The Travelstart content team had the awesome privilege of exploring the beautiful Cape Town CBD suburb called, Bo-Kaap. Abundant with so much history, culture and sincere greetings from the locals who inhabit this colourful cobblestoned suburb, Bo-Kaap promises to provide you with a heartwarming experience of an authentic Cape Town beyond Table Mountain.
Take a look at the amazing scenes captured by the content team:
Photo Credit:
Nadia Marth
@davedanny13
@aislinnlcorbet
Jaymila Van Rooi is a Cape Town based freelance stylist, with a heartwarming story of passion and sheer resilience. I remember the first time I met this fierce sister. It was at a Cape Town Summer Market. She was the young lady with the curly golden hair and uniquely defined freckles, with rails of clothing. Looking back now, I realise that those were the infant days of her incredible journey of becoming a sought after freelance stylist. Intrigued by her courage to follow a career independent from a typical 9 to 5 job, I wanted to know what motivated her to pursue this career and the establishment of her business, Jaymila Swaggz. Her story is a true testament of defying the expectations of the Cape Flats context. Young girls your dreams and goals: it is possible!
Jaymila kindly allowed me pick her mind on her journey thus far. Prepare to be inspired by her authenticity.
Growing up in Hanover Park and Mitchell’s Plain (areas on the Cape Flats), Jaymila believes her success should be based on her talent as a creative and hard work, rather than where she comes from. I wholeheartedly agree, as this allows you to think and dream further than the adversities of your environment. No stranger to the problems which plague the Cape Flats; domestic violence, alcohol and drug abuse, Jaymila realised that being a creative was always going to be part of her destiny, in spite of these deterring environmental factors. “I grew up falling in love, watching runway shows on soapies like The Bold & The Beautiful. The next day I would create a replica of a similar gown on one of my dolls. My dream was always to be a fashion designer or be a part of that world.”
The bold move from corporate to entrepreneurship
Jaymila has many years of experience within the corporate world. She made the bold move from financial security to pursuing her passion. A daring move which inevitably paid off. “One day, after years of unhappiness, I quit my job and decided to start my own business with styling shoots. I started a monthly online catalogue.” Her business spread by word of mouth and she soon had a growing client base. And so, the brand Jaymila Swaggz came to life. 2013 was the year that she decided to pursue her dream of becoming a freelance stylist. “It was the scariest moment of my life but also the most fulfilling”, she says. Her journey has humble beginnings, as she recalls a fact that not many may know, “at one point I was running my business from my mom’s lounge in Delft.” Refusing to be weathered down, she persevered and can proudly say that Jaymila Swaggz has enabled her to source clothes from abroad (Asia and Europe). Some of her notable work includes working with cinematic photographers on a series in Zürich. She did portfolio styling for 3D Model Agency, coordinating fashion shows and assisting with various brands such as Adidas.
What truly inspired my interest in Jaymila was her connection with her clients. The way she made every woman feel special and worthy of embracing their womanhood. This was expressed through their feedback after meeting with her. It reflects on her positivity and outlook on life, a force so strong that she cannot help but infect others with her radiant joy of life. It is a rare trait in a world which constantly favours negativity. Jaymila remains invested in her community by being involved in various NGO feeding schemes.
Realistic steps into an entreprenuarial field
Jaymila did not have the privilege of easy access to tools and the support needed to follow her passion. “I constantly had to explain myself and my new decision to make others relax. Fear of the unknown does that to you!” Many may have dreams and ideas for a business but do not know how to go about entering a realistic entrepreneurial field. Jaymila lays out how she was able to make Jaymila Swaggz a profitable reality:
“I paid off all my debt, gradually.
I started saving and bought my first car (proud moment) because I needed to be mobile.
I ensured my overheads were minimal.
Used the rest of my capital to cover my expenses for a year which made the dramatic changes not so daunting.
Enrolled myself into a Entreprenurial course (which assisted on this venture).’’
Advice for young girls
It is imperative to encourage young girls to pursue their goals and their visions. Jaymila leads by example as she fearlessly goes for what she wants and clearly puts in the hard work. Her advice for young girls: “Start, with all that fear and anxiety that fills your soul. Just start! Be strategic and realistic about things though. There’s one thing that has always been constant in my life, you can lie to the whole world but the day you start lying to yourself is when it all goes downhill. Shout out your dreams, create vision boards and speak things into your life. With all of that always give thanks to the man above!”
Great things ahead
The versatile Jaymila’s achievements thus far include moving into her own studio apartment, working as a stylist and model in Switzerland, designing her own summer range, collaborating with photographers (internationally and locally) to make-up artistry for a fashion editorial, Nasty Gal. Her portfolio continues to grow vastly as she grabs each opportunity with gratitude. I predict great things for this inspiring woman. May the journey ahead be everything you desired and beyond what you could ever comprehend.
For bookings or to see her monthly catalogue check out her Facebook page: Jaymila Swaggz
Deep in the south of Africa, a native village is nestled in the flat lands beyond the mountains. It is home to a group known as the Deruoloc People. They are the descendants of the natives who were exploited for their land, as well as slaves brought from neighbouring countries.
The Deruoloc People have been banished to this isolated village in the Mother City. They are ridiculed with imaginary boundary lines that are designed to keep them far away from the invaders’ offspring. Beaches and mountains, which were once in walking distance for their ancestors, are now encountered in temporary visits. Their visits are often policed, as they are always suspected of causing trouble with the invaders. A sense of “we are not wanted here” hits the Deruoloc’s conscience like the waves crashing the colonised shores. Nature is far out of reach.
