[osmyth]

Interested in why people are leaving or thinking of leaving.
This could be a pointer to the things to think about before one moves to NZ.
Thanks.

[leachio]

hello from York!! Small world huh!

We moved for all the right reasons but came back for family/home sickness reasons 100%, however we would almost def have hit financial problems if we had stayed!

Good luck Amanda

[britzy]

Family/friends
home sickness

[925dancer]

Employment situation from hell and after being unable to find another job had no choice but to hand in my notice and head on back for my own sanity.

[eassae]

Considering because of:

Incompatibility with cultural values, work and management styles, shortage of quality housing, expensive.

[sweetpea]

Leaving when I can (14 months!) because:

Not as progressive politically and socially as I had thought it would be
Can't make enough money in my profession
Nothing here feels like quality (I have this sense of everything being cheap and unsturdy, no matter how much I pay for something)

[chrissie]

Leaving when I can (14 months!) because:

Nothing here feels like quality (I have this sense of everything being cheap and unsturdy, no matter how much I pay for something)

lol...I know exactly what you mean....It feels like being on a permanent camping holiday!!

[benhila]

Hi from Sydney

We left Wellington 2 months ago, mainly because of poor job prospects. Other frustrating points: poor ratio of income to costs, lack of variety and low quality of goods. No city-buzz (although spectacular scenery to make-up for it).

Hila

[Janey]

we leave in January for all of the above and have realised what a good qquality of life we had roll on the central heating freedom to roam and the BBC!

[kiwigirl]

In this current climate I wouldn't advice anyone to leave a stable job to come here, unemployment has gone from 12000 to 67000 they think it may have slowed down but more jobs could still be lost, I got made redundant in April and have been unsuccessful in finding work, have applied for over 100 jobs with no luck, it is not helping with the Kiwi first moto, although we have been here for 4yrs, intigrated into the local community, we are still immigrants..........Why do we stay????????The kids love it, but decisions have to be made, although I love NZ I would go home tomorrow.

[osmyth]

From the Office for National Statistics, UK:
"The unemployment rate was 7.9 per cent for the three months to July 2009. It has not been higher since the three months to November 1996 and it is up 0.7 over the previous quarter and up 2.3 over the year. The number of unemployed people increased by 210,000 over the quarter and by 743,000 over the year, to reach 2.47 million. "

So it's just as bad if not worse over here! (Think unemployment rate is 6% in NZ).

Agreed though, that if you have a job it may be best to stay put until unemployment starts to come down.



In this current climate I wouldn't advice anyone to leave a stable job to come here, unemployment has gone from 12000 to 67000 they think it may have slowed down but more jobs could still be lost, I got made redundant in April and have been unsuccessful in finding work, have applied for over 100 jobs with no luck, it is not helping with the Kiwi first moto, although we have been here for 4yrs, intigrated into the local community, we are still immigrants..........Why do we stay????????The kids love it, but decisions have to be made, although I love NZ I would go home tomorrow.

[osmyth]

we leave in January for all of the above and have realised what a good qquality of life we had roll on the central heating freedom to roam and the BBC!

Janey, interested to know what you mean by 'freedom to roam'?
Thanks.

[colindp]

It was a huge financial struggle living in NZ, job was not as decribed and totally mind numbing and boring....imagine if you can running around after your manager all day asking for something to do.... went back to the UK in 07 but couldn't settle there either and considered moving back to NZ. Oct 08 landed a job in Perth, Australia....great job, great people, great climate, huge 4 bed house with a pool and the ability to save....Do miss the scenery though. :clap

[leachio]

Hi Colin,
good to see ya! Glad ur all doin well :)

[Janey]

Dogs & Pets a treated better than here although there is dog exercise areas my dog needs 2 hours a day plus with little countryside locally to go on and he prefers to be off the lead this is not doable here in wellington or where else we have seen there are many rights of way in UK where you can have that freedom. It is partly our fault for living in a city I know but friends in the country struggle to, I long for the cornish country lanes and footpaths along the coast and over fields. We could walk our dog through the centre of Wellington Zoo he would not be intrested in anything other than his ball or master, cats, sheep etc are of no interest he wants the freedom to trot along for as long as his owner has time what a life!

