Meet Jazz (25) and Marc (33). Jazz is Jamaican-American and Marc is German with roots in Mauritius. The couple randomly met at a bar in Bali and 10 days after their initial encounter, decided to travel the world while sharing their art forms as they go.
Marc is a former medical doctor who decided to chase his artistic passions that include: poetry, making welding installations, and developing nature-inspired properties. Jazz is a Business English Teacher who decided to follow her passions of painting, designing jewelry, and event curation.
In this first year of dating, the pair ventured to 11 countries: Thailand, Bali, Croatia, Germany, Mauritius, India, Nepal, Vietnam, China, America, Burma, and Laos. We spoke with them about their love around the world.
Travel Noire: How did you decide that traveling together so soon would be a good idea?
Jazz: The initial reason we started our journey together was because Marc’s Indonesian visa was expiring and I had to return back to Thailand to work with Princeton In Asia. So he joined me.
A place nowhere on his bucket list became the base for our bond. When we met, we couldn’t care less about security or what the next day held. What was more important to us was investigating the world with the new gift we were given, each other. Many would call this strange or unsafe but for us, it just felt right.
Related: The Black Expat: We’re Married And Living Abroad In Asia
TN: Tell us about the challenges you faced with being a new couple on this journey?
Jazz: Often we get lost in the monument checklists and itineraries that we forget who we are traveling with. At times we allowed the road to distract us from our physical connection. Not to mention our cultural dynamics can make basic forms of communication a nightmare. Imagine a German trying to explain time and commitment to a free-spirited, independent American. Or experiencing culture shock with someone but not knowing the exact words to use in English.
We shared train compartments, bug infested hostel rooms, food poisoning, luxurious villas, and even have been broke and wealthy on the road together. Our relationship has been on fast-forward since the day we met with no other option than to follow our hearts.
TN: What are you top 3 moments from that year?
Jazz: 1.Performing at Open Mic’s and Presenting our art together at a Live Cultural Art Exhibition (Jazz clothing line, Marc’s Paintings) at Woke Folks Festival in Chiang Mai, Thailand. 2. Shacking up at a deserted beachfront resort in Koh Tao, Thailand. Free from tourists, noise, and technology. 3. Finding our first home/investment in Europe.
Without knowing the neighborhood at all, or even having a chair to sit on, we packed our car and moved to a small nature filled city Leipzig, Germany. We now have an art studio there and a new artist community!
TN: Where was your favorite destination to go to together?
Jazz: I would say, Rishikesh, India. In that month we experienced: Sunrise Yoga in an Ayurvedic Ashram; swimming in the holy Ganga river with water buffalo; vegetarian diets and food portions that sent our bodies into shock; visits to the market with cows and bulls shopping with us; cooking with locals in their homes, meditating with Sadhu in Yoga’s epicenter, riding choppers through the Himalayas with the uncertainty around every corner.
TN: Can you offer any tips for other couple looking for a similar experience?
Jazz: Some things we have done to assist with our long-term flexibility are: having international banks, never agreeing to long-term rental properties in places we don’t want to live or invest in, Airbnb our home and take on long-term renters while we voyage, only traveling with carry on baggage, taking on remote digital jobs, budgeting together and being transparent about our financial goals, get comfortable with the unknown and stop planning everything.
TN: Where can we find you on social media?
Jazz: You can follow our journey on our series Love in Strange Places or Instagram: @vagabond.jazz & Marc’s IG: @gen3rationy.
