This was a fun interview to do, of these two young Canadian girls who left life and moved to Jamaica. I remember before they made their move they had been reading my blog and had so many questions after I’d made my move to Jamaica in 2011. So it was great to be asking them the questions for a change! I can’t help but compare their answers to my experiences when I left Canada alone last year to embark on a new chapter of life. It’s interesting to see how experiences are similar or different from mine.
Interview on Moving To Jamaica
Q: How long have the two of you been traveling to Jamaica?
A: Our first visit to Jamaica was in March of 2011. We had no idea of the impact it would have on our lives and how quickly it would change our world as we knew it…and all for the better! After March, we just couldn’t stay away; we spent a week in July and then 8 days in September. We decided to stop doing weekly trips and make it as permanent as can be (without being citizens of course). We also wanted to avoid winter so we came back to Jamaica on December 10th and have now been here for almost three months. Can you believe it’s been less than a year since our first trip??!
Q: What research did you do and what information sources did you turn to while planning your escape?
A: This probably sounds a bit crazy, but we really didn’t do much research. We decided we were going to escape to Jamaica, and just deal with whatever happens as it happens … so far, it’s all worked out irie!
We did do some research online with the Canadian and Jamaican embassies to make sure how long we were allowed to stay in Jamaica, or be out of Canada, especially if we want to keep our Canadian health care, etc. Travel health care policies also took a bit of time to find and price online to make sure we are properly covered while we are away from Canada (and not pay a fortune!!).
In a way, our eight day trip in September was a form of research, or maybe better said, a trial run. We knew at that point it was Jamaica we wanted to move to, so we came and stayed at a villa instead of an all-inclusive resort, rented a car to drive ourselves around and took care of all our meals and other needs just to make sure we could fend for ourselves in Runaway Bay … plus we obviously just wanted an excuse for another trip to the island! 😉
The rest of our research, if you want to call it that, involved speaking with Jamaicans as much as we possibly could. We made many friends on our first three trips that we stayed in contact with and they were a great help, just with general questions we had about moving, what to expect and getting ourselves settled … and getting us super excited for what was in store! I guess in a way we didn’t really want to do much research … we took a big leap of faith trusting our guts that we were in it for the experience of it all, and that it would all work out in the end – and it paid off big time!
Q: Do either of you think you would have moved to Jamaica as an individual (without the other one) rather than a duo?
A:
KATE: I definitely don’t think I could have done this alone. It’s super hard to make girlfriends (and we’ve tried!!) and without someone here to talk to it would have been much harder. Sometimes you just need familiar (female) conversation! And I just don’t think I would have had the guts to do it alone. I’ve always dreamed of escaping Canada (I seriously dislike winter) but I thought that it was just a dream. It was Kayla convincing me (which wasn’t hard to do mind you…) to come to Jamaica in the first place that changed all that! We were lucky to both have been in the same situation where all we wanted to do was escape! We just both needed a big change, so here we are!! I also think that on the days where our Jamaican friends have to work or are just unavailable to chill, it would be hard to go out and do things as a young white gal all by herself! Everyone is nice and seem to always be looking out for us, but you just never know. Maybe had I chosen a busier, more touristy place to live (such as Ocho Rios rather than Runaway Bay) it would be easier, but all in all I couldn’t have asked for a better travel companion! We are always here for each other and that’s so important to have someone you know, trust and love with you when you move so far away from anything that is normal for you!
KAYLA: Well, that’s an easy one to answer .. no way!! I think the biggest reason (although I agree with everything that Kate has said) is that to me, Jamaica will always be something that I experienced with Kate … we have had all the same experiences here and have the same feelings for the island for the same reasons. We moved here for the same reasons and part of those reasons included being here for each other.
KATE: awwww, Kayla! 🙂 And another thing is that we both have the same silly sense of humour, so I really don’t know anyone else that could stand me for this long! ha ha
Q: How much influence did your boyfriends have on your move to the island?
