G L OBET R OTTE R Tara Mered

Not long after Tara moved to Dubai, aged five, she was given a teddy.

“It meant the world to me,” she recalls. “But a couple of years later, I took it on my bike to the park with my mom and it got stolen while I was in the bathroom.” Such was Tara’s distress that her parents replaced it and today she keeps the teddy close. “I don’t let this soft toy, which I named Rose, out of my sight,” she laughs. “I still sleep with it and I love the story behind it, as well as the memories Rose brings back of those long, hot days spent at the beach or in the park.”

2. MO B ILE PH ONE

“I’ve made friends in every country I’ve lived, so the great thing about my iPhone is that we can keep in close contact through WhatsApp or FaceTime,” says Tara. But while her iPhone makes the world feel smaller in many ways, it also reminds Tara how different other cultures can be. “We talk a lot about our lives, including our schools, friends and hobbies, and we have such diverse stories to tell.” Tara’s phone also acts as her camera. “When I fill it up with pictures, we back them up on the computer and my mom makes photo books. My phone is definitely a keeper of memories.”

3. AMIS DI P LOMA ( Association for Music in International Schools)

During Tara’s two years in Vienna, which ended last summer, she sang in a girls’ choir that belonged to AMIS. “Every year, the choirs sing in a different city and last year it was the American International School in Paris,” she says. “I travelled there a week early to catch up with my friends in Paris and then joined others from my school to sing. It was a very special week; we made lots of friends.”

4. L UC KY SILVER C H ARM

Although Tara was born in Paris, her family was based in Cairo for the first three years of her life. “When I was 14 days old, my uncle gave me a lucky charm – a small silver bell – that was supposed to take away all the bad spirits from my crib,” she says. “I love the tradition around it and I keep it in my jewellery box on my desk. Although I don’t have any memories of that time, I’m told I adored donkey riding.”

H ER H ORSE , S ISSI

“I got my mare, Sissi, last summer when we were at our country house in Provence,” says Tara. “We had just left Vienna.” Within a few weeks, Tara was entering show jumping competitions with Sissi and was told by her coach that she’d qualified for the French Open. “This photo reminds me of that time – how happy I was and how proud I felt of Sissi.” The horse remains in France, where Tara’s family returns most weekends. “It’s the one home that’s remained constant throughout my life. I love it,” she says.