Radhika Dandeniya

I am British Sri Lankan…or am I a Sri-Lankan Brit? My answer always changes when people ask me where I am from. Lately the spiel goes that I was born in the UK but my parents are from Sri Lanka. It’s a tiresomely long-winded explanation but such is my story; someone born on one island to parents from another. For...

I’ve finally popped my Parisian cherry! After years of snubbing the French capital for fear of vomming up over loved-up couples and stuck-up locals, I decided to bite the bullet and zip over the Channel. But I needed motivation; something to get me over there that sidestepped the overly-flogged stereotypes. My love of tennis and Roland-Garros gave me exactly that. And now I’m in love with the city itself!

My period arrived bang on time this month! But 2.5 days in, it’s on its way out. I felt bad using sanitary towels for so pitiful a period- definitely a slap on the wrist from Ms Thunberg! ‘What’s the problem?’ I hear you ask; A period so brief you barely noticed it? What a result! But what if I told you that last month this flighty visitor was 20 days late preceded by a fortnight of continuous cramping, no sleep, teary hissy fits, sluggish days at work and bloating? You might not think me so b...

Tourism; whether you’re the holiday maker taking some vital vacay or the local ducking and diving in between dawdling visitors, you can’t deny the benefits it brings to an area. My time in Florence certainly highlighted that. After Rome and Venice, Florence is the next most popular Italian tourist destination and why not? It houses over 60% of the world’s art heritage, boasts architectural feats such as Brunelleschi’s Duomo and is the birthplace of luminaries, Michelangelo, Dante, and Niccolo Machiavelli.

Sixteen million visitors a year flock to the city to pay their dues and Florence’s economy thrives on it! Restaurants, hotels, museums and tour agencies all revolve around attracting foreigners to make big money

But it’s not the just the conventional establishments that are capitalising. There is a growing group of young and intrepid entrepreneurs riding the wave. I talk to three such locals, restauranteur Federico, Martina who manages holiday apartments and historical tour guide Andrea who have started their own businesses in tourism and are doing bloody good job at it too!

Going au natural hair is about staying true to your identity and no-one knows that better than 25-year old Mishelle Sandali; an Australian-born Sri Lankan working as a radiographer in Melbourne. She’s been curl-ready for little over a year and wants you all to know that championing curls was all about reclaiming her South-Asian roots- hair and all!

Curls are the constant dread of girls. For Asians there is a pressure to nuke the hell out of our hair to achieve that glossy mane so tossed about onscreen. It is rarely talked about…that is until BBC Radio London asked me to guest on a panel discussion about hair. I jumped at the chance, wanting to address the Asian prejudices against curls. Joining me on the show were natural hair blogger Valley Fontaine and the winner of BBC2 Hair Phil Hunt.