[SharpBlade]

Hello,

emigratenz.org is a very well designed and information rich website. I have discovered it only one week ago while starting my quest for facts and figures regarding New Zealand. I have never been to New Zealand and it seems to be an attractive place to live. My family and I (spouse + 4 children aged 1y, 3y, 4y and 5y) are currently living in the west of Ireland. We like Ireland except for its weather (not enough sun, to many rainy days), its poor level of sport amenities, its poor diet (children eat heaps of crisps and drink fizzy drinks), its overstreched health system and the problems of binge drinking amongst teenagers. On the other hand, we live in the countryside so no pollution, no traffic jams, loads of space and I cycle everyday to/from work. The cost of living is high but salaries are good and taxes on your income are low as well in comparison to other European countries. I am an IT professional (software developer) and I am very lucky to have a job here in the countryside. Most of the IT jobs are in the capital Dublin. But life in Dublin is crazy for a family with children: houses and crèches are far too expensive, traffic jams and pollution are recurrent, ... in summary the quality of life is lower.
I have the feeling that New Zealand (and particularly Christchurch) can offer the quality of life we are looking for. I would appreciate if somebody living in New Zealand could give us some insights into the following matters:

-IT jobs: I know that salaries are low. On the other hand, do companies generally train their employees on a regular basis. Do people work long hours or is it more a 9am/5pm sort of mentality? Are there a lot of IT companies in Christchurch?

-Is it possible to live in the countryside and to easily commute to Christchurch without facing traffic jams?

-Children: are crèches affordable? Do you get child benefit from the state (here in Ireland, we get nearly 600€/month or around 1120Kiwi$/month for our 4 children)? Do children/teenagers have a proper diet? Do children/teenagers exercise enough? Is the education system any good? What about drugs? Are there possibilities to enroll the children in music and arts classes?

-Sports/outdoor: we all love to have outdoor activities. My spouse and myself are keen sports people (rowing). We consider sports as a very important part of the education of children. Sadly, PE courses do not even exist in the primary schools in Ireland.

-Weather: how is it like? Do you often get weeks of continuous rain and overcast skies?

-Houses: it seems that the quality of houses is poor (no proper insulation, no double glazing) and on the other hand I have just read that interest rates on mortgage are beyond 9% which is high. Are houses really affordable?

-Health system: is it good or not? Any waiting list for major treatments like in Ireland? Is it open to everyone or are richer people given priority through health insurances?

-Social life: is it easy to get to know people and do people invite each others to their own homes?

[veronica]

crickey, where should one begin. Firstly kids are kids whereever they are and they eat and drink junk here too. teenagers all over the world binge drink, and yes drugs are a problem here too. But the ones you are concerned about are yours and surely they eat and drink what you allow them to, whether you're here or in Ireland and if you try and bring them up as you feel you should then that is the only defence you can give them against drink and drugs.

There is are tremendous opportunities for sport here, girls as well as boys, so if thats the direction you want to encourage your children the chances are here.

On the job front IT generally is poor here too, I can't answer for specific areas withing the IT industry though and I don't think Chch is a strong IT area. My understanding is Wellington and Auckland are the main IT places. Any one out there with other info please chip in on that one. work ethics here are very much 8 to 5. and not at the weekend.

The health service here is supposedly stretched with some people maybe having to go to Australia for treatments, buit this is not first hand knowledge thank goodness, just what I have read in the news.
Dental treatment costs an arm and a leg so if you do come out get all that done before hand.

Weather in Chch. well its definately wind driven, not so much strength as which way the wind blows determines the weather, it doesn't seem to rain much here, and the sun does shine a lot but its a very strong sunshine and as the ozone is very thin its really easy to get burnt. any redheads in the family had better watch out. It can get frosty cold but on days like that the sun soon warms everything up.

The people are very friendly and gregerious, but a lot depends on how sociable you are.

To us coming over from the SE of England houses are very affordable but as you said the older ones (which are the cheaper ones) are in need of attention to get them up to UK standards. The new ones all have insulation at least, double glazing is rare and heating tends to be a fire in the lounge.

wouldn't have a clue about creches or child benefit. someone else will have to supply that info, but however cheap the creches seem when you convert to euros just remember that when you are paying them here you will be earning NZ$.

well that might give you a start. regards Veronica