yard Sale That Made It Real 00:21:55 The Corporate Experiment: Trading Entrepreneurship for Stability 00:24:32 Misconceptions: The Reality Behind the Dubai Dream 00:26:19 The Postcard: Just Do It #HowDidYouGetHere #AprilJackson #DubaiLiving #JamaicanInDubai #BeautyEntrepreneur #LashArtist #Microblading #LashAcademy #ExpatLife #StartingOver #Reinvention #CourageOverComfort #NoPlanB #EgoCheck #LivingAbroad #JamaicaToDubai #BeautyIndustry #Entrepreneurship #CaribbeanInDubai #BuildingDreams #BeautyEducation #YouTubeUniversity #WorkAndTravel #PremiumPricing #KnowYourValue #FearlessWomen #JustDoIt

What happens when a diplomat's wife lands in Jamaica with a toddler, three towels, and no plan—discovers she can't find a single pastry she likes, teaches herself French patisserie in three condensed weeks in Montreal, starts a catering business out of sheer boredom, gets approached by the owner of Café Blue to transform Jamaican cocoa into world class chocolate, spends three years learning to identify perfectly fermented beans, launches her first product with blue mountain coffee beans covered in dark chocolate, accidentally creates her signature colorful splash design when chocolate drips on a mold, names her brand Likkle More after her favorite Jamaican expression despite being from Ivory Coast, commutes between Haiti and Jamaica every two weeks for five years to keep her business alive, builds a factory with a team she trained from scratch, exports her bean to bar chocolate globally while attending international trade shows, realizes she feels more at home in laid back Jamaica than in the intensity of Abidjan, and admits that driving in Ivory Coast is infinitely more stressful than anything Kingston traffic could throw at her? In this warm, surprising, and deeply inspiring episode, host April Jackson sits down with Nudin—a trained dietitian turned French pastry chef turned award winning chocolatier, founder of Likkle More Chocolate, a bean to bar chocolate brand that captures the vibrant spirit of Jamaica through bold flavors, striking hand painted designs, and the finest locally sourced cocoa—who moved to Kingston in 2010 as a diplomatic spouse, fell in love with the island's relaxed pace and friendly people, and built a thriving artisan chocolate company that represents Jamaica on the global stage with sophistication, authenticity, and a little bit of European flair. From landing at night in downtown Kingston with her husband and baby son only to discover their rental apartment had no towels or bedding, to taking taxis everywhere for three months and learning every shortcut in the city, to enrolling her son in an American school system when she expected French education, to baking out of boredom because she couldn't find quality pastries in local coffee shops, to convincing a pastry instructor in Montreal to condense a six week course into three weeks so she wouldn't be away from her toddler, to launching a catering business that spread purely by word of mouth, to meeting the owner of Café Blue who asked if she'd ever considered working with Jamaican cocoa, to spending a year researching before saying yes, to learning how to identify well fermented beans and roast them to perfection, to creating the first product—blue mountain coffee beans covered in dark chocolate—to accidentally inventing the signature colorful splash when chocolate dripped onto a bar mold and she thought it looked too cool to waste, to choosing the name Likkle More because it was her favorite Jamaican expression and she wanted to make patois elegant, to being told by a branding company to change the name and refusing, to moving to Haiti for five years and commuting back to Jamaica every two to three weeks to keep the business running, to training a team so well that she can now develop new products remotely, to attending global trade shows through the International Trade Centre and securing export deals, to dreaming of opening a physical store one day, to realizing her son feels more Jamaican than anything else and wants to return after university, to admitting that her Belgian husband likes Jamaica but doesn't love it the way she does, to comparing traffic in Abidjan to Kingston. Chapters 00:00:00 Introduction: From Ivory Coast to Jamaica via Diplomacy 00:02:09 First Impressions: Landing in Kingston with No Plan 00:03:46 Settling In: School, Shortcuts, and Finding Home 00:07:04 Baking Out of Boredom: The Birth of a Passion 00:10:14 From Home Baker to Catering Business 00:11:25 The Chocolate Opportunity: Meeting Café Blue 00:12:48 Learning the Craft: From Bean to Bar 00:14:03 The First Product: Blue Mountain Coffee Beans Covered in Chocolate 00:16:29 Creating Likkle More: A Brand Born from Patois 00:20:18 The Signature Splash: An Accidental Innovation 00:22:38 Balancing Two Countries: The Haiti Years 00:24:09 Growing the Business: Export, ITC, and Global Shows 00:25:04 The Dream: A Physical Store and Global Reach 00:26:46 Jamaica vs Ivory Coast: Traffic, Food, and Finding Home 00:32:19 Quick Fire Round: Tasty Patty, Sorrel, and No Rum #HowDidYouGetHere #AprilJackson #JamaicaLiving #IvoryCoast #BeanToBarChocolate #LikkleMore #ChocolateMaker #CaféBlue #BlueMountainCoffee #JamaicaCocoa #FrenchPastry #Entrepreneurship #DiplomaticLife #ExpatLife #ChocolateBusiness #ArtisanChocolate #CaribbeanBusiness #FoodEntrepreneur #WomenInBusiness #JamaicanPatois #InternationalTrade #HaitiToJamaica #ChocolateFactory #CulturalFusion #AfricanInJamaica #StartingOver #PassionToBusiness #GlobalExport

Nobody talks about what really happens backstage at beauty pageants. The harsh words. The brutal judges. The tears nobody films. Today, Sydney opens up about the constant humiliation, the lack of confidence, and the moment everything changed. She didn't just survive the industry — she became Miss Planet. This is the episode we filmed before she won. Watch it differently. Babes, How Did You Get Here? | From Four-Year-Old Model to Miss Planet International Cambodia: A Half-Cambodian American's Journey Through Contracts, Mental Health, Typhoid Fever, and Finding Her Voice on the Global Stage What happens when a half-Cambodian American girl starts modeling at age four, takes her first international contract to Thailand at sixteen with her dad by her side, spends nine months working seven days a week across Malaysia and Indonesia while battling body pressures and mental health struggles, gets hospitalized with typhoid fever in Jakarta and realizes she's happier sleeping in a hospital than working another catalog shoot, flies home to reconnect with family and find balance, falls in love long distance with someone she met in Indonesia, decides to represent Cambodia in pageantry instead of America because she wanted to embrace a culture with strong values, competes in Miss Supranational Cambodia for three months while living out of one suitcase and moving apartments three times, places runner up but gets offered Miss Planet International Cambodia, discovers that speaking and advocacy give her the voice modeling never could, navigates the reality that social media looks perfect but homesickness and isolation are real, and realizes that success isn't about luxury but about freedom to see the people she loves whenever she wants? In this deeply vulnerable, raw, and inspiring episode, host April Jackson sits down with Sydney—an international model, current university student studying marketing, and newly crowned Miss Planet International Cambodia who has spent the last few years living between Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, and Cambodia, building a career in an industry that demanded she shrink herself, and finding her voice in a pageant world that finally let her speak. From starting to model at age four in a healthy, supportive way, to taking her first three month contract to Thailand at sixteen with her dad accompanying her the entire time, to doing online university classes while working as a lifeguard and cheerleader, to visiting Cambodia for the first time at fourteen and being terrified it would be holes in the ground for toilets, to moving to Malaysia at eighteen and working consistently in modest wear and hijab shoots, to living in model apartments with girls from Russia, Brazil, and Argentina, to extending her contract because she couldn't find the next one, to moving to Jakarta and working seven days a week on boring catalog shoots while struggling with body image and bingeing at night on crackers, cheese, chocolate, and wine, to getting typhoid fever and being hospitalized for four days and telling her mom she was happy to finally sleep, to going home after nine months abroad and her mom noticing she'd never been that anxious, to teaching Pilates and working front desk jobs while planning her next move, to meeting her boyfriend in Indonesia and navigating long distance with strong communication and respect, to being told by everyone in Indonesia to join a pageant. 00:00:00 Introduction: An International Model's Journey to Cambodia 00:00:30 The Pageant Opportunity: Being Open to New Paths 00:01:20 Starting Young: Modeling from Age Four 00:09:15 First Time in Southeast Asia: Cambodia at 14 00:11:50 Cambodian Heritage: Growing Up Half-Cambodian in America 00:13:39 Contract Modeling: Malaysia and the Reality of the Industry 00:20:32 The Dark Side: Body Pressures and Mental Health Struggles 00:29:14 Breaking Point: Typhoid Fever and Hospitalization in Jakarta 00:33:25 Going Home: Reconnecting with Family and Finding Balance 00:42:12 Long Distance Love: Navigating Relationships Across Countries 00:46:55 The Pageant Decision: Why Cambodia Over America 00:52:36 Miss Supranational Cambodia: Three Months of Competition 00:57:33 Finding Her Voice: The Power of Speaking and Advocacy 00:59:40 Miss Planet International: Representing Cambodia on the Global Stage 01:10:12 Social Media Reality: The Pressure Behind the Perfect Posts 01:04:21 Future Dreams: Creative Strategy and Giving Back to Cambodia 01:08:48 The Spirit of Cambodia: Love, Resilience, and Connection #HowDidYouGetHere #AprilJackson #CambodiaLiving #ModelingContracts #PageantLife #MissPlanetInternational #MissSupranationalCambodia #CulturalIdentity #MentalHealthInModeling #BodyImage #TyphoidFever #LongDistanceLove #SoutheastAsia #ThailandLiving #MalaysiaLiving #IndonesiaLiving #ModelLife #PageantQueen #CambodianHeritage #ExpatLife #SocialMediaReality #CreativeStrategy #GivingBack #Resilience #FindingYourVoice

Babes, How Did You Get Here? | From Jamaica to Dubai: A Beauty Entrepreneur's Leap Into the Unknown – Starting Over, Ego Checks & Building Dreams in a New City What happens when a Jamaican beauty entrepreneur leaves behind a fully booked calendar, a thriving lash and microblading academy, and everything she's built to move to Dubai with $700, no clients, and nobody who knows her name—taking a nine to five job for the first time since college, sleeping through jet lag after years of hustle, navigating the bruised ego of being unknown in a city where she once had authority, experiencing the heartbreak of miscarriage and moving forward, setting high standards for relationships while refusing to settle, discovering that chivalry hits different in different cultures, teaching herself that failure isn't an option because she sold everything at a yard sale, and realizing that sometimes you have to start from scratch to build something even bigger? In this raw, vulnerable, and deeply inspiring episode, host April Jackson sits down with Shafawa Hilton—a Jamaican beauty therapist, lash artist, and founder of the Lash Accessibility Academy who left Jamaica in October with a dream bigger than her island could hold, landed in Dubai without ever visiting, and is now rebuilding her empire one conversation, one client, and one nine to five shift at a time. From growing up sheltered in a home school church routine, to starting her beauty business in college charging students $300 JMD for eyebrows, to learning lashes and microblading on a work and travel program in the US, to becoming one of Jamaica's premium priced lash artists, to hearing a prophecy that confirmed her international calling, to boarding her first ever flight to Dubai, to realizing that $700 doesn't go as far as you think, to taking a hospitality job for stability and visa sponsorship, to experiencing the ego check of being completely unknown, to navigating a miscarriage four years ago and carrying the dream of motherhood, to setting standards for a partner who wants to be a father and a husband, to observing that men hug differently here, to discovering that Dubai isn't as cheap as Instagram makes it look, to refusing to have a Plan B because she already sold everything—Shafawa's story is one of courage, reinvention, and choosing growth over comfort every single time. In this episode, we discuss: The Decision to Leave: Why Dubai over the US or UK, choosing hot weather over snow, having an aunt already here, and knowing that Jamaica felt too small for her dreams. Landing in Dubai with $700: Arriving in a city she'd never visited, realizing the reality of starting over, and knowing that God didn't bring her here just because it's shiny. Growing Up Sheltered: Home school church life, being told to be quiet, being bullied at church for her teeth, and how that shaped her fearless character today. Starting a Beauty Business in College: Charging students $300 JMD for eyebrows at UTech, learning makeup from YouTube University, and becoming known as the eyebrow girl on campus. Work and Travel Program: Going to the US in 2017, taking lash and microblading courses, spending hours on her first client, and using the money to pay school fees and invest in her business. 00:00 Introduction: A Jamaican Beauty Entrepreneur's Leap to Dubai 00:31 The Prophecy: Divine Confirmation to Leave Jamaica 01:43 The Journey: From Jamaica to Dubai via the States 05:40 The Dream: Building a Lash Empire and Bringing Value 07:19 A Taste of Motherhood: Miscarriage and Moving Forward 14:49 Relationships and Standards: Learning from Past Love 15:40 Men and Women as Friends: Setting Boundaries 34:10 Starting from Scratch: The Reality of Rebuilding in Dubai 38:34 The Business of Beauty: Education Over Quick Money 49:42 Childhood Roots: Sheltered Life and Finding Her Voice 1:02:35 Cultural Observations: Men, Masculinity, and Affection 1:04:26 Just Do It: Living Life as a Postcard #HowDidYouGetHere #AprilJackson #DubaiLiving #JamaicanInDubai #BeautyEntrepreneur #LashArtist #Microblading #LashAcademy #ExpatLife #StartingOver #Reinvention #CourageOverComfort #NoPlanB #EgoCheck #LivingAbroad #JamaicaToDubai #BeautyIndustry #Entrepreneurship #CaribbeanInDubai #BuildingDreams #MiscarriageAwareness #Motherhood #HealthyLashes #BeautyEducation #ChristianEntrepreneur #PropheticWord #FearlessWomen

