Here a Month - First Impressions

richsadams · Last edited by richsadams on Mon Jul 05, 2004 6:18 pm; edited 3 times in total

Hi All

Okay, we’ve been here about a month…so it's about time we wrote! Please accept my apologies up front for the following information overload. I’ve been saving up bits and pieces of information to share and just now put some of it together.

Greetings to all of my forum friends…I missed you and missed reading all of the great posts! I’m planning on sitting down and piling through them so I can get back up to speed! So I’m back, although I may not be able to write as much, I intend to stay tuned and look forward to seeing how everyone is doing.

For those of you whom I haven’t had the pleasure of “meeting” on this forum (I have lot’s of other posts if you wanted to do a quick search), let me give you some background. My wife and I found ourselves in a position to change our lives near the end of last year. My company had just merged with another and was offering me (and a lot of others) a pretty decent severance package (or a move to Houston…hmmm, tough decision! Rolling Eyes

). My wife’s contract as an I.T. consultant was ending at almost the same moment. And I would be remiss if I didn’t mention that we both (one Republican and one Democrat) had become extremely dissatisfied with the direction of the current U.S. Administration and what they have done to America. Embarassed

We had visited New Zealand (she’d been here twice, me once) and we fell in love with the place. We have plenty of family and friends in the U.S. but it seemed the planets were aligned for a change and if not now, when? It was a tough, emotional decision but we both believe the only things you regret are those things you never tried. Our friends love us but encouraged us to go. Our family was a bit tougher to convince but they eventually got behind our adventure (after a LOT of hard questions!). comfort

We did a lot of research on a lot of places in the U.S., Canada, France, Central America, etc., etc. and couldn’t get past all of the “pluses” NZ had to offer. We decided to see if we could immigrate in the later part of October 2003. We hired a high-profile consulting company, Malcolm Pacific. We found their fees to be as high or higher than anyone’s in the business and that rocked us back on our heels a bit. Eek

However the company is operated by two former NZ Immigration Ministers so we felt comfortable that if anyone could help us, they would be the best. In addition my wife had had some health issues in the past (no problems now) so we wanted someone strong in our corner. We were very comfortable with our decision after meeting with a representative at an immigration forum in Los Angeles. He displayed a great deal of dedication and knowledge and gave us some very good free advice up front. There was no pressure or obligation. A week later we signed up, gave them a 50% deposit and we were on our way to finding out just how much patience and fortitude we had!

At first we were going to try to obtain a Long Term Business Visa by purchasing or opening a NZ business. I’ve had decades of experience showing others how to run and grow their businesses so I thought it might be time to leave the corporate world and strike out on my own. Under a LTBV you can obtain permanent NZ residency in 24 to 36 months provided your business venture is successful/shows a profit and is “beneficial” to New Zealand. MP instead encouraged us to look into employment first as we would be eligible for a permanent residence visa immediately and wouldn’t have to deal with the NZIS in the future. It’s less work for them to be sure, but MP guaranteed residency through what was then General Immigration, soon to be Skilled Migrant Category or our money back. My wife’s points score was higher than mine as she is in I.T., and her skills were listed on the Priority Occupation List (POL). So she became the “primary” applicant. MP was charged with finding her an offer of employment, handling all of the NZIS applications paperwork, etc. They were successful in finding several opportunities which lead to a successful offer of employment and it turns out that the job fits her skills perfectly. MP gained Work Visas for both of us in May and we moved June 1. She’s very excited and looks forward to work every day. Her salary is about ½ of what she earned in the U.S., but there are trade-offs to be made and we’re making them happily. I’m working on property investment and obtaining my real estate licence. So we’re both busy and happy doing what we wanted to do in a place we enjoy. We may decide to do something else in the future, but for now things are working out fine.

With regard to consultants, does everyone need one? No. If your case is pretty straight forward and you have no “issues” and can find your own offer of employment you can certainly do all of the required SMC paperwork on line yourself. Many consultants are considerably less costly as well, but it’s buyer beware as there is no actual authority and anyone can hang out a shingle. (There is a move by the NZ government to licence consultants in the works. Yes

) So in our case, we wanted to ensure all of the bases were covered and we still feel the money was well-spent.

