Richard_from_Long Beach
28th October 2005, 07:43 AM
Hello all,
My first post to the board. The process is moving quickly for me. EOI submitted 9/23, selected 9/28, and ITA sent 10/19. Here's my story:
I went to live in Christchurch in September '04 on a six-month holiday visa from the US. I really liked living there and travelling the South Island by InterCity bus. Of course I thought about moving there permanently, but didn't think PR was a possibility for me. N.Z. stayed on my mind though, and then I realized I could claim 105 points for the skilled migrant category, based largely on having a law degree and having worked for over 10 years--although not as a lawyer for most of that time. I do not have a job offer or qualification as a NZ lawyer yet. From what I understand reading some of the other lawyer-emigrant posts, NZIS is likely to grant me a work permit first, then PR once I get my NZ law qualification. [Anyone confirm that?]
Christchurch has everything I want in a place to live: although it's the biggest city on the South Island, with plenty of things to do and places to shop, it's not that big or congested. I lived in the central city and had no car, and that is one of the big factors drawing me back--the opportunity to live without the hassle of traffic, car repairs, and gasoline prices. Christchurch is very walkable (and an excellent bus system), has great parks and gardens, and seems to have fewer problems associated with urban life (crime, etc.). I know those problems exist there to some degree (something really needs to be done about the hoons and their modified exhausts), and I believe that people are basically the same everywhere, but it just seems that lower population means fewer problems. Also, I really appreciated the lack of extreme wealth and poverty, at least compared to the U.S. - no Beverly Hills, no Compton.
The real wealth of NZ--shared by everyone--is of course the natural environment. Christchurch is pretty well situated for trips to the rest of the S.I., and I also really enjoyed the Port Hills, the ocean, and Banks Peninsula right within reach. The weather is not hot enough for my liking (coming from the desert), but on the whole it was good, with many fine days. The weather was constantly changing also--week-to-week, day-to-day, hour-to-hour. (Caveat: I was not there in the winter for the CHCH smog.)
I'm still not 100% sure I'm going to make the move--it seems like such a permanent, serious decision--but I have lived all over the US and haven't come across a city as nice as Christchurch.
My first post to the board. The process is moving quickly for me. EOI submitted 9/23, selected 9/28, and ITA sent 10/19. Here's my story:
I went to live in Christchurch in September '04 on a six-month holiday visa from the US. I really liked living there and travelling the South Island by InterCity bus. Of course I thought about moving there permanently, but didn't think PR was a possibility for me. N.Z. stayed on my mind though, and then I realized I could claim 105 points for the skilled migrant category, based largely on having a law degree and having worked for over 10 years--although not as a lawyer for most of that time. I do not have a job offer or qualification as a NZ lawyer yet. From what I understand reading some of the other lawyer-emigrant posts, NZIS is likely to grant me a work permit first, then PR once I get my NZ law qualification. [Anyone confirm that?]
Christchurch has everything I want in a place to live: although it's the biggest city on the South Island, with plenty of things to do and places to shop, it's not that big or congested. I lived in the central city and had no car, and that is one of the big factors drawing me back--the opportunity to live without the hassle of traffic, car repairs, and gasoline prices. Christchurch is very walkable (and an excellent bus system), has great parks and gardens, and seems to have fewer problems associated with urban life (crime, etc.). I know those problems exist there to some degree (something really needs to be done about the hoons and their modified exhausts), and I believe that people are basically the same everywhere, but it just seems that lower population means fewer problems. Also, I really appreciated the lack of extreme wealth and poverty, at least compared to the U.S. - no Beverly Hills, no Compton.
The real wealth of NZ--shared by everyone--is of course the natural environment. Christchurch is pretty well situated for trips to the rest of the S.I., and I also really enjoyed the Port Hills, the ocean, and Banks Peninsula right within reach. The weather is not hot enough for my liking (coming from the desert), but on the whole it was good, with many fine days. The weather was constantly changing also--week-to-week, day-to-day, hour-to-hour. (Caveat: I was not there in the winter for the CHCH smog.)
I'm still not 100% sure I'm going to make the move--it seems like such a permanent, serious decision--but I have lived all over the US and haven't come across a city as nice as Christchurch.