But her first stop after leaving St . Lucia at 17 was St . Martin . She landed a job at the airport …
“ At 17 , I moved to St Martin to be with my mom and my little sister . Two weeks after my arrival , I got a job at the airport working at a liquor store . Then two weeks into that job , I got an offer to work at the Oyster Bay Beach Resort where I worked for a few years .”
Although she liked St . Martin , Mala didn ’ t feel quite settled there …
" I liked St . Martin because of my family and friends but it wasn ’ t really for me . Perhaps it ’ s because many of my close friends from there had moved to France and Holland . It just wasn ’ t the same without them .”
But St . Martin was exactly where Mala needed to be …
" One morning , I happened to walk into a clothing store where a casting call was in progress . ‘ We found who we ’ re looking for ,’ the casting director said , looking at me . ‘ Would you like to go to Paris ?’ And without thinking I said , ‘ Yes !’ I went to Paris for a modeling