World Traveller Charlene Clarke takes her exciting hobby on tour
Published:Saturday | April 23, 2022 | 12:08 AMKrysta Anderson /Staff Reporter
It was the repeated refrain, ‘Where in the world are you now?’ from friends that led Charlene Clarke to take her exciting hobby on tour. Since taking her first solo trip to Spain back in 2012, Explore with Char has gone on to visit over a dozen countries, with high hopes of ticking off even more destinations on her bucket list.
“I had booked an intensive summer course in Spain that would last for three months, and travelling to Europe on my own was exhilarating! That’s when I realised I want to do this (travel) more often or as much as I can,” she told Saturday Living. Her journey over the years has proven to be insightful on many levels, teaching her life’s most valuable lessons.
“I’ve learned so much from other travellers that I’ve met and I’m still friends with a lot of them today. Travelling widely has also allowed me to learn so much about myself - what I like, what I don’t like, what motivates me, and what annoys me. And it has helped to build my character as a professional. I’m not as shy as I once was and I’m more confident in decision-making and interacting with others,” she shared.
Clarke attributes her love for adventure to her parents who instilled the value of appreciating your own culture as well as others you come in contact with and explore. Revisiting memory lane, she recounted going on several road trips as a family to sightsee new parishes and check out local attractions and landmarks.
“On occasion, they would prepare enough food to last us through the day. We would pack some games and clothes, and in the early morning we’d head out,” the explorer confirmed, adding, “We always looked forward to holiday from school because we knew we’d be travelling. So travel was pretty much implanted in us.”
Clarke created Explore with Char as a guide, so to speak, for friends and travel enthusiasts to learn more about where to go and the steps to take to get there, especially when travelling solo. Others revelled in the comfort of living vicariously through her lens. So it was a win-win to share her adventures and experiences with others. That way, they can be encouraged to jet-set in her flying path one day. Although she is mostly based overseas, the adventure seeker continues to be blown away by the majestic memories made locally in Portland and St Thomas.
“My trips to Portland and St Thomas always stand out because of the beauty of the natural resources there. Those two parishes have some of the most beautiful rivers and waterfalls in the country, in my opinion, and the beaches in Portland are top tier,” she reflected. Outside of Jamaica, she has been to Trinidad & Tobago, Curaçao, Spain, China, South Korea, Malaysia, Singapore, Macau, Hong Kong, England, United States of America, Canada, and, most recently, Panama. South Korea and Spain have stood out to her the most, as she felt so comfortable in both countries that she could see herself living there. Spain, of course, holds a special place in her heart as the very first trip on the map, and it was where she met her first set of international friends.
FEEDING INTO DEMAND
As it relates to content creation, the travel blogger finds that her audience is drawn to videos that depict a day of living overseas. So she feeds into that demand, sharing photos as well to showcase memorable moments that stood out to her. On occasion, followers receive practical travel tips.
While she hasn’t experienced many hurdles in her travels, there are instances where ignorance comes into play and where race is concerned. “Some countries, like China, have very remote cities where they’ve never seen black people before or black hair, especially locs, which I have. So they are very interested to know more. I find that they’d want to take pictures of and with you, which can be a bit annoying if you’re not in the mood for that type of attention. However, my solution to that is just to oblige them. So I tell them more about myself and people who look like me and where I’m from, and that usually satisfies them.”
Clarke has also shocked a few on her journeys who are surprised to discover that she is from a developing country and travels around the world like them. On these occasions, she clears up the misconception, declaring that she and other islanders are entitled and able to enjoy this luxury, “These types of interactions have been a great way for me to share my Jamaican culture and what life in Jamaica is like with other travellers. They end up wanting to visit Jamaica themselves, which is always a win!” she said.
At the core, it’s important to venture into the great outdoors, try a new adventure, and explore different cultures, because it is the only way to truly discover how the rest of the world lives. “I prefer experiencing it first-hand,” she said, listing, for example, the difference between Chinese food in Jamaica and China. “What we consider Chinese food in Jamaica cannot be found in China at all. It’s a totally different cuisine there, and I wouldn’t have known that unless I experienced it myself.”
With plans to visit more Caribbean countries, taking trips to Mexico, Kenya and Ghana are also at the top of her to-do list. She is working on being more consistent on her YouTube channel, and making her Instagram page the go-to travel page for Jamaicans to see where their passport can take them, outside of the USA, Canada, and the United Kingdom. She said,“The hope also is that, in the long run, we can branch off into offering travel-related services.”
Aside from travels, Clarke recently became a member of the ‘bookstagram’ community, to keep abreast of her reading and connect within that world through shared thoughts and suggestions. The culinary enthusiast also loves to experiment in the kitchen, cooking up and baking tasty creations.