17th KIP (2011) meeting the first female President of India

Meeting the President of India, 2011

An empowering Memory.

Last year (2011) I was selected to represent FIJI under the 17^th Know India Program. Three weeks. Three states. 24 participants from 7 different countries. It was pure awesomeness! We learnt so much.

As we celebrated International Women’s Day this month (March) I thought it was appropriate to share this experience.

We visited the Delhi Metro and met with the executives who shared with us how economical and environment friendly their metros were. I wanted to know how many women actually worked as train operators and I was told some ten women who graduated with engineering degrees worked with – hands on.

In Punjab we visited the rail coach factory and it was so empowering to note that women worked in the factory as electricians, upholstery workers and joiners. There were women driving through the busy streets on their scooters and motorbikes wearing salwar kamiz. I have only seen that in movies before.

Two days before our program ended we visited the Parliament house, New Delhi and were told we will be meeting the President, Her Excellency, Mrs. Pratibha Patil. She is the first female President of India (the largest democracy in the world). If that is not empowering I don’t know what is. I was fortunate enough to be granted the opportunity to address Her Excellency in a speech, stating how my trip to India had been. I wrote a tiny speech on a paper but was not allowed to take it inside with me. So I improvised and jot down points on a tissue paper (make wise use of resources).

As we all set, nervously, waiting to be in the same room as Her Excellency, I was approached by one of the organizers and told I had to greet the President with a lovely bunch of flowers (this certainly added to the pressure I was already under). I did well – I think.

So what did I talk about? 

First and foremost I acknowledged how empowering it was to be in the same room as Her Excellency and I shared with her how impressed I was with the level of empowerment women have received in India (women employed in some male dominated fields), secondly I mentioned the quality of education offered in India and how impressive it was that people from all over the world came to study in India. Finally, I acknowledged the rich art and culture present in India.

She thanked us for our attendance and shared some of her own comments. Such a powerful lady – is all I could think of. But something she said in that room is stuck in my head.

“In places like Rajhestan – women are in law enforcement fields. Women who once needed protection are now protecting others”.

 Such powerful words and something for us to think about as well.

At the Rastapati Bhawan, India. May 2011.

For me (personally) this has got to be the most POWERFUL and the most EMPOWERING woman I have met so far!!! She leads the largest democracy in the World and she does it so Simply!! 

Until next blog...

17th KIP (2011) Fiji - India

So begins the 17th KIP 2011. (Getting from Fiji - India)

Good Morning, 
So last week (April 2011) four of us young ladies were told that we are going to India for three weeks to represent FIJI under the 17th Know India Program. Yes such an honor for the four of us.

Kormal Devi, Dipika Kumar, Parishka Sharma, Alzima Elisha Bano.

This was the first time for a full female team to represent Fiji for the Know India Program <we thought it was real cool that this lucky opportunity was granted to us>

We were up around 5am, 25/04/2011. Got to the Nadi International Airport at 6am for check in and waited for our 8.30am flight to HongKong. This trip was very exciting for Parishka as it was her first time on a plane =)

 It took us ten hours to reach HKG and I was just not sleepy at all. I can't say the same for my fellow friends . . .

 . . Yeah they slept most of the time <some people> but they were up when it was time to eat.
We flew over.


 PNG: Papua New Guinea 



Manilla, Phillipines.













Next stop Hong Kong. . . 
(Photos from the hongKong airport are here )

We departed from HongKong airport at 7.30pm (Hongkong time) and had a 5 hour flight to New Delhi, India. It was probably the longest 5 hours of my life. The passengers on the flight were just impossible. I felt so sorry for the flight attendents, they had to reason and explain some very basic things. Things like what you may ask.
Things like: Sir, please sit down, the pilot has turned on the 'seat belt' sign. This passenger did not want to sit down. The pilot commented twice that we were about to land but the runway was not clear so we still circling over the airport. But this grown man did not want to listen. He wanted to walk in the flight. 

Anyway, we finally landed at the Indira Gandhi Airport. By the time we collected our bags and got throught customs it was 1am 26/04/2011 (India time - 7.30am Fiji Time) and all this time I had not slept. I did have a half hour nap on the way from Hongkong to India.