Babes, How Did You Get Here? | From Jamaica to Dubai: A Beauty Entrepreneur's Leap Into the Unknown – Starting Over, Ego Checks & Building Dreams in a New City What happens when a Jamaican beauty entrepreneur leaves behind a fully booked calendar, a thriving lash and microblading academy, and everything she's built to move to Dubai with $700, no clients, and nobody who knows her name—taking a nine to five job for the first time since college, sleeping through jet lag after years of hustle, navigating the bruised ego of being unknown in a city where she once had authority, experiencing the heartbreak of miscarriage and moving forward, setting high standards for relationships while refusing to settle, discovering that chivalry hits different in different cultures, teaching herself that failure isn't an option because she sold everything at a yard sale, and realizing that sometimes you have to start from scratch to build something even bigger? In this raw, vulnerable, and deeply inspiring episode, host April Jackson sits down with Shafawa Hilton—a Jamaican beauty therapist, lash artist, and founder of the Lash Accessibility Academy who left Jamaica in October with a dream bigger than her island could hold, landed in Dubai without ever visiting, and is now rebuilding her empire one conversation, one client, and one nine to five shift at a time. From growing up sheltered in a home school church routine, to starting her beauty business in college charging students $300 JMD for eyebrows, to learning lashes and microblading on a work and travel program in the US, to becoming one of Jamaica's premium priced lash artists, to hearing a prophecy that confirmed her international calling, to boarding her first ever flight to Dubai, to realizing that $700 doesn't go as far as you think, to taking a hospitality job for stability and visa sponsorship, to experiencing the ego check of being completely unknown, to navigating a miscarriage four years ago and carrying the dream of motherhood, to setting standards for a partner who wants to be a father and a husband, to observing that men hug differently here, to discovering that Phuket isn't Benidorm and Dubai isn't as cheap as Instagram makes it look, to refusing to have a Plan B because she already sold everything—Shafawa's story is one of courage, reinvention, and choosing growth over comfort every single time. In this episode, we discuss: The Decision to Leave: Why Dubai over the US or UK, choosing hot weather over snow, having an aunt already here, and knowing that Jamaica felt too small for her dreams. Landing in Dubai with $700: Arriving in a city she'd never visited, realizing the reality of starting over, and knowing that God didn't bring her here just because it's shiny. Growing Up Sheltered: Home school church life, being told to be quiet, and how that shaped her fearless character today. Starting a Beauty Business in College: Charging students $300 JMD for eyebrows at UTech, learning makeup from YouTube University, and becoming known as the eyebrow girl on campus. Work and Travel Program: Going to the US in 2017, taking lash and microblading courses, spending 10 hours on her first client, and using the money to pay school fees and invest in her business. Building the Lash Accessibility Academy: Starting with five students during COVID, expanding from five days to seven days with internship, being the first in Jamaica to offer that level of training, and realizing that people couldn't afford premium but she wasn't dropping her prices. Knowing Your Worth: Charging premium prices in Jamaica, educating clients on healthy lash practices, and realizing that once you know your value you start to feel the itch to leave. Taking a Nine to Five Job: Getting offered a hospitality job through a friend, praying about it and getting confirmation, realizing it's full circle because hospitality funded her beauty business the first time, and embracing the learning curve. Timestamps: 00:00:00 Introduction: A Jamaican Beauty Entrepreneur's Leap to Dubai 00:00:40 The Decision to Leave: Why Dubai Over Traditional Routes 00:03:18 Growing Up Sheltered: Home, School, and Church 00:04:24 From Eyebrows to Empire: Starting a Beauty Business in College 00:06:50 Work and Travel Program: The Foundation for Growth 00:08:40 Building the Lash Accessibility Academy: Teaching with Value 00:11:35 Knowing Your Worth: When Jamaica Feels Too Small 00:20:59 Starting From Scratch: Taking a Nine to Five Job 00:30:26 Prophecy & Faith #HowDidYouGetHere #AprilJackson #DubaiLiving #JamaicanInDubai #BeautyEntrepreneur #LashArtist #Microblading #LashAcademy #ExpatLife #StartingOver #Reinvention #CourageOverComfort #NoPlanB #EgoCheck #LivingAbroad #JamaicaToDubai #BeautyIndustry #Entrepreneurship #CaribbeanInDubai #BuildingDreams

Babes, How Did You Get Here? | Two Canadian Sisters Who Call Jamaica Home: Growing Up Between Cultures, Identity Crisis, and Finding Belonging in the Arts What happens when two Canadian sisters, aged eight and nine, move to Jamaica without a choice, spend their formative years navigating the zoo effect at Mona Prep, grappling with cultural identity, building careers in theatre and horseback riding, and discovering that home isn't where you're born but where you choose to grow—even when you're not sure you're allowed to claim it? In this raw, hilarious, and deeply vulnerable episode, host April Jackson sits down with Alexandra and Scarlett—two teenagers who moved from Montreal to Jamaica in December 2015 and have spent the last decade figuring out what it means to belong. From being flocked by curious classmates on their first day at Mona Prep, to hand learning Jamaican social studies for quiz competitions, to battling the question "am I allowed to call myself Jamaican?", to navigating race and privilege as white foreigners in a predominantly Black country, to building a life in theatre and music, to training horses six times a week, to missing dumplings and real maple syrup, to discovering that Jamaica has given them the gift of culture they never would have had in Canada—this is a story of resilience, reinvention, and choosing authenticity over expectation. In this episode, we discuss: The Move: Arriving in Jamaica in December 2015, starting at Mona Prep, and experiencing the "zoo effect" as the first white kids many classmates had seen. Cultural Adjustment: Learning Jamaican social studies, Patwa proverbs, and current affairs through junior quiz competitions, and discovering that standardized testing became second nature. Identity Crisis: Wrestling with the question "am I allowed to call myself Jamaican?" when you're not Black, don't have a passport, and can't vote—but Jamaica is home. Race and Privilege: Being hyper aware of standing out, navigating street harassment, and realizing that being white and foreign comes with both privilege and scrutiny. Building a Life in the Arts: Teaching piano privately, stage managing productions, working in New York as a music director, and putting on Jamaica's first live musical theatre camp with no backing tracks. Horseback Riding Dreams: Training up to six times a week, competing abroad under the Jamaican flag, and planning to become an equine vet to fill a gap in Jamaica's veterinary infrastructure. The Reality of Growing Up Between Two Worlds: Missing dumplings and maple syrup, being asked if Jamaica has schools, and discovering that people abroad think Jamaica is in Africa. Future Plans: Heading to university in Ontario to study music education, pursuing veterinary school, and grappling with whether to come back to Jamaica or stay abroad. Quick Fire Round: Choosing juicy patties over tastee (or no patties at all because of a traumatic maggot incident), curry goat over oxtail, sorrel over eggnog, and rum over Red Stripe. 00:00:00 Introduction: Two Canadian Sisters Who Call Jamaica Home 00:02:18 The Move: December 2015 and First Impressions 00:08:40 Starting School at Mona Prep: The Zoo Effect 00:13:54 Cultural Identity Crisis: Am I Allowed to Call Myself Jamaican? 00:15:56 Navigating Race and Privilege in Jamaica 00:20:30 Building a Life in the Arts: Theatre and Music 00:17:55 Horseback Riding Dreams: Scarlett's Passion 00:28:57 The Reality of Growing Up Between Two Worlds 00:31:21 Future Plans: University, Veterinary Dreams, and Coming Back 00:36:38 Quick Fire Round: Patties, Rum, and Jamaican Vibes #HowDidYouGetHere #AprilJackson #JamaicaLiving #CanadianInJamaica #ThirdCultureKids #CulturalIdentity #MonaPrep #TheatreLife #HorsebackRiding #MusicEducation #ExpatLife #GrowingUpAbroad #RaceAndPrivilege #JamaicanCulture #LivingBetweenWorlds #Reinvention #CourageOverComfort #FindingBelonging #CaribbeanLife #MulticulturalIdentity

From a small New Zealand village with no traffic lights to the most dangerous war zones on Earth — this is the incredible story of John (JC). For over 20 years, he served in the New Zealand military and later with the UN, deployed to some of the most extreme places on the planet : 🌍 East Timor — living in a tent, sleeping with snakes 🏜️ Syria & Lebanon — during the height of suicide bombings ❄️ Antarctica — 6 months at -40°C 🇭🇹 Haiti — during the 2010 earthquake 🇸🇩 South Sudan — running humanitarian aviation during COVID 🇯🇴 Jordan — raising a family between missions He was in Sudan the exact day President Bashir was overthrown. He saw a country with possibly just one incubator during the pandemic. He survived, traveled the world, and built a family through it all. Today, he lives in Cambodia with his wife (who also works for the UN) and their two daughters. In this interview, he tells EVERYTHING: what UN missions are really like behind the scenes, what it takes to raise kids in unstable regions, the limits of humanitarian aid, and why he keeps doing it. ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ ⏱️ CHAPTERS Chapters 00:00:00 Introduction 00:02:30 Growing up in a village with no traffic lights 00:08:00 Joining the Air Force at 17 00:15:00 First deployment: East Timor 00:17:30 Syria 2003: his first day in Damascus 00:22:00 6 months in Antarctica at -40°C 00:35:00 Haiti during the earthquake 00:42:00 Why the Haiti/DR border is visible from the sky 00:48:00 South Sudan: handling COVID with no resources 00:54:00 Living under sanctions with a family 00:56:00 The day President Bashir fell 01:05:00 Raising kids on UN missions 01:20:00 Why Cambodia now 01:27:00 Identity, roots, and what we pass on ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ 🎙️ If you enjoyed this, subscribe for more stories of extraordinary lives. 💬 Let me know in the comments which part hit you the most. 👍 A like really helps the channel grow. ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ #UN #Military #WarZones #Cambodia #ExpatLife

Babes, How Did You Get Here? | Shauna Silvera: From Jamaica to Dubai – A Pastry Chef's Journey of Motherhood, Sacrifice & Building a Life Across Borders What happens when a Jamaican pastry chef gets offered an opportunity in Dubai, turns down a promotion at home, leaves her three year old son with her village, boards her first ever flight, and spends the next nine years building a career in recipe development, navigating hospitality's brutal hours, managing motherhood through FaceTime and time zones, and discovering that home is wherever you choose to build it—even when your heart is split between two worlds? In this raw, deeply emotional, and profoundly honest episode, host April Jackson sits down with Shauna Silvera—a Jamaican born pastry chef and recipe developer who left everything she knew in 2017 to chase opportunity in Dubai, trading a promotion at Moon Palace Jamaica for a plane ticket to a city she'd never visited, a career she was still building, and a son she wouldn't see for months at a time. From growing up in St. Mary and St. Ann surrounded by pastry, learning from her church mom who took her through every parish delivering wedding cakes, to studying at HEART College of Hospitality Services, to working at Jules and Moon Palace, to landing in Dubai at night and seeing the lights for the first time, to spending four months without a job, to working in fine dining beside the Dubai Opera, to transitioning into recipe development for a catering company, to navigating the guilt of missing her son's childhood, to planning for the day they'll finally reunite, to turning down custom cake business because she refuses to be stationary, to representing Jamaica everywhere she goes, to discovering that tolerance is survival in a city of a thousand nationalities—Shauna's story is one of courage, sacrifice, and choosing growth over comfort every single time. In this episode, we discuss: The Decision to Leave: Trading Promotion for Opportunity – Turning down a promotion at Moon Palace to move to Dubai, consulting her sacred space people, and boarding her first ever flight. First Impressions: Landing in Dubai at Night – Arriving in Frankfurt for a nine hour layover, landing in Dubai, seeing the lights, and thinking "look at me, little Kingston girl." Life Before Dubai: Pastry Roots in Jamaica – Growing up surrounded by food, learning from her church mom, delivering wedding cakes across every parish, and studying at HEART College. The Hardest Decision: Leaving Her Three Year Old Son – Hosting his birthday party before leaving, saying no at first, and finally deciding to jump. Motherhood Across Borders: FaceTime and Time Zones – Managing the nine hour time difference, crying in the bathroom at work, and living for video calls. Finding Community: Jamaicans in Dubai – Connecting with other culinary professionals, discovering the Caribbean community, and why Jamaicans are respected and loved in Dubai. Working in Dubai's Hospitality Scene – From fine dining beside the Dubai Opera to cafes to central kitchens, and why every phase taught her something different. The Reality of Hospitality: A Message to Customers – Why kindness matters, why grace is everything, and why your waiter might be going through something you don't see. Career Evolution: From Baker to Recipe Developer – Moving from baking to recipe development, creating for multiple brands, and why she's still in the learning phase. The Entrepreneurship Dilemma: Custom Cakes vs. Freedom – Knowing exactly what she wanted a year ago, pulling back because she doesn't want to be stationary, and waiting for the right time. Timestamps: 00:00:00 Introduction: A Jamaican Pastry Chef's Journey to Dubai 00:01:18 The Decision to Leave: Trading Promotion for Opportunity 00:02:52 First Impressions: Landing in Dubai at Night 00:05:10 Life Before Dubai: Pastry Roots in Jamaica 00:09:32 The Hardest Decision: Leaving Her Three Year Old Son 00:12:44 Motherhood Across Borders: FaceTime and Time Zones 00:26:10 Finding Community: Jamaicans in Dubai 00:29:05 Working in Dubai's Hospitality Scene 00:31:48 Career Evolution: From Baker to Recipe Developer 00:33:42 The Entrepreneurship Dilemma: Custom Cakes vs. Freedom 00:44:44 The Reality of Hospitality: A Message to Customers 00:59:55 The Question of Home: Could She Have Stayed in Jamaica? 01:03:56 Dubai Then and Now: Nine Years of Change 01:09:54 Advice for Aspiring Expats: Jump or Plan? 01:19:49 Dating in Dubai: The Cultural Challenge 01:22:17 The Future: Reuniting with Her Son 01:24:23 Life as a Postcard: Half Black, Half Colour #HowDidYouGetHere #AprilJackson #DubaiLiving #JamaicanInDubai #PastryChef #RecipeDeveloper #MotherhoodAcrossBorders #ExpatLife #HospitalityIndustry #CaribbeanInDubai #LivingAbroad #Reinvention #CourageOverComfort #FaceTimeMotherhood #WorkLifeBalance #DubaiExpat #JamaicanCulture #IslandIndustry #CulinaryJourney #SacrificeAndSuccess

