National Geographic On An Epic Drive Through New Zealand

“A nation of warmth and color” is revealed to National Geographic Traveler contributing editor Carrie Miller after an epic road trip from Bluff to Cape Reinga. The National Geographic Traveler feature runs 15 pages and 3,000 words of the magazine with lavish color photography highlighting the natural splendor of the Wakatipu Basin, Lake Tekapo and Wanaka in Central Otago, Cathedral Cove on the Coromandel Peninsula and the legendary Whangamomona Hotel on the Forgotten World Highway.

“Even after 15 years of living here, a New Zealand road trip is my favorite travel experience,” writes Miller. “There is a feeling throughout this land—a warmth, a welcoming, a sense of being looked after—that is difficult to put your finger on. The Māori word for it is manaakitanga. Loosely translated, the word means hospitality.

“My road trip was inspired by manaakitanga, its itinerary decided by people I met along the way—their recommendations, their generosity, their good graces—as I traveled from one connection to the next on a daisy-chain of friendly gestures. It was a pattern I knew well after years of living here. Some of my best moments in this country have been serendipitous, like the wrong turn that introduced me to a remote hamlet that netted me an impromptu invitation to a birthday party.”

Carrie Miller https://carrieink.co.nz/biography/ writes primarily for the National Geographic Society. She is a two-time Lowell Thomas award winner and a member of the Authors Guild and the New Zealand Society of Authors. Her book 100 Dives of a Lifetime: The World’s Ultimate Underwater Destinations was published in February 2019 by National Geographic Books. She is currently traveling the world on a year-long assignment for National Geographic.

Original Source: National Geographic