Who's the girl on Bernardo's videos?

Joe, Jewel, Joel?

After appearing in some of Bernardo’s videos, I took a peek at the comments—and apparently, I’m French and my name is either Joe, Jewel or Joel. Credits for the creativity! But I have to step in—none of that is true. So, let me clear things up.

My name is Jule Noah, I’m 26 years old and I’m Dutch; happily born and raised in the Netherlands. And for those wondering how I (financially) manage to keep up with Bernardo’s travels—and how we even crossed paths in the first place—read along!

Before Bernardo and I met, I was a student in nursing and educational sciences. Nursing was completed, but after two years of educational sciences, I decided to take a break. I felt the need to explore the world before getting myself into work life, so that’s what I did.

To make it happen, I worked full-time as a receptionist and saved up for a car. I fitted my tiny, red Daihatsu with a bed, transforming it into a campervan and set off from the Netherlands, traveling through Spain, Portugal and Morocco, all alone.

While passing through Marrakesh, I found a spot for the night. Call it fate, luck, or perfect timing—something lined up that day, as I parked right next to Bernardo’s baby blue van. And just like that, our paths crossed. From that day on, things took a turn.

Parking lot in Marrakesh

Just between us – a snippet from my diary, Marrakesh 2023:

When I arrived in Marrakesh, I went straight to the city’s chaotic square, Djemaa el-Fna—just to say I’d seen it. I figured I might take a quick look into the medina too, but that would be it. Mostly, I just felt overstimulated. And melting.

Standing there, the urge to move on only got stronger. My new plan: leave for Casablanca the next morning. That was the idea—until I met my neighbour: Bernardo Bacalhau.

From the comfort of my princess-bed setup in the back of my car, I spotted him casually strolling in front of his smurf-blue van. “Nice setup,” he said—the start of a conversation that could’ve happened sooner, if we hadn’t both been a little shy.

We ended up chatting the night away and sharing bowls of Harira soup on the, now much calmer, Djemaa el-Fna square. That’s when I found out Bernardo is actually a big deal on YouTube. With 180,000 subscribers, he’s able to live off of his videos. What an inspiring adventurer—I like him hihi.

So…it looks like I’m not heading to Casablanca just yet.

I still can’t believe how that one evening ended up changing the course of my life.

Something just clicked that night, and it still does, even though our lives are quite different. Bernardo lives off of his travels, while I don’t have a remote income. This means I still rely on local jobs in the Netherlands, saving up for the adventures we want to go on together. Over the years, I’ve switched between several jobs: rushing around as a waitress, assisting people with special needs and pouring tulips as a barista. It’s hectic at times, but worth everything I get in return.

Of course, I do benefit from what Bernardo has built online. Some of the sponsorships help us save money in certain areas. A good example is our road trip across the U.S.—because of Bernardo’s collaboration with MINI, we were able to use one of their cars. That made a huge difference! But the biggest expenses, like flights, food, and everything in between, we cover ourselves.

I don’t mind going back to the Netherlands to work when needed—but of course, it would be amazing to become less dependent on that. That’s why I’m now cautiously exploring the online world, starting with this Substack. I’ve never been active on social media before, so I’m still figuring out whether this is the right fit for me.

And while navigating it all, there are moments where I think: Shouldn’t I have figured this all out by now? But then I check in with myself and ask: Are you still happy? Is your savings account still breathing? Are you still doing okay? If the answers are yes, I know there’s no reason to worry. And then I remind myself to just take it day by day, like I’ve always been doing.

Still, there are small dreams parked in the back of my mind—like growing as a barista and maybe even starting a little coffee bar someday, or turning my red car into a coffee truck (haha). But right now, on this trip, I’ve clearly got other mountains to climb. And who knows—by the time we’re back in Europe, I might see things completely differently. Today, I do what makes me happy, and tomorrow… we’ll see.

So, that’s me in a nutshell.

If you’ve made it this far: thanks for reading and being here!

Jule Noah