📍Rotorua, Bay of Plenty, New Zealand
“I was born in Rotorua and grew up breathing the sulphur-tinged air and the particular freedom that comes from being raised in a place that feels slightly apart from the world. My mother Nellie was my earliest champion — she believed in me completely and sacrificed a great deal to make my flying ambitions possible. I first saw an aeroplane as a young girl and decided with absolute certainty that I would master them. New Zealand gave me the confidence to attempt things that others called impossible, and I never stopped being grateful for that.”
👍 LovedThe roar of an engine at take-off, the solitude of open ocean from the cockpit, a clean navigation chart spread across my knees, and the particular silence of a flight going exactly to plan.
👎 DislikedBeing told what women could and could not achieve, engine failures over open water, and being asked when I intended to settle down and leave the flying to others.
🗺️ Approximate location today
📍 Street view today
Sources: teara.govt.nz Wikipedia: Jean Batten