A LIFE IN TRAVEL
Hannah Smith One half of performing arts duo Trick of the Light, Hannah shares her most memorable holiday moments
What have you been missing most about travel?
In the days before the pandemic we got to attend festivals all over the world, experiencing heaps of shows made in heaps of countries — I have really been missing that input to my creative practice these last few years. Also, dumplings.
What are your strongest memories from your first overseas trip?
We went to France for my uncle’s wedding when I was 11, and we ate baguette dipped in hot chocolate for breakfast every day. I clearly remember thinking, “This is the life, I am destined for a world of European sophistication, no more 7am Weet-bix for old Hannah Smithie.”
What was a standard family holiday like when growing up?
We didn’t take a lot of holidays when I was a kid, but when we did it would be a week at a chilly beach in and around Te Wai Pounamu, daring each other to go in the water. “Soon go numb!” was our rallying cry.
Who has most inspired your travels?
My partner Ralph, who has an appetite for adventure and dumplings even greater than my own.
What is the greatest trip you’ve ever been on?
We spent four beautiful weeks in Greece in 2018 and it was the perfect combination of walking, swimming, eating, and sightseeing. It culminated in accidentally attending a Shaggy and Sting gig at the Parthenon.
And the worst?
Earlier this year we spent a week in sunny Golden Bay with our entire family, where it rained torrentially every day. Eight adults, two toddlers, and a large wet dog — one living room.
What’s your approach to packing for a big trip?
I tour a lot, so I have packing lists and packing cubes and a strong conviction that the less you carry the better time you will have.
What is the destination that most surprised you — good or bad?
Froggyland in Split, Croatia, is the most surprising museum I have ever encountered. Hundreds of taxidermied frogs arranged in “various everyday situations”. Absolute artistry, absolute lunacy in one weird package.
Where was your most memorable sunrise/sunset?
The Pyramids, not in Egypt, but out on the Otakou Peninsula in Ōtepoti/ Dunedin. Some unbeatable sunrises in that town.
What’s the first thing you do when you get home from a long trip?
Put on the washing machine.
What do you miss most about home when you travel?
Sending my beloved 2-year-old to preschool every morning.
What is the one destination you must see in your lifetime?
I have a powerful hankering to go to the Orkney Islands in Scotland. They have a festival there every May, and it is a lifelong dream to attend it.
What’s your favourite thing about travel?
Newness! Bigness! Discovering strange and beautiful places, and tasty and unusual things to eat.