 Okay so we are recording our first video. This is being back. No we recorded one in Uppery. No I meant in the house. Oh yeah. Like this place that I remember us. As you can see we got some new wall paper. Yep. And speaking of new things I don't know what you guys think. Okay I'm talking about my hair now. I don't know what you guys think about my new hairstyle. I don't know what you guys think of my new hairstyle. It's called curtain bangs and my sister recommended for me to get it. I don't know what mine is called. Yours are called very cool. Anyway guys it's good to be here. It's good to be back on this couch recording a video. We hope you guys are doing good. My name is Kwame and this is... My name is Elaine and this is our channel. This is Kwame's channel. So I don't know. So this this this is interesting because before this was possible Elaine wouldn't sit here with me and a particular story I'm going to tell you about. I mean when I started this channel she was the one person who was supporting me a lot to be able to even start the channel and she didn't appear on the channel until late 2020 and I mean before that we had been going to places. Yes we would do the travel vlogs again. Yeah but she never spoke spoke. Yes. And then we did one two three and now everybody is talking about Elaine Elaine Elaine Elaine Elaine. Every video put out there. Yeah your wife is so cool. Your wife is back. Your wife is this. I'm not school people. I'm not. I'm just thinking that maybe maybe okay I've also shifted most of my work documentaries to another channel called Asetna and so I'm thinking maybe in 2022 we make this Kwame and Elaine channel. I don't know why you were. I don't know because people seem to like it and you know I kind of like it too. So okay well it's something to think about if you guys think our channel is democracy so if you guys think that it should be a Kwame and Elaine channel like the pinned comment. I'm pinning a comment. Yeah like it if you think it shouldn't be comment why not on the pinned as in reply the pinned comment. Yeah so today we're talking about how we ended up in the German cosmopolitan. Yeah so it's an interesting story. I think it's a full circle kind of story from like when I started this conversation right now from starting this channel to her not appearing to her not wanting to record videos usually to coming on to the German. December edition of cosmopolitan so maybe you've seen it but Kwame and I have shared an extra picture of a page of the German cosmopolitan. I don't know how how are you on your phone. I'm not on my phone. I was looking for the email so you could read the interpretation for them. Oh okay sorry I thought it was this should go into our pet peeve video coming up. So as you probably seen or not and then you're seeing it now because Kwame is going to edit it into this video the excerpt of the German cosmopolitan. I wanted to share the story because everybody's asking how why and all these things of how you got into a printed cosmopolitan. For me it is a big thing because when I was in high school I used to love magazines like you still do actually I still do like yeah I mean there's magazines religiously no not religiously but I like to buy them for one I mean it's something so luxurious right who really needs a magazine. Yeah for you to actually buy an actual copy magazine in the world where digital magazines and everything people just scroll yes it's a love. Yeah it's nice I like it and it comes from high school me and my friends would buy magazines that we exchange them all these things and I would use to read cosmopolitan and and celebrity and Tina for all the touch watchers. So it's a big thing and we wanted to share this story because everybody was asking why why why why but I think for us for me it's a very humbling experience as it's a story of like small beginnings and you never know who is watching and so how he ended up because my policy was and I've been stepping into the youtube channel or on the youtube train as I always call it because I think it's important that we share our story that we share our experience. Exactly why should we come across me any lane go on go on go on okay. Interrupting my story. Okay sorry. I think it's important to show our authentic selves and show that intercultural and interracial relationships can work it's a lot of work but it's working and we are thriving we are learning we are growing every day and that's what we like to share here and I think the love languages concept came in because we thought it's something that everybody can relate to so we thought let's make an episode on it. Yeah. Also we like the concept because there's no right or wrong it's just a tool to develop yourself in your relationship so that's how we came to that episode. But the funny thing is is that the how we ended up in cosmopolitan actually started in 2013 because that's the long story. 2013 yeah that's how long this goes back so before I even knew Kwame existed I went on an exchange semester so I was studying in Netherlands at Wageningen University yeah and if you know you know and not everybody knows Wageningen but if you know you know okay and I would go on an exchange semester in Budapest so in Hungary and that this was before Budapest was something cool so it was before all the tourists came so it was still quite Eastern European you mean Budapest is now cool very booming oh and it's great like but we came just before everybody else kind of explored it and it was still very Eastern European a lot of communists like artifacts still there people spoke barely English luckily I chose all English courses and there was a small group of exchange students so I met people from Ireland I met people from Germany I met people from Netherlands I met people from Spain Portugal you name it USA everybody was there were a big group of international students or not really big but it was like maybe 30 people for I mean foreign students yeah so like 30 people and we would all go out to the same places and drink lots of beers and everything and one of them became a friend I don't know if I should mention his name because no the name is not important but he knows who is one of them a guy from Germany became a friend he was also in my gender studies class and he was very I don't know we got along well we went on trips together with the whole group and it was just fun we would go to house parties all these things and I mean as things go you follow each other on Facebook social media you keep up a little but in the end we lost kind of track of like our contact yeah and um that's now about seven or so you thought that you've lost track yeah I mean you would see each