New Zealand or France??????
Dec 10th 2016, 5:09 am
#46
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Re: New Zealand or France??????
I wish you all the best and look forward to hearing about it. I know two families who came to NZ without giving up everything in the UK. They both had a wonderful time. One family returned, one stayed but both are still happy with zero regrets nearly a decade later.Sorry, it does not make good, what I and some others perceive as a 'poor and unwarranted' reponse to some new posters. Like it or not, some people are offended by the attitude of some folk on this site. Just like we all have differing opinions about all things NZ, I guess you and I and others beg to differ on the point I am endeavouring to make.
Dec 10th 2016, 6:22 am
#47
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Re: New Zealand or France??????
Bloody genius plan I wish you all the best and look forward to hearing about it. I know two families who came to NZ without giving up everything in the UK. They both had a wonderful time. One family returned, one stayed but both are still happy with zero regrets nearly a decade later.
Genesis, I think the best thing to do is to report posts you consider poor/ unwarranted/ offensive and let the mods deal with them on a post-by-post basis. Making general comments about some posters and some posts is kind of difficult to address.
I wish you all the best and look forward to hearing about it. I know two families who came to NZ without giving up everything in the UK. They both had a wonderful time. One family returned, one stayed but both are still happy with zero regrets nearly a decade later.Genesis, I think the best thing to do is to report posts you consider poor/ unwarranted/ offensive and let the mods deal with them on a post-by-post basis. Making general comments about some posters and some posts is kind of difficult to address.
Dec 10th 2016, 7:02 am
#48
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Re: New Zealand or France??????
Thanks for all the comments either positive or negative it all helps get a rounder view. We will move somewhere as were unhappy with the status quo in the Uk. Where that will be who knows at this point. Just for reference I'm not asking for anyone to tell me what to do just looking for opinions of the two countries not validation of our ideas. I'm aware of the pitfalls and red tape hence asking opinions on here from people who I imagine have already been through what were looking to do. I have been to NZ for a long holiday a few years ago and actually its him that is more objective about NZ than me having lived there himself. We talk to each other alot. Life is too short to get hooked on the negatives if you believe it will happen you can make it happen. All the best Angela
Last edited by AngelsEyes; Dec 10th 2016 at 7:06 am.
Dec 10th 2016, 8:39 am
#50
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Re: New Zealand or France??????
On the meeting and making friends with kiwis, I've been here 29 years and never had a problem. When I came out here, apart from my English boyfriend at the time, who was already here, I knew nobody and made great friends from flatmates to workmates. However, I am quite chatty and outgoing and didn't have any dependents which may have made a difference. 12 years ago we moved to our current place in Manawatu and didn't know anybody at all with two young children and had no problems meeting other people through kindy and school and have made many good friends. Yes kiwis are different but have never found them to be difficult or odd in any way, although reading this forum I gather many people do. Just my opinion. Yes the cost of living here is quite high, we however don't have a mortgage any more after moving from Auckland many years ago now, and our income is quite low with two teens, but we manage and don't live the high life at all and don't owe any money to anyone. I manage to get back to UK every year for a few weeks to see my elderly parents. We only have one car and both work part time and don't have a materialistic lifestyle and cook all our food from scratch and grow veges in our little patch to help save money. Husband is very handy and does all our DIY (well as much as he can). In fact my closest friends are kiwis and Australians with a few Brits thrown in here and there. I don't feel any particular affinity with my English friends but I suppose we do have in common the fact that we grew up in the same country. NZ is a great place but it has its fair share of problems. I came out here knowing nothing, no money, no job and no expectations, luckily it all worked out for me.
Dec 10th 2016, 10:49 am
#51
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Re: New Zealand or France??????
Good luck OP...I am a bit like Genesis, a fly by the seat of my pants person, ready to get those pants ready in a year's time to go back to nz sans husband (in reference to a recent closed thread where i mentioned we came back to Oz for medical treatment, he passed away in Oz in 2012) with teenagers and utter madness.
I've only been on this forum a short time but have read it for a long time, am also a member of another and it isn't much different, you will get advice and it's always different depending on the individual's experience. Many of my friends in Nz are expats from the Uk, I met a couple in real life through forums and if it wasn't for their advice (good and bad), I don't know how I would have go through the first six months! I am still firm friends with some seven years later, and have been back three times since I left..never take offence to anything you read in a forum, everyone is doing their best to give advice on both sides of the coin.
Good luck with your travels, I'm sure you will enjoy it and I look forward to updates!
Michelle
I've only been on this forum a short time but have read it for a long time, am also a member of another and it isn't much different, you will get advice and it's always different depending on the individual's experience. Many of my friends in Nz are expats from the Uk, I met a couple in real life through forums and if it wasn't for their advice (good and bad), I don't know how I would have go through the first six months! I am still firm friends with some seven years later, and have been back three times since I left..never take offence to anything you read in a forum, everyone is doing their best to give advice on both sides of the coin.