It’s been a real roller coaster ride all the way to this point and of course we’re still not “in” but the light at the end of the tunnel is in sight (just as long as it isn’t a train coming the other way)! We’ve been close to giving up more than once…the NZ government has made things very difficult of late.

But it appears they may have realised that things may not have turned out the way they had hoped when they established the new SMC concept because of the marked decrease in applications. It’s put a lot of people off and I’m sure many good immigrants have opted to go elsewhere. We had many fits and starts and some more may be in store, who knows? We were worried about my wife’s old health issue being a problem but it turned out she received a clean bill of health and it was mine that suddenly became an issue! My chest X-rays showed some indication of a possible trouble. Turned out it was a congenital defect but apparently on an X-ray looked similar to a past case of TB! Eek

Yikes! So there were a couple of weeks of hand wringing. Other fits and starts cropped up as well but all ironed out okay. If you’re in the process, I’m sure you know what I mean. If you’re just starting out, be prepared for a lot of worries and disappointments, highs and lows, but know that it can be done in most cases. Having a consultant during these trying times was a blessing as they were able to answer a lot of questions and quell our fears…sometimes daily! Wah

Our SMC points score was 165 when we filed out Expression of Interest (EOI) and our application was pulled from the pool just before we left. It turned out however that the NZIS disallowed the POL points and tossed us back in at 160 points. Luckily the pass mark dropped to 160 the next fortnight (two weeks) and we were again drawn. As we were in the middle of moving we didn’t even know anything had changed until our consultant called and told us about it…just as well! Uhoh

The excellent news is that we just received our official Invitation to Apply for Residence from the NZIS today! Mr. Green

Woo hoo! Now our consultant will deliver all of the paperwork, medicals, police reports, etc. to the NZIS for final verification and hopefully they’ll let us stay! That would really help as all of our belongings are on a ship somewhere in the Pacific headed this way and due to arrive in Tauranga on July 21! Nice One

That brings us to today. Today we live in a great holiday home we found on the internet in a tiny place called Ngongotaha on Lake Rotorua on the North Island. It’s next to the NZ tourist mecca Rotorua which is famous for it’s volcanic activity (and infamously for the associated rotten-egg sulphur aroma that wafts over the town now and again Hmmm

). This is where my wife’s company is located. I contacted the owner of the house we’re renting via e-mail back in March and told him what we were up to. Since holiday homes are usually rented during the summer, and well, holidays, we thought someone might be interested in renting one to us for a few months during the “off season”. Several were and we settled on the one we’re in mostly because the owner seemed so friendly and accommodating. And here’s a perfect example of Kiwi kindness; we asked the owner of the house we’re renting if there was a post office there where we could forward our mail. Instead of just telling us there was, he went into town, rented us a P.O. box at his expense and sent back the info about our “new address”! As a vacation home it’s fully furnished with linens (“Manchester” as they call it here), dishes, etc. It was perfect for us as we just brought four big pieces of luggage with some clothes, important papers and my laptop. It’s good for him as the place would have been mostly empty and now he’s making some unexpected money.

Rotorua is a nice place but not where we would ultimately like to settle. My wife should be able to work from home soon so we have been exploring lots of places. So far we like Tauranga and the surrounding area the best. It’s located in the Bay of Plenty region of the east coast of the North Island. It has a great downtown area, beautiful beaches and receives the second highest amount of sun in the country…what’s not to like? cool

The housing prices, that’s what. Eek

Housing costs have soared recently. It’s was a nice, sleepy place that’s recently been discovered by locals and migrants alike. Apparently a lot of people are moving there from Auckland and prices have been jumping. Sellers are tickled, buyers and other locals are complaining. But it seems to have levelled off. Some doom-sayers are predicting a housing price bubble burst and decline, others aren’t as sure as the economy is still humming along. It’s not as expensive as Auckland, but comparatively it’s not cheap. Like all places, you get what you pay for. You can still find a home minutes from the beach and some with an ocean view for under US$400K though. Try to find that in California!