Majority of land ownership lies in the hands of the exploiters. The Deruoloc People are stationed at their village for most of their lives. An overpopulated living space comprised of families who were forcibly removed from lush land. In a superior and greed stricken race for power and land, families are displaced due to their melanin. A labyrinth filled with natives trying to escape with their sanity. However, many discover along the way, there is no escape. The labyrinth is designed to keep the natives inside forever. Only few actualise and learn that the only possible escape is through consciousness of the mind.
The Deruoloc People speak with a curious animated and passionate vibrancy. With chameleons for tongues, their style of speaking changes according to their environment. Unaware of the true origins of their vernacular, the Deruoloc People remain linguistically oppressed. They are forced to speak the purist exploiter’s language, at the expense of disregarding the diverse richness of their dialect.
Natives smoke a special crystal through a glass globe in order to survive the daily struggles within the village. It provides a mental escape from the dehumanising conditions. Happiness and euphoria are the feelings many chase. With each puff of the white crystal, natives lose their sense of rational thinking. The power of the crystal destroys lives and relationships, and the Deruoloc People fall victim to delusions as well as the constant need to maintain the high.
They roam the village at night tweaking and searching for the next hit. The crystal causes the well – being of innocent community members to be at risk. Walking in the village, at night, is an unthinkable act. The fear of humans increases as the sun retires from the sky. The power of the crystal causes savage behaviour, as the need to obtain a trip to greener pastures triumphs love and respect for others.
A stone’s throw away from the village lies the Island for Misfits. There the people are ruled by numbers (6, 7 and 8). Each faction with its own set of responsibilities. The 6s accumulate wealth through deception. The 7s are keepers of the law, revenge seekers – responsible for spilling blood when blood has been spilled amongst the three factions. The 8s are responsible for fighting on behalf of all factions for better conditions on the Island for Misfits. In this faction, sodomy is practiced.
The ritual for boys, in the village, involves taking the life of another or stealing community members’ possessions. Basically, any means necessary to obtain a trip to the island. Mothers, wives and children cry tears of uncertainty. They remain in the village left to fend for themselves. When the boys arrive on the island, they are lured and tested by the generals of the factions. The boys have to prove their worth to the brotherhood. Belonging to a number keeps them protected. The disadvantage of this association is that there is no way out of the faction once they have gained acceptance.
Some remain on the island for the rest of their lives but many return to the village. Adorned with tattoos and scars from their stay on the island – they are now a number. They become invincible through their allegiance with the 6s, 7s or 8s. Catastrophic mental delusions that contributes to self – loathe and deathly violence in the Deruoloc community.
Although the factions are found on the Island for Misfits, its existence can be witnessed and felt in the village. A war for turf, which has roots in the number ensues in the village. The Deruoloc People are plagued with a strange weather condition; it rains bullets. There is no way of predicting this phenomenon. Sporadic bullet storms determine the degree of freedom felt by the natives.
Children are often caught in these storms, and are forced to grow up paranoid of the slightest sound which resembles a gunshot. For children in the village, running for cover is the next basic life skill acquired after learning to walk.
Girls are raised secondary to their male counterparts. They are anointed with fears before they are baptised. Girls learn from an early age to keep their legs together. Neglecting to remember this practice could result in a disheartening scolding from an elder. They are made to believe that all their actions are drenched in sexual contexts. She becomes the disposable object in the tale of the boy discovering his manhood. She wears a fearless façade that is needed to navigate through the village. Deep down she buries any indication of weakness and fear.
Girls in the community face endangering situations, from the moment they are delivered from their mothers’ loins. Balancing the paranoia with legitimate anxieties – brewed in a cauldron of rape, domestic violence and catcalling – is a daily mental struggle for girls in the village. Isolated from discussing their daily experiences with others, they silently scream for help from the societal dangers that comes with owning breasts.
A labyrinth consumed with dehumanising conditions. The Deruoloc People begin to realise that their collective conscience is the only way to abolish the walls of the labyrinth. Through self understanding and constructing the identity of the Deruoloc People, it is possible to emit love and respect for one another. Unity rooted in knowledge of their ancestors and unmasked truths of why the labyrinth was established.
They begin to see that their neighbour is not the enemy. Harm done upon each other has no benefit for the self. Standing in solidarity with one another breeds a conscious movement against the forces suppress them. Self – worth replaces self – loathe. An important ingredient needed to manifest respect amongst the Deruoloc People.
The Deruoloc People occupy a labyrinth consumed with dehumanising conditions. A people divided amongst themselves with no idea of their real heritage. A synthetic culture has been brewed and forced on the natives. The Deruoloc People begin to realise that their collective conscience is the only way to abolish the walls of the labyrinth.
Through self-understanding and constructing the identity of the Deruoloc People, it is possible to emit love and respect for each other. Unity rooted in knowledge of their ancestors and unmasked truths of why the labyrinth was established. They begin to see that their neighbour is not the enemy. Harm done upon each other has no benefit for the self. Standing in solidarity with one another breeds a conscious movement against the forces that continue to suppress them. Self – worth replaces self – loathe, an important ingredient needed to manifest respect amongst the Deruoloc People.
~ Deruoloc spelled backward is: Coloured ~
Mycelial Network 