[Wooly_Cow]

From the Office for National Statistics, UK:
"The unemployment rate was 7.9 per cent for the three months to July 2009. It has not been higher since the three months to November 1996 and it is up 0.7 over the previous quarter and up 2.3 over the year. The number of unemployed people increased by 210,000 over the quarter and by 743,000 over the year, to reach 2.47 million. "

So it's just as bad if not worse over here! (Think unemployment rate is 6% in NZ).

Agreed though, that if you have a job it may be best to stay put until unemployment starts to come down.

True but......in actual terms the number of jobs available in the UK is far higher...true more people going for them but equally true more to aim at. I'm not a nationalist but.....maybe the UK should adopt a British (or I guess EU) first attitude in recruitment. It seems a skewed world...if you come to Australia or New Zealand or US or anywhere else they have to PROOVE they can't hire a local before they hire an ex pat. Not sure it's the same in the UK...certainly never felt like that.

[zardell]

So it's just as bad if not worse over here! (Think unemployment rate is 6% in NZ).


Just to expand a little on the OP's questions - from a personal point of view, we were fortunate that money (or the lack of it) wasn't an issue for us and neither did it directly contribute to our decision to return to the UK, however one question that this poll raised in my mind was 'Where would I rather be out of work? NZ or the UK?'

Food for thought....

Julie

xx

[Wooly_Cow]

'Where would I rather be out of work? NZ or the UK?'




Good question, just remember;

1) 'You can't eat scenery"
2) If you are in New Zealand for less than two years you get diddly squat in terms of benefits if you are made unemployed
3) If you don't have PR, you might not have a choice, 'cause they'll ask you to leave anyway!

[frootbat]

Janey, interested to know what you mean by 'freedom to roam'?
Thanks.

I'm not Janey (sorry Janey) but I do agree, that freedom is something I love about England and miss since coming here. In the UK we have wonderful things called public footpaths and bridleways that go all over the place, farmland, woodland, coastline, across other people's gardens, you can roam off the paths if the terrain allows, and in pretty much any bit of countryside, armed with an OS map you have a limitless variety of walks from lane to stile to burial mound, taking in the history of the area as well as the landscape. Oh and you can take your dog! DOC paths are great, but you don't feel the same sense of freedom here.

[Sam B]

I agree about the right to roam in the UK. The countryside is stunning here, and I love the DOC paths (dogs not an issue for me now), but we all miss the criss-crossing public footpaths, bridleways and coastpaths, especially in Cornwall, you were never more than a minute or 2 from a walk, whereas you have to plan and drive more here. Not a deal breaker for me however.

[colindp]

Hi Amanda,

Thanks for your good wishes...Hope all is well with you guys....:cheers

[batgirl1001]

Been here nearly 6 months but definitely plan to leave once our 2 years are up and we've got our IRRV. Reasons: a)parents getting old, and miss granddaughter very much, b) nightlife is unexciting here, just too quiet sometimes c) earnings are lower, savings are harder d)things cost a lot more without a good reason for it e) feels like NZ is end of the world....hard to get info on things outside of NZ.

[batgirl1001]

Oh and another thing......just got computer stolen while in storage. Company tried to blame us or our movers in Singapore instead of themselves. Notice that it is endemic for people here to not accept responsibility and try to put the blame on others.

[JandM]

Notice that it is endemic for people here to not accept responsibility and try to put the blame on others. I'm sorry to hear you've had bad experience. But, remembering my NZ relatives, and all the kindness and generosity we've met with from Kiwis for no special reason, I think this is rather a sweeping generalization.

[osmyth]

Been here nearly 6 months but definitely plan to leave once our 2 years are up and we've got our IRRV. Reasons: a)parents getting old, and miss granddaughter very much, b) nightlife is unexciting here, just too quiet sometimes c) earnings are lower, savings are harder d)things cost a lot more without a good reason for it e) feels like NZ is end of the world....hard to get info on things outside of NZ.

Not sure about some of your reasons but appreciate they are personal to you.
First part of a) - your parents have only aged 6 months!
e) what did you do to find out about things outside Singapore when you were there - tv and internet? - same in NZ!

[batgirl1001]

Hey reasons are reasons and they help constitute what decisions they make. I find it it hard to get information here and often information comes from surfing on the internet rather than the media here that is 85% focused on what happens to NZ only.