other's social media and then you would reply every now and then but yeah it's not such a big deal I mean yeah you you don't you're not in each other's every day but you wish each other the best that's kind of the sentiment I had and then suddenly one night or the night I look at Instagram and sometimes you get these requests from people who don't follow you and I'm like okay most of the times it's just um so I just think like I'm sure it's nothing and then actually the partner of my friend from Budapest reached out to us so it turned out that she's an independent journalist writing in Germany yeah and I think married or they are together now with my friend and and she was writing an article on love languages and I write around a time like that's that's the that's the beauty of serendipity right around the time when we are released the video exactly and funny enough I didn't even know but my friend from Germany has been watching our vlogs or keeping up with our vlogs yeah and uh she asked us would would you be interested to be interviewed yeah for the love languages thing and I was like this is such a you know a long way coming but yeah it really shows that the internet is such a crazy place because somebody I met eight years ago when I didn't even know you existed it's now connecting us to his partner who's gonna write an interview about us so and also and now we were enthusiastic I asked her back and she said she sent a few questions over email we sat down we tried to come up with like the answers and see also yeah how it goes about and then um and we're like okay cool let's see how it goes if it will be published she also said like when will it be published we asked and then she said December we're like okay let's see so she sent us a three I shared our answers and she put it together and translated for us in English as uh we don't well I I should be able to at least read German but um you want to translate it no no no I don't I can't do that on the spot yeah that's what I was looking for the email okay we are back here's the email so I will read it out and maybe Kwame will put it on the screen but then you can just listen to my voice wait the article right in English yeah yeah I can't put it on the screen come on people can just read you can put it under here no no it's too much okay Elaine Wilken 29 um project manager and also Kwame Bonsu 33 filmmaker yes are you looking at the email yes on your phone yes so no phone needed they went during vlogs okay you you read the love languages are a good tool to talk about what the other person needs we understand each other better now at the beginning of our six-year relationship they were frequent misunderstandings for example if Kwame wanted to drop me off or pick me up somewhere in Accra where we live I wanted to be independent and assisted on going out on my own but Kwame was only interested in doing something for me and showing his love his love language is acts of service mine is quality time talking watching a movie together cooking eating together without cell phones that in turn is not so easy for Kwame as a freelance filmmaker and voice actor he must be available for professional reasons yes that's what he always says but active on social media you but you don't have to be 24 seven you finish you finish I'll tell you so eating together without cell phones that in turn is not so easy for Kwame as a oh I already I already read that but I'll just continue as a freelance filmmaker and voice actor he must be available for professional reasons he's trying to put the phone down for quality time but honestly it's still a hot topic between us didn't notice didn't notice we're not perfect and keep falling into old patterns but I also do my best to speak Kwame's love language sometimes I make him tea sometimes I prepare dinner and now I also allow him to take care of me sometimes I even ask him if he can pick me up from work and so if you were curious what was going to be written about us this is the piece maybe they changed a little bit but yeah but that's the general idea of what was written and yeah overall I just think it's just really powerful I never for one thought that when I was starting this channel two years ago that at any point first of all that Elaine would be on the channel and secondly that this would lead to something like this I mean it's not like an award or achievement or anything but it's such a power of social media moment for us you know how far you reach without even knowing it and how you know deep these influences are so if you're doing something on social media and you think nobody's looking a lot of people are looking if you're doing something about your work something that you love I think that you should just keep doing it be consistent be original be authentic be happy with what you're putting out there and yeah somebody will find you yeah you never know who is watching yeah you'd never know who is in your network even not your active network but just we'll be able to on the spot you know connect you yeah and I think it's really encouraging and it also reminds me like okay we are doing something and people appreciate it up to the point that they want to write something about us for me it's very surreal because that's not why we started it we started it because we thought it was important to tell our story but the fact that somebody's putting that into print and hopefully we can hold that print at some point and that's just really cool and it it motivates me at least to you know keep on doing this and and be aware it motivates her to keep on doing it and be aware that 2022 you should honor your small beginnings even though they're small they can have an impact and never did I thought when I was reading cosmopolitan in high school that you end up with in that in the for what for what would I end up in the magazine you know and you know yeah I mean it's not a cover thing or like but it's it's it's a beginning it's a beginning yeah you want to be excited to get it many more whatever is coming and we are ready all right so yeah that's what we wanted to share with you guys we'll catch you in hopefully a few more maybe another video before the year ends it's December we hope your year is going well so far no your December is going well not your year it's going well so far I hope you had a good year yes but yeah hopefully we come your way again with another video before the year and so a special thanks to my friends in Germany and his partner for reaching out to us and honoring our work like that we're not putting your names out there but you know you are and thanks so much it really motivates us and we appreciate it so much yes coming in in 2022