Mr. Vandan Sharma from the tracel company picked us up from the airport and at this point we did not know that we will be looked after by him through out the three weeks. 
As soon as we stepped out of the airport a gust of heat slapped us on the face <being tired and sleepy made it feel worse than what it was). I saw a real neat Billboard on a building across from the airport. It was the billboard for a cell phone with lights and all <I wish my sister was here to see this - she is a Graphic desinger and works for a prominent advertising company back home>
The drive from the airport to the hotel was long (Mostly because we were tired). 
On the way we saw: 
1) People working at construction sight (reminder: this is around 1am!!)
2) Families sleeping on the side walk with little children.
3) People sitting around and chatting.
4) Passengers travelling to and from the airport.

Finally at 1.45am we reached the hotel. we were greeted with refreshing cold drinks and friendly smiles of the staff :) our rooms were assigned <Parishka and I were going to be roomies, while Dipika and Kormal would be roomies> 
After they took our bags up to the room and we set for a little, Mr. Sharma came up to us and saidLadies, I will see you tomorrow. Call the staff here if you need anything. PLEASE do not leave the hotel! <hearing this we could have had heart attacks. you see we arrived two days before the program starts> 
We went up to our rooms and decided we will follow the rules. Time to get some sleep... 
HOTEL ARREST who would have thought . . . 

I set by the window for a little while, watching the traffic flow... Finally we are in India. This is something I wanted to do for a very long time. Visit INDIA. :)

17th KIP (2011) Pre programme

17th KIP 2011

Day 1 in India. 

26 April 2011 - Tuesday
Waking up in Room 228, Hotel Rockland Inn, CR Park, New Delhi - next to me is Parishka Sharma. Time on my watch is 9.30am (India Time) Gosh! That means I only slept for some six hours. Walked over to the window and stared out. The hotel signage was blocking most of my view of the road but I could still see partially. People driving like mad. People crossing anyhow. Some selling goodies to passer bys. Some yarning by the roadside.

By the time a freshened up the other two girls were awake and came over to our room. We made our way down to the lobby only to find out that breakfast ends at 10am! HAH!! We missed breakfast. We can't go out of the hotel. What will we do? 

The very nice lady at the counter came to us and told us we can go and breakfast =) Phew. That was such a relief. So we went and had breakfast. Enjoyed out first meal in India. It was similar to that back home :)

The chef came and met us - he was really nice - and told us to make our way back to the dinning area at 1pm for nice Lunch. So after our wonderful breakfast we made our way up to room 228 and watched TV. So many channels to flip through so we did not mind staying in doors. Plus this was a bonding moment for us as well. We all got to know each other a little better and this was time well spent.

at 1pm we went down for lunch - very yummy Pasta and salad and we also had delicious Butter Chicken and Naan :) And for dessert we had strawberry Ice cream :D

After lunch we returned to the room and watched TV and told jokes and stories =) It was fun.

For dinner we had pasta, aloo (Potato) curry and a very nice noodle dish. Mr. Sharma came to visit us and complimented on us being well behaved (a very LOL moment). it is very exciting that more participants will be coming down tomorrow :)      
can't wait :D

Day 2 in India. 

27 April 2011 - Wednesday

Day 2 of Hotel Arrest =( well it is not that bad but of course being in India and staying in doors is not much fun. we would rather be out doors and exploring this amazing city!!

The first KIPLET that we met was PRIYA RAVEL from USA. very nice young lady. BONUS it is her birthday today. how exciting!!

Slowly other participants started coming in.
There were
9 participants from South Africa.
5 from TnT.
2 form Suriname.
1 from France
1 from Peru.
2 from USA. And of course us
4 from Fiji.

Over dinner we got meet each other (others were still jet legged - poor people).
I remember while we set for dinner Mr. France (Ranjit) came in and mumbled something. I just got ..... Ranjit Singh from Fronce (yeah that is how you pronounced it Ranjit) and than he mumbled something off after and set to eat.

It was an eventful evening - Pratima (the other care taker who we had. She was LOVELY) got a cake for Priya and we all sang Happy Birthday for her. Pratima also smashed some cake on Priya's face (AWESOME).

