who dat

W H O D A T ? ● I hear you say.

🙋 That's me. Just now, self-pronounced Island Gurl because of my geographical and heritage locations.

I am one of those multicultural millennials - in the (digital)flesh - wandering the streets, buildings and green spaces of London, trying to work out two highly generic questions:

💁 1. Who am I?
💆 2. What am I meant to be doing?

🚀 In my pre-teens, I wasn't really aware or consciously registering what was happening around me. Who is? I was born on the Indian Ocean island of Madagascar, and what happened next was something I had zero context or imagination to conjure up. My mum has always had a thirst for adventure; her curiosity, talent and ferocious determination led her to opportunities that eventually resulted in her living on another island on the other side of the world, literally. After bouncing around various family members, I eventually agreed to get on this thing mum called a plane and find out whether the streets of Britain were actually paved in gold like my friends and I had imagined. And just like that, at age 7, my world literally changed thanks to an overnight flight.

📚 In my teens, I was determined to fit in. What teen isn't? I knew I wasn't British, but I also knew that I didn't want to stand out. I didn't want questions and I didn't want to have to explain myself every time I met anyone new. It wasn't important. I just wanted to be... "normal". During this time, I also managed to transition from broken English to slang English to proper Queen's English. And once one reached this stage, I knew it had happened: I had successfully integrated. No one asked questions, my accent meant I wasn't foreign anymore. Or so I thought. Then, University came along. Up to this point, I had done everything I could to follow the plan, the "steps to success", and now "it was up to me" to create my own "success". Enter the little dilemma - I don't even know what "success" to me even looks like, let alone make a plan to aim for it. So what did I do? I went with the flow.

🌍 In my twenties, I was trying to work the world out. Weren't we all? Yes, University is for studying but it's also for learning - on occasion through deep and meaningful conversations, but mostly through making mistakes. I discovered "proper" relationships, what "adulting" means, the power of sex, the world of "proper jobs", what heartbreak really feels like, how much I love food, the meaning of true friendship, and what I'm really made of. Basically, I grew up. And I also got a bit lost. So, I started looking for answers - more travel (mostly to Madagascar), more questions (about my past and both my cultures - I am now duo: British Malagasy), and more sharing (being more open - the toughest one of them all). I understand that in writing this, anyone and everyone can read it - but that's the thing, writing has always been therapeutic and helps to make sense of the world around me. And I had forgotten this in my late 20s - I just didn't feel like writing, at all.

💥 2017 was a big year ● I started a new job, I committed to dance, I turned 30, and I had a proper wobble but I got back up thanks to a great bunch of people. I also had the realisation that I needed to write again - because in all honesty, writing got me through my 20s - whether it was starting and pushing through with my amateur blog (Jingle Jungle), Instagram LOLs, or shout-writing onto random bits of paper, it's all helped me get through and focus on all the things that I love, that I'm grateful for and that I've achieved. I'm not going to delete the old blog - it's going to carry on living as an archive to my 20s - but I am starting again on here.

👀 W H A T T O E X P E C T ● My thoughts and ramblings on anything and everything that grabs me as I navigate this big old ship called life. I will highly-likely explore topics like: culture, identity, growing up, politics, work, adulting, food, relationships, travel - essentially, the things my little brainbox finds interesting and important to talk about.

New decade. New site. New adventures.

🍒 C H E R R Y O N T O P ● It would be amazing if you guys could keep me accountable along the way. And yes, I'm a 30 year old who uses emojis. Waddup widdat.

🙆🏽‍♀️ See you soon!