Pehia King has spent a lifetime showcasing Māori and Pacific Dance. Photo / Supplied
Pehia King has spent a lifetime showcasing Māori and Pacific Dance. Photo / Supplied
Actor, presenter and performer, Pehia King shares her favourite travel tales
What are your strongest memories from your first overseas trip?
I was 19 and a student at Whitireia Performing Arts and we travelled to France and Spain for the CIOFF festival (International Council of Organisations of FolkloreFestivals), showcasing Māori and Pacific dance. My strongest memory is arriving in Paris at our accommodation, which was a big school, and dinner was roast rabbit.
What was a standard family holiday like when growing up?
Always spent with cousins, swimming, playing until late and wearing highlighter zinc!
I travelled a lot as a dancer, showcasing Māori and Pacific dance. We were fortunate enough to mingle with people from all over the world but if anything, it made me appreciate Aotearoa more.
Pehia King travelled a lot as a dancer. Photo / Supplied
What is the greatest trip you’ve ever been on?
My good friend got married in Rarotonga a few years ago. It was the first trip we had all been on where we were all together and weren’t working or dancing. We had the time of our lives!
I was in Belgium with a friend and it was really late but we couldn’t remember where our accommodation was. Our billet wasn’t answering the phone and no one had seen him since the day before. We caught a cab but couldn’t speak Flemish so just went around in circles trying to find a landmark. We eventually had to get out because it was costing so much. It was pure luck we found our way home. Note, this was before smartphones and Google.
Pehia King is a performer, presenter and actor. Photo / Supplied
What’s your approach to packing for a big trip?
I roll my clothes so I can pack more and I leave room for shopping. I’ll take my favourite pillowcase so I have something comfy from home.
What destination has surprised you?
Rapanui (Easter Island) is one of the most beautiful and powerful places I’ve ever been to. It was great to connect with the indigenous people and get a further understanding of how similar our languages and practices are. The Moai are breathtakingly huge. I felt like I had been there before. Perhaps in another lifetime.
The Moai on Rapanui (Easter Island) are breathtakingly huge. Photo / Getty Images
What’s the first thing you do when you get home from a long trip?
Shower, bed, movies! Unpacking comes the day after.
What do you miss most about home when you travel?
I think for most New Zealanders . . . it’s our pies!
Where is the one destination you must see in your lifetime, and why?
I’ve still never been to Italy. I’m currently learning Italian on Duolingo for when the time comes. Per ogni eventualità!
What’s your favourite thing about travel?
To be in the unfamiliar. To walk in a new reality and soak in all the differences and similarities. To taste new food, meet new people, and through all that, appreciate my life in Aotearoa.
Pehia King (Ngãti Maniapoto, Ngaati Mahuta ki te Hauaauru) stars in the Auckland Theatre Company and Hāpai Productions season of Witi’s Wāhine playing at the ASB Waterfront Theatre May 2-21.