From tomorrow the main purpose of this travel begins... the 17th Know India Program (April - May 2011)... Chalo Delhi :)

17th KIP (2011) Day 5

Day 5: 17th KIP A.I.R/JNU

2nd May 2011, May.

1st  we visited  the All India Radio (AIR). Each day my excitement just grows so much more. We received a tour of the grand radio station. 
Fiji is a very small place compared to India and so our radio stations in Fiji are on very small premises. 
We were welcomed into the conference room with roses (one for each one of us) and sweets. 
And these were very delicious sweets. nomnom!! We were briefed on what AIR is and what they do. So some information I noted were:

AIR is the only radio station that has a Youth Channel where they discuss Youth issues.
They do not have a specific English station but allocate slots where they play English music.
They have 7 channels: 1) Main AM frequency 2) Rajdhany (alternative channel) 3)Urvanu Channel- exclusive for Youth. 4) Vivid Bharit- commercial 5) FM Rainbow 6) FM Gold 7) DTS- connecting other district stations. 

The panel from the radio station engaged us in question and answers. they asked us about media in our respective countries and we asked them more questions about theirs. It was a constructive session and a good learning experience for us. 

2nd we visited Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi 
The KIP members attended a short lecture on the programs and courses offered by the University and the opportunities it offers for International students. 
After that we were given a tour of the University- the very large library and the small book shop stalls. I got very excited by the range of books offered there. Bought 2 Psych books and one on gender and community all for $40FJD (Equivalent to about $20USD). 

The University halls had a great deal of Advocacy posters on the halls and important notices everywhere. 


Another great day well spent. 

17th KIP (2011) Day 4

Day 4: 17th KIP Kingdom of dreams

1st May, 2011 | Sunday.

After all the partying last night we were a little worried about waking up today and gearing up for more visits BUT once again we were so lucky. Our Sunday was treated well because we went to visit the Kingdom of dreams, Gurgao, Haryana. 
It was a great experience for all of us. 
There was food from the different corners of India under one roof and we had a feast =) *Buffet much*

The pani puri we ate was mouth watering. And since it is my favourite thing in the world wide world I was super excited!!! We managed to get our hands on some Kurta's (indian long tops) and bangles. A few of the participants got clay/pottery made for them or friends. 

In the late afternoon when we returned to the hotel we had so much energy left. And we were super lucky because the Chef decided to treat us to a roof top dinner (SCORE!!) He made pasta and some Indian food for all of us. We mingled with the chef and his other staff and had a good laugh among us as well. Im not sure who brought out the cards but we played that for a while as well. 

There is this sweet rice dish called KHEER and the chef made that for us. It is also one of the many things I love so of course I was super happy.

Overall today has been a lot of feasting and having some of my favourite food there made the day even more special. 

17th KIP (2011) Day 3

Day 3: 17th KIP Mall/temple/disco

30th April 2011 | Saturday

Today we had a day off (probably because it is a Saturday) and so we went to visit Select City Walk Mall in Delhi. It was a very huge mall (since the only mall I had visited in Fiji is just 3 floors and can be covered in less than an hour). This one was huge and we only checked out one Wing!! 

Later in the afternoon we visited the Akshardham temple. It was a such a wonderful temple to visit. we were not allowed to take cameras and cell fones inside the temple so could not take pictures there. And it was one of those places where I wish I could take pictures with my Eyes. Sigh. . . I learnt a little about the vedics  and there way of life. We took a short boat ride inside a very well structured building. It was a tour of how the vedics were the first gurus and how medicine, astrology, physics, wars and settlements came about in India. We stayed at the temple till the evening and saw a light show there as well. 

When we got back to the hotel we were all very tired. But we all turned into energetic monkeys once we were told that a 'disco evening' had been arranged for us. A dinning room was set out as a disco floor with a DJ and disco lights. The food was yum! and the music was awesome. 

At midnight we celebrated my favorite Peruvians birthday. Aarti's first birthday away from home and I am glad we made it a memorable one for her. Cake. Candles. Birthday song - the works. 

It was a great day :-) 

17th KIP (2011) Day 2

Day 2: Gandhi Smriti (Delhi)

29th April _ Day 2 of 17th KIP, 2011

Today we visited the Gandhi Smriti in Delhi and visited the Delhi Metro.

