welsh_italian
17th December 2008, 07:49 PM
My wife and I live in the Philippines. I have been offered a job in Wellington, NZ and am aiming to start in January 2009 (time permitting) and my wife and daughter will join me later when (if!) we get PR. I'm from the UK, she's a native Filipina and our baby daughter is both, and I have a few questions that would really help us in this move.
1) As a Filipino, how do you find living and working in NZ? What were your major problems if any? (eg, cold weather, cold housing, cost of food, finding a job, etc)
2) How did you transport your stuffs to NZ? I'm looking for something like an "alisbayan" box.
3) Are there any Filipino stores? Online with delivery is fine but a real store in Wellington would be ideal!
4) How did you find the food in NZ? What was good or bad?
5) What was the best way to make remittances back to the Philippines?
6) Have you managed to bring close family (eg, brothers, sisters, parents) over and how was the process?
7) To anyone who received a WTR talent (accredited employer) visa, how long did it take to be processed, and did you have to go for interview? I heard that some people have been called for interview to Bangkok and I'm hoping that they won't need me as it's even more expensive for a foreigner with residence to leave than a Filipino (750PHP + over 2k PHP + flights + hotel + food + the hassle of getting to NAIA etc).
8) Any extra advice or anything you can think of that I can use to make my wife's stay more pleasant? I know she will be homesick when she comes over so a good internet connection is essential so she can skype family; familiar foods is another (esp. the right fish and soy sauces, pancit canton, vinegars etc) which I remember from when we lived in the UK, but I want to make sure she feels as much at home as possible.
Feel free to PM me if you prefer.
Alan, Jell and baby Louise (in the picture)
1) As a Filipino, how do you find living and working in NZ? What were your major problems if any? (eg, cold weather, cold housing, cost of food, finding a job, etc)
2) How did you transport your stuffs to NZ? I'm looking for something like an "alisbayan" box.
3) Are there any Filipino stores? Online with delivery is fine but a real store in Wellington would be ideal!
4) How did you find the food in NZ? What was good or bad?
5) What was the best way to make remittances back to the Philippines?
6) Have you managed to bring close family (eg, brothers, sisters, parents) over and how was the process?
7) To anyone who received a WTR talent (accredited employer) visa, how long did it take to be processed, and did you have to go for interview? I heard that some people have been called for interview to Bangkok and I'm hoping that they won't need me as it's even more expensive for a foreigner with residence to leave than a Filipino (750PHP + over 2k PHP + flights + hotel + food + the hassle of getting to NAIA etc).
8) Any extra advice or anything you can think of that I can use to make my wife's stay more pleasant? I know she will be homesick when she comes over so a good internet connection is essential so she can skype family; familiar foods is another (esp. the right fish and soy sauces, pancit canton, vinegars etc) which I remember from when we lived in the UK, but I want to make sure she feels as much at home as possible.
Feel free to PM me if you prefer.
Alan, Jell and baby Louise (in the picture)