Now, what are our first impressions? After being a tourist your view of a place changes when you live there. I’ve been lucky enough to have lived in several places that most only visit; San Francisco, San Diego, Hawaii and others. It’s much the same here. Without our rose-tinted glasses we realised that all is not paradise. But we still think it’s as close as you’ll probably find anywhere in the world (and we’ve both been blessed enough to have travelled quite a bit). Is everything perfect? Of course not. Is it better than most places? Absolutely. Being the size of California, Japan or the British Isles but with only 4 million people nationwide (¼ of them live in Auckland) it’s simply great. Sheep out number humans 12 to 1…sheep jokes abound. The people are very diverse. 19% are immigrants, a majority British. To our surprise only about 4% are from the U.S. or Canada. There’s an Asian and Middle Eastern influence as well. And of course the original inhabitants, the Maori, constitute around 16% of the total population. Their cultural heritage is a large part of daily life here. Unfortunately, as with many native peoples in other countries including the U.S., their story isn’t a pleasant one regarding how they’ve been treated by the conquering Anglos. Sad

Their pride and spirit is once again on the rise however and the government is encouraging their growth both financially and culturally with new laws designed to make up for some past transgressions and offenses. Yes

There is some bigotry on both sides but a majority of people tend to celebrate the diversity.

Now, let’s get back to our early impressions. If I were to try to capture it in one sentence I’d appropriate a familiar (but oft times forgotten) American saying. “Less is more”. Everything here seems a bit smaller. It appears it’s the result of a number of things both historic and current. Although the economy is doing very, very well right now (NZ is enjoying the lowest unemployment rate in 16 years!) it hasn’t always been that way. Prior to the advent of “Rogernomics” in the late 80’s this was basically a socialist-style country economically. People were comfortable but most not well-to-do by any measure. They’ve suffered a couple of market crashes and are just now finding their global feet. Plus New Zealand is made up of two major islands. With the exception of timber, agriculture, fish and meat, most things have to be imported. Shipping things from one place to another costs money and so the cost of many goods is or has been higher than in other parts of the world…particularly America where a lot of manufacturing (and some government subsidies) keep costs down. Kiwis have been used to paying more for things and often the things they got were of second-rate quality, sometimes overproduction or outcasts of other countries. Even today some of the major stores have a “Pick ‘N Save” feel to them with products showing up one week, gone the next. They’ve have had to settle for things as there wasn’t much competition or variety, they took what they got…and they LIKED it! Consequently they are not spoiled in any sense of the word. They don’t take things for granted and have mercifully not become a throw-away society. Yes

With the strong economy the Kiwi dollar has improved their buying ability particularly with regard to Asian imports. TV’s, stereos, cameras, etc. are still priced about 10 to 20% higher than in the U.S., but it’s much better than it was even a year ago.

New Zealanders work hard but the work week is a bit shorter, vacations are longer and there are a couple more holidays than Americans are used to (the Queen’s Birthday being my favourite). The bottom line is that when compared to the U.S.; they make less money on average, pay more for many goods, spend less on those goods and are good at conserving. This results in what appears to be a fairly content and low-stress society!

Houses are generally smaller, averaging about 140 m2 or 1400 sq. ft. They are building them bigger, but most are small and consequently the rooms are small. Not uncomfortably so, but it takes some getting used to. The yards are smaller because the lots are smaller, some as small as 300 m2 or less! Eek

In those cases you can really get to know our neighbors! Layouts are usually very basic but there is a penchant for loud colours on the walls! Interior decorating is just catching on with HGTV type shows starting to show up on TV. Kitchens with elaborate cabinetry, tiled backsplashes or granite counters are very few and far between. Linoleum and Formica are the rule of the day. They are generally heated one room at a time with small, portable heaters. Many houses have a large central wood burning stove or fireplace in the living or family room. Forced-air heating and double-glazed windows can be found, but it’s pretty rare. A/C is pretty much unheard of as the climate can’t be beat in the summer…windows open allowing a tropical breeze to keep things nice. It does get colder in the winter than we expected, particularly anywhere below the northern most part of the North Island. It was -3 degrees centigrade (around 27 degrees Fahrenheit) here last night… Burrrr! It is of course the dead of winter on this side of the planet! But I’m told that freezing is fairly rare. Highs have been around 55 to 60 degrees Fahrenheit, so it beats a Minnesota (where my wife is from) winter all to heck! Prices for homes are as wide as anywhere. You can get something for US$100K in some places or pay several million for a palace along the sea or in Auckland! I suppose an “average” subdivision home for Americans would run somewhere around US$200K to US$300K in a nice neighbourhood with good schools and near a decent employment center…but again there are lots of opportunities on either side of those numbers. My wife and I are looking for more of a “lifestyle” property and will probably move to an area that hasn’t been developed too much. We’d really like some peace and quiet. We might have to share it with a few sheep and cows, but that’s just fine with us. Laughing