The Gandhi Smriti has been converted into a little museum which retells the life story of Gandhi's life. This is the place where he lived the last days of his life and was shot at the back yard of this very place. We were allowed to see the place where the great man himself was killed. I found it very interesting to walk around and read the things about Gandhi's life. there is a small room which has walls covered with details of the LAST DAY of his LIFE. Also amazing was the technology used to making information easily accessible to visitors. 

Delhi Metro one of its kind in Delhi. This was my first trip on a metro (as Fiji has none) and I am sure my trip to Australia did not include a ride on a Metro.  We were told that the Metro is environmentally friendly and very economical as well as efficient. (I am no expert in these things so I will take their word for it). During Question and Answer session I asked if women were employed as Train operator or was it just men? And I was told that some 25 young women are train operators and these young women have engineering degrees :-) Power to Women. 

A wonderful day. We had lunch at McDonalds in Janpat - and managed to get some Cotton tops because it is extremely hot in Delhi at the moment. 

We are bonding well with the others on the trip :-)

17th KIP (2011) Day 1

Day 1: 17th KIP_IIPA orientation

28th April | Day 1 of 17th KIP Program.

India's Institute for Public Administration _ for Orientation.

After we had breakfast at the Rocklan Inn Hotel (where we are staying) we took a bus ride to IIPA.Most of us were just very excited to be out of the hotel :-) We have a very bright Orange Bus ...

The entire day was spent at IIPA - listening to the other participants share information about themselves, their hopes and expectations and we also discussed ground rules (which was a good thing to do)
We also heard from other Professors about the History of India's Economy and things we should know about India's History.

We also had the film crew with us from today ;-) Aditi Dave, Nikhil and others :-)
As we stepped off the bus they were ready with their cameras, mics and whatnots :P

The food was pretty good and some of the sights we saw on our way to and from IIPA were pretty awesome. The first thing that caught my eye was the emence traffic!!! Fiji is a very small place we usually have 2 lanes of traffic BUT here they have 3 lane traffics (for the one way) and at least 4 cars have squeezed into that space. Do not want to be a driver here!!

 

 

The day spent at IIPA was not too bad _ But it was not the BEST orientation either. I had expected a higher level of professionalism from the Professor who coordinated our day. She seemed to think she was one of the 'kids'...

Apart from all that I am very excited about the next three weeks :-)

What I stitched & wore (QYL: 2016)

What I stitched & wore?

Attending something as amazing as the Queen's Young Leaders Residential Week requires dress codes for various events and functions.
Lucky for us the QYL team are super awesome and provided us with itineraries that indicated the dress codes for the various events. This really did make everything easy. And being a little over prepared in nature for most things I got down to planning out what I will wear for each of the events (Thanks to le sister for helping out here and being my Fashion Police). We had it all down in a spreadsheet and saved on my phone as well as a printed copy that went in my schedule file.

Now, I love sewing and I got a little over excited and decided that I wanted to sew as many of my clothes as possible for the residential week. And I thought of making mostly dresses as they could be pulled off as formal and casual.

Monday: I wore the blue dress with red roses. YES it has pockets (as most of my stitching does). Simple dress with pockets and I wore my jacket over because it was super cold.
Tuesday: Casual day at Cambridge so I wore skirt and cardigan (not pictured).
Wednesday: The paisley dress. Again simple dress (no pockets - that's another story for another time).
THURSDAY: Award evening! I sewed this black dress and my wonderful brother-in-law printed the veil for me. The award outfit had a lot of thinking and contemplating AND effort I must say. I mean what do you wear to go see Her Majesty, the Queen!!.
Friday: Double trouble. TGIF! Friday was special as it featured two outfits. The first was THE BLUE DRESS which I had stitched last year to wear to the award ceremony. It has Pacific prints and has stick figures which I thought depicted the Pacific well. Plus it was BLUE! Nobel banner blue :-) [FYI: Fiji's flag is blue and the anthem has line "Nobel banner blue"] The evening we were hosted to dinner at THE SHARD so I wore the CROWN dress. The prints on the dress are all crowns. Apt for ROYAL BANO no :-)

There you have it. What I wore during the 2016 QYL residential week. :-) 

 Until next blog,
:-)

FJ to UK - let the QYL journey begin

Let the journey begin. 