Good luck with your travels, I'm sure you will enjoy it and I look forward to updates!
Michelle
Dec 13th 2016, 9:35 am
#52
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Dec 16th 2016, 2:44 am
#53
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Re: Getting Jitters about moving to NZ
Here my sensible reply:
If you're skint every month in the UK you'll probably be worse off here, it's not a cheap place to live and wages can be much lower especially for builders. My mates who are builders earn low 20's per hour and there's no overtime rate. If you're wanting to set up a café and live somewhere quiet the likelihood of it not being busy is pretty high, there's already way too many cafes in many places in NZ, here in NZ there's an overkill of them and there's always one changing hands. NZ isn't a pace you want to live with not much money, it's a great place if you have lots of money or are comfortable but with the higher prices for so many things having a tight budget isn't something I'd recommend moving to the other side of the world to do. Kiwi's can be a bit odd to get on with, you find the ones that have travelled a bit are much easier to get on with, the ones that live in a Kiwi bubble aren't worth bothering with.
Here's my non sensible reply
Throw the dice, spin the wheel, if your heart is set on moving just go for it. Don't be put off by what a load of strangers write on an internet forum, if you don't make the move it'll eat away at you and you'll always wonder what could have been. The kids will love it, they'll definitely love it more than you adults and you'll have so many great adventures and make some amazing memories. We're only here once, even if you decide after 5 years it's not for you then just go back, nothing in the UK will have changed apart from yourselves. Emigrating is a real strain emotionally and financially but you'll make more memories as a family in the first the first year than you would spending another 5 years doing what you are doing now. Don't be one of those people that say 'we were going to move away but never did', instead be those people that have the bollocks to go for it.
If you're skint every month in the UK you'll probably be worse off here, it's not a cheap place to live and wages can be much lower especially for builders. My mates who are builders earn low 20's per hour and there's no overtime rate. If you're wanting to set up a café and live somewhere quiet the likelihood of it not being busy is pretty high, there's already way too many cafes in many places in NZ, here in NZ there's an overkill of them and there's always one changing hands. NZ isn't a pace you want to live with not much money, it's a great place if you have lots of money or are comfortable but with the higher prices for so many things having a tight budget isn't something I'd recommend moving to the other side of the world to do. Kiwi's can be a bit odd to get on with, you find the ones that have travelled a bit are much easier to get on with, the ones that live in a Kiwi bubble aren't worth bothering with.
Here's my non sensible reply
Throw the dice, spin the wheel, if your heart is set on moving just go for it. Don't be put off by what a load of strangers write on an internet forum, if you don't make the move it'll eat away at you and you'll always wonder what could have been. The kids will love it, they'll definitely love it more than you adults and you'll have so many great adventures and make some amazing memories. We're only here once, even if you decide after 5 years it's not for you then just go back, nothing in the UK will have changed apart from yourselves. Emigrating is a real strain emotionally and financially but you'll make more memories as a family in the first the first year than you would spending another 5 years doing what you are doing now. Don't be one of those people that say 'we were going to move away but never did', instead be those people that have the bollocks to go for it.
Last edited by paddy234; Dec 16th 2016 at 2:51 am.
Dec 16th 2016, 10:16 am
#54
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Dec 16th 2016, 11:55 am
#55
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Re: New Zealand or France??????
People who don't take themselves too seriously. We ran the local village cafe and put on music nights rock orientated and the older members of the community those who acted as landlords of the building did everything they could to make it uncomfortable for us despite the good feedback from customers on food quality ect. Were the youngest couple here my hubbys into classic VW and racing cars we both love alternative music and alternative lifestyle. I'm into fitness. Fun I guess is what were after and sun don't mind working for what we want tho.
Last edited by AngelsEyes; Dec 16th 2016 at 12:05 pm.
Dec 18th 2016, 2:18 pm
#56
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Re: Getting Jitters about moving to NZ
Builders are getting closer to $30 an hour than low 20's in Christchurch, Queenstown is the same and i assume most areas would be similar. Thats definitely not low wages if one does 45-50 hours a week which is common in the building industry, most i know would be $27-35. I can only imagine those builders you speak of are either inexperienced or are working in an area where there is very little work I had a big jump in the wages i was getting compared to home and i know many others have been similar. Now that work has picked up back home the wages and cost of living altogether would be similar. Just a lack of sunshine which Nelson gets alot of
Now I'm earning here in the UK we have really seen an increase in how well off we feel. My mate has signed up to buying a new house, for about the same price as a cold wooden house in Dunedin, they've planned a few foreign holidays and money is no longer an issue.
Even trips to the supermarkets have become enjoyable experiences, we've just done a 'big shop' at Lidl and I loved it. Filled a huge trolley for less that £70. Me and the missus went for our first night out together on Friday for nearly 2 years, less than £6 for drinks for both of us, we got wasted obviously, we couldn't afford not to.
I'd still recommend a move to NZ to anyone but let's not pretend wages are good and the cost of living is reasonable.
