Editor’s letter
ROLL ON SUMMER. I can’t wait to swap my office for a room full of family. I am heading away, unplugged and offline, as advised by the current gurus of wellbeing. Time- out is ever-more vital in this constantly connected world.
For someone who loves their job as much as I do, it is curious how I long for the holidays, and how much time I spend during the year organizing and getting excited at their prospect. I’m a planner. I like to get things sorted. Writing that first menu list is always a high point.
This year, our destination is an off- grid bach in a remote area of the Marlborough Sounds where, with multiple generations of extended family, we are about to learn about life without electricity and with more people than bedrooms. Don’t forget your tents.
This planning habit of mine drives various family members a bit nuts. ( Tony, I’m speaking to you, dear brother-in-law.) “Can we rely on seven fish meals please Tony?” I query. Gorgeous Tony (that’s him, dancing with some very BIG fish on the home page of the website, OK.Fish) laughs at me. “Sure, we can Kate,” he promises straight-faced.
Since it is a long boat trip to the nearest shop, and running out of food is no fun, my lists are lengthy and detailed. I can pretty much guarantee there’ll be no starvation in our corner of the Sounds, nor any need to breach the emergency baked bean supply.
My idea of heaven is simple: cooking delicious food, having the time to talk to family, lazing about in boats and swimming in the deep and pure waters of the Sounds. What’s yours? We love to hear where everyone is going and about their summer plans (share your holiday photos with us on Facebook @thisNZlife). But as long as you have the summer issue of NZ Life & Leisure at your side, you’ll be well-supplied with inspirational reading.
Populating this issue are luminaries and visionaries, all outstanding for different reasons. With tourism now the country’s biggest export- earning industry, it serves us well to support the best in the business. Decades ago, Alan Hopping of The Lost Spring Resort in the Coromandel (page 102) set out to create a magic, escape-from-the-mundane experience for tourists. He didn’t like tourists all that much; he just wanted to build something special. I loved reading his story even if Alan does mock our national icon, calling the kiwi a small, brown, flightless bird on the edge of extinction that only comes out at night. True, but as he doesn’t suggest a better emblem, I’m keen to know what you think. Email: editorial@nzlifeandleisure.co.nz