What I Pack: Noelle McCarthy

Noelle McCarthy. Photo / Supplied

Do you travel light or heavy?
Heavy, alas - I seem to need a lot of stuff.

What type of suitcase do you carry?
A big pin-striped one with a pink ribbon on the handle. I'm a pessimist at heart, so I'm always overjoyed when I see that little ribbon poking out on the carousel, proof that all my worldly possessions aren't lying splattered on the tarmac.

What's always in your hand luggage?
Books, a notebook and pen, Vaseline, perfume, holy water and a Miraculous Medal. I am never more Catholic than at take-off and landing.

What's the best thing you've brought back from a trip?
A snake! A giant anaconda to be exact. I did a TV show a few years back where they gave us a week to capture a giant anaconda for a zoo in Fort Worth, Dallas. It was gloriously exciting, the best trip I've ever had, even though we found out later that the zoo passed on the snake because she wasn't in perfect condition - a piranha had a go at her tail. Their loss, she was magnificent.

Favourite or most exciting airport to land in?
On the way to Iquitos in the Amazon, we flew over the Andes, and landed in a tiny little airport in the jungle. The airstrip was littered with the rusted skeletons of old aircraft, and the "airport" part of it was a little lean-to with hand-painted signs.

Noelle McCarthy is a broadcaster and Herald columnist, who is a judge for Bluebird's "Do Us A Flavour" promotion (bluebird.co.nz).