Babes, How Did You Get Here? | Janelle Brown: From UK to Thailand – A Two-Week Holiday That Turned Into Seven Months in Phuket What happens when a British content creator books a two-week Christmas holiday to Thailand, finds an apartment five days after landing, and decides she's not going back—building a digital nomad life as a social media coach, navigating car crashes, client losses, dating disasters, and the reality that Phuket is definitely not as cheap as Instagram makes it look? In this raw, hilarious, and deeply honest episode, host April Jackson sits down with Janelle Brown—a British digital nomad, content creator, and social media marketing coach who left the UK for Thailand on Christmas Day and somehow never left. From breaking up with her boyfriend in November and reclaiming her freedom, to landing in Phuket with zero plans and finding an apartment in five days, to quitting her corporate job in 2019 and moving to Ibiza (where the beach clubs took over), to lying on her CV to get into marketing, to having 15 jobs before turning 23, to losing one of her biggest clients last month, to surviving a car crash on Thursday and breaking down on the side of the road, to navigating the language barrier with Google Translate, to refusing to use dating apps because people can literally make up their whole identity, to discovering that Phuket is not Benidorm but it's definitely not cheap either—Janelle's story is one of risk-taking, reinvention, and choosing freedom over safety every single time. In this episode, we discuss: The Two-Week Holiday That Never Ended: Landing in Phuket on Christmas Day 2023, finding an apartment in five days, and telling friends back home she's not coming back. The Breakup That Changed Everything: Ending a two-year relationship in November, realizing she had no ties, and choosing Thailand over starting over in the UK. From Ibiza to Thailand: Quitting her corporate job in 2019, moving to Ibiza to build a business, partying instead of working, coming home with zero money and zero clients, and learning the hard way. 15 Jobs Before 23: Working as a waitress, teaching assistant, events manager, PA, doing door-to-door sales for two days, and being called a jack of all trades her entire life. Lying on Her CV: How she got into social media marketing by pretending she had experience, getting full training from her employer, and building a business from there. Life as a Digital Nomad: Running a social media marketing business from Thailand, coaching other entrepreneurs, and why success is speed. The Car Crash: Having a car accident on Thursday, the front of the car coming off, breaking down on the side of the road, and wanting her mum but having to deal with it alone. Losing a Major Client: Having one of her biggest clients end their contract last month, the financial panic, and the reality that nobody's coming to save you. The Reality of Phuket: Why Phuket is not as cheap as people think, why a dress cost 40 pounds when Bangkok sells similar for 11, and why gentrification is happening here too. Dating in Thailand: Why she doesn't use dating apps, why holiday romances don't work, and why it's terrifying that people can make up their whole identity in a foreign country. The Language Barrier: Learning basic Thai, relying on Google Translate, and why living here is actually harder than living in the UK. 📚 For more details on parenting course: https://april-s-site-fcfd.thinkific.com Timestamps: 00:00 Introduction: From Two-Week Holiday to Seven Months in Phuket 00:47 The First Trip: Following Intuition to Thailand 02:45 Christmas Day Arrival and Finding Home in Five Days 03:20 The Breakup That Changed Everything 05:11 Building an Online Business: From Ibiza Failure to Thailand Success 02:19 The Thai People and Building Community 09:16 When Reality Hits: Car Crashes and Losing Clients 10:26 Driving in Thailand: Freedom and Fear 12:36 What Surprised Me About Living in Phuket 14:34 Why Phuket Over Other Parts of Thailand 15:41 Friendships Across the World and Staying Connected 17:30 The Reality of Digital Nomad Life: Isolation and Pressure 19:39 Turning 30 and Redefining Success 20:20 Jack of All Trades: Embracing Multiple Passions 23:47 The Future: Staying Open to Change 25:09 Dating Abroad: The Challenges of Finding Love in Transit 26:37 Reinventing Identity: Becoming a Content Creator 28:22 Misconceptions: Phuket Isn't That Cheap 30:59 Respect and Tourism: Navigating Cultural Sensitivity 34:41 Advice for Aspiring Expats: Build Before You Leap 36:33 Life as a Postcard: Beach, Sunset, and Freedom #HowDidYouGetHere #AprilJackson #ThailandLiving #PhuketLife #DigitalNomad #ContentCreator #SocialMediaMarketing #ExpatLife #UKToPhuket #OnlineBusiness #Reinvention #CourageOverComfort #TravelingAlone #LivingAbroad #SoloFemaleTravel #ThailandExpat #BeachLife #SoutheastAsia #EntrepreneurLife

Babes, How Did You Get Here? | Why I Chose Cambodia Over College: A Story of Language, Loneliness & Learning to Belong What happens when an 18-year-old from Colorado takes a one-month volunteer trip to rural Cambodia, falls in love with the golden rice fields and slower pace of life, and decides to skip college entirely—spending the next six years hand-washing clothes, learning Khmer from children, sleeping through 4 AM ceremonies, battling crippling social anxiety, running a women's book club, teaching middle schoolers, and building a life in a country where she'll always stand out but finally feels like she belongs? In this raw, deeply vulnerable, and inspiring episode, host April Jackson sits down with a young American woman who traded the traditional college path for rural Cambodia at 18—and never looked back. From volunteering in a children's home in a rural province, to returning home just long enough to tell her parents she wasn't coming back, to battling severe social anxiety so intense she couldn't buy bottled water for years, to learning to read, write, and speak Khmer fluently by asking kids endless questions, to accidentally starting a 40-person women's book club after her co-founder moved away, to navigating the backpacker teacher stigma, to discovering that life in Cambodia is far less dramatic than the books she loves—this is a story of courage, reinvention, and choosing authenticity over expectation. In this episode, we discuss: Introduction: A Unique Journey to Cambodia – How a gap year volunteer trip turned into six years and counting in Southeast Asia. First Impressions: Arriving in Rural Cambodia – Golden hour light over rice fields, 4 AM ceremonies, and falling in love with a place she barely knew. Returning Home and Planning the Big Move – Telling her parents she wanted to move back to Cambodia to keep volunteering, saving for a year, and arriving in February 2020. Social Anxiety and Cultural Adjustment – Being too scared to talk to adults, asking kids to buy things for her, and realizing the "confident version" of herself was just a two-year phase. Rural Life: Hand-Washing Clothes and Farm Work – Never quite mastering hand-washing, harvesting cashews and cassava, taking care of cows, and learning what rural Cambodian life actually looks like. Family Dynamics and Cultural Differences – Why Cambodian middle schoolers say their parents are the most important people in their lives, and how family loyalty is woven into daily life. Managing Distance from Home – Staying close to her family from 6,000 miles away, visiting once a year, and why her brother also left their home state. The College Path Not Taken – Wanting to prove she could succeed without a degree, avoiding student debt, and why she's still working toward a sociology degree online. Transitioning from Volunteer to Teacher – Realizing she had no idea how to teach English just because she spoke it, getting certifications, and discovering she loves teaching 7th graders but not preschoolers. Moving to the City: Phnom Penh Life – Leaving rural Cambodia for modern conveniences, grocery stores, and malls—but missing the nature and slower pace. Finding Work as an English Teacher – How being a white native English speaker made finding a job easy, navigating the "backpacker teacher" stigma, and why she's grown to love teaching middle school. Food Adventures: From Balut to Cambodian Cuisine – Trying snake, balut (fertilized duck egg), and discovering her love for sour soups, lemongrass stir fry, and amok. Learning Khmer: The Language Journey – Learning to read, write, and speak Khmer by asking kids endless questions, memorizing the alphabet in the US. 📚 For more details on parenting course: https://april-s-site-fcfd.thinkific.com 00:00:00 Introduction: A Unique Journey to Cambodia 00:06:15 First Impressions: Arriving in Rural Cambodia 00:07:24 Returning Home and Planning the Big Move 00:10:07 Social Anxiety and Cultural Adjustment 00:17:04 Rural Life: Hand-Washing Clothes and Farm Work 00:18:58 Family Dynamics and Cultural Differences 00:21:04 Managing Distance from Home 00:23:30 The College Path Not Taken 00:26:52 Transitioning from Volunteer to Teacher 00:32:47 Food Adventures: From Balut to Cambodian Cuisine 00:38:02 Moving to the City: Phnom Penh Life 00:43:03 Finding Work as an English Teacher 00:50:35 Learning Khmer: The Language Journey 00:59:50 Starting a Book Club and Finding Community 01:06:42 Understanding Cambodia's History and Resilience 01:08:16 Weddings, Ceremonies, and Cambodian Celebrations 01:10:02 Final Thoughts: A Postcard from Cambodia #HowDidYouGetHere #AprilJackson #CambodiaLiving #PhnomPenh #RuralCambodia #GapYear #VolunteerWork #LearningKhmer #SocialAnxiety #BookClub #ExpatLife #TeachingEnglish #KhmerLanguage #CambodianCulture #SkippingCollege #LivingAbroad #Reinvention #CourageOverComfort #FindingCommunity #SoutheastAsia #CulturalImmer

Babes, How Did You Get Here? | Marlon Cotterell: From Jamaican Model to South African Reggae Frontman – Fashion Week, Prison, and Finding Home in Cape Town What happens when a Jamaican model flies to South Africa for a week-long fashion show, decides to stay three months, and ends up living there for 15 years—building a career as the frontman of South Africa's biggest reggae band, spending a week in maximum security prison over a fake work permit, raising a multicultural daughter, and never once looking back? In this raw, hilarious, and deeply honest episode, host April Jackson sits down with Marlon Cotterell—a Jamaican-born model, musician, and father whose life took an unexpected turn after walking in Africa Fashion Week in Johannesburg in 2011. From working as a travel agent in Jamaica and running a music studio with Jimmy Cliff's engineer, to accidentally falling into modeling, to choosing Cape Town over Johannesburg because of the ocean, to joining South Africa's biggest reggae band (The Rudimentals) by pure coincidence, to spending a week in jail over immigration fraud he didn't commit, to navigating race, class, and identity in post-apartheid South Africa, to raising a half-German daughter who sings the Jamaican national anthem every morning—Marlon's story is one of serendipity, resilience, and choosing peace over comfort every single time. In this episode, we discuss: Introduction: A Jamaican Model's Journey to Cape Town – How a trip to Africa Fashion Week in 2011 turned into 15 years in South Africa. The Move to South Africa: From Fashion Week to Forever – Spending three months in Johannesburg, moving to Cape Town for the ocean, and calling his mom to say he's not coming back. Becoming a Model: The Accidental Career – Working as a travel agent, being scouted repeatedly, finally saying yes just to shut his girlfriend up, and why he does modeling—he's not a model. Life as a Male Model: Behind the Scenes – Seeing his face on billboards he's never visited, sending photos to his agent to make sure he gets paid, and why he's never done cartwheels over a booking. Finding Music in Cape Town: The Rudimentals – Meeting the band by coincidence, performing without knowing the songs, and becoming the frontman of South Africa's biggest reggae band. Culture Shock: Jamaica vs South Africa – Missing Christmas decorations, realizing Cape Town is "very European," and why people think Jamaica is in Africa. The Arrest: A Week in South African Prison – Getting arrested at the airport for a fake work permit he didn't know was fake, spending a week in maximum security, refusing to eat, sleeping on the floor with 17 strangers, and why his mom's calmness saved him. Race and Identity in South Africa – Being called "different" because he's a black foreigner, navigating the colored vs black divide, and why South Africa only unites during rugby season. Fatherhood: Raising a Multicultural Child – His daughter is half-German, half-Jamaican, born in South Africa, sings the national anthem, and told her German mom she's not allowed to sing it because "you're not Jamaican." Jamaica's Global Influence: Food, Music, and Culture – Why Zimbabweans speak Patois, why reggae was banned during apartheid, and why Jamaica has the second biggest black culture in the world after America. Why This Story Matters This isn't just a story about moving to South Africa or becoming a musician. It's about: Following serendipity—even when it leads you somewhere you never planned to go. Surviving injustice and choosing to stay anyway. Raising a child across cultures and teaching her to be proud of all of them. Being Jamaican anywhere in the world—and why that confidence is unmatched. Choosing peace, ocean, and music over safety and familiarity. Whether you're considering a big move, navigating identity in a foreign country, or just need permission to follow the path that doesn't make sense to anyone but you—this episode will move you, inspire you, and remind you that home is wherever you choose to build it. About the Show – "Babes, How Did You Get Here?" Hosted by entrepreneur and former Miss Jamaica April Jackson, this podcast dives into the real, unfiltered stories of people who left the script—swapping comfort for courage and choosing a life "elsewhere." 00:00 Introduction: A Jamaican Model's Journey to Cape Town 02:37 — Fatherhood and Identity: Raising a Mixed-Race Child 07:54 — Black Identity Pain Point 22:26 — I Felt That I Needed to Go Back 27:55 — Jamaica's Global Influence and the Expat Experience 75:03 — Arrested: A Week in South African Prison 93:15 — Life as a Model: Behind the Glamour #HowDidYouGetHere #AprilJackson #SouthAfricaLiving #CapeTown #JamaicanInSouthAfrica #Modeling #ReggaeMusic #TheRudimentals #PrisonStory #ExpatLife #MulticulturalFamily #RaceAndIdentity #JamaicanCulture #LivingAbroad #Reinvention #CourageOverComfort #CaribbeanLife #AfricaFashionWeek #InterculturalFamily

