‘It’s just a whole different world’

A Jamaican living in The Cayman Islands is encouraging her fellow countrymen to seize the opportunity to travel more frequently, even if it means journeying solo.

Solo trips, she said, are not as bad as many think.

Speaking with The Gleaner, 39-year-old Keisha Smith revealed that she has travelled to 38 countries across six of the seven continents – aside from Antarctica, the majority of which she travelled to alone.

“Yes, it’s scary initially because you’re going somewhere you don’t know and you don’t know nobody... but researching the dos and don’ts of a country and what you can’t wear or what the culture is ... is also a part of the experience of travelling,” she said.

Smith discussed how “beautiful” it is to meet new people and that she believed travelling helps with “building a different you”.

One of the most amazing things Smith has experienced, in her opinion, is how compassionate people can be, even if they do not know you personally or, in certain cases, cannot speak the same language.

“It’s just a whole different world when you get involved and you see how much there is to know about other persons’ culture. What means a lot to us is not the same to somebody else in terms of your experience or how you view life,” she said.

She continued that, in most cases, people were not worried about vanity but that “the simplicity of life” and one’s kindness was what really mattered at the end of the day.

Smith went on to say that people’s ability to impact and inspire others merely by being kind to one another marvelled her, causing her to realise the huge difference one could make in another person’s life and, ultimately, the world.

She expressed that encountering such cultures and ways of thinking have “humbled” her in many ways, causing her to realise how much life can be “unique” in several ways.

Smith discovered that travelling also helps people connect with others, even if just briefly, by showing them new ways of life and helping to foster lifelong friendships.

“I’ve been to a couple of places, and I still communicate with those people,” she said, noting that just being able to “check in [and] to be able to say that I’m thinking about you ... people appreciate that.”

Smith started travelling from childhood. When she was under age 10, she would frequently visit her mother who lived in The Cayman Islands.

Growing up in the Anglican church was also a plus, she explained, noting that as a member of the youth fellowship she would gain the opportunity to travel to Barbados for a youth event.

“It’s something I’ve always liked,” she said, noting that she would always dream about going to Paris in France and setting her eyes on the Eiffel Tower.

“I grew up reading as a child and in some of those books you would see different places in the world, and I would like to envision the different places in the world that I would want to go to like Paris and Italy ... Europe was always on my list,” she said.

Having lived in the United Kingdom for nearly three years, Smith seized the opportunity to travel across Europe to countries she had always wanted to visit as well as other destinations within the continent such as Spain, Belgium, and Amsterdam.

She has also taken on some exciting treks and activities such as bungee jumping, sky diving, jet packing, snorkelling, horseback riding and axe throwing.

As a social worker by profession, with 17 years of experience, Smith is also appealing to parents to expose their children to the experience of travelling to different countries, once they can afford to do so.

Such an adventure, she said, will help to encourage a positive and open-minded attitude, builds character and has a profound effect on how one perceives and understands the world around them.

Smith hopes she will be able to travel to two more countries by the time she celebrates her 40th birthday this year, turning it into a ‘40/40’ celebration.

She also looks forward to connecting to more people and being engaged in many more outdoor activities, documenting her travels as she goes along.

asha.wilks@gleanerjm.com