Holiday Swap
Nov 6th 2003, 9:01 pm
#1
(Jon) returning to NZ 04
Thread Starter
Joined: Jul 2003
Posts: 816
Holiday Swap
Did anyone see the Holiday swap programme on ITV tonight?
To me, the two families reminded me of some of the things you don't find in NZ so much.
There was one family who loved camping in Dorset, and walking the British coastline.
The other family went to Borneo and spent theit time living in a luxurious resort and doing little.
Once again these shows create a good old class battle for good telly, but a few things amused me.
The 'posh' family couldn't understand why anyone would ever want to go camping and holiday in the UK. They saw it as a purely financial decision. At the end of the camping trip the 'posh' wife threw away her perfectly good trainers and slipped into her fancy heels again. The 'posh' father constantly referred to being 'civilised'.
Sure there's some 'posh' people in NZ who like to holiday in expensive overseas resorts, but I doubt there would be many people who would dismiss it outright. Camping has nothing to do with money in NZ - in fact those with money would often just spend it on high quality 'label' outdoors gear, and display it proudly.
Obviously they pick extreme people for these programmes, but obviously these people live their life with these attitudes, and openly express them amongst their friends. I see many many people like this where I work.
Nothing wrong with having opinions, but I would bet a large amount that if you expressed attitudes like that in NZ, you would be laughed out of town!
One final thing - it bemuses me that so many Brits run down their own country. You see a fair bit on this board - obviously there are bad points, but it sometimes seems to be national sport to dismiss what the UK has to offer. I've visited many parts of the UK, and I can say that it's beauty is equal to many other parts of the world. It may not be as instantly jaw dropping, but it has subtle beauty which is amazing. And the weather isn't even that bad! It sure rains less than NZ!
Thankyou for listening to my rant....
To me, the two families reminded me of some of the things you don't find in NZ so much.
There was one family who loved camping in Dorset, and walking the British coastline.
The other family went to Borneo and spent theit time living in a luxurious resort and doing little.
Once again these shows create a good old class battle for good telly, but a few things amused me.
The 'posh' family couldn't understand why anyone would ever want to go camping and holiday in the UK. They saw it as a purely financial decision. At the end of the camping trip the 'posh' wife threw away her perfectly good trainers and slipped into her fancy heels again. The 'posh' father constantly referred to being 'civilised'.
Sure there's some 'posh' people in NZ who like to holiday in expensive overseas resorts, but I doubt there would be many people who would dismiss it outright. Camping has nothing to do with money in NZ - in fact those with money would often just spend it on high quality 'label' outdoors gear, and display it proudly.
Obviously they pick extreme people for these programmes, but obviously these people live their life with these attitudes, and openly express them amongst their friends. I see many many people like this where I work.
Nothing wrong with having opinions, but I would bet a large amount that if you expressed attitudes like that in NZ, you would be laughed out of town!
One final thing - it bemuses me that so many Brits run down their own country. You see a fair bit on this board - obviously there are bad points, but it sometimes seems to be national sport to dismiss what the UK has to offer. I've visited many parts of the UK, and I can say that it's beauty is equal to many other parts of the world. It may not be as instantly jaw dropping, but it has subtle beauty which is amazing. And the weather isn't even that bad! It sure rains less than NZ!
Thankyou for listening to my rant....
Last edited by jandjuk; Nov 7th 2003 at 9:07 am.
Nov 6th 2003, 9:35 pm
#2
BE Forum Addict
Joined: Jun 2003
Location: Eatons Hill, Brisbane
Posts: 2,289
Re: Holiday Swap
Originally posted by jandjuk
Did anyone see the Holiday swap programme on ITV tonight?
To me, the two families reminded me of some of the things you don't find in NZ so much.
There was one family who loved camping in Dorset, and walking the British coastline.
The other family went to Borneo and spent theit time living in a luxurious resort and doing little.