Being a guy, cars are always a big part of my life. When we left we sold my Lexus and my wife’s Mercedes. (They were both several years old so do not get the idea that we’re rich or anything...far from it!) Being that they have right-hand drive cars here, we couldn’t import them. Well, we could have, but it’s a very big hassle as it’s an expensive proposition…just not worth it unless you have some sort of high-end collector car or something. Almost every manufacturer does business here but the roads are dominated by Japanese brands. They are imported by the thousands both new and used. Like houses, they are priced across the spectrum. I wrote a little piece about our car buying experience on another thread. If you’re interested you can take a look…

http://emigratenz.org/community/viewtopic.php?t=790

Like houses, most cars here tend to be smaller than we’re used to in North America. The price of gas is about NZ$1.14 a litre right now or a little over US$3.00 a gallon. It's a bargain according to our British neighbours and a “rip-off” to Americans. As in Europe, Kiwis have learned how to make their fuel go a long way and you can’t do that driving a Hummer! In fact, Hummers can’t be sold here because they are too wide to meet government highway regulations! Is this a great country or what?! For the most part people drive very basic transportation. You see a lot of 4 door sedans and quite a few station wagons. They are usually kind of dirty as it rains quite a bit and many houses don’t have garages. Younger people drive souped-up “pocket rockets” with noisy exhausts and some have discovered car stereos with monster sub-woofers but most behave themselves compared to their more immature American counterparts. SUV’s are catching on, but again, the smaller models rule. We bought a Toyota RAV4, considered pretty small for an SUV in the states, but somewhat mid-sized to large here. I was in the market for a pick-up truck (they call them “ute’s” here) but it’s almost impossible to find one with an automatic transmission. Now I know how to use a stick-shift, but I don’t have any intention of trying to drive on the left side of the road while seated on the right side of my car and manipulate a gear shift with my left hand at the same time! Rolling Eyes

I think the NZ government would be wise to make it illegal for Americans to buy vehicles with manual transmissions myself! Bottom line here is that cars are relatively cheap to on par with U.S. models. The option of buying something smaller than you might be used to is something to seriously consider.

Like all else it seems, the roads here are generally smaller, the top speed limit is 100 kph (60 mph) and most towns are posted at 50 to 60 kph. Outside of Auckland there are few freeways so you won’t be racing down eight-lanes of blacktop at 75 mph here…why buy something big and fast? 4WD is an option to consider if you plan to live in the “bush” however because it does get wet and muddy.

Speaking of driving, it’s a great experience here for sure! I learned to drive on the left in Jamaica (although I don’t remember it much) and then again in downtown London…trial by fire! After a couple of stressful weeks of doing it here your nerves calm and it becomes almost natural. Drivers here are generally polite and forgiving if not a bit crazy. Nutcase

And with some of the oddball road rules I don’t blame them. The strangest rule is one that requires you to give the right-of-way to oncoming traffic when you’re making a turn on your own side of the street! When you are about to turn left onto another street (remember, you’re already in the left-hand lane) and a car in oncoming traffic wants to turn right onto the same street, THEY have the right-of-way! Now that’s weird. Even Kiwis think it’s “a bit daft” and there’s apparently talk of getting rid of it. Let’s hope so! I’m sure I’ve ticked off a person or two by not paying attention. Laughing