First I must say that it took a lot of energy to mentally, psychologically and physically prepare for this trip. There were a lot of mixed emotions and I tried to keep my excitement on a low. If you wondering why, you read about it here. 

Tuesday: 14th June. 
Since it is the holy month of Ramadan I woke up around 4am for Suhur and later went into work.I spent the day at work making sure I had handed over documents to my team and set up my vacation notice. I came home for Iftari and got busy with my final assignment for the semester. I thought if I was tired enough I could sleep on the flights (I just cant sleep on the 
flights). And I ended up staying up all night. 

Wednesday 15th June.
5.15am - We left Suva for Nadi. 4 hours later we were in Nadi and I slept for an hour in the car. We stopped over for breakfast and headed down to the airport. Check in time started at 11am and after checking in I waited for Luisa (QYL 2016). We ate at the airport and went on inside before boarding time. The flight left around 2pm and we were headed for NZ! 

5pm we arrived in NZ and went looking for the emirates counter to get our boarding passes. Lucky for airport WiFi we also contacted the QYL's from NZ and Tonga and met up with them. 
Next leg was from NZ - Dubai. Luisa and I had seats together and believe when I say I never want to fly this route ever again in my life. 18 hours!!! 18 hours has a few hours to many to be on a flight. The food on emirates was great! Lucky once again. but sitting there for so long and it was a night flight so most of the people are sleeping and I felt bad turning on the little lights and doing some reading/writing. I tried really hard to sleep. When I woke up I thought at least 3 hours would have passed - behold - I was asleep for 45mins. I attempted this maybe 3 or 4 times and each time I woke up in less then one hour. After that I gave up and watched the TV Show Blackish. Hilarious show by the way. There is only so much walking around you can do on the flight so it was a very tiring flight indeed. 
FINALLY we were in Dubai. 

As we headed to our gate we met with QYL from Australia, Solomon Islands and Vanuatu. We had a little QYL Pacific family. And this felt great. Before you know it we had to board our flight to London. 

Only another 8 hours and we would be in London. Once again I tried to sleep but had very little luck so I carried on watching movies in flight. It amazed me that the flight had WiFi. Thank you Emirates! You are the best airline so far.

And finally we touched down at Heathrow airport in London. FINALLY we were here. I know all the QYL's were excited to be here - but I almost cried. After last year I wasn't sure if I would make it, but I did. The boarder security lines were long but the staff was nice and we were out in LONDON. 

Thursday 16th June 12.45pm we are in LONDON. This was Thursday 11.45pm back in Fiji. 
The QYL volunteers greeted us at arrival and we headed to Goodenough College on a big blue coach (double deck) bus. YUP!! This was my first time on a double deck bus. The The Pacific Islanders were already chatting and laughing. This was a great sign to the beginning of a new friendship. 

The residential week has only just started. 

I met the QUEEN

June 2016 I traveled up to the UK for the Queens Young Leaders residential week and award programme. 

The entire week was AMAZING but the highlight of the week was meeting her majesty the Queen. It is not everyday we wake up thinking - I will go meet the Queen today. The winners from the Queens Young Leaders programme are indeed privileged to be among the those selected individuals who have the honour of meeting her majesty. And it was worth the wait.  
She is such a sweet lady! She spoke to each and everyone of us when we walked up to receive our awards and this is a moment we will cherish for the rest of our lives. 

(Official photo from the Buckingham Palace) 

At 90 she is still walking around on her and took out the time to speak to each and everyone of us for a few minutes. 

I am now among the 120 Youth from across the Commonwealth who have received their medals from her majesty, in recognition for the youth work we do in our respective communities.  I cant think of a better way to leave behind a legacy then by investing in the youth to carry forward the leadership and social causes. 

Earlier that day Jacob and I were asked how we were feeling about meeting Her Majesty that evening. Here is what we had to say :-)

And later that day we had one hour to get dressed so I tried to motivate my fellow QYLs through this video. 

About the outfit: I stitched my outfit to wear for awards function :-) Kept it simple but put in a little bit of thought into it. So the salwar kamiz highlights my Indo heritage (ancestors from India) and the woven shoes represent my Fijian heritage (Fijian - Nationality). Woven mats are symbolic to Fiji and the Pacific communities. My brother-in-law printed a Samoan design on my veil so I could also share my extended family heritage. I was very happy to receive compliments from so many people on the outfit. I must add - all the QYL's looked amazing in their respective outfits. JOB WELL DONE guys!!! 

