Ghanaian YouTuber and content creator Kobina "Wode Maya" Ackon visited Trinidad and Tobago recently as part of a tour of the Caribbean. His goal is to connect Africans across the globe, help them to know each other and to showcase the beauty of every country that has an African presence.
Over the past nine years Ackon has built a niche through engaging storytelling, collaborations and travel features across his digital platforms. His dedication to his craft has helped him build an audience of close to 1.5 million people across YouTube and Instagram alone.
His presence in Trinidad and Tobago was first brought to people's attention when the Prime Minister re-shared a Facebook post on December 9 of Wode Maya standing on the waterfront side of the Hyatt Regency Trinidad.
Arriving here on December 6, his experience began with the sampling local cuisine; trying smoked herring and eggs on coconut bake at Tant's Gourmet in the new Breakfast Shed, Port of Spain waterfront, saying, "I like the smoke herring inside... taste better." Although he enjoyed the meal, he said, "This breakfast, I feel it is too big... If I eat this in the morning, I'm not gonna eat in the afternoon."
[caption id="attachment_1052745" align="alignnone" width="1024"] Wode Maya sampled smoked herring and egg on a coconut bake at Tant's Gourmet at the New Breakfast Shed in Port of Spain. - Photo courtesy Oyetayo Raymond Ojoade[/caption]
His island vibe included visits to La Vigie lookout in Paramin and the Lady Young lookout, Morvant.
[caption id="attachment_1052744" align="alignnone" width="1024"] Wode Maya and Oyetayo Raymond Ojoade at the Lady Young lookout, Morvant. Photo courtesy Oyetayo Raymond Ojoade[/caption]
Wode Maya's interest in showcasing the culture, arts and history seeps into every aspect of his travels and his trip to Trinidad and Tobago has been no different. He highlighted the country's rich heritage to the world with much love and appreciation.
He immersed himself in many different areas of culture – viewing moko jumbies, visiting the Massy All Stars panyard, Duke Street, Port of Spain, where he hosted a meet and greet for his local fans and danced to the songs being played on pan. He also attended a dance rehearsal by the Tobago Performing Arts Company (TPAC) saying, "This is really beautiful to see. Africans out of Africa still carries the culture.
"You would think they are born and raised on the continent but they are not."
His cultural immersion was not over. His last-minute trip to Tobago had him on the first standby flight on December 9. Once he arrived, he made sure to visit places like Pigeon Point beach, Buccoo Reef, Nylon Pool, even venturing to Castara.
[caption id="attachment_1052749" align="alignnone" width="1024"] Wode Maya in Castara, Tobago. - Photo courtesy Wode Maya's Instagram page[/caption]
He had this to say about the sceneries he encountered, "This is not Photoshop but the real beauty of the greatest little island on the planet." He also learned about wine making and visited the Buccoo I
