Life in New Zealand?

Question

What is it like in NZ? What are the houses/apartments like? What kind of cars do people drive? What pests are there? How much do clothes cost and what kinds/brands do they wear? How do they feel about religion? What foods are available compared to in Texas?

Answer 1

I'm an American now living in NZ. I used to live in San Antonio actually, so hopefully my perspective will he helpful.

General: It is much cooler than TX.

Housing: Poor insulation with no central heat/air. In fact, many houses are still heated by a single log burner (closed in fire place).

Cars: Very similar cars/trucks/SUVs, with a few more European looking ones thrown in. We do drive on the left side of the road though. And most people treat the road rules like mere suggestions--SCARY!!

Pests: No many actually, especially when compared to TX. Not nearly as many mosquitoes (that depends on where in NZ you go though). I see more flies here, which is a problem because houses don't have screens on the windows. There is a bug that eats the wood parts of the house (similar, but not as bad as the termite)--borer (not sure of spelling).

Clothes: EXPENSIVE!!!!! Over a $100 for a basic (not even as good quality as Old Navy) pair of jeans. There is no Gap, Old Navy, Bath and Body Works, Victoria's Secret, Limited, Express, NY & Co., Dillards, Macy's, Target, or even Wal-Mart.

Religion: They are a VERY secular society. Religion is generally looked down upon.

Food: TERRIBLE!!!!! Having grown up in S.A. and living in Louisiana, I like lots of flavor!! And they just don't have it. We do have McDonald's, Burger King, Subway (thank God) and KFC. Eating out at a sit-down restaurant is really expensive though ($20-35 per person). Check out www.lonestar.co.nz to see a TX themed restaurant that we have. You will not find good BBQ, mexican food, or cajun food. Luckily my family and friends send spices from TX and Louisiana.

Feel free to email me if you want to know anything else!

Answer 2

Lovely question. I'll work through it diligently:

1. "What's it like?" It is like travelling back in time, visiting San Francisco in the early 70s. Mellow, liberal, and benevolent - and breathtakingly beautiful. You can be speechless every day here. When I take the bus to work, I can not believe the beauty of this place, and I've been here for quite some time now.

2. Houses and apartments: There are two types. You get newish ones, and old ones. The newish ones are often stylish and tend to be very comfortable and easy to heat, if not always so amazing to look at. The old ones (100 years plus) are real gems with gingerbread ornaments and hardwood floors, deeply elegant and wonderful, but often a bit drafty (nothing a bit of handywork couldn't take care of though). You'll find it a bit like New England, I guess. Think Connecticut, or Maine.

3. Cars: They are usually imported, Japanese cars. The average NZ car in my opinion is the Subaru Legacy station wagon. You'll also see a lot of Imprezas, Camrys, Corollas, and Landcruisers. They're all righthand drive, of course, like in England. A lot of cars have automatic transmission and most have airconditioning. I have a Mercedes 300SE. It doesn't matter what car you drive here. Insurance premiums are incredibly low, and fuel costs the same as in the US.

4. Pests: None. There are little spiders which have the unnerving habit of draping nets over outside corners of the house which collect dust, but that's it. New Zealanders consider Possums as pests, but I think they're just cute. Poor little things.

5. Clothes are ridiculously cheap. There is a place called "The Warehouse", a famous NZ retail place. You can quite realistically hope to buy nice shoes for US$ 10 and nice trousers for US$ 15 there. Yes, it's possible to spend more. But not necessary. Shoes will go up to about US$ 100 in great high street boutiques, but that's absolute snob territory then. NZ is a cheap place for these things. Brands: Any. If it exists, you'll be able to buy it.

6. Religion: Anything goes. Nobody will be stigmatized because of it, and it may or may not please you to hear that Christianity is as big here as it is in the US.

7. Foods: I have driven through Texas once and found the food selection to be comparable to that of California, Arizona, and New Jersey. Here, it's just like that. There is no US item amiss here. If you can get it in the US, you'll get something like it here. The only thing that can be a bit hard to find is good organic stuff, but they're working on it.

Answer 3

New Zealand is a beautiful country. It has a population of about 4 million. The four main major cities are Auckland and Wellington in the North Island and Christchurch and Dunedin in the South Island. Clothes and goods tend to be a bit expensive, but that is in New Zealand currency, which is a lower exchange rate than in the US. Christianity is the main religion, but other religions are welcome. They have some high rise buildings, but not too many, because of the danger of earthquakes, which can strike in any part of the country. The cars are similar to what they have in Australia, though with the smaller population there are less of them. There are very few pests in New Zealand (No snakes at all). In Wellington, because of the constant winds, pollution is almost non existent. Foods are the regular type food similar to that of other western countries.

Answer 4

Kia ora,

I'm from the US and have been living here as a Permanent resident since 1997. I live in a town called Whakatane about 4 hours south of Auckland on the Bay of Plenty. Rural New Zealand is very different from Auckland (where about half of New Zealand lives). In Whakatane, we have an in town population over 12,000, and no traffic lights, just roundabouts. The food is different here, its impossible to find real Mexican food, and certain staples like Dr. Pepper are only available at inflated prices at a store that caters to unique tastes.

The cars are different then the USA, being predominantly Japanese imports. No cars are built here anymore. There are also Australian Holden's as well.

In summer, mosquitos are a pain, and the beaches are prone to sand flies. Although not a "pest" it should also be noted that people sunburn easier and quicker here due to being closer to the sun in Southern Hemisphere summer, as well as a thinner ozone layer. WEAR SUNBLOCK.

The styles here can imitate America quite a bit among the youth but there is a very British flair as well.

Answer 5

I live in New Zealand.

New Zealand is a nice country. The climate isn't that great. www.metservice.com. Although the last few days have been amazing!! It's very diverse. The South Island is pristine, lakes, rivers and native parks. North Island has more people and more things to see.

In New Zealand, most people live in houses, some in apartments.

People drive the same sorts of cars as people in America drive.

Pests, well if your talking about animals, there's stotes, weesles, ferrits and cats.

Clothes range in price, you could go to the Warehouse and buy clothes very cheaply, or go to more expensive shops. Paul Frank, Quicksilver, Roxy, Rusty etc

I'm not a religious person but there are many different religions in NZ

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Zealand

Answer 6

houses commonly made from brick or wood. most are old but new is becoming more common in subdivided areas. rent in dunedin approx $80-100 per week in a flat. people drive toyota nissan, holden, subaru. Pests include rabbits possums, rats, mice, ferrets, stoats, water weed, feral cats,gorse. also ants and wasps. Clothes cost anything from $5-$5000nz, even cheaper second hand. Hallenstines is a popular mens shop, Glassons for women. also K-mart and the warehouse. Its mainly christian. we have mc donalds, starbucks, pizza hut, subway, dominos, kfc. lots of asian food. no taco bell. you can hunt deer and go fishing if you like, or you can buy anything from a supermarket.

Answer 7

Well there are more sheep in New Zealand then people. Texas is one of the most overweight places in the world. So if I had to choose. . . More sheep in my sleep.

Answer 8

i dont know about food but i know this land was made for the nice people that belive in the golden rule live and let live cant we all do that wiat a minute this is america
this country was built on lies and people dying over

Answer 9

I already wished him a happy birthday, but oh well .. Happy birthday, Aries Astrum!! You are one of the sweetest people around. Without you the section would not be the same and we would all be missing out on an amazing person : ))

Answer 10

Them savages still wear grass skirts and eat huhu grubs, the main pests are aussies and a ******* is a fireplace