I am used to a balanced approached to the news and often obtain free sources (even print) and am used to watching all types....BBC, CNN, even Al Jazeera so coming to NZ was like coming to a country where there is a drought. Have to get print magazines like Time, The Economist etc from libraries and not all libraries carry them.

As I explained earlier on......planning to leave in 2 years time....so parents would have aged by 2+ years then........and by the way how many grandparents you know would not miss their only granddaughter (aged 2) who moved thousands of miles away?:rolleyes:

[batgirl1001]

I am not saying that all Kiwis are bad....in fact I notice many are good people but it is the bad ones that you've encountered who really bristled you. As said earlier, we were accused by the moving company of stealing our own computer so that we can claim insurance and tar their "sterling reputation" of honesty and integrity. It was a low blow by them.

In fact I was rather surprised that refused to entertain the notion that theft could occur under their watch despite the computer being nearly 4 months in their care. They straightoff said it could not possibly be them.....so sure were they....the branch manager could reason that his people only used white tape to seal boxes....hence it couldn't possibly be them since the box was re-sealed with brown tape. Wow.....the logic blew me away.....!

[victoria24]

I had telstraclear insist I used 1 gig of data in a day when noone was in the house and our network is secure! they wouldn't entertain the notion that their reporting software could be wrong

[IanW99]

Hey reasons are reasons and they help constitute what decisions they make. I find it it hard to get information here and often information comes from surfing on the internet rather than the media here that is 85% focused on what happens to NZ only.

I am used to a balanced approached to the news and often obtain free sources (even print) and am used to watching all types....BBC, CNN, even Al Jazeera so coming to NZ was like coming to a country where there is a drought. Have to get print magazines like Time, The Economist etc from libraries and not all libraries carry them.
...


I'm a little confused by your comments, if you are used to watching BBC, CNN and Al Jazeera and you miss them, then why don't you just watch them in NZ? After all, they are all available here?

Personally, I think that the news in NZ covers more world wide events than many other countries which are much more inwardly focused than NZ is.

Ian

[victoria24]

and i like the fact that the news here is more light hearted in general.. you do get good news stories too.

[batgirl1001]

Oh yes....BBC, CNN, etc are all available in NZ but you need to get Sky not Free2Air. I get them free in my own country and I wouldn't have to wake up at 4am in the morning to watch the BBC on Channel One.

IMO there isn't enough balanced news here since my experiences/life/culture is different from yours. Really used to a lot of global news so it was surprising that NZ was insular, more so than when I was in Australia. The ABC was a great channel pity that NZ doesn't have something like that.

[Fern01]

If you are in New Zealand for less than two years you get diddly squat in terms of benefits if you are made unemployed
I would have thought that would be understandable, I would say you are lucky to get any benefit, very little tax has been paid after less than 2 years of employment and that's where the money comes from for benefits, the taxpayers.
I live in a semi rural area and I'm thankful the public can't walk across my gardens or my paddocks, leaving the gates open and having stock wandering the roads, or leaving their rubbish behind for the stock to choke on.

[Sam B]

Luckily people in Britain seem to manage to walk through gates and shut them behind them, and they leave surprisingly little litter as well. The sorts of people who enjoy walking through countryside are generally very good custodians of it.

[victoria24]

unless they just bought a ripping dirt bike ;)

[VileTraveller]

Nothing here feels like quality (I have this sense of everything being cheap and unsturdy, no matter how much I pay for something).
Hehehe, I get that feeling everywhere I go since I've started visiting Japan. Talk about a national epedemic of obsessive-compulsive craftsmanship! :laugh

Well, so far this thread is quite encouraging for me as a prospective immigrant - nothing deal-breaking as yet (not much of a familyman - except for my better half, of course).

[benhila]

I still have 6 years or so before I'll be ready to leave my present abode, so I'm not in too much of a hurry!

Hi VileTraveller

It's good that you haven't encountered a 'deal breaker' yet, but anything and everything can change in six years!

Cheers

Hila

[Navyref]

It was a huge financial struggle living in NZ, job was not as decribed and totally mind numbing and boring....imagine if you can running around after your manager all day asking for something to do.... :clap


I can totally understand where this chap comes from, my job was not as described and totally mind numbing, lucky me that I've been offered my old job back in the UK however, it means leaving the family here to sell and pack the house or should I say 'cardboard box!'

