I'm sorry to say that in regards to your first paragraph, that was not my experience. The ingrained racism in NZ I found very wearing and depressing and whilst at a legislative, political level the attempts at reparation seemed admirable and plausable, on the ground the values and attitudes of pakeha (both recently arrived and born and bred) was largely a disgrace. Probably on par with Australia in that respect- although the health-wealth gap between Pakeha and Maori and indigenious and non-indigenious Australians is, as far as I understand it, far, far worse for the latter although pretty dire for the former.

Your last paragraph is dubious. The poorest Kiwis live pretty grim lives in shitty dilapidated houses suffering terrible health problems (look at childhood asthma rates). Minted Kiwis have an excellent standard of living though.

It is! Cricket, morning tea, the weather- the 'nice' parts of NZ are quiet and gentile in a proper 'years ago' English sense.

Yes, in many respects it's hard to define, but NZ was largely populated (voluntarily I might add) by people from the British Isles, much more than Australia which has had large numbers of immigrants from Italy, Greece, Vietnam etc.

Australia is far more brash and 'American' than NZ. NZ still seems to hold on to links to the UK - Coronation St is one example. The music is another, much more English than Australia's charts.

But if course it isn't Britain at all, it just seems to have a lot more in similarity than Australia does.

I agree, it feels very British. Its green and leafy and has rolling hills. You can get a vast array of British foods in the supermarkets and there are small villages and windy roads. I felt very at home

NZ being much more English is a disadvantage, it means it is stuck in the past clinging to an empire that no longer exists, It can't adapt to the modern world and the modern economy like OZ has, OZ stopped seeing the UK as the mother country in the 1950's and has its own national identity and self confidence now. NZ is backward, stuck in the past with an economy to match. They all sit around in the cold with their sheep watching Cornation street and heartbeat pretenting or wishing they are back in the UK. While those in OZ would'nt want to live anywhere else.

Are you actually going to post anything factual or useful or are you just going to continue to be a troll?

We have lived in both places.

We lived in a very rural part of NZ and so comparisons are hard. We wanted to find somewhere to live that had the lifestyle of NZ and the economic realities of the UK and Melbourne is the place that has fitted that bill.

We found that the relationship between low wages and high costs in NZ made it unaffordable to live there.

Also I find rural NZ much more racist than Urban Melbourne towards me, if you can call it racism. I get more anti-pommie jibes in a 2 week holiday in NZ than I have had in 2 years of living in Melbourne.

I think NZ would be a great place to live if you were financially independent.

Buzzy

That's the conclusion I came to Buzzy. I can certainly earn more money in Australia (teaching - source: state pay tables and anecdotal) and if I decided on a career change, I think that'd there would be more opportunities in Australia.

Cooler