Stop signs are rare. Almost all intersections use a yield to the right format. Basically, whoever is to your right has the right-of-way…easy to remember. Low and behold…it works! I’ve been flipped off once and I deserved it! Another difference I like is that there is NO turning after stopping at a stop light, left, right or otherwise. Everyone stays put at a red light, waits their turn and goes when the signal is green. Guess what? Less accidents. Speaking of, signalled intersections anywhere but in a city are rare as well. As in Europe and other places, “roundabouts” are the order of the day. I like them. They move traffic along quite nicely and a fatal accident at one is almost unheard of. Yes, you have to slow down for each one and it does take a little getting used to, but they work extremely well…and besides, you’re only going 50 kph (that’s kph, NOT mph) anyway right? So as you can imagine, with the entire “yield” at the intersection thing, people here have learned to hurry into traffic flow without stopping. It’s a bit unnerving at first, but after a while you get the hang of it. And even if you hesitate the people behind you (if there are any) don’t seem to get too upset. Horn blowing is pretty much frowned upon unless there’s a real emergency. It’s just rude otherwise. Things that would result in classic road rage in the U.S. end up with the other driver just shaking their head and moving on. I like this place.

We took our drivers licence tests a couple of weeks ago. The Automobile Association (same as AAA in the U.S.) handles them at their offices and they take care of car registrations too. Other places handle licences for people and cars as well as there’s no real Department of Motor Vehicles offices as there are in the states. The employees are a delight to deal with as they want to sell you insurance and other things too…so they are very nice to you…what a breath of fresh air. (Apologies if you work for the DMV, but you ARE an easy target!) If you have a U.S. or International Drivers Licence you can “convert” to a New Zealand Drivers Licence by simply taking (or “sitting”) for a test. You don’t have to take a road test so don’t worry about parallel parking on the left side of the road. The AA rep suggested we buy a book titled “The Official New Zealand Road Code for Car Drivers” before we take the test. She said most of the questions are common sense but there are some specific measurement type questions we’d need to know the answers to. Such questions ask about how many meters can you park from an intersection, how many meters of clear road must you have to pass a vehicle (the answer is 100), etc., etc. The slick, glossy, magazine-style book is published by the Land Transport Safety Authority. It costs NZ$24.95 and is a great manual albeit a bit heavy on government-techno speak, with every question they might ask you on a test as well as the answers. The test is 35 questions long and you can miss three and still pass. If you don’t pass you can take it again…but it’s expensive. The cost is around US$100 so you have an incentive to pass! They are multiple choice scratch-off style question sheets with lots of graphics. There are 241 possible questions. No worries though, most are just variants of about 50 in total. So we were glad we bought the book and studied the night before. They are mostly common sense and some are even “duh, who’d miss THAT one?!” easy. My wife got 100%...of course. I missed a couple; both on measurements I didn’t remember and one because I started to scratch off the wrong answer and changed my mind…I had the right one in the first place and should have stuck to it like they say. But I passed…phew! In about four days our Kiwi licences arrived in the post.

And that reminds me of another thing that we’ve noticed here. Everyone tends to under-promise and over-deliver. Even the government. People will often tell you that it’s going to take three weeks for something-or-other to happen and it ends up being far less. My tendency is to go into a fit and tell them the “back home we could have had that done, purchased, installed, sold…whatever…the same day!” Although things do tend to take a bit longer to happen here, it’s not usually nearly as long as they say it will. We’ve gotten phone service, cell phones, driver’s licenses, credit cards and more in far less time than what we were told. So I’ve learned to shut my mouth and smile and say thank you very much for helping us out. Nice One

It works wonders.

Again, I have to tell you that our reception has been terrific. With the way things are in the U.S. we seriously contemplated telling people that we’re Canadian! But the Kiwis have a very good handle on separating what a government does from what the real people are like. No one that I can tell has given us a bad time because we’re “Americans”. I’ve tried to go out of my way to be nice and it may be just that, but it seems like the people here are just nicer and more friendly. I was buying some replacement items in a local chain department store called Farmers (something of a cross between Macy’s and Mervyn’s) and the cashier, a woman probably in her early 60’s asked where I was from. (They think we talk funny here! Laughing

) I told her that we had just moved here from the U.S. and she stopped everything and told me “how happy she was that we liked it so much here that we decided to move and welcome and if there’s anything she could do, just let her know and that she hoped we would really enjoy our new lives here!” And she appeared to be really sincere. Wow! Did I mention how much I like it here recently?

Overall things are going well. Life is slower here, there’s no doubt about that. If you’re in a hurry or have little patience this is not your kind of country. If you're looking for employment and expect a high salary, it probably won't happen. If status, wealth and importance are important to ou, you won't be happy. Don’t come here thinking like the proverbial woman that marries a man with bad habits knowing she can change him later…it ain’t gonna happen…in either case! Laughing

But we’re very pleased with the trade-offs so far.