As I live 'on the shore', I will miss being able to 'pop' to the beach when I have a spare few minutes, but at least being on the Dorset/Somerset border means the coast isn't too far away and not to mention those cosy pubs with decent food, beer and log fires. The children love being here but I would imagine the fascinaion with the beach will wane with age and that eventually they will want to leave 'Lost' and explore the realworld.

I've only been here for eight months and have aplied for countless other jobs, not even a sniff of an interview - God knows what'll be like when my contract expires in five years time?

[VileTraveller]

It's good that you haven't encountered a 'deal breaker' yet, but anything and everything can change in six years!Oh, no doubt about it - nothing is certain. Especially considering the way the years seem to be passing with ever greater speed ...

[Wooly_Cow]

I would have thought that would be understandable, I would say you are lucky to get any benefit, very little tax has been paid after less than 2 years of employment and that's where the money comes from for benefits, the taxpayers.


...except that across many countires there are bilaterral agrrements that contributions to national insurance and health schemes are transferable.

Seems strange to me that between UK and New Zealand you can 'transfer' pension contributions to national schemes, but other benefits are not transferable. The system appears to work well within the EU. It seems odd that a similar system can't be run between countires that share far closer relationship.

....and I would have thought that once you are allowed to stay permanently (PR) you should get access to the full range of services and benefits.

[benhila]

....and I would have thought that once you are allowed to stay permanently (PR) you should get access to the full range of services and benefits.

Well, actually it does work like that. Once you get your 'indefinite PR' (after having PR for two years while living in NZ) you do get access to the full range of services and benefits. The initial PR is a PR in name only since it doesn't guarantee permanence.

Hila

[Wooly_Cow]

Well, actually it does work like that. Once you get your 'indefinite PR' (after having PR for two years while living in NZ) you do get access to the full range of services and benefits. The initial PR is a PR in name only since it doesn't guarantee permanence.

Hila

I think access to benefits is dependant on living here for two years as a resident, and is not dependant on iRRV. The two things are coinicedent but there can be cases were PR is extended beyond two years without iRRV being issued.

[James 1077]

Oh yes....BBC, CNN, etc are all available in NZ but you need to get Sky not Free2Air. I get them free in my own country and I wouldn't have to wake up at 4am in the morning to watch the BBC on Channel One.

www.filmon.com (http://www.filmon.com) - BBC News 24 delivered direct to your computer ... plus BBC1, 2, ITV, Channel 4 etc etc etc.

[Navyref]

Interested in why people are leaving or thinking of leaving.
This could be a pointer to the things to think about before one moves to NZ.
Thanks.

http://http://www.expatexposed.com/

[KelvinAng]

Hey reasons are reasons and they help constitute what decisions they make. I find it it hard to get information here and often information comes from surfing on the internet rather than the media here that is 85% focused on what happens to NZ only.

I am used to a balanced approached to the news and often obtain free sources (even print) and am used to watching all types....BBC, CNN, even Al Jazeera so coming to NZ was like coming to a country where there is a drought. Have to get print magazines like Time, The Economist etc from libraries and not all libraries carry them.

As I explained earlier on......planning to leave in 2 years time....so parents would have aged by 2+ years then........and by the way how many grandparents you know would not miss their only granddaughter (aged 2) who moved thousands of miles away?:rolleyes:

Local news media is exactly that - local. To catch up on news as reported by the free-to-air Singapore media, what you need is MobTV.sg (and a subscription to their services).

Personally I think TVNZ 7 (Freeview NZ, which is free-to-air but requires a digital receiver or a very new TV with built-in Freeview receiver) is very good for news and documentary buffs, and while it promotes home-grown docos its news programmes include ABC World News.

BBC and CNN on traditional media would require Sky TV subscription. It's just a pity they cost so much compared to Singapore's StarHub cable TV.

[newarrival]

It might be interesting to read the expat- forum, but, to be honest, just for a short while..., I was put off by those bitter, frustrated texts you find there.
In my opinion you are far better off reading what people who return to their home country write in this forum, it seems to be a lot more balanced.

