New Zealand is not a little England
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gordster
I'll Hang Around A Little
Joined: 23 Nov 2003
Posts: 15
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Posted: Mon Nov 24, 2003 4:47 am Post subject: New Zealand is not a little England |
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As a kiwi who has lived in the UK for the last 2 years I can tell you that quality of life is so much easier in NZ. OK, you might not earn so much, and you won't be able to buy your warm beer, crap food, and mushy peas in NZ, but life is so much easier there.
kiwi's have a motto, and that is 'she'll be right', meaning no problems. Like Australia kiwi's are very Egalitarian, don't have attitudes, and are generally very friendly.
One thing British and other people need to know though, is NZ is not a little England for of white settlers. Maori culture is a strong component of NZ life, and while a small minority of pakeha in NZ resent this, most kiwis accept and embrace this as part of being a pacific nation. While New Zealand is a multi-cultural nation, its government policies are bi-cultural and reflect the importance of Maori culture in NZ. I'm not sure so many people on this newgroup understand this, and if you have any racist attitudes toward 'Asian' and other groups in the UK you better leave them behind, or find some other country to emigrate too.
New Zealanders are also suscipsious of immigrants to don't intergrate into the NZ way of life, and who tend to socialize and group together and don't embrace their new life.
New Zealand is a long way from the UK, and I would recommend that people visit the place first to get an idea for themselves what it is like. I'm not sure what the percentage of people that emigrate, and then return is, but I know it does happen. Life is different there, and while from a distance it does look rosy, for some it isn't. Many facets of life are different in NZ, and having lived in the UK I realise how different NZ culture is to UK culture.
gordster, I have moved this post to its own thread. ENZ  |
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John Miller
Valued Member
Joined: 17 Nov 2003
Posts: 102
Location: New Zealand
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Posted: Mon Nov 24, 2003 3:43 pm Post subject: Re: New Zealand is not a little England |
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| gordster wrote: |
New Zealanders are also suscipsious of immigrants to don't intergrate into the NZ way of life, and who tend to socialize and group together and don't embrace their new life. |
Like Asians? 
In the UK 'Asian' often means Pakistani. 'Asian' in New Zealand means people from the far east like China or Korea and certainly many people from these communities do 'socialize and group together'.
In my experience on the Shore, Brits integrate and are accepted extremely well by Kiwis.
There seems to be many different New Zealands. There is the New Zealand of South Auckland where there are large numbers of Maori and Pacific Islanders. North Shore on the other hand is very European with something of an influx of 'Asians'. Go to the Far North and East Coast - Kaitaia, Gisborne, Whakatane and there you'll find a New Zealand with a high proportion of Maori. Go to some parts of the South Island and you'll see an almost exclusively European New Zealand.
The govt is very keen on 'bi-culturalism'. I think most Kiwis get on with their own lives and I've found very little interest from people I know in Maori cultural stuff. It certainly plays no part in my life and I don't see many Maori people from one week to the next.
Your experience of 'New Zealand culture' will depend a lot on where you live and what your own interests are. |
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John Miller
Valued Member
Joined: 17 Nov 2003
Posts: 102
Location: New Zealand
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Posted: Mon Nov 24, 2003 4:39 pm Post subject: Re: New Zealand is not a little England |
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| gordster wrote: | | I'm not sure so many people on this newgroup understand this, and if you have any racist attitudes toward 'Asian' and other groups in the UK you better leave them behind, or find some other country to emigrate too.[/size][/color] |
In my experience the anti-Asian sentiments expressed by some Kiwis in day to day life, by some politicians and by some talk-back radio hosts are much stronger than would be considered acceptable in the UK. |
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Stuart Mac
I'll Hang Around A Little
Joined: 17 Nov 2003
Posts: 13
Location: Fife, Scotland, UK
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Posted: Fri Nov 28, 2003 5:23 am Post subject: |
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How about a little Scotland then? 
I think most people are intelligent enough to realise that NZ is a different country so the culture will be different in some ways. As John says, some of these cultural aspects might differ between areas. I don't have the impression there will be any huge uncomfortable cultural barriers though because if there were I think someone who has already migrated to NZ from the UK would be telling us about them. Or are you all keeping big secrets from us?  |
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