If you had asked me two weeks ago how I felt about turning 30 the response would have been less than positive. It’s so easy to get hung up on the idea of a number; a target by which we believe that certain arbitrary goals should have been reached. In the dying days of my twenties I felt the weight of my own expectations hanging over me – had I ticked off all of those things that the me of 10 of 15 years ago had hoped to have achieved by this stage of my life?

Running away to Corsica with R for my birthday was a canny move. Rather than seeing my 30th year in on a drizzly British Friday in the office I spent it on a boat in the 30 degree heat, sailing from Calvi to see the beautiful nature reserve of Scandola and enjoying a birthday lunch in the tiny town of Girolata, a place only accessible by boat.

The evening was spent drinking champagne in a cosy little wine bar followed by a delicious supper washed down with Corsican red. R even topped the wonderful birthday celebrations of last year with a birthday present I couldn’t have even have dreamed of receiving (and I’m not talking about the Jawbone – although more on that to follow!)

So distracted was I by the beauty and wonder of the world around me and so overwhelmed by all of the love and well-wishing from friends and family, that I totally forgot that I was no longer a 20-something.

In fact on that day, 30 felt pretty damn good.

So far 30 has brought me more love than I could ever imagine from the most amazing friends and family.

It has brought me days in the sunshine, walking in the mountains and lounging on the beach. It’s brought art galleries, adventures down new roads, swimming in the sea, yoga on a roof terrace and picnics sat on top of boulders in the hills.

So is 30 the big deal I was worried it might be?

I know now that the past 30 years are an integral part of me; the lessons learned, places visited and the people I’ve met and loved along the way are things that I’d not sacrifice for anything.

I know that one day – the tipping point from 29 to 30 – has not suddenly changed my mind or body.

The arbitrary achievements that I may have set for myself 5, 10 or even 20 years ago have changed; experiences and the parameters of my world have expanded so much that that while there are many items I may not have ticked off my ‘before 30’ list, there are many more things that I’ve done which I would never have thought to add to a list written all those years ago.

So how is 30? I’d say pretty damn good.