[victoria24]

www.filmon.com (http://www.filmon.com) - BBC News 24 delivered direct to your computer ... plus BBC1, 2, ITV, Channel 4 etc etc etc.

just had a beak at the site james,, is bbc and itv free?

[James 1077]

just had a beak at the site james,, is bbc and itv free?

Yes! Only problem is that it isn't time delayed so when you settle down in the evening to watch telly you get BBC Breakfast News! :laugh

[victoria24]

Yes! Only problem is that it isn't time delayed so when you settle down in the evening to watch telly you get BBC Breakfast News! :laugh

dunno if any techie people know if there is a way to record the live streaming for say an hour or two?

[Helsandfamily]

www.filmon.com (http://www.filmon.com) - BBC News 24 delivered direct to your computer ... plus BBC1, 2, ITV, Channel 4 etc etc etc.

Any idea how much band width this uses if you were to watch say one hour of match of the day???;)

[2371]

By scanning though the posts, i have learnt that

Wages are lower than in Europe (and Australia)
Relatives are far
TV-Channels are not the same
neither the newspaper
and one might feel like on the end of the world

Wow, now I see why NZIS is so keen on checking out whether everybody is doing some basic research before moving to the bottom of the world….

[Sam B]

To be fair, no amount of research can ever prepare you for the reality of living your new life. Fortunately it has worked for us. Others are not so lucky.

[incredible hulse]

B

Wow, now I see why NZIS is so keen on checking out whether everybody is doing some basic research before moving to the bottom of the world….

I doubt NZIS could give a toss as long as they collect their duty ....

[victoria24]

I doubt NZIS could give a toss as long as they collect their duty ....

cynic.. :D

[leachio]

To be fair, no amount of research can ever prepare you for the reality of living your new life. Fortunately it has worked for us. Others are not so lucky.

good reply sam :nice1

[Leo]

...no amount of research can ever prepare you for the reality of living your new life. Fortunately it has worked for us. Others are not so lucky.

How true indeed... I often wonder if it's akin to being 'the Right person in the Right place at the Right time, with the Right outlook and doing the Right things under the Right circumstances'.

Would missing out on any of the "Right" items necessarily mean that one is destined to fail? Or does Life (...with its funny ways) somehow adjust to make everything "Right" again?

Reflecting this upon myself, I've been here in NZ struggling to find employment (and a new life) in arguably one of the worst global recessions :o Definitely didn't get my timing nor circumstances "Right" there... Will this then all end in tears? :wah

[cappuccino]

How true indeed... I often wonder if it's akin to being 'the Right person in the Right place at the Right time, with the Right outlook and doing the Right things under the Right circumstances'.

Would missing out on any of the "Right" items necessarily mean that one is destined to fail? Or does Life (...with its funny ways) somehow adjust to make everything "Right" again?

Reflecting this upon myself, I've been here in NZ struggling to find employment (and a new life) in arguably one of the worst global recessions :o Definitely didn't get my timing nor circumstances "Right" there... Will this then all end in tears? :wah

You are soooo right! It's a bit like a jigsaw puzzle and you need all the right pieces to put together to make the big perfect picture. Sometimes you have some or most of the pieces and are happy but then a gust of wind comes along and blows the pieces around and everything that was going well can change.

That's life tho... where ever you are, whatever you do, you just don't know when the next gust of wind is gonna shake it all up!

[Kiwi Mac]

I have not even visited the UK since we left in 04.

LOL when I read about the quality issues - so true. I have never met a greater collection of skinflints than the Kiwis. We import stuff from overseas regardless of cost now if we cannot get what we want here.

Kiwis are always amazed when they visit because we have 4 heatpumps running 24/7 in the winter if required - they seem to think that putting a hat and gloves on indoors is somehow normal.

I wouldn't recommend going back though - my friends and relatives don't tell me stories filled with milk and honey from the UK and whatever you did not like when you left will certainly still be there and will certainly be worse!

[Scorpio]

I feel that this is the flip side of the "She'll be right" attitude. On a positive note, Kiwis are very gracious when it comes to letting things be; in my home country, drivers can be horn-happy and impatient. Here, I'm very impressed by drivers who wave pleasantly and wait if you need to make a sudden turn. :yes

However, I've met a Kiwi who felt that things here move slowly because people don't really react when things can be improved. They just "shrug it off" because 'she'll be right'- but do things always work themselves out? :confused:


I have not even visited the UK since we left in 04.

