helm,andlayingupat thebow
withthesailinfrontofme
andthesunandthesoundof
the wavesas theboatcarved
itswaythroughthewater.Just
lyingthereandfallingasleep
wasabsolutebliss,thenI woke
uptoa dolphinswimming at
the bow of the boat.At 19 I headedoffonmy
ownlittleadventures.InNew
Zealanda gapyearis calledan
OEwhichstandsfor“overseas
experience”.I hada working
visaforthestates,soI went
andworkedona skifield
inBreckenridge,Colorado,for a season,
which was extraordinary.WhileI waslivinginColorado,
I madefriendswitha bunchof
internationaltravellers,as you
do.A fewofuswantedto
thawoutsowedecidedtogo
ona triptoJamaica,andit
wastherethatI hadpossibly
oneofthescariestexperiences
ofmylife.I hadtogotothe
US consulate in Kingston torenewmyvisa– I droveallnighttoget
thereandarrivedat fouram,soI sleptin
thecaroutsidewaitingfortheconsulate
toopen.I wokeupwithsixsemi-automatic
riflespointedat mefromoutsidethecar.
It wasthepoliceandtheywerescreaming
at metogetout– theythoughtI wassome
sortofterrorist.It allendedwell butit
was definitely a wake-up call.VisitingJamaicawasprobablythe
mostcultureshockI’veeverfelt,
butina goodway.It wasreallyeye-
openingtobeintheminorityand
tobesurroundedbyveryhumble,
loving people that cherish music.Oneofmyfavouriteplacestovisitis
YosemiteNationalParkinCalifornia.
Wordsreallycan’tdescribeit...thescale
andthepristinebeauty.I usuallystayin
a campwheredeerwalkbyandbearssit
acrosstheriver.Thehikingis incredible,
too.There’saninfamousgraniterockyou
canclimbcalledHalfDome,andalsoEl
Capitan,whichis meanttobethebest
rock-climbingfaceintheworld. I’d live
there if they did theatre!Mymostmemorabletripshavebeen
quiteadventurous.I walkedthe800km
CaminodeSantiagoinSpain– it was
prettyfullon.Forme,walkingis a form
ofmeditation,whereI canletmythoughts
roamandsiftthroughwhat’shappening
inmyworld.There’ssomethingwonderful
aboutimmersingyourselfindeepnature
andavoidingthecityfora bit,andjust
takinginsomevistas that aren’t a TV
or phone screen.ThisyearI’dlovetogetbacktoYosemite,
that’salwaysa biggoal.Butit alldepends
onmycontractualobligationswithwork.
Alsoonthebucketlistis Greece,andI
wouldlovetogetbacktoItaly.I’dreally
like to goexploringthroughTasmania,
too– I’veonlybeentoHobart.
I havesomanyincredible
picturesofTasmaniasaved
onmyInstagram.●SaraWisemanappearsintwo
newshowsthisyear,OneLane
BridgeandBetweenTwoWorlds,
both airing on Channel 7.Otherthana triptoDisneyland,my
childhoodholidayswerespentsailing
onourfamilyyachtaroundAuckland’s
HaurakiGulfinsummer,andskiing
onMountRuapehuinwinter,soI
learnttosailat a youngageandI also
becamea competitiveskierandraced
throughmyteenageyears.I cherish
those memories wholeheartedly.Beingundersailis oneofthebestfeelings- thefeelingofnothavinganyworriesin
the world. I remember my dad being at the
Justbackfrom...
Oahu,Hawaii.Nextup...
Nothingplanned
yet;it alldepends
on my work schedule.Sara
Wiseman
TheNewZealand-bornactoron
sailing,teenageadventuresand
walking as a form of meditation.
TRAVELLING WITH
How I travel
INTERVIEW KARLIE VERKERK. PHOTOGRAPHY ALEX VAUGHAN. HAIR & MAKEUP NIKKI ANDERSON.28 GOURMET TRAVELLER