Once again these shows create a good old class battle for good telly, but a few things amused me.
The 'posh' family couldn't understand why anyone would ever want to go camping and holiday in the UK. They saw it as a purely financial decision. At the end of the camping trip the 'posh' wife threw away her perfectly good trainers and slipped into her fancy heels again. The 'posh' father constantly referred to being 'civilised'.
Sure there's some 'posh' people in NZ who like to holiday in expensive overseas resorts, but I doubt there would be many people who would dismiss it outright. Camping has nothing to do with money in NZ - in fact those with money would often just spend it on high quality 'label' outdoors gear, and display it proudly.
Obviously they pick extreme people for these programmes, but obviously these people live their life with these attitudes, and openly express them amongst their friends. I see many many people like this where I work.
Nothing wrong with having opinions, but I would bet a large amount that if you expressed attitudes like that in NZ, you would be laughed out of town!
One final thing - it bemuses me that so many Brits run down their own country. You see a fair bit on this board - obviously there are bad points, but it sometimes seems to be national sport to dismiss what the UK has to offer. I've visited many parts of the UK, and I can say that it's beauty is equal to many other parts of the world. It may not be as instantly jaw dropping, but it has subtle beauty which is amazing. And the weather isn't even that bad! It sure rains less than NZ!
Thankyou for listening to my rant....
Did anyone see the Holiday swap programme on ITV tonight?
To me, the two families reminded me of some of the things you don't find in NZ so much.
There was one family who loved camping in Dorset, and walking the British coastline.
The other family went to Borneo and spent theit time living in a luxurious resort and doing little.
Once again these shows create a good old class battle for good telly, but a few things amused me.
The 'posh' family couldn't understand why anyone would ever want to go camping and holiday in the UK. They saw it as a purely financial decision. At the end of the camping trip the 'posh' wife threw away her perfectly good trainers and slipped into her fancy heels again. The 'posh' father constantly referred to being 'civilised'.
Sure there's some 'posh' people in NZ who like to holiday in expensive overseas resorts, but I doubt there would be many people who would dismiss it outright. Camping has nothing to do with money in NZ - in fact those with money would often just spend it on high quality 'label' outdoors gear, and display it proudly.
Obviously they pick extreme people for these programmes, but obviously these people live their life with these attitudes, and openly express them amongst their friends. I see many many people like this where I work.
Nothing wrong with having opinions, but I would bet a large amount that if you expressed attitudes like that in NZ, you would be laughed out of town!
One final thing - it bemuses me that so many Brits run down their own country. You see a fair bit on this board - obviously there are bad points, but it sometimes seems to be national sport to dismiss what the UK has to offer. I've visited many parts of the UK, and I can say that it's beauty is equal to many other parts of the world. It may not be as instantly jaw dropping, but it has subtle beauty which is amazing. And the weather isn't even that bad! It sure rains less than NZ!
Thankyou for listening to my rant....
nice post
rach
Nov 6th 2003, 9:47 pm
#3
small steps long journey
Joined: Aug 2003
Location: A river somewhere
Posts: 3,451
We saw the programme and thought that the less posh family were much more fun to be around than the stuck up ones
Where as the other family couldnt understand why "everyone" didnt want the long haul expensive holiday
Nov 6th 2003, 9:49 pm
#4
BE Enthusiast
Joined: Sep 2003
Location: Maroubra
Posts: 753
I discovered earlier in the week that one of the rules of this board is that you must NOT under any circumstances say anything positive about the UK.
Nov 6th 2003, 10:14 pm
#5
Proudly Deplorable
Joined: May 2003
Location: Alloha snack bar
Posts: 24,246
Originally posted by seang
i agree - also at the start they were much more willing to accept that there was differences and that that was just a fact
Where as the other family couldnt understand why "everyone" didnt want the long haul expensive holiday
i agree - also at the start they were much more willing to accept that there was differences and that that was just a fact
Where as the other family couldnt understand why "everyone" didnt want the long haul expensive holiday
Nov 7th 2003, 9:04 am
#6
(Jon) returning to NZ 04
Thread Starter
Joined: Jul 2003
Posts: 816
Originally posted by RichS
I discovered earlier in the week that one of the rules of this board is that you must NOT under any circumstances say anything positive about the UK.