Babes, How Did You Get Here? | Marlon Cotterell: From Jamaican Model to South African Reggae Frontman – Fashion Week, Prison, and Finding Home in Cape Town What happens when a Jamaican model flies to South Africa for a week-long fashion show, decides to stay three months, and ends up living there for 15 years—building a career as the frontman of South Africa's biggest reggae band, spending a week in maximum security prison over a fake work permit, raising a multicultural daughter, and never once looking back? In this raw, hilarious, and deeply honest episode, host April Jackson sits down with Marlon Cotterell—a Jamaican-born model, musician, and father whose life took an unexpected turn after walking in Africa Fashion Week in Johannesburg in 2011. From working as a travel agent in Jamaica and running a music studio with Jimmy Cliff's engineer, to accidentally falling into modeling, to choosing Cape Town over Johannesburg because of the ocean, to joining South Africa's biggest reggae band (The Rudimentals) by pure coincidence, to spending a week in jail over immigration fraud he didn't commit, to navigating race, class, and identity in post-apartheid South Africa, to raising a half-German daughter who sings the Jamaican national anthem every morning—Marlon's story is one of serendipity, resilience, and choosing peace over comfort every single time. In this episode, we discuss: Introduction: A Jamaican Model's Journey to Cape Town – How a trip to Africa Fashion Week in 2011 turned into 15 years in South Africa. The Move to South Africa: From Fashion Week to Forever – Spending three months in Johannesburg, moving to Cape Town for the ocean, and calling his mom to say he's not coming back. Becoming a Model: The Accidental Career – Working as a travel agent, being scouted repeatedly, finally saying yes just to shut his girlfriend up, and why he does modeling—he's not a model. Life as a Male Model: Behind the Scenes – Seeing his face on billboards he's never visited, sending photos to his agent to make sure he gets paid, and why he's never done cartwheels over a booking. Finding Music in Cape Town: The Rudimentals – Meeting the band by coincidence, performing without knowing the songs, and becoming the frontman of South Africa's biggest reggae band. Culture Shock: Jamaica vs South Africa – Missing Christmas decorations, realizing Cape Town is "very European," and why people think Jamaica is in Africa. The Arrest: A Week in South African Prison – Getting arrested at the airport for a fake work permit he didn't know was fake, spending a week in maximum security, refusing to eat, sleeping on the floor with 17 strangers, and why his mom's calmness saved him. Race and Identity in South Africa – Being called "different" because he's a black foreigner, navigating the colored vs black divide, and why South Africa only unites during rugby season. Fatherhood: Raising a Multicultural Child – His daughter is half-German, half-Jamaican, born in South Africa, sings the national anthem, and told her German mom she's not allowed to sing it because "you're not Jamaican." Jamaica's Global Influence: Food, Music, and Culture – Why Zimbabweans speak Patois, why reggae was banned during apartheid, and why Jamaica has the second biggest black culture in the world after America. Why This Story Matters This isn't just a story about moving to South Africa or becoming a musician. It's about: Following serendipity—even when it leads you somewhere you never planned to go. Surviving injustice and choosing to stay anyway. Raising a child across cultures and teaching her to be proud of all of them. Being Jamaican anywhere in the world—and why that confidence is unmatched. Choosing peace, ocean, and music over safety and familiarity. Whether you're considering a big move, navigating identity in a foreign country, or just need permission to follow the path that doesn't make sense to anyone but you—this episode will move you, inspire you, and remind you that home is wherever you choose to build it. About the Show – "Babes, How Did You Get Here?" Hosted by entrepreneur and former Miss Jamaica April Jackson, this podcast dives into the real, unfiltered stories of people who left the script—swapping comfort for courage and choosing a life "elsewhere." 📚 To join the Parenting community: https://april-s-site-fcfd.thinkific.com 00:00 Introduction: A Jamaican Model's Journey to Cape Town 04:41 First Impressions: Arriving in Africa 06:37 From Music to Modeling: An Accidental Career 12:22 Choosing Cape Town: Ocean Over City Life 19:21 Cultural Differences: South Africa vs Jamaica 27:23 Finding Music Again: Joining The Rudimentals #HowDidYouGetHere #AprilJackson #SouthAfricaLiving #CapeTown #JamaicanInSouthAfrica #Modeling #ReggaeMusic #TheRudimentals #PrisonStory #ExpatLife #MulticulturalFamily #RaceAndIdentity #JamaicanCulture #LivingAbroad #Reinvention #CourageOverComfort #CaribbeanLife #AfricaFashionWeek #InterculturalFamily

Babes, How Did You Get Here? | Farnoosh: From Iran to Jamaica – A Nurse Who Found Home in the Kids She Never Thought She'd Have What happens when an Iranian-Canadian early childhood educator takes a two-week volunteer trip to Jamaica, falls in love with the kids in Riverton and Mustard Seed communities, and decides to leave everything behind—her family, her career, her country—to build a life serving children who need her most? In this deeply moving and profoundly honest episode, host April Jackson sits down with Mahsa—an Iranian-born, Dubai-raised, Toronto-educated early childhood educator who traded the safety of Canada for the chaos, beauty, and purpose of Kingston, Jamaica. From her first volunteer trip in 2010, to leading groups of 30 volunteers twice a year, to having a hysterectomy that changed everything, to moving to Jamaica permanently in 2016, to living in Vineyard Town, to working with children living with HIV and disabilities, to navigating the class divide between inner-city and uptown Jamaica, to building youth leadership programs and baby wellness clinics—Mahsa's story is one of resilience, selflessness, and choosing purpose over comfort every single time. In this episode, we discuss: The First Trip That Changed Everything: Volunteering in Jamaica for two weeks in 2010 and falling in love with the kids at Mustard Seed and Riverton. From Toronto to Kingston: Growing up in Iran and Dubai, moving to Canada for school, and why Jamaica felt like home from day one. The Hysterectomy That Sealed the Decision: Having surgery in 2016, losing the ability to have biological children, and realizing the kids in Jamaica were her purpose. Living in Vineyard Town: Moving to one of Kingston's toughest neighborhoods and why she never felt unsafe. Working with Mustard Seed Communities: Serving children living with HIV, disabilities, and abandonment, and why they became her family. Building Programs from Scratch: Youth leadership camps, baby wellness clinics, after-school programs, and empowering kids to be agents of change in their own communities. The White Savior Complex: Why she hates voluntourism, why she stays behind the scenes, and why she gives the kids money to buy their own ice cream at Devon House. Navigating Class in Jamaica: The difference between inner-city and uptown Jamaica, and why she refuses to shop at Ashley Furniture when she can support local craftsmen downtown. Her Mother's First Visit: Bringing her mom to Riverton, running a baby wellness clinic together, and hearing her say, "Okay, I get it now." The Cost of Giving: Learning to say no, teaching kids responsibility, and why she refuses to create dependency. Dealing with Judgment: Being told she has everything because of the color of her skin, and why she doesn't walk around talking about her struggles. The Kids Who Made It: Sending kids to school, watching one become a lawyer, another migrate to Canada, and why that's the whole point. The Heartbreak of Leaving: Coming for two weeks and leaving the kids behind, and why that was always the hardest part. Why Jamaica?: Sunday dinners, slower living, seasonal fruit, and why it reminds her of Iran and Dubai more than Canada ever did. The Postcard of Her Life: Her, 100 kids, and the beach. Why This Story Matters 00:00 Introduction: From Toronto to Jamaica - A Volunteer's Journey 01:17 First Trip to Jamaica: The Mustard Seed Communities 05:52 The Hysterectomy That Changed Everything 06:58 From Dubai to Toronto to Kingston: A Multicultural Upbringing 08:16 When Mom Visited: Understanding the Why 09:04 Working in Vineyard Town and Riverton: The Real Jamaica 10:45 Voluntourism vs Real Impact: The White Savior Complex 11:47 The Girls at Glenhawk: Shared Trauma and Healing 14:55 Youth Leadership and Breaking the Cycle 15:43 The Pregnant 15-Year-Old: Accepting Limitations 17:05 Grandville Girls Home: Finding Self-Worth Beyond Male Validation 20:41 The Critical Age: Why 13-16 Matters Just as Much as Early Childhood 34:23 Devon House and Teaching Kids They Belong Everywhere 24:41 Donations Gone Wrong: Stop Giving Garbage to the Poor 27:05 Class vs Race: Navigating Jamaica's Social Hierarchy 30:06 Living Like a Local: Renting Downtown and Supporting Small Businesses 33:04 Misconceptions About Living in Jamaica 41:25 Cultural Differences: Sunday Dinners and Slowing Down 44:55 First Time in Riverton: No Fear, Just Connection 46:14 If Life Was a Postcard: 100 Kids at the Beach #HowDidYouGetHere #AprilJackson #JamaicaLiving #KingstonLife #Riverton #MustardSeed #ChildhoodEducation #VolunteerWork #ExpatLife #IranianInJamaica #FindingPurpose #ServingChildren #YouthLeadership #InnerCityJamaica #LivingAbroad #Reinvention #CourageOverComfort #Motherhood #ChildrenWithHIV #CommunityService #caribbeanlife

Babes, How Did You Get Here? | Kofi: From Ghanaian Military Nurse to Street Photographer in Cambodia – A Story of Survival, Love, and Reinvention What happens when a military nurse from Ghana goes AWOL, books a one-way ticket to Indonesia, gets interrogated at the airport for eight hours, loses his passport in Cambodia, sleeps on the streets for three months, and somehow ends up married to a Korean woman with a baby and a thriving photography career? In this raw, unfiltered, and deeply inspiring episode, host April Jackson sits down with Kofi—a Ghanaian ex-military nurse, street photographer, certified personal trainer, and now a husband and father living in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. From joining the Air Force to escape the pharmaceutical industry, to going AWOL after four years of "yes sir, yes sir," to landing in Jakarta and facing racism at immigration, to losing his passport and living in Amazon Coffee Shop for months, to meeting his wife in a tattoo shop and building a life between Cambodia and Korea—Kofi's story is one of resilience, reinvention, and choosing peace of mind over safety every single time. In this episode, we discuss: The Nephew Who Changed Everything: Losing his five-year-old nephew because of a refusal to do blood transfusions, and how that tragedy led him to nursing. Joining the Military as a Nurse: How the promise of double salary led to a 25-year contract he never planned to finish. Four Years of "Yes Sir": The exhaustion of military nursing, the conflict between caregiving and following orders, and why he couldn't do it anymore. Going AWOL: Booking a flight to Indonesia without permission, leaving the Ghanaian Air Force behind, and never looking back. Eight Hours at Jakarta Airport: Being interrogated, accused of being Nigerian, asked to sing the national anthem, and finally released after proving he was a former Marine. Losing His Passport in Cambodia: Trusting a school with his documents, having them "lost" on a ferry, and spending years trying to get it back. Three Months Sleeping in Amazon Coffee Shop: Living on the streets of Phnom Penh, showering in public bathrooms, and refusing to ask his dad for help. The $10-a-Day Overstay Fee: Saving every dollar to pay off his illegal stay, even without a passport. Meeting His Wife in a Tattoo Shop: How a mutual friend connected them, why they broke up, and how he reinvented himself to win her back. Building a Photography Career from Scratch: From borrowing a camera to shooting weddings in Ghana, to becoming a street photographer in Cambodia, to working in Korean fashion. The Market as His Studio: Why he shoots in local markets, how he learned Khmer from old ladies selling vegetables, and why documentary photography is his calling. Marrying a Korean Woman: Navigating cultural differences, learning Korean from his father-in-law, and why his wife taught him to say no to low-paying jobs. Becoming a Father: Having a baby in Korea, getting a Korean passport for his daughter, and deciding to raise her in Cambodia. Food as Medicine: Why he cooks every meal from scratch, how nutrition and dietetics changed his life, and why he refuses to give his baby processed food. Life Between Cambodia and Korea: Why Cambodia is home for now, why Korea offers better work opportunities, and how he plans to split his time between both countries. Why Cambodia?: The freedom, the honesty, the cost of living, and why it's the perfect place to build a life from scratch. 📚 For more details on parenting course: https://april-s-site-fcfd.thinkific.com #HowDidYouGetHere #AprilJackson #CambodiaLiving #PhnomPenh #GhanaianInCambodia #ExMilitary #AWOL #StreetPhotography #KoreanWife #MulticulturalFamily #ExpatLife #Reinvention #MilitaryNurse #DocumentaryPhotography #FoodAsMedicine #SurvivalStory #CourageOverComfort #SoutheastAsia #interculturalmarriage 00:00 Introduction: A Ghanaian Military Nurse's Journey to Cambodia 04:00 Escape from the Military: The AWOL Decision 07:00 Airport Nightmare: Eight Hours of Interrogation in Indonesia 09:20 Finding Cambodia: A Warm Welcome After Indonesia 12:00 Lost Passport Crisis: Living Undocumented in Cambodia 16:00 Surviving in the Streets: Three Months at Amazon Cafe 21:40 The Photography Breakthrough: Benjamin's Trust 29:20 Cultural Differences: Ghana vs Cambodia vs Korea 35:40 Meeting His Korean Wife: From Tattoo Shop to True Love 45:40 Becoming a Father: Raising a Multicultural Child 1:01:20 Food as Medicine: From Military Nurse to Nutrition Advocate 1:08:50 Photography in Cambodia: The Reality of the Industry 1:01:20 Growing Up Ghanaian: Work, Farm, Church, Repeat 1:44:50 The Postcard of Life: From Tragedy to Triumph

