For two years I’ve been excited about having our beautiful country to ourselves. But after 181 days of lockdowns and locked ups, I’ve finally flown out of Auckland for the first time.

36 hours after leaving home and colliding with Cyclone Dovi, I’ve arrived at my destination, a mere 1.5 hour flight away. I ended up flying to Christchurch and driving 340kms north, alongside the greenness of the Canterbury Plains, the rawness of the Kaikoura coastline and through the ordered vineyards of Marlborough. As I boarded the flight, our possible next Prime Minister was behind me. I said hi and complimented him on his work so far. He said there’s lots to do.

As we moved down the country, Southern Alps peeking above the clouds, I felt overwhelmed with emotion; a cocktail of gratitude, joy, excitement… and sadness, thinking about the friends that I can’t yet see.

And now I’m reminded of why I love travelling so much. When we leave the insularity of our day to day routines, we meet new people from different places, plans are interrupted which can test us, we learn to problem solve and think creatively, we explore new places and do new things, we experience the magnificence of nature, and we open our hearts and broaden our minds.

New Zealand is thousands of miles from anywhere. Our ancestors were explorers and pioneers. Travel is in our DNA.

♥️ Happy Valentines Day, Travel. I love you and I miss you ♥️