From the Editor
I’ve been lucky enough to see a lot of Australia. My father was a bank manager and his role at the Bank of New South Wales (now Westpac) took us all over Queensland, as well as to Canberra, Sydney and Hobart. As a journalist, I’ve spent a good chunk of my career shuttling between Sydney and Melbourne. And in the five years I’ve had the privilege of working on Qantas magazine, I’ve zigzagged all over the country.
Yes, I love going overseas and experiencing exotic cultures. But understanding Australia and appreciating its wild beauty feels like something we should all be doing more of. And now it seems we will.
I’m excited about the prospect of seeing even more of my country. In the past few years, I’ve sat on the red dirt of the Kimberley in Western Australia and listened to Anthea, a Gooniyandi woman, tell me the story of the Dreamtime. I’ve laughed at a baby sea lion spinning on the sand at Kangaroo Island in South Australia. I’ve devoured the most extraordinary raw pea and lemon aspen tart at Brae, one of our best restaurants, in Birregurra, Victoria. And I’ve had a heart-stopping encounter with humpback whales at Ningaloo Reef in WA (more about that on page 30).
And I go home as often as I can. I left Queensland when I was just 17 but you know what they say. You can take the girl out of Queensland...
Last year, I spent a very special weekend at Orpheus Island (page 52). My father had died two months earlier and I was numb with grief. But on that island, I was surrounded by the flora and fauna of my childhood. And when it rained the day I arrived, breaking the humidity, it smelled like home. It was a wonderfully restorative time in the most magical of settings.
As we prepare to travel once again, I hope you’ll find some Australian inspiration in this issue. And in a nod to our friends across the ditch – and in anticipation of our trans-Tasman “bubble” – we’ve included a feature on New Zealand’s most extraordinary lodges.
Thank you for reading.
Kirsten Galliott Editor-in-Chief
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