Growing up Jamaican gave her a unique confidence. She reflects on how that upbringing helps her navigate predominantly white spaces, unlike what she imagines it might be like in the UK. #JamaicanCulture #Confidence #WhiteSpaces #CulturalIdentity

Babes, How Did You Get Here? | Barrington: From US Marine to Executive Chef to Guinness World Record Holder What happens when a former US Marine, executive chef, and scuba diving instructor decides life is too short to play it safe—and ends up breaking a Guinness World Record by scuba diving across all seven continents in under 20 days? In this exhilarating and deeply inspiring episode, host April Jackson sits down with Barrington Scott—a Guinness World Record holder, ex-Marine, former executive chef, master scuba diver trainer, and current Thailand resident who has lived more adventures in one lifetime than most people dream of in ten. From joining the Marines at 17 to deploying to Afghanistan, from teaching scuba diving in Honduras to working on citrus farms in Australia, and from spending $40,000 on an app that never launched to diving the freezing waters of Antarctica—Barrington's story is a masterclass in resilience, reinvention, and choosing adventure over comfort every single time. In this episode, we discuss: Joining the Marines at 17: How the promise of "free college" led to a four-year enlistment and a deployment to Afghanistan he never saw coming. Deployment to Afghanistan: The raw reality of war, the fear, and why he blacked out most of the experience. The Gap Year That Changed Everything: Googling "gap year," discovering Southeast Asia, and deciding to spend a year traveling through Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, Vietnam, Cambodia, and Australia. Working on a Citrus Farm: Being the fastest orange picker in Australia—until a snake appeared in a tree and changed his perspective on farm work. The Executive Chef Life: Landing a six-figure chef job in Darwin, Australia, and the moment he realized he was ready to walk away from it all. Falling in Love with Scuba Diving: His journey from a "discover scuba" experience in the Bahamas to becoming a master scuba diver trainer in Honduras. The Instructor Realization: Spending thousands to become an instructor, only to discover he had zero patience for teaching people underwater. The $40,000 App Lesson: Building a bucket-list travel app, hiring developers in India, and watching it crash—an expensive but vital life lesson. The Spark for a World Record: How a Netflix documentary about Diana Nyad inspired him to set his own "impossible" goal. Breaking a Guinness World Record: The logistics and endurance required to scuba dive across all seven continents in 19 days, 19 hours, and 14 minutes. Swimming with Sharks: Why he has dived with over 20 species of sharks and why he isn't scared of the predators most people fear. Why Phuket?: Choosing Thailand for the perfect mix of palm trees, infrastructure, community, and proximity to adventure. What's Next: Pursuing PA school to fund the next round of bucket-list dreams, exploring the world's largest cave in Vietnam, and chasing the next mountain. Why This Story Matters This isn't just a story about a world record. It's about: Choosing adventure over safety—even when it's expensive, scary, or uncertain. Reinventing yourself as many times as it takes to find what truly fits. Learning expensive lessons and having the courage to get back up anyway. Living fully now instead of waiting for retirement to start your life. Whether you're stuck in a career that doesn't fit, craving adventure, or just need permission to take a risk and build a life that's wildly yours—this episode will move you and remind you that life is happening right now. About the Show – "Babes, How Did You Get Here?" Hosted by entrepreneur and former Miss Jamaica April Jackson, this podcast dives into the real, unfiltered stories of people who left the script—swapping comfort for courage and choosing a life "elsewhere." 00:00 Introduction: Meet Barrington Scott - Guinness World Record Holder 00:36 From Marines to Medicine: The Post-Military Transition 04:40 Boot Camp Reality Check: The Deployment to Afghanistan 07:17 Discovering Gap Years: A Life-Changing Concept 09:52 The Australia Chapter: From Citrus Farms to Executive Chef 14:03 Finding Scuba: The Cruise That Started It All 16:31 Honduras Dreams Derailed: The Teaching Revelation 17:53 Why Phuket? Finding the Perfect Balance 21:05 The Guinness Record: Inspired by a 60-Year-Old Swimmer 24:01 19 Days, 7 Continents: Completing the Record 29:14 Swimming with Sharks: A Love Story 33:13 The $40,000 App Mistake: Bucket List Reloaded 32:45 What's Next: PA School and the Luxury Life #HowDidYouGetHere #AprilJackson #GuinnessWorldRecord #ScubaDiving #ExMarine #Afghanistan #ThailandLiving #PhuketLife #DigitalNomad #BucketList #SharkDiving #Antarctica #TravelStories #LivingAbroad #Reinvention #AdventureTravel #CourageOverComfort #ExpatLife #LifeElsewhere #ChefLife #GapYear #SoutheastAsia

Babes, How Did You Get Here? | Karina: From Moscow Dance Floors to Kingston Streets – Finding Home After Dancehall Broke Her Heart What happens when a Russian hip-hop dancer falls so deeply in love with dancehall culture that she moves 6,000 miles to Jamaica—only to discover that the community she worshipped would eventually exile her, leaving her stranded between two worlds, two Jamaicas, and two versions of herself? In this raw, unfiltered, and deeply honest episode, host April Jackson sits down with Karina Galliamova—a Russian dancehall dancer, former Moscow dance instructor, and now a Kingston-based content creator who traded the grey skies of Russia for the chaos, beauty, and heartbreak of Jamaica. From her first trip in 2016 (thinking she'd get shot), to teaching dancehall across 50+ Russian cities, to surviving COVID in Jamaica, to being canceled by the very community she loved, to finding unexpected love at Carnival and building a new life in uptown Kingston—Karina's story is one of passion, resilience, cultural collision, and choosing happiness even when the dream doesn't look like you thought it would. In this episode, we discuss: Falling in Love with Dancehall: How a crush on a dancer led her into a culture she initially hated—and then couldn't live without. First Trip to Jamaica (2016): Arriving terrified, hearing gunshots in Spanish Town, and still thinking, "I wish I could stay." Life in Moscow: Teaching dancehall across Russia, traveling to 50+ cities, working with Nike and Adidas, and burning out. The Balcony Moment: Sitting in New Kingston in 2019 and randomly deciding, "I could live here." COVID and Choosing to Stay: Coming for three months in January 2020, getting the option to leave, and deciding to extend her visa and stay. The Abusive Relationship: Falling for a Jamaican man who had someone else, living a double life, and surviving emotional manipulation. Living Between Two Jamaicas: Dancehall vs. uptown, street parties vs. boat parties, and navigating class and culture shock. The Post That Changed Everything: Writing "80-90% of Jamaican dancehall dancers cheat" and getting canceled, called racist, and exiled from the community she loved. Surviving Depression: Losing her identity, her community, and her purpose—and choosing to stay in Jamaica anyway. Finding Uptown Jamaica: Meeting a Russian friend who introduced her to a completely different Kingston—one with money, boats, and no one asking her to buy them drinks. Meeting Her Boyfriend at Carnival: Seeing his "bad picture," meeting him at Kaya Fest, talking for two hours, and never leaving his place after the first visit. The Red Flags She Ignored: He had a daughter, she said she'd never date a man with kids, and then she fell in love anyway. Life in Kingston Now: Living with her boyfriend, building her social media platform, navigating "tourist tax," and learning to love ackee and breadfruit. The Cost of Living Shock: Paying 10,000 JMD for electricity in a studio with no AC, vegetables costing more than in Moscow, and realizing Jamaica is expensive. Being Russian in Jamaica: Dealing with stereotypes, being called a spy, and learning to say "I was born in Ukraine" to change the energy in the room. Home or Not?: Still asking herself if Jamaica is forever, knowing she's traumatized by her dancehall experience, but choosing happiness over comfort. Why This Story Matters This isn't just a story about moving to Jamaica or falling out of love with dancehall. It's about: Following your passion even when it leads you somewhere dangerous and unpredictable. Surviving heartbreak, exile, and depression in a foreign country—and choosing to stay anyway. Navigating cultural collision when you're white, Russian, and in love with Black culture. Finding love after trauma and learning to trust again. #HowDidYouGetHere #AprilJackson #JamaicaLiving #KingstonLife #DancehallCulture #RussianInJamaica #ExpatLife #CulturalCollision #FindingHome #Heartbreak #Reinvention #UptownJamaica #LivingAbroad #CourageOverComfort #ChoosingHappiness #MovingToJamaica #caribbeanlife 00:00 Introduction: The Cost of Living in Jamaica 00:45 Meet Karina: A Russian Dancer's Journey 02:15 First Trip to Jamaica: 2016 04:37 Falling in Love with Dancehall Culture 09:12 The Spanish Town Incident: A Wake-Up Call 13:01 The Toxic Relationship That Brought Her Back 01:30 COVID Times: Choosing to Stay 23:29 The Controversial Post That Changed Everything 39:05 Discovering Uptown Jamaica 41:46 Two Jamaicas: Inner City vs Uptown Life 47:52 Finding Love at Carnival 1:05:27 Tourist Tax and Daily Challenges 1:01:29 Culture Shocks: What Nobody Tells You 1:14:31 Jamaican Food Favorites and Discoveries 1:13:51 Final Thoughts: Is Jamaica Home?

Babes, How Did You Get Here? | Karina: From Moscow Dance Floors to Kingston Streets – Finding Home After Dancehall Broke Her Heart What happens when a Russian hip-hop dancer falls so deeply in love with dancehall culture that she moves 6,000 miles to Jamaica—only to discover that the community she worshipped would eventually exile her, leaving her stranded between two worlds, two Jamaicas, and two versions of herself? In this raw, unfiltered, and deeply honest episode, host April Jackson sits down with Karina Galliamova—a Russian dancehall dancer, former Moscow dance instructor, and now a Kingston-based content creator who traded the grey skies of Russia for the chaos, beauty, and heartbreak of Jamaica. From her first trip in 2016 (thinking she'd get shot), to teaching dancehall across 50+ Russian cities, to surviving COVID in Jamaica, to being canceled by the very community she loved, to finding unexpected love at Carnival and building a new life in uptown Kingston—Karina's story is one of passion, resilience, cultural collision, and choosing happiness even when the dream doesn't look like you thought it would. In this episode, we discuss: Falling in Love with Dancehall: How a crush on a dancer led her into a culture she initially hated—and then couldn't live without. First Trip to Jamaica (2016): Arriving terrified, hearing gunshots in Spanish Town, and still thinking, "I wish I could stay." Life in Moscow: Teaching dancehall across Russia, traveling to 50+ cities, working with Nike and Adidas, and burning out. The Balcony Moment: Sitting in New Kingston in 2019 and randomly deciding, "I could live here." COVID and Choosing to Stay: Coming for three months in January 2020, getting the option to leave, and deciding to extend her visa and stay. The Abusive Relationship: Falling for a Jamaican man who had someone else, living a double life, and surviving emotional manipulation. Living Between Two Jamaicas: Dancehall vs. uptown, street parties vs. boat parties, and navigating class and culture shock. The Post That Changed Everything: Writing "80-90% of Jamaican dancehall dancers cheat" and getting canceled, called racist, and exiled from the community she loved. Surviving Depression: Losing her identity, her community, and her purpose—and choosing to stay in Jamaica anyway. Finding Uptown Jamaica: Meeting a Russian friend who introduced her to a completely different Kingston—one with money, boats, and no one asking her to buy them drinks. Meeting Her Boyfriend at Carnival: Seeing his "bad picture," meeting him at Kaya Fest, talking for two hours, and never leaving his place after the first visit. The Red Flags She Ignored: He had a daughter, she said she'd never date a man with kids, and then she fell in love anyway. Life in Kingston Now: Living with her boyfriend, building her social media platform, navigating "tourist tax," and learning to love ackee and breadfruit. The Cost of Living Shock: Paying 10,000 JMD for electricity in a studio with no AC, vegetables costing more than in Moscow, and realizing Jamaica is expensive. Being Russian in Jamaica: Dealing with stereotypes, being called a spy, and learning to say "I was born in Ukraine" to change the energy in the room. Home or Not?: Still asking herself if Jamaica is forever, knowing she's traumatized by her dancehall experience, but choosing happiness over comfort. Why This Story Matters This isn't just a story about moving to Jamaica or falling out of love with dancehall. It's about: Following your passion even when it leads you somewhere dangerous and unpredictable. Surviving heartbreak, exile, and depression in a foreign country—and choosing to stay anyway. Navigating cultural collision when you're white, Russian, and in love with Black culture. Finding love after trauma and learning to trust again. #HowDidYouGetHere #AprilJackson #JamaicaLiving #KingstonLife #DancehallCulture #RussianInJamaica #ExpatLife #CulturalCollision #FindingHome #Heartbreak #Reinvention #UptownJamaica #LivingAbroad #CourageOverComfort #ChoosingHappiness #MovingToJamaica #caribbeanlife 00:00 Introduction: The Cost of Living in Jamaica 00:45 Meet Karina: A Russian Dancer's Journey 02:15 First Trip to Jamaica: 2016 04:37 Falling in Love with Dancehall Culture 09:12 The Spanish Town Incident: A Wake-Up Call 13:01 The Toxic Relationship That Brought Her Back 01:30 COVID Times: Choosing to Stay 23:29 The Controversial Post That Changed Everything 39:05 Discovering Uptown Jamaica 41:46 Two Jamaicas: Inner City vs Uptown Life 47:52 Finding Love at Carnival 1:05:27 Tourist Tax and Daily Challenges 1:01:29 Culture Shocks: What Nobody Tells You 1:14:31 Jamaican Food Favorites and Discoveries 1:13:51 Final Thoughts: Is Jamaica Home?

