Home BELatina TV Multiculturalism and Family Travel, a Conversation With Évi Siskos

Multiculturalism and Family Travel, a Conversation With Évi Siskos

Photos courtesy of Instagram @travelisepic

Author John Steinback once said that “people don’t take trips — trips take people,” and he couldn’t be more right. 

As technology expands, the accessibility to travel increases. This is great, considering how much wisdom is poured into anyone who enjoys exploring the world. Many even say that traveling is the real-life history lesson not provided in schools, which, as you can imagine, comes with plenty of benefits. 

Évi Siskos understands this. 

Siskos has always relished in the freedom that comes from gliding through grounds whose every particle is made up of rich stories and adventure. 

Alongside her son, Mateo, and her husband, she travels the world and documents their experiences on Display TV and social media. 

But before she was able to lead a life many would deem as nomadic, she sailed through the waves destiny imposed upon that cultivated her current reality. 

BELatina News recently spoke to Siskos about her journey. She shared the mentality she adapted to get where she and her family are today (which can literally be anywhere in the world.) 

At the time of our interview, Sisko and her family were in Greece. 

The following has been lightly edited for clarity. 

BELatina News: Would you please give us a bit of background on yourself?

Évi  Siskos: Well, I am Dominican and Greek.  I started my professional career at Telemundo as an [Emmy-nominated] entertainment host doing Acceso Total in 2012, their daily program. It can be considered to be the equivalent of the Today Show. And there, I did everything from celebrity interviews, red carpet events, lifestyle segments, travel segments. And in between, I’ve always done voiceover work. I’ve done it for cartoons where I’ve been the voice of Flora in Pinkalicious & Peterrific, for example. I’ve also delved into all different kinds of commercials from Spotify to McDonald’s, Dunkin Donuts, Subway, and many other brands. 

What training did you have to enter those spaces?

ES: I went to school for international relations, and I studied in China and Shanghai University. I do speak some Mandarin. I also studied French. Being multi-ethnic, languages have always been like my forte. After all, I did grow up speaking Spanish, Greek, and English at home. 

How has having a multicultural background shaped you, and has it come with its challenges?

ES: I feel like being multicultural has always been a plus and a benefit.  I found that being multicultural and speaking many languages has worked to my advantage. Let’s take me being a television host on Telemundo, for example —  that wouldn’t have happened if I hadn’t been fully fluent in Spanish. And if people feel like you [people of multicultural backgrounds] can do more, it’s because you can do more when you are multicultural. After all, you have a different level of understanding. My understanding comes from two cultures.  I grew up with Dominicans, so I  know how they think, how they are, act, what they like, what they don’t like. I also grew up with Greeks, where I know the same things. I know how they think, how they act, what their prejudices are, what they like. And I’m American, too,  you know, I was born and raised in New York and New Jersey, respectively.

How was this experience of so many cultures growing up? 

ES: Being a first-generation American that also ties into being able to understand an immigrant family. For example, my American friends would come to my house, and they would be like,” Oh, my god, what is that?” when they would see all the different types of food at my house. Another unique experience was having a super strict mom growing up. Some of my American friends didn’t understand this, and I didn’t understand it either at the time because I was like, “Oh, my mom is so old-school.” But she was just being a Latina mom.

How did you know that traveling was your calling? 

ES: I started on Acceso Total, where I was doing interviews, all different kinds of segments, but my travel segments were always the thing that I loved the most. I would record two minutes of the place I was. It was always like a two-minute segment for TV. It started with me recording little things for the team. That’s how it began. 

And how did your travel come to fruition? 

ES: The whole travel show started this year. So, as the pandemic hit last year, we were recording everything we were doing.  But there was a moment where we were like, “How are we going to start traveling? How can we quarantine when we are not in a house?” That led us to rent an RV and go around the US; we quarantined ourselves in the RV. That was the best way to get out of the house for us and still quarantine safely. 

And then, when the opportunity came this year to be the Latina host and spokesperson for Display TV, a new app where people can watch her travel show.

Can you tell us a bit more about the show? 

ES: Basically, it’s a show following our family where our travels and adventures are documented and how we do everything with a toddler. This lets others see how he’s being exposed to two different cultures and how we navigate through his biculturalism. I am the host and the spokesperson for the show, which airs every Wednesday at 6:00 p.m. Eastern Time on Display TV. 

How has the experience of traveling with a toddler been?

ES: I think that exposing your children really young to different cultures will help them be respectful of the world and other people. I grew up Dominican and Greek in my house, being with other people from different cultures, and it was never a weird thing. But I think having patience is number one and number two, being open to things that can happen out of nowhere. Meaning, if your toddler decides to take a nap, then you’re not going to be able to go as fast as you wanted to. So, I would say one hundred percent to explore the world with your kids; let them learn about other cultures.

Doing all of that you do and with your family, how do you not let it affect your mental health negatively?

ES: Alongside pursuing TV and my career, delving into spirituality and meditation, being positive has affected everything in my life. Getting to know myself intimately, seeing how my mind works, and how everything I ever dreamed of became a reality because of that positivity. But it also had to do with my spiritual practice, such as learning meditation and learning about limiting beliefs. And, as women, in this day and age, we’re not just moms — we’re entrepreneurs, we have businesses, we have careers. Nowadays, we can run a household and an office. So I think that being positive is so important because when your cup is overflowing with positivity and love, that’s when you can share it with other people.

Anything else you’d like to share with the readers at BELatina News?

ES:  Definitely! Make sure to tune in to our show on Display TV every Wednesday at 6 P.M. Eastern Time because honestly, the adventures that we are going on are incredible.  And to any parent out there: if we can do it, you can do it! Especially being a Latino parent since Latinos work so hard — it’s time to start traveling, seeing the world, and connecting with other people.

You can follow Évi Sisko on her personal social media page or her family travel page as well. 

Through there, you can get a glimpse at their many adventures, including one of their most recent ones where they climbed a 17,000-foot mountain, the Rainbow Mountain in Peru, with a toddler!

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