LOL when I read about the quality issues - so true. I have never met a greater collection of skinflints than the Kiwis. We import stuff from overseas regardless of cost now if we cannot get what we want here.

Kiwis are always amazed when they visit because we have 4 heatpumps running 24/7 in the winter if required - they seem to think that putting a hat and gloves on indoors is somehow normal.

[Kiwi Mac]

You may be right. Certainly there is a perceptible sloth to change.

A classic example is the endless debate about how to reduce road deaths. Not too hard - ask any European.

1) Increase driving age to 17 or 18
2) Make car insurance compulsory. Tough if that means you can't afford to drive an Impreza WRX when you pass your test!
3) Insist on professional lessons instead of learning bad habits from parents
4) Buy UK Highway Design Guildelines (around $1000 on CD ROM!) and replicate here to improve junction design, corner design, passive road safety features etc

Not too hard really - you would think!

"She'll Be Right" simply is no longer good enough in the modern world - and one of the benefits of a positive immigration process is the catalysing of the change that will improve that.

[roop]

Hi all

I used to post on the forum as Dave & Sandra back in 2004 with a Snoopy avatar - forgot the log in details and have signed on as Roop (my husbands nickname for me) now. I was around when Moorf and Diny and Kim were first posting. Moorf has been the mainstay of Emigratenz, having posted so much good info. We actually flew out from the UK on the same flight from Singapore - she went to Christchurch and I went to Palmy, via Wellington!! Do you remember Moorf?? I remember when Rae created her :raebanana

Dave and I are going back to Europe due to a really bad situation with my job. Dave stopped working for the company he was with about two years ago and started a business from home.

I arrived in September 2004 got a job in February 2005 and have worked at that job up until last week, having really enjoyed it and I have a really good relationship with everybody in the company. I got the office manager from hell working with me for the past couple of years and as there are only two of us in the office, the last year has been the worst I have ever known in my life. :wah

It's amazing how many people I have spoken to about the situation and they have told me that they are going through the same thing!! There was an article on Stuff recently about psychotic work mates and she fits the description perfectly. I have worked in UK, Hong Kong,Saudi Arabia and NZ for the last 37 years and have never experienced the kind of hatred that I have had from this woman. I'm a very easy going person and get on with most people, but this has really got to me. The MD says that he wants both of us to stay, which doesn't really solve the problem.

We were selling our house anyway, having put it on the market in March, with a view to downsizing. It's an old villa which we have spent a lot of money and time renovating and it's taken us 8 months to sell it. Please beware, don't go for the old villas - they might look appealing but take up an awful lot of money to maintain and Kiwis don't really want to buy them when you come to sell. They want what we all want now, double glazing, modern living space etc.

Dave and I are going to buy a motorhome when the financial settlement comes through in January. We are going to tour around NZ for 6 months so our UK cat can have his rabies jabs then we will go back to the UK. I am 55 now and there is absolutely no chance of me getting a new job in NZ in the current climate. We are then going to do a TEFL course in the UK and then travel around Europe teaching English and earning money - I hope :eek:

All I am trying to say in this post is that everything may be fine on the surface but when the **** hits the fan you really feel very vulnerable and then you realise that you are a 'stranger in a strange land'. Dave hates the whole ethos of Europe and the European Union (at least Tony Blair is not going to be President now), but we would still feel more comfortable there than we do here right now.

[JandM]

Sorry to hear this. I changed my career totally 14 years ago thanks to a new boss from hell, so I know how it feels while you're going through it.

[Arwen]

Oh roop, so sorry to hear that you have suffered so much. How infuriating!!! You spend all that time in a job that suits you well only for one mean ***** to come along and spoil it all. Why can't the boss just see sense and get rid of her???? especially as she's the one being so nasty!!

I wish you all the very best with your move to Europe and the new career. :)

On a separate note, I remember the posters you mentioned (especially Moorf). :D I was not a member of the forum at the time, but spent a lot of time reading her posts. I found them really uplifting and inspirational. Moorf reappeared on the forum a while back, and by all accounts is still happy and settled here in NZ. :clap

http://www.emigratenz.org/forum/showthread.php?t=26953&highlight=Moorf

[KelvinAng]

You spend all that time in a job that suits you well only for one mean ***** to come along and spoil it all. Why can't the boss just see sense and get rid of her???? especially as she's the one being so nasty!!

