Well we made it, we are here and Loving it.

May 30th 2006 is when we started this journey to move to New Zealand having taken a totally random call from a friend telling me about a job which I should apply for. Nearly 5 months later, we have been living in Auckland for over a month, have found a home, new car, new job, new schools, our container has arrived and we have already experienced more new stuff than I can count and I know there are still more new experiences to come.

There is so much I could write about and I feel so passionate about our move and New Zealand that I am going to share just a little of what we have learnt so far. Obviously this is only our experience but I am hoping that anyone reading this will find some of it useful.

For those thinking of moving to New Zealand:

1. Look into the move seriously, but not financially. We have found that if you look at the finances in too much detail you will not do it, and that can apply to anything in life.
2. Visit New Zealand for as many weeks as you can afford
3. If you're bursting to tell someone about your plans tell only the most important people, although my advice is not to tell anyone. Reason is that if you decide it's not for you, you haven't created any anxiety for anyone else other than you and your immediate family. People can't deal with, "what ifs'" but they can cope with yes or no.
4. Remember that New Zealand is not necessarily better or worse than the UK, but different. If you look for different you can't go wrong.
5. Its not forever and if you do make the move, and decide to return 'home', at least you can say you have tried.

For those in the middle of the move:

1. Be patient, you have started a journey into the Kiwi culture and moving from super fast UK.
2. Plan for things to take longer.
3. Prepare all your paperwork, but don't panic if you have lost something or you have forgotten something
4. The immigration people are there to help, not trip you up.
5. Medicals can be done as quickly as 2 weeks, police checks take the longest, but can also be speeded up with a polite letter.
6. Take time to say goodbye to friends and family, the last two weeks will fly by and you find yourself canceling dinners and get togethers because you have run out of time.
7. Have your leaving party at least 4 weeks before you leave. We felt down the week after the party, then buzzing and ready to go the 3 weeks before we left. We needed that energy to get us through the emotions we were feeling about leaving.
8. Shop around for a shipper and haggle.
9. Get your UK phone unlocked from the network. This can take up to 8 weeks, so do it now.
10. Cancel all bills in advance. You will be surprised how helpful there are if you give them plenty of notice. We got some money back!!
11. IMPORTANT leave friends and family to deal with the move themselves. It may sound very selfish but you can't change the way people feel, they have to deal with it themselves. This worked really well for us and was the best advice someone gave us.

For those packing right now, things to pack:

1. Iron
2. Kettle
3. Tomato Ketchup
4. Mobile Phones unlocked
5. UK food as a gift for UK expats living in NZ
6. Toys and books for kids, it can get very boring looking for a rental to live in.
7. Sleeping bags
8. Laptop
9. File with all your official documents
10. IMPORTANT bring a can do positive attitude. Be yourself.

Treat your new life as a holiday. If you do something everything weekend, Sat & Sun, or Sat or Sun, then you will be experiencing something new.

Good luck with your new life, we love ours.