From Across the Map to Around the Map | @mrandmrswheelsup

We at Adventure in Black believe that true love can pass all borders–especially those cultural ones amongst people of color. It helps couples who come from opposite points on the map navigate their everyday lives as one and heightens their desire to venture out into the world in unison. Two of the many members in our dynamic black travel network who embody that height of appreciation for their partner are Joseph and Dana Dzimwasha aka @mrandmrswheelsup. 

This avid traveling husband and wife duo have used an open mind as their compass during every trip to the 17 countries they’ve visited since they first met. His African roots and her American upbringing have blended into a marriage that showcases some of their picturesque and romantic excursions on Instagram for all to see. Looking at the mosaic of images visually charts their love in the milestones of trips and life experiences shared. But before all of that, we should start at the beginning. 

“We met in Barcelona,” Dana says recalling when she and Joseph first exchanged glances. “I was actually traveling there with my sister, Teria. It was for my birthday in July 2016 on a trip to the Mediterranean. He was working for Carnival as a crew member on the ship. And there’s where we met.” 

After dating for some time, they took a trip to meet in New York where Joseph proposed in the middle of dinner at Gyu-Kaku. All of the patrons in the small Japanese barbecue restaurant stopped eating to watch as Joseph got down on bended knee with their song–Major’s ballad ‘Why I Love You’–playing through the speakers. 

“He was telling me why he wanted to marry me and how we just connected was divine,” Dana says as if she’s reliving it again while speaking. “People started standing up and taking pictures. It was pretty. Really pretty.” 

They eloped soon after that night. Letting the world know via Instagram with a picture of the pair kissing on the sun-washed pier at their two-person destination wedding in Cozumel, Mexico. This all happened the same year they met. The next goal became clear in Dana’s mind.

“I wanted to get an understanding of where he was from,” Dana says, expressing how she felt when it came to her desire to see Joseph’s homeland of Zimbabwe.  

“With her coming from the United States and then to Africa to meet my family for the very first time, I was kind of nervous about whether she was going to be comfortable or if she really wasn’t going to enjoy her time there,” Joseph initially admits when it came to Dana making her first trip to meet his family. “But we had a great time. A lot of the stuff we did was similar to what many people would do on vacation, only we gotta go see safari and the animals as well.”

Their romantic journey around his region of the country lead them from Gweru’s mountainous emerald-green cliffs to engage in the local act of ‘Walking The Lion’. He saw how Dana, a native of The Bay Area, was interested in seeing a real Zimbabwean life from a local’s unfiltered perspective. She enjoyed the delicacies and met the people. Her respect for his people was the energy she brought when it came to meet his family who lives in Rusape–100 miles southeast of the nation’s capital of Harare.

“Being from Africa, it’s a huge thing when your family meets your spouse. Your parents either approve or disapprove and then you have the rest of the family–brothers and sisters.” They all loved Dana upon meeting her. This revealed to him her ability to seamlessly adapt to new environments. This made their itinerary in life a simple one to sustain their love.

Go everywhere. See everything.

In their nearly three years of marriage, the couple who have made a home in Atlanta, GA since 2016, are continually focusing on that goal. When this Inventory Technical Support Representative and Product Delivery Manager aren’t spending time with their children Raegan-17, Christian-6 (previous marriage) and toddler Camden, they’re thinking of where to go next. St. Kitts & Nevis, Thailand, Malaysia are some they crossed off their ‘To Visit’ list–one that is sure to grow before they’re done with it. Family members took notice. Dana’s cousin mentioned that she was going to start calling them Mr. & Mrs. Wheels Up because of all the places they were headed seemingly all the time. They ran with the name and it has been theirs ever since and has become one of the many couples defining the new face of black travel with their family excursions and romantic getaways filling social media. One they plan to keep using as they continue stepping into the future together.

  “I had already planned on doing a photoshoot early this past summer,” Dana warmly informs me about the photographs that became a feature story on Essence Magazine’s website set in Bali. “We had taken them the first week of June, but it was for my birthday, but I released them after that. Ironically, they were posted around the time of the ‘Little Mermaid’ casting of a ‘Black Ariel’ going to singer Halle Bailey (of Chloe x Halle) started.” The sheer coincidence of timing offered proof that the legend of a black mermaid was not fictional. “It was something I always wanted to do. I searched for a company that could make the suit and we found a photographer who came to the beach that day. Everything turned out great.”   

When they’re not the subjects of a major magazine article, the Dzimwashas are planning their next trips like nomads ready for travel. They have their future planned mapped out decades in advance. Both have agreed on spending their days as Catalonians while living in Barcelona and amidst the Saharan radiance of Morocco upon retirement. The days lived and nights enjoyed with the other at their side come with the beauty of knowing that you’re not in this alone. It continues to be a resource of happiness the couple hopes to build upon going forward due to the positive effects it shows them now.  

“I used to travel for work, so I never really enjoyed going places until I met her,” Joseph says. “That’s when I was able to do a lot of things like exploring the places we visited. Being in a different environment around different cultures, food, art–you name it–with the one person you consider ‘The Love of Your Life’ has been quite an experience.” 

“What I look forward to the most is creating the memories with each other,” Dana says nodding along with Joseph. “I just feel that when we are in a new location whether that be here or internationally, it’s just being able to be there together and you see the joy that you’re creating something special. It’s not an item someone could take away from you, that you could sell or even lose. It’s something you can hold onto forever.” 

Wherever their love for each other and the world takes them, best believe that the Dzimwashas will be heading there Wheels Up.