What gives a place its identity?

A few years ago, while hosting a couple from the US for Aroha Luxury New Zealand Tours, I took them to see a glassblower in Whanganui; it wasn’t on their itinerary, but it happened to be on the main route we were following. I had a sense that they would appreciate something like it, given the conversations we’d had earlier about artists. So, we drove out to a studio after breakfast and arrived while the artist was still working.

His studio was exactly what you would hope for; it was authentic, though not especially arranged for visitors. All his shelves were lined with finished pieces, half-finished pieces, and a few experiments that had clearly gone wrong. I remember walking in and wondering if the couple would notice the dust in the corners. His tools were laid out the way people leave them

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