I discovered earlier in the week that one of the rules of this board is that you must NOT under any circumstances say anything positive about the UK.
Obviously I've made the decision to return to NZ rather than staying in the UK, so obviously there's a few things I like about NZ more than the UK, but there's still thousands of things I love about the UK. (Incidentally, one of the main reasons I'm returning, is for better or worse, NZ is my home, which is something often overlooked in this forum).
It intrigues me that there is such a culture of emigration and foriegn holidays in the UK. It seems every second telly programme is about heading for a place in the sun and escaping the UK, either permanently or for a holiday.
The implication of all this is that the UK is crap and not worth spending any time in at all. As a nation, there seems to be little self esteem when it comes to your natural environment. But in fact, as any one who has spent any time in the Lakes District, or Scotland, or Snowdonia, or Cornwall - there are places of beauty comparable to anywhere in the world. Not only that, but there is an amazing history to everything as well.
People on here often say NZers and Australians arrogantly think their countries are 'gods own', but what's wrong with having a bit of pride in your own country? As a foriegner in the UK, I have to say you generally don't do a very good job of selling yourselves!
I can understand why some want to leave, but it often seems as if the 'great British dream', is to leave Britain!! How did it become such a big part of the culture?
Nov 7th 2003, 7:34 pm
#7
BE Enthusiast
Joined: Jan 2003
Location: Sussex, formerly Christchurch
Posts: 395
Re: Holiday Swap
Originally posted by jandjuk
Did anyone see the Holiday swap programme on ITV tonight?
To me, the two families reminded me of some of the things you don't find in NZ so much.
There was one family who loved camping in Dorset, and walking the British coastline.
The other family went to Borneo and spent theit time living in a luxurious resort and doing little.
Once again these shows create a good old class battle for good telly, but a few things amused me.
The 'posh' family couldn't understand why anyone would ever want to go camping and holiday in the UK. They saw it as a purely financial decision. At the end of the camping trip the 'posh' wife threw away her perfectly good trainers and slipped into her fancy heels again. The 'posh' father constantly referred to being 'civilised'.
Sure there's some 'posh' people in NZ who like to holiday in expensive overseas resorts, but I doubt there would be many people who would dismiss it outright. Camping has nothing to do with money in NZ - in fact those with money would often just spend it on high quality 'label' outdoors gear, and display it proudly.
Obviously they pick extreme people for these programmes, but obviously these people live their life with these attitudes, and openly express them amongst their friends. I see many many people like this where I work.
Nothing wrong with having opinions, but I would bet a large amount that if you expressed attitudes like that in NZ, you would be laughed out of town!
One final thing - it bemuses me that so many Brits run down their own country. You see a fair bit on this board - obviously there are bad points, but it sometimes seems to be national sport to dismiss what the UK has to offer. I've visited many parts of the UK, and I can say that it's beauty is equal to many other parts of the world. It may not be as instantly jaw dropping, but it has subtle beauty which is amazing. And the weather isn't even that bad! It sure rains less than NZ!
Thankyou for listening to my rant....
Did anyone see the Holiday swap programme on ITV tonight?
To me, the two families reminded me of some of the things you don't find in NZ so much.
There was one family who loved camping in Dorset, and walking the British coastline.
The other family went to Borneo and spent theit time living in a luxurious resort and doing little.
Once again these shows create a good old class battle for good telly, but a few things amused me.
The 'posh' family couldn't understand why anyone would ever want to go camping and holiday in the UK. They saw it as a purely financial decision. At the end of the camping trip the 'posh' wife threw away her perfectly good trainers and slipped into her fancy heels again. The 'posh' father constantly referred to being 'civilised'.