Babes, How Did You Get Here? | Saiora: From Kazakhstan to Cambodia – Dancing Her Way to Freedom What happens when a Kazakh dancer realizes that following her passion means leaving behind everything familiar—the conservative expectations, the need to conform, the pressure to be "right"—and building a life 4,000 miles away in a country she barely knew, where she could finally be herself? In this inspiring and deeply authentic episode, host April Jackson sits down with Saiora—a Kazakh dancer, high heels dance teacher, and solo traveler who traded the rigid cultural expectations of Kazakhstan for the creative freedom and acceptance of Phnom Penh, Cambodia. From competing as a child dancer, to working in corporate sales, to falling into depression, to rediscovering her passion during COVID lockdown, to finally finding home in a country that lets her dance, dress, and live exactly as she wants. Saiora's story is one of courage, self-discovery, and choosing authenticity over approval. In this episode, we discuss: Growing Up in Kazakhstan: The pressure to conform, the cultural expectations, and why being open and expressive felt dangerous. Falling in Love with Dance: Competing as a child, taking a 10-year break, and why she danced to win—not just for fun. The Corporate Years: Working as a sales manager for cosmetics and solar panels, achieving the salary she dreamed of—and feeling completely empty. COVID and the Awakening: Making TikToks during lockdown and realizing she was doing it for free because it made her happy. Living a Double Life: Dancing in secret, not posting online, and struggling with the question: "Which version of me is real?" The Conservative Reality: Why high heels dancing felt risky in Kazakhstan and how cultural judgment shaped her choices. First Time in Cambodia: Visiting in 2017, studying at the Russian Embassy, and falling in love with the freedom she felt. The Decision to Return: Leaving corporate life, quitting everything, and moving back to Cambodia with no plan—just faith. Week One Miracle: Posting on Facebook looking for a dance space and getting offered a full-time teaching job within days. Teaching Ballet to Kids: Why she loved it but realized she wasn't the best fit—and the emotional responsibility of working with young dancers. Building a Dance Community: Creating a professional adult high heels dance scene in Phnom Penh from scratch. What Dance Teaches You: Facing your insecurities in the mirror, choosing technique over self-doubt, and helping students do the same. Her Parents Moving to Cambodia: How her family followed her to Cambodia and why she finally realized they're her best friends. The Cambodian Difference: Why Cambodia feels like "summer camp," the power of slow living, and how Cambodians taught her to stop rushing. Cultural Adjustment: Learning to embrace slowness, letting go of the need to "see people working hard," and finding peace in doing nothing. The courage it takes to live authentically when you've been taught to conform. Trusting that the right place will feel like home—even if it's halfway across the world. Whether you're feeling stuck in a life that doesn't fit, considering a big move, or just need permission to stop rushing and start living—this episode will inspire you, move you, and remind you that home is wherever you can finally be yourself. About the Show – "Babes, How Did You Get Here?" Hosted by entrepreneur and former Miss Jamaica April Jackson, this podcast dives into the real, unfiltered stories of people who left the script—swapping comfort for courage and choosing a life "elsewhere." 00:00 Introduction: Following Her Heart from Kazakhstan to Cambodia 02:12 Growing Up in Kazakhstan: Culture and Constraints 03:28 The Dance Journey: From Childhood Competitor to Lost Corporate Worker 06:01 COVID Awakening: TikTok and Rediscovering Passion 07:01 Living a Double Life: The Struggle Between Authenticity and Safety 13:46 First Impressions: Cambodia in 2017-2018 16:19 The Big Decision: Choosing Freedom Over Success 25:00 The Leap of Faith: One Week to Finding Work 27:08 Teaching Dance: More Than Just Movements 34:59 The Art of Dance: Architecture, Lines, and Self-Discovery 22:20 Cambodia's Magic: Summer Camp Energy and Acceptance 53:28 Cultural Adjustments: Learning to Slow Down 46:16 Family Reunion: Parents Move to Cambodia 51:55 Building Community: Finding Family in Foreigners 1:00:28 Two Versions of Self: English vs Native Language 1:01:15 Final Reflections: Cambodia as a Movie-Like Reality #howdidyougethere #AprilJackson #CambodiaLiving #PhnomPenh #Kazakhstan #DanceTeacher #HighHeelsDance #ExpatLife #CulturalExpectations #FindingFreedom #SoloTravel #DigitalNomad #BreakingStereotypes #LivingAbroad #Reinvention #CourageOverComfort #DanceCommunity #AuthenticLiving #SlowLiving #SoutheastAsia

Babes, How Did You Get Here? | Katie: From UK Makeup Artist to Male Prison Worker to Solo Fitness Entrepreneur in Thailand What happens when a 21-year-old British-Indian makeup artist gets tired of playing it safe, calls every MAC store in Australia until someone gives her a job, and ends up building a life that defies every cultural expectation her family ever had for her? In this inspiring and deeply honest episode, host April Jackson sits down with Katie—a British-Indian fitness coach, former male prison worker, and solo traveler who traded the traditional path of marriage and settling down for a life of adventure, independence, and unapologetic authenticity in Phuket, Thailand. From crying on a plane to London, to coaching fitness classes on Australia's Bondi Beach, to working in a Category B male prison during COVID, to finally finding home on "Fitness Street" in Phuket—Katie's story is one of courage, cultural defiance, and choosing yourself even when it feels like the world (and your family) wants something different. In this episode, we discuss: The Australian Dream: How she harassed a MAC regional director until she got a job in Sydney—and moved halfway across the world alone. Crying on the Plane: The fear of leaving everything familiar behind and nearly turning back at London. Three and a Half Years in Australia: Living in Bondi, discovering fitness, and realizing she didn't want the life waiting for her back home. Working in a Male Prison: Why she chose a Category B prison over a charity job—and what her boss told her about dressing "mumsy." COVID and Career Pivot: Getting furloughed, launching free Instagram Live workouts, and building an online fitness business from her attic. Finding Phuket: How two weeks on "Fitness Street" turned into two months—and eventually, permanent residency. Cultural Expectations: Growing up Sikh and Punjabi, the pressure to marry and settle down, and the guilt of living abroad as an Indian woman. Her Dad's Acceptance: The moment her father sent her the link to Thailand's Digital Nomad Visa—and what that meant after years of "when are you coming home?" Solo Travel and Independence: Why she loves being alone, why it's made dating harder, and why she wouldn't trade it for anything. Life at 42: No marriage, no kids, no house—and why she's finally okay with that. Vietnam, Bangkok, and What's Next: Her dream of visiting 50 countries by 50 and where she might move next. Advice for South Asian Women: Why she wants more women from her culture to take risks, travel, and live life on their own terms. Why This Story Matters This isn't just a story about moving to Thailand or building a fitness business. It's about: Defying cultural expectations without losing respect for your roots. Choosing yourself even when it feels selfish or scary. Building a life that looks nothing like the plan—and being proud of it. Solo travel as an act of self-love and independence. The courage it takes to disappoint people you love in order to live authentically. Whether you're from a traditional cultural background, considering a big move, or just need permission to live life on your own terms—this episode will inspire you, challenge you, and remind you that your path doesn't have to look like anyone else's. About the Show – "Babes, How Did You Get Here?" Hosted by entrepreneur and former Miss Jamaica April Jackson, this podcast dives into the real, unfiltered stories of people who left the script—swapping comfort for courage and choosing a life "elsewhere." #HowDidYouGetHere #AprilJackson #ThailandLiving #PhuketLife #SoloTravel #IndianWomen #SikhCulture #CulturalExpectations #DigitalNomad #FitnessEntrepreneur #ExpatLife #SouthAsianWomen #BreakingStereotypes #LivingAbroad #SoloFemaleTravel #FindingHome #Reinvention #courageovercomfort 00:00 Introduction: Living as a Single Indian Woman in Thailand 00:17 Discovering Fitness Street: From Two Weeks to Two Months 01:16 The Bold Move: From UK to Australia 02:03 Breaking Barriers: An Indian Girl's Dream 02:40 Persistence Pays Off: Calling Every Mac Store 03:39 First Flight: Tears and Transformation 04:15 Australia Years and Family Duty 04:57 Finding Home: Why Phuket Has Everything 06:43 The Fitness Journey: From Beach Skeptic to Coach 08:30 The Prison Chapter: Working in a Category B Male Prison 11:48 COVID and Building an Online Business 12:51 Cultural Expectations and the Set Plan 14:21 The Black Sheep: Choosing Adventure Over Tradition 16:40 Independence and Solo Travel 17:44 Vietnam Dreams and Travel Goals 18:53 Dad's Acceptance: The DTV Visa Moment 21:55 The Guilt of Living Away 22:50 Final Message: Take the Risk

Babes, How Did You Get Here? | Katie: From UK Makeup Artist to Male Prison Worker to Solo Fitness Entrepreneur in Thailand What happens when a 21-year-old British-Indian makeup artist gets tired of playing it safe, calls every MAC store in Australia until someone gives her a job, and ends up building a life that defies every cultural expectation her family ever had for her? In this inspiring and deeply honest episode, host April Jackson sits down with Katie—a British-Indian fitness coach, former male prison worker, and solo traveler who traded the traditional path of marriage and settling down for a life of adventure, independence, and unapologetic authenticity in Phuket, Thailand. From crying on a plane to London, to coaching fitness classes on Australia's Bondi Beach, to working in a Category B male prison during COVID, to finally finding home on "Fitness Street" in Phuket—Katie's story is one of courage, cultural defiance, and choosing yourself even when it feels like the world (and your family) wants something different. In this episode, we discuss: The Australian Dream: How she harassed a MAC regional director until she got a job in Sydney—and moved halfway across the world alone. Crying on the Plane: The fear of leaving everything familiar behind and nearly turning back at London. Three and a Half Years in Australia: Living in Bondi, discovering fitness, and realizing she didn't want the life waiting for her back home. Working in a Male Prison: Why she chose a Category B prison over a charity job—and what her boss told her about dressing "mumsy." COVID and Career Pivot: Getting furloughed, launching free Instagram Live workouts, and building an online fitness business from her attic. Finding Phuket: How two weeks on "Fitness Street" turned into two months—and eventually, permanent residency. Cultural Expectations: Growing up Sikh and Punjabi, the pressure to marry and settle down, and the guilt of living abroad as an Indian woman. Her Dad's Acceptance: The moment her father sent her the link to Thailand's Digital Nomad Visa—and what that meant after years of "when are you coming home?" Solo Travel and Independence: Why she loves being alone, why it's made dating harder, and why she wouldn't trade it for anything. Life at 42: No marriage, no kids, no house—and why she's finally okay with that. Vietnam, Bangkok, and What's Next: Her dream of visiting 50 countries by 50 and where she might move next. Advice for South Asian Women: Why she wants more women from her culture to take risks, travel, and live life on their own terms. Why This Story Matters This isn't just a story about moving to Thailand or building a fitness business. It's about: Defying cultural expectations without losing respect for your roots. Choosing yourself even when it feels selfish or scary. Building a life that looks nothing like the plan—and being proud of it. Solo travel as an act of self-love and independence. The courage it takes to disappoint people you love in order to live authentically. Whether you're from a traditional cultural background, considering a big move, or just need permission to live life on your own terms—this episode will inspire you, challenge you, and remind you that your path doesn't have to look like anyone else's. About the Show – "Babes, How Did You Get Here?" Hosted by entrepreneur and former Miss Jamaica April Jackson, this podcast dives into the real, unfiltered stories of people who left the script—swapping comfort for courage and choosing a life "elsewhere." #HowDidYouGetHere #AprilJackson #ThailandLiving #PhuketLife #SoloTravel #IndianWomen #SikhCulture #CulturalExpectations #DigitalNomad #FitnessEntrepreneur #ExpatLife #SouthAsianWomen #BreakingStereotypes #LivingAbroad #SoloFemaleTravel #FindingHome #Reinvention #courageovercomfort 00:00 Introduction: Living as a Single Woman in Thailand 00:18 Discovering Fitness Street: From Two Weeks to Two Months 01:16 The Bold Move: From UK to Australia 02:03 Breaking Barriers: An Indian Girl's Dream 02:40 Persistence Pays Off: Calling Every Mac Store 03:38 First Flight: Tears and Transformation 04:13 Australia Years and Family Duty 05:00 Finding Home: Why Phuket Has Everything 06:45 The Fitness Journey: From Beach Skeptic to Coach 08:37 The Prison Chapter: Working in a Category B Male Prison 11:46 Lockdown Pivot: Building an Online Business 13:10 Cultural Expectations: The South Asian Experience 15:54 The 11-Year Relationship and Choosing Yourself 16:39 Independence vs. Partnership: The Solo Travel Life 17:02 Exploring Thailand and Beyond: Vietnam Dreams 18:44 Parental Acceptance: The DTV Visa Moment 19:50 Safety and Community: Why Thailand Works 21:09 Father-Daughter Reflections: Breaking Generational Patterns 21:55 Guilt and Growth: Living Away from Family 22:59 Final Wisdom: Taking Risks and Living Without Regrets

