DUSK —— WELLINGTON, NEW ZEALAND
“I grew up in the suburbs of Wellington and, as a teenager, I used to come into the city to hang around then I’d get a lift home from my dad’s office. There are so many trees in the city and at dusk all the birds would flock back to their roosts. The sound was almost deafening with the trees full of these shrieking birds as they settled in for the night. And it’s still that way. Most of New Zealand’s native trees are evergreen so you can’t see the birds; they’re totally hidden in the leaves. For me, the sound of them chattering away means dusk is coming.
In summer, when dusk is a lot later, you notice the traffic patterns change at the time people finish work because instead of everyone going home, they’re driving around the bays to go for a swim. In Wellington, you’re only ever metres from the waterfront.
We get some amazing visitors to our harbour. Just the other day we had a mother and baby orca – a few hundred metres from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade building! I’ll often have my togs and a towel in the car so I can stop for a swim. The CBD is around 15 minutes from the airport and I love floating in the water and looking at the planes taking off overhead. It feels quite surreal.
You always feel nature around you in Wellington. We’re surrounded by mountain ranges. My house looks out to the Orongorongo range and I sit and watch as the sun goes down – the hills start off green then turn a deep-blue and then purple and gold. The city’s got a reputation for wild weather, which is absolutely well earned. But that can be super-energising as well. And for all we like to complain about the wind, it does mean that the city is washed fresh every day; the air is always clear. I love that smell of Wellington – the smell of the sea, of the fresh air and a little bit of wind blasting in my face.”