(photo from Google)

Its only upwards from here... 

Until next blog. 

Happy 89th to the Queen

This year, 2015, her Majesty, the Queen turns 89!! What a milestone. This makes her the long serving monarch in history. 
As a Queen's Young Leader I was invited to the Queen's Birthday Party (#QBP) hosted by the British High Commissioner, HE. Roderick Drummond. 

My plus one for the evening was my dear Mummy!!! And she was just as excited as I was to be invited :-) 

We were greeted by the High Commissioner himself upon arrival and I introduced my mother to him. His reply was that he will mentioning me in his speech later that evening and that he has been following my blog!! How awesome is that. (Memo to self; show more commitment to the blog). 

While we waited for the formalities to begin we met this wonderful mother and son who were invited to the function especially from Lautoka. Ellekay is a student at USP's Lautoka campus.And her son, Manueli, who is a class 8 in Lautoka won the DHL Match Ball delivery competition for the opening match between England and Fiji. Today also marks the 100 days countdown for the Rugby World Cup 2015

I must admit the High Commissioner has a great sense of humor.

He mentioned how he will need to be 'neutral' during the England Vs. Fiji opening match, adding he has two words Tosso Viti. The entire speech he had was very captivating and the little jokes he had in between made things even more interesting. He acknowledged Manueli's accomplishment and everyone is super excited for him, especially his mom who will be traveling with him to England for the opening match. 

He went to mention my accomplishment with the Queen's Young Leaders Award and emphasized on the award being given by her majesty, The Queen. The was a rush of 'Oooo!!" from the crowd. This put the largest smile on mummy dears face. AND I live to see that PRIDE smile on her face. She has done far too much to ensure we, my sister and I, become the people we are. 

After the formalities we mingled with some of the guests; including the Attorney General, the President of Fiji, UNDP rep, Acting VC of Fiji National University, Chair of CCF Board and two of my high school/ uni friends (Javed and Seema - Sorry Javed for not taking a photo with you!!!) 

The small chat with HE, the President of Fiji was funny.

HE, the British High Commissioner (to HE> President of Fiji); This is Elisha, she will be receiving an award from the Queen next week. 

HE. the President of Fiji; Congratulations.

Me: This is my mother, Saira. 

Mum: I am Iqbal's wife, from Fiji Golf Club. 

HE. the President of Fiji: Shakes his head and smiles away. 

It was a very "That awkward moment when the President of Fiji is friends with your father". 

I would like to thank HE. The British High Commissioner for such a wonderful evening and for the invite. And to her majesty, the Queen, Happy 89th Birthday. May you live a long and healthy life. See you soon! 

Until next blog;

HerRoyal Bano 

A bloggers photographer

PHOTOGRAPHY!! 
A hobby. 
            A profession. 
                                A passion. 
                                               A job. 
                                                      A livelihood. 
An art form. 
         Creativity.                  Imagination.                          

 Capturing memories that remind you of the moments for a long long time. 

I have done photography for Fiji Fashion Week, Miss World Supermodel, Weddings, Birthdays, Graduations and small family functions as well. BUT never before had I followed a blogger and taken photos for her/him to use on their blog. And definitely NEVER done photography for a blogger who has such a wonderful International following. But I did that today. 

This week (25th-30th May, 2015) during Fiji Fashion Week I am yet again working with the photography team. While usually I am stationed back of house with all the hustle and bustle the beginning of my week took a different turn. I had the wonderful opportunity of working with one of my favourite bloggers. Today I became a bloggers photographer. 

If you are not aware of a life unstyled than head over to Dr.Vanisha Mishra's blog right now! It is simply amazing. 

Our day started out early when I arrived at the wrong location! How smart, Elly! But when I got to the right place the day panned out smoothly. The sun was shinning bright. Vanisha looked gorgeous as always. 

The Fiji Fashion Week Team were ready and the designers were mingling with each other. 

