Peering into the windows of someone else's life has long been a guilty pleasure of society. It's a form of escapism and the reason we fall into the pages of books and the screens of films. These days, with the vast myriad of social media platforms and millions of people sharing their day to day lives, it is simpler than ever to escape and explore someone else's life. We love giving emerging photographers the opportunity to share a day in their life with our followers over on Instagram. This time, it was Jess Maddock who took us along to the raucous streets of West London for Carnival.

My first Notting Hill Carnival experience is a bit of a blur! The day started in Peckham Weatherspoons for a breakfast and a pint. Carnival day one had fallen on my friend Sannita’s birthday, who I have known since I was 4, a big bunch of her friends had got together to celebrate with her and from Peckham we got the 36X party bus, which took us to the streets of West London which had come alive in celebration of the UK Caribbean population.

Notting Hill Carnival is Europe’s biggest street party, full of Calypso music, tempting food stalls, amazing floats, steel bands, flamboyant costumes but mostly community and good vibes. Sunday is considered the family day at carnival and it was great to see so many people, of every nationality, soaking up the sun and atmosphere with huge grins on their faces. The diverse crowd just seemed to want to have a good time, without any animosity and you could almost see the good vibes floating around!

We spent the day between dancing at the static soundsystems which turn the roads into open air clubs and the music played ranges over several music genres. Music is the heart and soul of Notting Hill Carnival, pounding garage, r&b, reggae, dub anything with a beat you can dance to, merged with traditional Calypso and Samba tunes that fills the air for miles around.

Being a Carnival newbie I made the mistake of wearing flip flops and by the end of the day my feet were black! When our feet had been stamped on enough we’d take a break in Horniman’s Pleasance Park to sip cider and relax for a bit before doing it all over again! After all the dancing by early afternoon we started to get hungry so decided to sample some traditional Caribbean food from one of the many Jerk chicken stalls. I don’t know if it was the copious drinking(!), the excessive dancing or the delicious smells that had been wafting through the air all day that had made me so hungry, but it was the best chicken I had ever had and seemed the ideal snack to have on carnival day!

In the afternoon I tried to meet a friend, neither of us were very familiar with our surroundings and that added to the swarming crowds meant it took us nearly three hours to find each other! Just as the party was coming to a close everyone was planning to go back to a friend's for a chilled after party, but me and my friend decided to carry on the party, so we got a bus to her house to eat and stock up again on cider, we then got the over ground to Dalston and walked to the Shackwell Arms to go see some more live music.

By the end of the evening we were exhausted but elated, we had been to our first carnival and not stopped dancing (and drinking!!) all day and it had been fun! The journey back to my friend's flat in Hoxton was full of stories and funny memories from a great day out in London. The day had been so hectic I didn’t even see the Carnival procession, but I guess that just means I better go again next year!

Big love for sharing with us Jess. You can hop along to the English coast with Jess for her trip to Coverack this summer. To keep up to date with Jess follow her on Instagram here and see more of her work on her site. Keep your eyes peeled for more from this little wonder!