C’EST LA VIE

THIS IS ME.

Life is complicated and unpredictable. It has taken me on a journey around the world that has not always been by my consent, but it has molded who I have become. Traveling is a way to expand horizons and embrace ideas different than your own. But what if your mentality is a fusion of various nationalities, ethnicities and cultures? Then you end up studying international relations and hopping on a plane every chance you get!

My roots formed in India and Pakistan, but my trunk grew in Uganda and a small town in Pennsylvania through my mother, and India, Pakistan and Montreal, Canada through my father. My branches flourished with my arrival in Atlanta, Georgia but expanded to Sydney, Australia, Vancouver, Canada and finally Austin, Texas. Now the body of my tree is firmly grounded but my leaves continue to bloom as life moves me to new places.

It was difficult to frequently move to far away lands, but it gave me a unique perspective on the world.

I grew up as a third culture child, and while I envied children who were able to return home to the house they were raised in, it allowed me to adapt to my surroundings more easily.

I was thrusted into strange circumstances without cushion as a child, but today I push myself to keep moving and learning. At 22, I have been to 27 countries, and a lot of those multiple times. The people I meet usually draw me back, and honestly meeting new people and living a unique culture from my own is the part I love most about going places.

And I am doing just that. At 22 I am continuing my journey by moving to city in Spain I’ve never visited. Sometimes I take a step back and evaluate my life and believe I might be crazier than my parents think I am; but often I remind myself why I act as I do and reflect on who I am and what brought me here. Life can be difficult, but it is what you take from those experiences that makes you who you are, but… C’est La Vie.

This is just a little bit about me and where I’ve come from, but I want to end this with one of my favorite quotes:

“Travel changes you. As you move through this life and this world you change things slightly, you leave marks behind, however small. And in return, life — and travel — leaves marks on you. Most of the time, those marks — on your body or on your heart — are beautiful. Often though, they hurt. If you’re twenty-two, physically fit, hungry to learn and be better, I urge you to travel — as far and as widely as possible. Sleep on floors if you have to. Find out how other people live and eat and cook. Learn from them — wherever you go.” — Anthony Bourdain