A: Okay, so the cat’s out of the bag I guess?! lol …. They definitely had an influence, but they weren’t the reason we decided to do this. Our overall intention was to move to a different country and experience a different culture (and since we love Jamaica so much, it was the obvious location!) We actually decided to move away from Canada after our first trip here, before we even had boyfriends. They made it soooo much easier, but would we have done this without having “boyfriendsâ€? Yes! We made so many connections on our trips aside from them that we would have been able to find a place to live and get ourselves adjusted to this culture, no problem mon! However, we have to give them credit for finding us our awesome apartment (finding a place was definitely the hardest part, when you’re so far away and can’t check them out for yourself!) They were also so helpful just by answering our kazillion questions we had before we moved, and everyday that we are here.
Q: What have you found to be much more difficult than you anticipated?
A: Letting go of the culture we were raised in. That’s not to say we’ve dismissed our Canadian roots, beliefs or anything else along those lines – but we are reminded on a daily basis that we live in THEIR culture, and if we want to be a part of it, their way of life is how we are expected to live. Living here is a whole lot different from being here for a week at a time!
Not saying that we don’t love this culture (obviously we do since we are here) but there are some significant differences! Some of the biggest differences we’ve found between the Canadian and Jamaican cultures are how relationships (co-workers, friendships and otherwise) are formed and held together, homosexuality is a big no-no, the woman’s role in society, (we can’t tell you how many times we’ve been told that “that’s not what Jamaican girls would do,†when we want to do something that seems even a bit out of the ordinary to a Jamaican), how differently Jamaicans communicate with each other than Canadians do, or the laissez-faire attitude which sometimes leaves you waiting hours (literally) for a ride that is coming “soon†LOL. Patience is something you definitely need here, and it’s something that we have gotten much better at, that’s for sure!
Somedays its just hard to have to accept aspects of the culture that you don’t agree with, or its simply just not the way you’ve lived your life for the past 27 years! (26 and a half for Kate, thank you very much) BUT we are very open-minded individuals, so we have learned just to let some things go, and not debate it, because we rarely win! This is also not to say we have changed our beliefs, we are CANADIANS after all, we just so happen to be living in Jamaica!
Q: What’s been the most FUN thing you’ve done so far?
A: It’s hard to pick just one … if you’re talking about a place that we’ve seen its probably a tie between Fire Water in St. Ann’s Bay and The Blue Hole in Exchange (St. Mary). The Fire Water is such a unique experience … definitely something you have to see with your own eyes! And The Blue Hole is simply breathtaking – its exhilarating to jump off the cliffs, swim under the falls, climb up through the caves underneath and walk on waterfalls! (We’ve written blog posts about both of these places.)
BUT the most fun thing so far has just been getting to know all of the friends we’ve made here in Jamaica. Everywhere we go, everyone wants to get to know the two crazy Canadian girls walking around by themselves (!)… from random people on the road, taxi/bus drivers, shop keepers, beach vendors, cooks, bartenders, waiters, policemen, children (our favorites), and of course rasta men! … It’s the people that have made this experience what it has been. We’ve had fascinating and most often hilarious conversations with so many people who have shared their life, stories and laughter with us (its a good thing we love to talk lol). And this experience cannot be gained by staying on a resort and never leaving! The people here and the experience you get from meeting them is the reason (we believe) that people like us fall in love with Jamaica in the first place. Not for the 5 star all-inclusive resorts that try to convince you not to leave the property (and if you do, it’s at $100 a head in a big fancy tour bus! Mind you, it is air-conditioned…lol).
Q: What’s been the most eye-opening experience you’ve had?
A: Where to begin? This entire experience has been eye-opening for us! In terms of the Jamaican culture, something that has truly opened our eyes is how people are genuinely happy here. They are always excited to meet you, smile and say hello when you pass by and they always make eye contact. It’s rare that a person won’t say hello when you pass by them … in Canada you can walk down the street without making eye contact with a single person. If someone smiles at you, you think “Is there something on my face?!†LOL (That something should be a smile people!!) We have seen men, women and children living in extreme poverty that still find something to smile about every day when they wake up no matter what their life situation is like. It’s truly inspirational …. it helps us to realize that material possessions are not what makes one happy. We would much rather be rich in life experiences than have a house full of things that just sit there!