Seems to be quite a common situation, Arwen. Like a Kiwi once told me, it's not about what you know but who you know. A similar situation exist in my previous place of employment which led to the entire IT department (about 5 persons) resigning in the midst of the recession.

[veronica]

Hiya Roop sorry its ended up like that for you, have you got citizen ship yet. If yuo would take a word of advise from us gt that before you leave, its a good insurance as the world has away of chucking spin balls and it may be useful in the future to have a NZ passport.

[Arwen]

Seems to be quite a common situation, Arwen. Like a Kiwi once told me, it's not about what you know but who you know. A similar situation exist in my previous place of employment which led to the entire IT department (about 5 persons) resigning in the midst of the recession.

Oh that's really awful Kelvin. Crikey, 5 people resigning in a recession!!! Things must have been terrible in that department!!!:eek:

I know what you mean about the 'it's not what you know, it's who you know' thing going on here. I think it was Peter Jackson who described NZ as more akin to a village than a country, and he's right!!! Everyone seems to know everyone here!!!:exit

[Kiwi Mac]

I agree. I have always wondered how Kiwis manage to have affairs with any degree of success!

[KelvinAng]

I agree. I have always wondered how Kiwis manage to have affairs with any degree of success!

I know you mean it as a joke with regards to everyone knowing everyone else (which appears to be true!). There's however a serious side to it...

Kiwis probably don't have affairs, they simply separate from their original partners and form new relationships! It is very scary, more than half the Kiwis I know have parents who are separated. You know this when they say things like "dad and his partner" and "mom and her partner."

In one of the flats I flatted in, the landlady had two kids who would come stay over in the house half of the week, and over at her ex-husband's house the other half of the week. Once, a flatmate couple renting a room in the house had a quarrel and one of the kids, aged 7 years, noted it. She later talked to the lady of the quarreling couple and suggest that she separate from her husband!

When I first moved to NZ, one of the first things my then-new male Kiwi colleague told me: Kiwi women are the most promiscuous in the world (http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2007/10/13/1191696214489.html).

[VileTraveller]

When I first moved to NZ, one of the first things my then-new male Kiwi colleague told me: Kiwi women are the most promiscuous in the world (http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2007/10/13/1191696214489.html).
Well, you know, you have to keep the gene pool healthy in such a small population! :yes

[petri]

Well, you know, you have to keep the gene pool healthy in such a small population! :yes

That's what were thinking after the medical check today.. Peeing to a bottle for 24 hours, that's a first to us.

[Kea]

I know you mean it as a joke with regards to everyone knowing everyone else (which appears to be true!). There's however a serious side to it...

Kiwis probably don't have affairs, they simply separate from their original partners and form new relationships! It is very scary, more than half the Kiwis I know have parents who are separated. You know this when they say things like "dad and his partner" and "mom and her partner."

In one of the flats I flatted in, the landlady had two kids who would come stay over in the house half of the week, and over at her ex-husband's house the other half of the week. Once, a flatmate couple renting a room in the house had a quarrel and one of the kids, aged 7 years, noted it. She later talked to the lady of the quarreling couple and suggest that she separate from her husband!

When I first moved to NZ, one of the first things my then-new male Kiwi colleague told me: Kiwi women are the most promiscuous in the world (http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2007/10/13/1191696214489.html).

I wonder who all these women are having sex with then? Tourists?

[Philip10]

we have 4 heatpumps running 24/7 in the winter




:eek:

[Kiwi Mac]

:eek:

They have thermostats.

Set to 16 and leave on. Then just up it a notch or two when required.

It's more efficient to bring the house from 16 up to 20 than it is to bring it from 5 up to 20 if you let the thermal mass cool off. (Our house is made of concrete)

Also we run part of the house as a B&B and guests like it cozy.

Theoretically at least, every $1 of electricity in a Heat Pump makes $4 worth of heat. Or so they say.

And my Hungarian Vizsla hates the cold...! :o

(Yeah - they spent 1000 years breeding a hunting dog from Hungary, a cold place, that hates the cold. Go figure.)