The American concept of “bigger is better” is, in my opinion (and unfortunately), creeping into NZ lifestyles. They’ve kept it simple, clean and green here for the most part and that’s what drew us to this enchanted “New Middle Earth”. But there is a heavy American influence here. They see its distorted view on TV every night. “Are American people really like the one’s on Jerry Springer?” they ask. “NO! Well, some, but God hates trailer parks and wipes them out periodically.” I answer. Laughing

There’s plenty of opportunity here, but we’d like to think we can help keep it from becoming another California. (I was born in CA., loved it but am really disappointed in what it has become…so this is a great new beginning for me personally because I feel like I might be able to make a difference!) Clapping

So enough for now as I have things I should be doing and I never know when to shut up…at least that’s what my wife says! I’d be happy to answer any questions when I have time. Just post them here and I’ll respond when I have a few minutes. I’ll post some more “first impressions” about shopping, the internet, costs and other things as time permits.

I’d love to hear other’s impressions as well. Yes

We love to read as much as we can get our hands on, so keep (or start) writing!

Hope all is well and your journey is a good one! Clink

karltsmith · Posted: Mon Jul 05, 2004 5:44 pm Post subject:

Hi Rich,

Great to have you back mate...i haven't read all of the above but will do so tonight! Nice One

r+j · Posted: Mon Jul 05, 2004 9:25 pm Post subject:

wow

thanks for that Rich

Glad to hear things are going so well for you both and you're adapting to all the changes.

keep up the great information and have a great life in Nz

Jus

Timbo · Posted: Mon Jul 05, 2004 9:37 pm Post subject:

Superb post Rich. Thanks. Glad you are settling in well. Sounds like maybe you had not paid a previous visit to NZ, as if you had the genuine freindlyness would not have surprised you. That is one of the biggest factors in our decision to relocate there.
Keep it coming, we LOVE to here what we have to look forward to.
Tim

karltsmith · Posted: Mon Jul 05, 2004 9:57 pm Post subject:

Hi Rich,

WOW Eek

A real "tour de force" and a great read! Some lovelly insights particularly your comparisons with the USA! At least you won't have to suffer watching Arnie in anything other than movies now....unless you tune into CNN of course!!!!

Best Wishes .... Karl Nice One

Moorf · Posted: Mon Jul 05, 2004 10:14 pm Post subject:

Wow, nearly went thru a whole pack of biccies reading that.... excellent posting... keep it coming!

Clapping

Lisa.C · I Like It Here Joined: 03 Jul 2004 Posts: 75

Hi Rich,

I enjoyed reading all about NZed from an American Perspective, the Kiwi's certainly are a lovely people and who'd want to change that way of life anyhow?, i'm so glad that you are enjoying the differences and wish you all the luck in the world Nice One

Lisa

eric_amanda · Posted: Mon Jul 05, 2004 10:57 pm Post subject:

Congratulation Rich at finding the time in your new life to fill us in on your first impressions. It has made great reading, but I'm afraid I have had the same problem as Moorf and had to eat a cream cake whilst reading!!

Anyway, look forward to reading more in the coming weeks.

Amanda

Raeven · Posted: Tue Jul 06, 2004 1:15 am Post subject: Thank you!!

Hi, Rich,

As a fellow American looking to migrate, I find your impressions and insights as valuable as any treasure.

We agree on the sad state of our country as a result of the current administration's failures, and my own very limited experience in NZ was the same as yours -- NZ'ers are kind enough to not hold it against you for being from the U. S.!! I am very glad to hear that's holding true for you as well. Have you arranged to vote in the upcoming election? Was that a big hassle?

Also, I was terribly relieved to learn I won't have to take a road test to obtain a NZ driver's license... my husband had to endure that particular indignity when he turned in his Australian driver's license for one here in California. In his nervousness, he twice turned on the windshield wipers instead of the turn signal... fortunately, the administrator of the test didn't hold it against him and he passed!