In general life terms, people think we’re crazy for giving up careers we both worked so hard for, but we were never more certain about what we wanted then making the decision to come here! Yes, Jamaica changed our lives, but it really is more than that. It’s not just the people, the sun, the beach or the amazing scenery you find just from stepping out the front door, but it’s the fact that we did something amazing with our lives. So many people dream of moving to a beautiful destination but very few actually do it. Not only that, but so many people plan their vacations and traveling for when they retire, when the kids are older or out of the house … or whatever other reason that stops them. But you never know what the future holds. You shouldn’t wait to do things that your heart truly desires to do. You have one shot at this life and we intend to give it our best one! So to sum it up, the most eye-opening experience for us has been realizing that there are truly no limits to what you can do if you really want something!
Q: What is/was your overall goal with this decision to be in Jamaica? And have you reached that goal yet?
A:
KAYLA: Honestly, in general our goal is to live life to the fullest and enjoy as many experiences and adventures as we can. You only have one life to live … so we’re living it! More specifically, our goal concerning Jamaica was to do something that most people will never be brave enough to do – completely immerse yourself in a different culture … and climate 😉 Neither of us have ever lived anywhere except Canada. But why Jamaica, you ask? Well, you can think of Jamaica as our “happy placeâ€. I never feel as content as I do when I’m on the island .. we just knew that Jamaica was where we wanted to be! So yes, I suppose we did reach our first goal concerning Jamaica just by making the big move to the island! And now that we’ve been here for three months and know this is still where we want to be, our goal is just to experience everything that Jamaica, its beautiful country and amazing culture has to offer …. but shhhhh …. I secretly hope that this is an unattainable goal, so that I can just keep experiencing Jamaica forever!
KATE: I totally agree with Kayla. Sometimes you just know where your heart wants to be and for us, it’s Jamaica! I know we are definitely not alone on that!! We do have small goals all the time, like going out to certain places and seeing different things, and it’s hard to attain those goals at times! But overall, we just wanted to be here! And maybe there was a bit of a quarter life crisis for us both at some point last year…lol.
Q: Now that you know the 3 month and 6 month immigration rules, what’s next for the two of you?
A: KAYLA: Ugh, why do there have to be immigration rules?! (ha ha … I get it, I get it) but I just want to stay in Jamaica forever!!! Unfortunately, we are leaving Jamaica on March 7th for a short while. I am heading to Costa Rica for about four weeks to complete yoga teacher training, while Kate is headed back to Canada to work … we’ll be returning to Jamaica shortly after that for another two month stay (at least). We plan to continually travel to Jamaica (and possibly other sunny destinations) as long as our finances can afford … short work periods back home will obviously be necessary in between visits until I win the lottery, but a small price to pay to be able to be in Jamaica as often as possible. We have so much more of Jamaica to see and experience that we are nowhere near ready to settle down anywhere else so stayed tuned for our many adventures yet to come!! Even though we are leaving for a short while (against our will), we have MANY more blogs on the way from our experiences here!!
Q: Have you been to Spanish Town yet? (LOL I had to ask because it’s my favorite place!!)
A: No, but its definitely on our list of places to visit since we’ve heard so much about it from reading your blog posts and from locals we’ve met as well. We’ve been down to Black River, Negril, Montego Bay, and all along the north coast to Ocho Rios, but that part of the island is yet to be discovered by Kate and Kayla! (We plan to go on our next stay in Jamaica)
The only thing I would disagree with is when you said living in a tourist town is easier. If anything it makes you have to assert yourself and your bargaining power even more because they all expect that you are a tourist and want to pay tourist dollars. As a solo white female it was more difficult to make people understand.
Good luck on your future travel endeavors and I’m sure we’ll be meeting on your next go-round because our travel times will coincide. And if you ever need a ride I will NOT be the one who leaves you waiting half a day for it LOL!
Here’s how you can find Kate and Kayla online:
Blog: KateandKayla
Facebook page: KateandKayla
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