Later in the evening we attended the movie screening of Dior and I that was hosted by Fiji Fashion Week at the Damodar Event Cinema. I love Vanisha's sense of style. Simple. Elegant. Classy and very fun! Just look at her in this cute outfit. She looks stunning. I wonder why she hasn't gone into modeling yet?

With me not being a very fashionable person I didn't think the movie was for someone like me. I just went along for the purpose of taking photos that evening. I stayed for the full movie and LOVED IT.!! After the movie it was time to mingle.

In the photo; BAU (White shirt- Director fotofusion Photography); Laura (white and red dress- Fashion Blogger); Vanisha (Black top- International blogger and PhD). 

The bloggers have a little chat time with Fotofusion Photography who are the official photographers for the Fiji Fashion this year (and have been since 2013). It is through this collaboration with fotofusion that I have been exposed to the Fashion week here in Fiji and have learnt a great deal about photography. 

By the end of the evening we were all laughing and making plans for the days to come. 

I have known Vanisha since 2005. This bubbly, forever smiling and extremely brilliant individual is a great friend, an awesome parent and a creative blogger. I have worked with her for the second time and have been loving it so far. I look forward to more collaborations and professional learning experiences with you Vaan! Of course we look forward to your wonderful writing re;Fashion week 2015!

My favourite photo of Vanisha from Day 1! 

Until Next blog; (Grab your tickets for the Fashion Week Show starting this Thursday). 

AEB-M

We are FIJIAN (a letter to Keyboard Knights)

A few days ago my friend shared this link with me; coup5
While the main topic of discussion is about the Fiji Police Commissioner the comments are going all over the place. 

As I read through the comments I came across my name and the discussion on me receiving the Queens Young Leaders Award and -hold on- WHAT I WILL WEAR? These discussions took place in January. I didn't think about what I will wear and here we have others (who I dont know because they are posting anonymously) are discussing my wardrobe. The discussion carries on to my identity and the comments (I found) were racist. 

So here is my reply to the comment-ers. 

Dear Keyboard Knights, 

First of all thank you for taking out your time, internet credit and energy to discuss ME. Much appreciated. 

2) Calling me an identity thief while you post comments anonymously?? BRAVO!!! 

3) Who even wears a grass skirt these days? Please update your data packages. 

4) Burka isn't my choice of clothing. I am more a Bula Girl, although the Bula Burka might be a hit in the Islamic community. Thanks for the idea, just letting you know I may make a living out of it. You know since you posted anonymously I can't come take permission for the use of that colorful idea. 

5) I AM A FIJIAN PERIOD!!!! How do you know that I do or don't have iTaukei ancestors? You know what they saying about making assumptions..... If you so strongly feel that this National identity needs to be changed I suggest you take it up with the Government first before you come discriminating down on others. 

6)  We, the recipients of the Queens Young Leaders Award, have received an information pack entailing logistics and a guideline on what we can (and can't) wear. The options are simple; (i) Your country's National costume OR (ii) A formal lounge suit. Now judging from the comments you all made allow me clarify something. COUNTRY'S national costume. So regardless of my ethnicity as a recipient from FIJI I would wear Fijis National Costume. From the discussions I have had with other stakeholders I understand that would mean a Sulu Jamba (Chamba). Now it is UP TO ME which of the two I decide to wear :-)

I feel that moral policing of clothing is just downright racist. If someone resides in Fiji and wears the Fijian name and clothing with pride shouldn't we be happy and encourage that? 
Personally, I feel that as an Indo-Fijian and a Muslim if I wore sari or Salwar kamiz it should be just as patriot enough. I think that is why I was more inclined towards wearing a formal suit. But than I stopped to think. Why does it matter what I will wear? Shouldn't the focus be that a project I have initiated is getting Royal and International acknowledgement? Shouldn't we be concerned about nurturing youths to engage in decision making spaces, empower them to take lead roles in activities and participate in local, regional and International activities for their betterment? Moral Policing of clothing needs to stop! Because regardless of what I wear I will continue to do the work I do (and get better at it). 


There you have it. My 5 cents.!!!! 


Until Next blog...
-Your FIRST Queens Young Leader; Fiji..!!-

PS: To my fellow youth out there; the Queens Young Leaders application for 2015-2016 should be coming out around July this year. Be sure to apply.