Babes, How Did You Get Here? | Lana: From Beirut to Dubai to Kingston – Building Home Wherever She Lands What happens when a Lebanese tax professional gets a random call from a UK recruiter about a job in Jamaica—a place she only knew through Bob Marley—and decides to leave Dubai’s glossy efficiency for an island she’d never even Googled? In this warm, deeply authentic episode, host April Jackson sits down with Lana—a Lebanese expat, tax professional, former Dubai resident, and now a proud Kingston-based mom who’s called Jamaica home for seven years. Born in Gabon, raised in Lebanon, educated in Dubai, and now raising her Jamaican-born daughter in Kingston, Lana shares what it really takes to build a life “elsewhere”: culture shock, misconceptions, unexpected belonging, and choosing to truly live where you land—not just exist. In this episode, we talk about: The unexpected recruiter call that changed everything Leaving Dubai after seven years and trusting the timing Googling Jamaica (“most dangerous city in the world”) vs the reality she found Jamaican warmth vs transactional service—community, kindness, and being cared for while pregnant Pregnancy and giving birth in Jamaica (including home-birth planning) Taking a full year to decide: move closer to family or stay—and choosing simplicity Raising a confident child in a community-centered culture School choices, standardized testing, and why “outdoor/forest days” mattered Food, culture, vegan life, cravings, and what she just can’t eat “Jamaican time” and adjusting to a different pace Safety misconceptions about Kingston—and why she’s felt secure The mindset shift: home is wherever you live fully If you’re considering a big move, curious about expat life in Jamaica, or need a reminder that home is something you build—this episode will inspire you (and might make you crave callaloo). About the show – Babes, How Did You Get Here? Hosted by entrepreneur and former Miss Jamaica April Jackson, this podcast shares real stories of people who left the script—choosing courage, community, and a life elsewhere. 📚 To join the Parenting community: https://april-s-site-fcfd.thinkific.com Timestamps: 00:00 Introduction: The Call to Jamaica 02:13 From Lebanon to Dubai: A Journey of Phases 03:16 Manifesting Change: Ready to Leave Dubai 05:51 First Impressions: Safety and Settling In 07:32 Mom's Blessing and Visit 09:08 Island Life vs. City Living 15:05 The Warmth of Community 19:19 Raising a Jamaican Daughter 16:46 The Decision to Stay 22:27 Education, Food, and Cultural Adjustments 30:12 Jamaican Time and Honest Conversations 32:20 Home is Where You Live #HowDidYouGetHere #AprilJackson #ArabInJamaica #ExpatLife #JamaicaLiving #LifeAbroad #DominicanRepublic #CaribbeanLife #Motherhood #ThirdCultureKids #EventPlanner #KingstonJamaica #CulturalIdentity #Immigration #LatinasAbroad #RealStories #Podcast #Reinvention #FindingHome #ExpatMom #CaribbeanExpat #LanguageBarrier #GriefAbroad #ChoosingJoy

Babes, How Did You Get Here? | Paz Fourcard: Redefining Solo Motherhood & Finding Love in Bali What happens when a 22-year-old Filipino beauty industry star gets pregnant, refuses to shrink, and builds a life that redefines what it means to be a solo mom—twice—before finding a love so pure it made her feel like she was finally coming home? In this deeply moving and powerfully honest episode, host April Jackson sits down with Paz Fourcard. A true Filipino beauty industry OG, former model, and former chief makeup artist for Estée Lauder and MAC, Paz is now a Bali-based entrepreneur, podcaster, and mother to four incredible humans. From the glitz of Manila's fashion world to the chaos of solo motherhood, and from an abusive marriage to a love-at-first-sight romance that changed everything, Paz opens up about the moments that broke her, rebuilt her, and made her the fiercely loving, unapologetically direct woman she is today. In this episode, we discuss: The Pre-Kids Era: Living for fun, modeling, and makeup artistry in Manila, thinking she’d never have children. Unexpected Pregnancy at 22: The moment the music stopped and everything changed. Surrender and Faith: Being brought to her knees, praying for the first time, and choosing motherhood. Her Father’s Love: The man who raised her up when she thought she’d brought shame to her family. Marriage and Mistakes: Enduring verbal and physical abuse, and the strength it took to leave. Solo Motherhood in the Philippines: Navigating a conservative Catholic society where single moms were often tabloid fodder. No Regrets: Owning her decisions and refusing to speak badly about her exes in front of her children. A Year of Messages: Falling in love with Pablo through Facebook for a full year before ever meeting face-to-face. Moving to Bali: Meeting Pablo in person and the instant feeling of "finally coming home." The Byron Bay Influence: How Pablo’s easy-going "life is long" philosophy transformed her high-pressure mindset. Blended Family: How her children—ages 14 and 9—immediately accepted Pablo as their dad. Tony’s Coming Out: Supporting her oldest child’s trans journey with unconditional love and acceptance. Raising Good Humans: Why she prioritizes teaching her sons to be respectful men and future partners. Losing Her Father: Navigating the greatest grief of her life and the reality of unprocessed healing. Why This Story Matters This isn’t just a story about solo motherhood or finding love in Bali. It’s about: Choosing yourself when the world tells you to shrink. Raising children with intention, respect, and unconditional love. Knowing you are enough—even when you are doing it alone. Building a blended family where love, not biology, defines what it means to be a "dad." Whether you’re a solo parent, thinking about leaving a relationship that doesn't serve you, or just need to hear that you’re doing a great job—this episode will move you, challenge you, and remind you that motherhood is the hardest, most sacred work there is. About the Show – "Babes, How Did You Get Here?" Hosted by entrepreneur and former Miss Jamaica April Jackson, this podcast dives into the real, unfiltered stories of people who left the script—swapping comfort for courage and choosing a life "elsewhere." Subscribe for more stories on: Solo motherhood, blended families, and intentional parenting. Finding love after divorce and building a life in Bali. Filipino culture, Catholic guilt, and breaking generational expectations. Supporting trans children with unconditional love. Resilience, reinvention, and refusing to shrink. #howdidyougethere #AprilJackson #BaliLiving #SoloMotherhood #Philippines #BeautyIndustry #BlendedFamily #TransJourney #UnconditionalLove #FindingLove #Reinvention #Motherhood #ParentingWithIntention #LifeInBali #GriefAndHealing #YouAreEnough #PazForecard 01:00 Introduction: Filipino Beauty Industry OG 01:37 Love at First Sight: Moving to Bali 02:06 The Digital Love Story 03:48 Byron Bay Influence and Easy-Going Love 05:24 Why Bali? The Island Connection 08:34 The Fast Track: Three Months to Forever 14:22 Solo Motherhood: The Origin Story 15:36 Pregnancy Crisis and Finding God 18:32 Marriage and Mistakes: The Ex-Husband Chapter 37:26 Leaving an Abusive Relationship 40:57 Raising Boys: The Big Brother Protector 17:26 Trans Child Journey: Love Without Labels 1:02:58 The Dad Question: When Kids Don't Ask 1:26:57 Motherhood Truth Bombs: No Manual, No Mistakes 1:56:12 Marriage Wisdom: Showing Up as Your Best Self

Babes, How Did You Get Here? | Paz Forecard: Redefining Solo Motherhood & Finding Love in Bali What happens when a 22-year-old Filipino beauty industry star gets pregnant, refuses to shrink, and builds a life that redefines what it means to be a solo mom—twice—before finding a love so pure it made her feel like she was finally coming home? In this deeply moving and powerfully honest episode, host April Jackson sits down with Paz Forecard. A true Filipino beauty industry OG, former model, and former chief makeup artist for Estée Lauder and MAC, Paz is now a Bali-based entrepreneur, podcaster, and mother to four incredible humans. From the glitz of Manila's fashion world to the chaos of solo motherhood, and from an abusive marriage to a love-at-first-sight romance that changed everything, Paz opens up about the moments that broke her, rebuilt her, and made her the fiercely loving, unapologetically direct woman she is today. In this episode, we discuss: The Pre-Kids Era: Living for fun, modeling, and makeup artistry in Manila, thinking she’d never have children. Unexpected Pregnancy at 22: The moment the music stopped and everything changed. Surrender and Faith: Being brought to her knees, praying for the first time, and choosing motherhood. Her Father’s Love: The man who raised her up when she thought she’d brought shame to her family. Marriage and Mistakes: Enduring verbal and physical abuse, and the strength it took to leave. Solo Motherhood in the Philippines: Navigating a conservative Catholic society where single moms were often tabloid fodder. No Regrets: Owning her decisions and refusing to speak badly about her exes in front of her children. A Year of Messages: Falling in love with Pablo through Facebook for a full year before ever meeting face-to-face. Moving to Bali: Meeting Pablo in person and the instant feeling of "finally coming home." The Byron Bay Influence: How Pablo’s easy-going "life is long" philosophy transformed her high-pressure mindset. Blended Family: How her children—ages 14 and 9—immediately accepted Pablo as their dad. Tony’s Coming Out: Supporting her oldest child’s trans journey with unconditional love and acceptance. Raising Good Humans: Why she prioritizes teaching her sons to be respectful men and future partners. Losing Her Father: Navigating the greatest grief of her life and the reality of unprocessed healing. Why This Story Matters This isn’t just a story about solo motherhood or finding love in Bali. It’s about: Choosing yourself when the world tells you to shrink. Raising children with intention, respect, and unconditional love. Knowing you are enough—even when you are doing it alone. Building a blended family where love, not biology, defines what it means to be a "dad." Whether you’re a solo parent, thinking about leaving a relationship that doesn't serve you, or just need to hear that you’re doing a great job—this episode will move you, challenge you, and remind you that motherhood is the hardest, most sacred work there is. About the Show – "Babes, How Did You Get Here?" Hosted by entrepreneur and former Miss Jamaica April Jackson, this podcast dives into the real, unfiltered stories of people who left the script—swapping comfort for courage and choosing a life "elsewhere." Subscribe for more stories on: Solo motherhood, blended families, and intentional parenting. Finding love after divorce and building a life in Bali. Filipino culture, Catholic guilt, and breaking generational expectations. Supporting trans children with unconditional love. Resilience, reinvention, and refusing to shrink. #howdidyougethere #AprilJackson #BaliLiving #SoloMotherhood #Philippines #BeautyIndustry #BlendedFamily #TransJourney #UnconditionalLove #FindingLove #Reinvention #Motherhood #ParentingWithIntention #LifeInBali #GriefAndHealing #YouAreEnough #PazForecard 01:00 Introduction: Filipino Beauty Industry OG 01:37 Love at First Sight: Moving to Bali 02:06 The Digital Love Story 03:48 Byron Bay Influence and Easy-Going Love 05:24 Why Bali? The Island Connection 08:34 The Fast Track: Three Months to Forever 14:22 Solo Motherhood: The Origin Story 15:36 Pregnancy Crisis and Finding God 18:32 Marriage and Mistakes: The Ex-Husband Chapter 37:26 Leaving an Abusive Relationship 40:57 Raising Boys: The Big Brother Protector 17:26 Trans Child Journey: Love Without Labels 1:02:58 The Dad Question: When Kids Don't Ask 1:26:57 Motherhood Truth Bombs: No Manual, No Mistakes 1:56:12 Marriage Wisdom: Showing Up as Your Best Self

18, In Love & Never Looking Back: My 22-Year Journey from Bajan/Hindu Student to Jamaican Mom Hindu, Bajan & Jamaican by Heart: Raising My Daughters Between Cultures, Continents & Curries