[Warhoon]

__________________
THIS IS NOT INTENDED AS IMMIGRATION ADVICE

If I could leave tonight, even with leaving all my stuff behind, I would.

Reasons:

1. Feeling like a second-class citizen, a American-accented invasive pest that is instantly judged and summarily dismissed. My opinion, skills and potential to contribute to this society are marginalised because it's fashionable to hate Yanks.
2. Opportunities are carefully regulated here for my kind (see #1) and there are very few real opportunities to begin with.
3. Everything costs a fortune. Hey, less consumerism is great - but I'm talking the basics like housing, heat, clothing and food - not iPods and imported beer.
4. Horrid housing at premium rates. Our apartment is testament to that. I feel sick every time I pay the rent...which fortunately is every week. If I had to see the $$$ amount for the whole month all at once, that would probably kill me.
5. Scenery doesn't pay the bills. Too bad, because the scenery is beautiful once you get away from the yuck cities.
6. Provincial, parochial village attitudes
7. Considering the 'Kiwis First' mantra, I would not want to get seriously sick and be on a waiting list for anything here (like, say, a vital organ). That terrifies me.
8. The weather. It's freezing in the shade, constantly windy, and the only way to feel something even somewhat resembling warmth is to stand in the sun, being instantly irradiated and assured of skin cancer.
9. I hate wearing sunscreen (see #8)
10. Undercurrent of racism in politics and society, tempered by a disgusting phony self-congratulating political correctness which is only necessary with certain groups. For others, it's OK not to even bother hiding the racism.
11. NZ is very, very far away from everything...well, except Australia.

Am I bitter? Well, sure, a little bit. But mostly now I'm just over it and ready to get my life started again - somewhere else.

Target date for departure is mid-2010. Lots to do before then, but very motivated.
__________________
THIS IS NOT INTENDED AS IMMIGRATION ADVICE

[Scorpio]

Hi roop! It's good to see you again; I was wondering where Dave & Sandra went! I know words probably bring little comfort to you right now but I was quite indignant reading about your episode with the manager from hell. :mad: What was HER problem anyway? Really, the people we work with can often decide if we stay in a job or not. Some people never seem to outgrow bullying, and it's sad.

Thanks for the advice about the villas; I sure hope David and you have a truly great time to wrap time your sojourn in NZ before you head back to Europe. I wish you both the very best in the next part of your journey and may things work out for you! Take care... :nice1

[Kanga]

__________________
THIS IS NOT INTENDED AS IMMIGRATION ADVICE

If I could leave tonight, even with leaving all my stuff behind, I would.

Reasons:

1. Feeling like a second-class citizen, a American-accented invasive pest that is instantly judged and summarily dismissed. My opinion, skills and potential to contribute to this society are marginalised because it's fashionable to hate Yanks.
2. Opportunities are carefully regulated here for my kind (see #1) and there are very few real opportunities to begin with.
3. Everything costs a fortune. Hey, less consumerism is great - but I'm talking the basics like housing, heat, clothing and food - not iPods and imported beer.
4. Horrid housing at premium rates. Our apartment is testament to that. I feel sick every time I pay the rent...which fortunately is every week. If I had to see the $$$ amount for the whole month all at once, that would probably kill me.
5. Scenery doesn't pay the bills. Too bad, because the scenery is beautiful once you get away from the yuck cities.
6. Provincial, parochial village attitudes
7. Considering the 'Kiwis First' mantra, I would not want to get seriously sick and be on a waiting list for anything here (like, say, a vital organ). That terrifies me.
8. The weather. It's freezing in the shade, constantly windy, and the only way to feel something even somewhat resembling warmth is to stand in the sun, being instantly irradiated and assured of skin cancer.
9. I hate wearing sunscreen (see #8)
10. Undercurrent of racism in politics and society, tempered by a disgusting phony self-congratulating political correctness which is only necessary with certain groups. For others, it's OK not to even bother hiding the racism.
11. NZ is very, very far away from everything...well, except Australia.

Am I bitter? Well, sure, a little bit. But mostly now I'm just over it and ready to get my life started again - somewhere else.

Target date for departure is mid-2010. Lots to do before then, but very motivated.
__________________
THIS IS NOT INTENDED AS IMMIGRATION ADVICE

Not exactly having a blast then! Best of luck with you exit plan :laugh