Malinda Hassell

My name is Malinda Hassel, and I've been living here for about two years but I have roots on Saba — my grandparents were from Saba. And then there was a position for the Director of Tourism, and I wanted to come back and be of support to the island. That's how I landed back in Saba. But I grew up on Saba; I was about 12 years old when I left Saba and went to Aruba.

Our family from my Hassel side is very broad. Cousins after cousins in almost all villages. So I think family ties for sure was something that brought me back to Saba, and also just the community and being a small island. It's just wonderful to be back on such a beautiful island.

As a Director of Tourism, my main task is to market the destination internationally. We also serve as a concierge desk. So if you are having difficulties — "How can I put an itinerary together? How do I get here?" — we assist people and potential visitors all the time, so you can always contact the Saba Tourist Bureau. And we personally contact you back and see, what are your challenges? How can we assist you? If you need to book restaurants, hotels, we can assist you in all of that, because we know it's sometimes challenging, especially being in an unknown destination. And then not knowing a lot of things like how do we book a hike, accommodation? How do I get around? We can always assist in all those areas.

And I feel proud as a Saban with roots to now be in this position. We are the unspoiled queen of the Caribbean. It's a different type of Caribbean. We are very popular for our hiking and diving, but also our creative community. It's a little bit of everything for being such a small island.

I think one of the unique aspects of the islands is having five ecosystems — you go from a desert climate all the way to a cloud forest. I think hikes are beautiful here on the island. There are over 15 hikes so you can do, everything from a desert hike to a very strenuous hike. So that's very unique, and also the community being so small and friendly. So everyone tends to know one another.

My favorite hike is the Maskehorn Hill. It's a little 45-minute hike and it gives you a little feeling of what you can expect from Mount Scenery's hike. And at the end it’s very rewarding, because you get a beautiful view of the village of Windwardside and the surrounding islands. It always rewards you. You're guaranteed that you're going to have a beautiful view at the end of the hike.

For me, being Saban is more about carrying on certain traditions, but also bringing new things to the island. Also the family ties, those traditions having been from generations to generations, you hear it here on the island. So that's very unique. Some islands you don't get to see that. Sometimes here, you might even get the guide of the trails — for example, Crocodile James, he's a fourth-generation Saban.