What happens when a shy Indian girl who hated standing out, never traveled alone, and was expected to “settle down by 30”… ends up building a thriving online fitness business from a Thai island—teaching her dad what freedom looks like—and choosing solo beach walks over the life everyone planned for her? 📚 To join the Parenting community: https://april-s-site-fcfd.thinkific.com In this deeply honest and inspiring episode of “Babes, How Did You Get Here?”, host April Jackson sits down with Maddie Hart (also known as Yagi in Thai Online)—a British-Indian online fitness coach, former prison mentor, entrepreneur, and solo traveler—who shares the unexpected path that took her from feeling like an outsider to finally feeling at home in herself. Maddie opens up about growing up in the UK as one of the only Indian kids in a predominantly white school—navigating racism, isolation, and the heavy pressure to shrink herself to fit in. Raised in a traditional Sikh Punjabi household, the “life plan” felt non-negotiable: get a degree, get married, have kids, stay close to home, and don’t take risks that make the family uncomfortable. But at 21, everything changed. With zero travel experience and a lot of fear, Maddie left the UK for Australia—and admits she cried through her entire first flight. Her dad wouldn’t let her go without a job, so from the UK she called every MAC store in Sydney and Melbourne until she finally got hired. What followed was the real start-from-scratch experience: hostels, constant moves, battling cockroach-infested apartments, and learning how to build friendships as a quiet, shy introvert far away from everything familiar. In Australia, Maddie discovered fitness in Bondi—and it became far more than a physical pursuit. Movement became her therapy through anxiety and depression, and eventually her purpose. She trained, became a coach (including in the F45 world), and realized that transformation isn’t about “abs”—it’s about confidence, self-trust, and identity. With her background in psychology, she developed a coaching approach that helps women build strength from the inside out. Then came one of the most unexpected chapters: working inside a male Category B prison as a personal development mentor—especially during COVID. Despite the strict rules and the stereotypes (including being told to “dress as unattractive as possible”), she describes the work as meaningful and energizing—supporting men rebuilding their lives and finding purpose in a place most people would never choose. When lockdown hit, Maddie started doing free Instagram Live workouts—from a small attic space—simply to help and stay connected. What began as generosity turned into momentum, and that momentum became a full online coaching business, growing into six figures. Around her 40th birthday, she visited Phuket for what was meant to be a two-week holiday. She fell in love with the island—especially Phuket’s famous “Fitness Street”—and never left. She built a life, a community, and a business in Thailand, finding a sense of safety and belonging she didn’t feel back in London. One of the most emotional moments of the episode is her relationship with her father. After visiting Phuket and seeing that Maddie was not only safe but truly thriving, he sent her a link to Thailand’s Digital Nomad Visa—his quiet way of saying, “I see you. I accept you.” For Maddie, it was the first time she felt fully supported for choosing a life abroad. She also speaks honestly about the guilt of living far from family, the cultural pressure to settle down, and the decision to stop shrinking her dreams to make other people comfortable. Her “postcard moment” says it all: walking alone on a Phuket beach at sunset, phone in hand, realizing she was finally free. 💬 Question for you: Have you ever felt like you didn’t belong at home? And would you choose freedom over the life everyone expected you to live? If this episode resonated, like, comment, and share it with someone who needs the reminder: it’s never too late to choose yourself. 00:00 Introduction: From Prison Work to Life in Thailand 00:40 First Steps to Thailand: Discovering Phuket's Fitness Street 01:36 The Australia Chapter: Breaking Cultural Barriers 04:06 Overcoming Fear: Solo Travel and Finding Confidence 08:48 Building a Fitness Life in Australia 10:52 Working in a Male Prison: An Unexpected Career Move 14:04 COVID Lockdown: The Birth of an Online Business 15:10 The Move to Phuket: Building a Business in Paradise 21:07 Cultural Expectations vs Personal Freedom 29:32 Dating and Relationships in the Digital Nomad World 34:23 From Self-Doubt to Self-Love: Embracing Being Different 38:20 Safety, Misconceptions, and Life in Thailand 43:58 Final Thoughts: Taking Risks and Living Without Regrets #Phuket #ThailandLiving #ExpatLife #DigitalNomad #OnlineCoaching #FitnessCoach #SouthAsianWomen #Sikh #SoloTravel #Entrepreneurship #Reinvention #Podcast

What happens when a Korean girl who dreamed of being Oprah lands in Kingston, speaking zero patois, knowing nothing about Jamaica except what Google told her — and decides to stay longer than planned? 📚 To join the Parenting community: https://april-s-site-fcfd.thinkific.com In this warm and deeply personal episode of "Babes, How Did You Get Here?", April sits down with Herim — a South Korea-born UN Volunteer, content creator, and Korean food pop-up queen who: Googled her way into a UNESCO job in Jamaica Sold out 180 portions of bibimbap in an hour Learned to be proud of where she's from by living somewhere that celebrates itself unapologetically From leaving home at 14 to chase an Oprah-sized dream, to living in New Zealand, New York, and Boston, to choosing Jamaica over Fiji and Mongolia (even though it was her third choice), Herim opens up about belonging, identity, the $100 grocery bill that shocked her, and why she stopped using her English name after years of trying to fit in. We talk about: ✈️ Leaving South Korea at 14 because Oprah's story on a plane to Switzerland changed everything 🎓 High school in New Zealand, university in Boston, and always knowing she'd leave home 🇺🇸 Losing her US work visa after a year and returning to Korea in a quarter-life crisis 🌍 Applying to the UN Volunteers Program and picking Jamaica as her third choice — based on the job, not the country 📊 Googling "safety Jamaica", seeing the homicide stats, then talking to real people and deciding to see for herself 🛫 The 25-hour journey from her island in South Korea to Kingston (and why her mom thought Jamaica was in Africa) 🥥 Arriving in June during hurricane season: heat, humidity, and a $40 grocery bill for eggs, chicken, and coconut water 🛒 Shopping at Coronation Market, missing Korean food for the first time, and stuffing ingredients into her suitcase from the US 🍚 Hosting two sold-out Korean food pop-ups — 60, then 180 portions of kimchi fried rice, bibimbap, tteokbokki & hotteok How Jamaicans' pride in their culture made her more proud to be Korean 🎉 Her first Grand Gala: a stadium full of black, green, and gold, gospel, Bob Marley, and an energy she'd never felt before 🪪 Why she stopped using her English name "Henna" and started introducing herself as Herim — "clever forest", the name her Buddhist monk grandfather gave her 🏝️ Why she extended her stay in Jamaica — and why she's now moving to Bulgaria 💑 Long distance with her boyfriend in the US for three years — and how Jamaica actually made it easier 🌊 Her "postcard moment": alone on a Caribbean beach, relaxed and content, with big cities, diverse people and food swirling around her like an AI-generated dream This isn't just a UN volunteer story. It's about: Choosing to be called by your real name Learning to be proud of your culture by seeing how others celebrate theirs Realizing that home isn't always where you're born — sometimes it's where people make you feel like you belong It's about $1,500 grapes, sorrel with ginger, juicy patties over Tasty (yes, we're judging), and why Jamaicans wearing flags everywhere made a Korean girl finally understand what pride looks like. Whether you're thinking about working abroad, wondering what it's like to be Asian in Jamaica, or you just love stories of reinvention, resilience, and refusing to shrink your name to make others comfortable — this episode will inspire you, make you hungry, and maybe convince you to trust real people over Google stats. 💬 Tell us in the comments: Have you ever changed your name to fit in? Would you move to a country you knew nothing about for the right job? 👀 🎧 About the show – "Babes, How Did You Get Here?" Hosted by entrepreneur & former Miss Jamaica April Jackson, this podcast dives into real, unfiltered stories of people who left the script — swapping comfort for courage and choosing a life "elsewhere". New episodes every week from around the world. Chapters: 00:00 Introduction: A Korean Journey to the Caribbean 00:50 Leaving Home at 14: The Oprah-Inspired Dream 04:47 The US Work Visa Crisis and Returning to Korea 07:25 Finding Purpose: The Path to the United Nations 09:51 The Application: Fiji, Mongolia, or Jamaica? 12:27 The Decision: Safety, Distance, and Belonging 20:25 Arrival and First Impressions: Heat, Humidity, and Housing 25:21 Sharing Korean Culture Through Food 32:17 Life in Jamaica: Relationships, Carnival, and Community 34:47 Lessons Learned: Pride, Culture, and What's Next 35:46 From Henna to Herim: Reclaiming Identity 41:02 The Grand Gala: Understanding Jamaican Pride #howdidyougethere #AprilJackson #KoreanInJamaica #JamaicaLiving #ExpatLife #UNVolunteers #UNESCO #SouthKorea #KoreanFood #PopUpDinner #KingstonJamaica #DigitalNomad #CulturalIdentity #Bibimbap #Tteokbokki #GrandGala #JamaicanPride #AsianInJamaica #Reinvention #RealStories #Podcast #FindingHome #CoronationMarket #LifeAbroad #Bulgaria #CaribbeanLife #ThirdChoice

What happens when a kid from Detroit's roughest streets trades corporate Australia for Bangkok freedom, loses friends to violence, builds a six-figure recruitment business from an IHOP booth at midnight, and decides he'll never stop moving? 🌍💼 In this raw and deeply personal episode of 'Babes, How Did You Get Here?', April sits down with Agilon Wallace — a Detroit-born nomad, recruiter, and recruitment coach who has lived in Spain, the UK, Australia, and now calls Thailand home. From growing up with a father who was one of Detroit's biggest drug dealers, to losing his first love to suicide, to reinventing himself across a hundred countries, AJ opens up about grief, freedom, and why he refuses to let anyone else control his clock. We talk about: 🏚️ Growing up in the ghetto — gun violence, friends murdered, houses shot at, and why that was just "normal" 👨‍⚖️ His father: a major drug dealer who went to prison for 12–15 years and is now graduating with a PhD in law ♟️ Learning chess in prison visiting rooms — the only game he and his dad ever played 🎓 Escaping to Oxford University and waking up to castles, Bentleys, and a whole new world 🌍 Traveling broke across Europe — couch surfing, sleeping on beaches, and learning to love himself for the first time 💔 Leaving his girlfriend behind to chase Australia — and losing her to suicide years later 🇦🇺 Landing a $100K job fresh out of uni in Sydney while his classmates made half that at Deloitte 💼 Going bald from stress, quitting corporate life, and betting on himself 🥞 Working three jobs at once: bank teller by day, English teacher in the morning, recruiter at IHOP by night 💰 Closing his first $22K deal in an IHOP booth and crying — not because of the money, but because he proved he could do it alone 📍 Why he'll never move back to America — and why his mom's $600 electricity bill confirmed it 🇹🇭 Four years in Bangkok: the freedom, the convenience, the $2 meals, the free museums, and why it feels like a cheat code 🏠 Why he can't buy a house — because he doesn't know where "home" is 👨‍👩‍👧 Dating a Filipina online for four months before meeting, and why he wants his future kids homeschooled and trilingual ✈️ Passport strategy: why he wishes he'd gone to school in France or Germany for EU citizenship 🪦 Why he asks his mom about her funeral plans (and why she hates it) 🧳 His postcard moment: an endless road — because he's never going to stop This isn't just an expat story. It's about surviving trauma, rejecting the 9-to-5 trap, and refusing to let fear, grief, or geography define you. It's about choosing freedom over security, movement over settlement, and building a life where time is on your side. 💬 Tell us in the comments: Have you ever felt like you didn't fit in at home? And would you choose freedom over stability? 👀 — 🎧 About the show – "Babes, How Did You Get Here?" Hosted by entrepreneur & former Miss Jamaica, April Jackson, this podcast dives into the real, unfiltered stories of people who left the script — swapping comfort for courage, and choosing a life "elsewhere." New episodes every week from around the world. 📌 Subscribe for more stories on: • Expat life, digital nomad realities & building freedom abroad • Recruitment, remote work & entrepreneurship from anywhere • Detroit upbringing, violence, trauma & breaking generational cycles • Grief, loss & dating after tragedy • Australia vs America vs Thailand: cost of living, lifestyle & freedom • Passport strategy, visa hacks & global citizenship • Homeschooling abroad, raising multilingual kids & redefining family • Reinvention, resilience & refusing to settle 👍 If this episode moved you, like, comment and share it with someone who's been thinking about leaving — or just needs permission to choose themselves first. 00:00 Introduction: From Detroit to the World 08:29 Growing Up in Detroit: A Childhood Shaped by Contrast 20:46 The First Escape: Discovering Europe and Self-Love 28:21 Returning Home: Depression and the Struggle to Fit In 38:22 Love, Loss, and Moving to Australia 47:17 The Australian Chapter: Success, Stress, and Starting Over 50:52 The Leap into Entrepreneurship: Building a Business from IHOP 53:56 The Digital Nomad Life: Relationships, Travel, and Restlessness 57:05 Life Philosophy: Death, Freedom, and Living Without Regrets 1:08:56 Reflections on America vs Asia: The Cheat Code of Expat Life 1:18:03 Final Thoughts: The Endless Road Ahead #howdidyougethere #AprilJackson #BangkokLife #ThailandLiving #ExpatLife #DigitalNomad #DetroitToTheWorld #Recruitment #RemoteWork #Entrepreneurship #TravelAsia #BlackExpat #GriefAndHealing #Reinvention #FreedomAbroad #PassportStrategy #GlobalCitizen #LifeAbroad #RealStories #Podcast #NeverSettle #BuildingALifeAbroad #FromDetroitToBangkok