I'm just tickled to hear how well you guys are getting along there. How are you finding availability of goods you are used to? Have you noticed any lack of things you would take totally for granted here in the U. S.? For example, karlsmith noted on another thread that he had some trouble locating staples for his staple gun (he did find some at last, but not without a bit of searching!), and that's not something Steve and I would have even considered would be scarce.

Anyway, this is just the best stuff -- thanks so much for taking the time to share your in-depth impressions! I'll look forward to the next installment, and I'll post some questions as they occur to me. Thanks so much for the generous offer to answer them as you have time!

All the best, Rae

Dave & Sandra · Posted: Tue Jul 06, 2004 6:21 am Post subject:

Rich

Really enjoyed reading your view of NZ from an American's point of view. At least us Brit's are used to driving on the left Laughing

, one less thing to feel uncertain of.

Pretty much matches Dave's summing up of life in NZ - I can't wait to get there.

Sandra

JCM · Posted: Tue Jul 06, 2004 3:53 pm Post subject:

SoCal Gal · Posted: Wed Jul 07, 2004 3:50 am Post subject: Here a Month

Rich! So great to hear that things are going well! As always, I am so appreciative of your insight - and you always answer the questions I want to ask - you're the best! We have bumped up our trip to August - we think (although my husband is dancing in the aisle about the Kerry/Edwards ticket announcement, but I degress). Would like to ask, is there anything that you wish you had brought with you that you didn't? And, is there anything outlandishly expensive that you wished you had 'stocked up on' before you left the US? i.e, should have run to Bed, Bath and Beyond and got a bunch of towels? stopped off at Target and got a load of Levis? Thanks again, and all the best!
cool

richsadams · Posted: Wed Jul 07, 2004 9:37 am Post subject: First Impressions

Hi Everyone!

Thanks much for all of the positive feedback! Yes

And again, apologies for the novel-length posting. There are so many things I'd like to cover because I know all too well what it's like to sit somewhere else, far away from the land you'd like to call home, and wonder what it's really like. I'll keep things more concise in the future...promise! Wink

So CalGal - Wish I had brought more long-sleeved shirts and maybe a rain coat...it's been chilly and wet. I know summer will be great though. Also a pair of dark-colored tennis shoes. We have a bunch of white New Balance running shoes, etc. and they are apparently a "red flag" that you're an American. Most everyone wears dark shoes here! More and more though I see white NB's and Adidas in the stores, but on the street, the plain, dark shoe rules. Some things are more expensive here, but not outrageously so. If you like cotton garments of any sort (jeans, etc.)...bring them along. They don't grow cotton here and many things are synthetic...polyester is very popular. They DO have Bed Bath and Beyond here but the stores are quite a bit smaller. Go Kerry/Edwards!!! Nice One

Rae - There is a website you can go to find out about absentee voting and apply for an absentee ballot...

http://www.fvap.gov/index.html

You can vote off-shore based on your last home address so we can still make a difference! Clapping

I've seen other people's windshield wipers flipping back and forth as they approach intersections...on completely sunny days, so I know I'm not the only one that "signals" with them! Laughing

Good to "be back" Karl and everyone...keep up your postings as well! Clink

SoCal Gal · Posted: Wed Jul 07, 2004 10:15 am Post subject: Here a month

Thanks, Rich, love it! I will hide my hubby's blazing white sneakers for sure! And our Dallas Cowboys t-shirts....kidding!!!!!!!!!!! cool

Raeven · Posted: Wed Jul 07, 2004 12:30 pm Post subject:

Hi, Rich,

Thanks so much for the link for absentee voting. The idea that I might not be able to participate in this upcoming election was really bugging me!!

And don't you dare stop posting your novelesque posts!! So what if we need to bring sandwiches and coffee (which did crack me up, btw!!)?? You're better reading than any Stephen King, and not nearly as scary -- at least most of the time!!

Say, here's a question.. I was surprised to learn that you selected a moving company based in Auckland rather than somewhere here in the States. Would you kindly share your reasoning behind that? And how was the experience that end with loading up and all? If I missed one of your posts and you've already shared that information, forgive me. I'll happily go catch up to keep you from having to repeat yourself!!

Much thanks again,

Rae

P. S. I'm laughing right along with SoCal Gal re the sparkling white sneakers!! We'll definitely lay in a supply of dark-colored runners before leaving here!!