I had this photo in a folder of potential “Where in the World” photos but looking at it today, I realized it can’t be a Where in the World quiz. It is too quintessentially New Zealand! The flax in the foreground and the empty, wide beach with a tractor on it just say “New Zealand” to me. It isn’t a great photo – it is a tad overexposed and the framing isn’t quite right. But I stopped on it today because I miss New Zealand and my family there. I don’t know when we’ll get to visit again. I swore I’d never do a Christmas trip there again, because flights are expensive and planning for Christmas and an overseas vacation at once is stressful. Now, though, I think that if the borders open in 2022, I might do it.

For now, I’ll just look at this photo and let it remind me of the natural beauty and feeling of wide open spaces that are two of the things I love about visiting New Zealand.

Where: A beach on the Kapiti Coast, New Zealand
When: Late June or early July, 2013