Sure there's some 'posh' people in NZ who like to holiday in expensive overseas resorts, but I doubt there would be many people who would dismiss it outright. Camping has nothing to do with money in NZ - in fact those with money would often just spend it on high quality 'label' outdoors gear, and display it proudly.
Obviously they pick extreme people for these programmes, but obviously these people live their life with these attitudes, and openly express them amongst their friends. I see many many people like this where I work.
Nothing wrong with having opinions, but I would bet a large amount that if you expressed attitudes like that in NZ, you would be laughed out of town!
One final thing - it bemuses me that so many Brits run down their own country. You see a fair bit on this board - obviously there are bad points, but it sometimes seems to be national sport to dismiss what the UK has to offer. I've visited many parts of the UK, and I can say that it's beauty is equal to many other parts of the world. It may not be as instantly jaw dropping, but it has subtle beauty which is amazing. And the weather isn't even that bad! It sure rains less than NZ!
Thankyou for listening to my rant....
I don't think any Brit on this forum has ever suggested that the UK is not beautiful in its own way as many other parts of the world. A hollow compliment I feel.
Nov 7th 2003, 7:52 pm
#8
Guest
Posts: n/a
I don't think your first post was cynical at all but I loved your second. Quite accurate really.
It's true - I can't remember the first time I became aware of the British obsession to find their place in the sun - the title of one of the 'changing countries' programmes of course. But it seems to have been going on for some time - at least as long as the property boom which fuels the means of paying for these dreams.
Many of us do go to the UK's beauty spots - but for many it is either too far away, or is very elitist. Walking outings/holidays are very much - "look at my gear" for some people. When I was at Uni all the outdoorsy groups were very much rah rah, ex public school, team players yadda yadda. Probably myself included. Had a good time though.
I think that beauty and countryside are kind of "built in" to NZ and Straya whereas here we have to travel somewhere - if even to the local park.
I was looking at Strayan homes on the internet with Mrs B and it struck me how, well 'striking' the every day street flora and fauna was. I'd "forgotten" and it's only been 9 months since I left! Mrs B was saying "wow!".
Maybe it started in the 60s and 70s with the first package holidays, this sun fixation.
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It's true - I can't remember the first time I became aware of the British obsession to find their place in the sun - the title of one of the 'changing countries' programmes of course. But it seems to have been going on for some time - at least as long as the property boom which fuels the means of paying for these dreams.
Many of us do go to the UK's beauty spots - but for many it is either too far away, or is very elitist. Walking outings/holidays are very much - "look at my gear" for some people. When I was at Uni all the outdoorsy groups were very much rah rah, ex public school, team players yadda yadda. Probably myself included. Had a good time though.
I think that beauty and countryside are kind of "built in" to NZ and Straya whereas here we have to travel somewhere - if even to the local park.
I was looking at Strayan homes on the internet with Mrs B and it struck me how, well 'striking' the every day street flora and fauna was. I'd "forgotten" and it's only been 9 months since I left! Mrs B was saying "wow!".
Maybe it started in the 60s and 70s with the first package holidays, this sun fixation.
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Nov 8th 2003, 8:56 am
#9
(Jon) returning to NZ 04
Thread Starter
Joined: Jul 2003
Posts: 816
Re: Holiday Swap
Originally posted by muppetking
Yet another subtle dig by you at the UK and its idiosyncracies in the guise of a balanced opinion. I don't think any Brit on this forum has ever suggested that the UK is not beautiful in its own way as many other parts of the world. A hollow compliment I feel.
Yet another subtle dig by you at the UK and its idiosyncracies in the guise of a balanced opinion.
I don't think any Brit on this forum has ever suggested that the UK is not beautiful in its own way as many other parts of the world. A hollow compliment I feel.
