Howick

kiwilass,

It's a forum, kiwilass- I don't know you from a bar of soap, so stop getting so precious. You stated the average salary of CAD$65k & I told you that you were full of it.

strawbie

Ha, its great here. Best thing I did was gather the info off here that you want/need as there are some very helpful folk......but ignore all the negative grumpy unhappy folk who start off threads about the future of NZ etc. Just do your homework first! We are in ChCh and living through the quakes and still wouldnt go back to UK! Good luck .

ExKiwilass

Touchy touchy

I totally admit it was a throw-away number - I said that didn't I? As it turned out there isn't an easy way to compare. So? And? Let it go, man. Let it go. It's not worth it to get so worked up about being Right on the Interwebz.

ExKiwilass

I don't think that's fair...Genesis has said many times how much he enjoys Palmy. Beats me why, but he does!

Genesis

It is unwise to ignore folk in the know with respect to what is going on in a country you intend to move to. Sites like this are to allow people to glean information..the good, the bad and the ugly. Then along with their research to use said info. to assist them in making a whole raft of different decisions/choices. What good would a site be that only ever offered the wonderful aspects of something without looking at the downsides? As there are downsides to everything..even a big lottery win.

And even if you do all your homework nothing will ever make up for coming, living and doing. Plenty have come having covered all angles yet they swiftly return from whence they came.

simonsi

"In the know" - one persons experiences dont make that individual "in the know", yours or mine, they are just that, individual experiences. Nothing more.

Genesis

'In the know' refers to someone living in a country listening to facts on the radio and reading about them in newspapers..not just about spouting opinions or 'individual experiences'. With respect to the latter my opinion of what NZ is like from a personal point of view is worthless to anyone coming to NZ.

However facts I or anyone else may type on this site re child abuse/murder, alcohol abuse, the curse of P addiction, the road death toll, widespread domestic violence, poor quality housing, etc need to be taken on board as they are all alas very measurable, bad facts about our country. That is what I refer to as 'in the know'.

strawbie

I haven't mentioned any names!! I also said that it is a useful sight for gathering info etc but some folk like to constantly spout negative things etc. I haven't been on here for a long long time as too busy enjoying NZ and I am not sure what brought me on here today?! I remember reading comments on here about ChCh and boyracers etc but I cant believe how laid back all the drivers are (generally). Obviously there will be some but I aint had the unfortunate luck to come across them yet!!
No where is paradise and it is expensive to live here and there is little consumer choice but it still outweighs (for us) the UK on so many other levels......sunshine in winter (and in summer for that matter!).

Expat Kiwi

Could that be because you're out in Rangiora and don't venture out much after dark? You've only been there for a year, give it time.

Sunshine in winter is good, but not much good after the sun sets. What other levels does it outweigh the UK on?

Bo-Jangles

I agree with you absolutely wholeheartedly and I have said the same time and time again. It's not what's outside your window that counts, it's what's inside your head.

Depending on the make-up of ones family, work commitments etc I feel as a woman here, life for the most part wouldn't matter one iota whether I am here, Timbuktu or in the UK or anywhere. The larger part of my life is spent either at work or doing mundanely housewifey things, The biggest difference for ME is that here I have to do more of the mundanely housewifey things myself because we can't afford to do otherwise. I still mourn the huge loss of freedom, because we simply don't have the disposable funds to do as we pleased, in the way that we did in the UK. But of course we came here for a simpler life and shortcomings in money were supposed to be made up for by other benefits. I haven't quite figured that out, what we thought we would get in return for the significant downturn in income I don't know.

It affects my life hugely, because unlike in the UK I never seem to get a day off; we can't afford to go out much and even if we could, most of our friends can't either. So if we do go out, it's inevitably to someones house, it's never spontaneous and we always have to watch the pennies and still have to shop, plan, cook, bake, cart food around or whatever for a night or day out. Then after all is said and done someone has to drive home. It bores me no end!!

We're invited to a dinner this weekend and these things now just fill me with dread; the competition, the pressure, I'll have to spend all Saturday afternoon making something wonderful. I'll stress about what can I take, make a big mess, burn something. Gosh perhaps I can feign sickness, what excuse can I make, do I have to go? Then I have to go there and make polite comments about some crap that someone else made and ask them for the recipe.

Can't we for once just go to a restaurant, have a good time, not have to make excuses about the burnt offering or risk offending someone who has spent the past week decorating a brick in luminous lime green icing.

Mrs Pointer

We've only been here two and a half months, so early days but I'm positive about New Zealand.

My husband earns more here than he did in the UK (same job, same company) and I've been told I'll maintain my salary.

I've found everyone I've met to be very friendly, but then I'm chatty as well. But the day the lady in the bank gave me a hug and said "good luck with your new life" I knew I wasn't in Glasgow anymore.

The weather is better than Glasgow and I look out the window to the most amazing view and every time I drive into Wellington it still makes me smile. Sure I come from a beautiful country, but we live a comparable distance to Wellington that we did to Glasgow you just can't compare it in terms of the stunning environment or the city itself.

It is quieter and I think the quality of life is better, but then we do love the great outdoors - I think that helps.

On the downside, I do worry about earthquakes, the food is expensive, the houses are crap and expensive (but we plan to build a new one) and I miss my friends and family, but me and my mum skype every week and it's great. My hubbie has found some Kiwis to be very touchy and they don't like their shoddy practices being called into question (even when they are liable to lead to death).

But my philosophy has always been the grass ain't greener, it's just different grass. If I don't like it, we'll go home. When we came here on holiday, it was the only time I have ever really missed a country when I went back....when I'm walking the dogs, in winter, in teh sunshine by the water only 5 mins from my house...I can't help but smile!

Kija

Funny but shocking!

UKNZAUS

I think we may be long lost twins! Sorry but your post made me laugh as it's the exact same for me if I'm completely honest! Pahaha

Genie3

OMG you couldn't be more spot on .... I must be the triplet

simonsi

My point is that for instance a police officer will have a different view on a place to a typical office worker, they just on the whole come into contact with different groups. Going anywhere on the police officers experiences might be overly negative, the office workers overly positive. Both might be considered "in the know" but have completely different viewpoints.

And knowledge of national averages just tells you what the national average is, it doesn't necessarily tell you much about the particular area - look at Mkt H vs Wellingborough or NN1 for instance, both contributing to the Northamptonshire avg....

Hope my comments on car importing were useful