Poppy2

Well we have been in Wanganui for the last 4 years, me working as a hospital midwife and my husband commuting to Palmerston North Hospital. We have 3 small children and have had many ups and downs during our stay. Overall we find NZ is not for us, most certainly Wanganui isnt for us.

We had never been on a look see trip round NZ, we came on a mad adventure and it has been great for that alone! But overall the working here has been the biggest issue - that is where the biggest downs have been. The attitude to skilled migrants is appauling and the welcome was short lived. The countryside, the schooling, the kindis, the house and vehicle prices were all fab. But the day to day of living in such a small insular place has been overriding for us.

Things that we missed whilst here was getting good children's clothing apart from Pumpkin patch which is an hour away. Also nothing here where we could get the kids feet properly measured and decent quality shoes. No decent benefits for employed people. I got a total of $600 (approx one weeks wages) from my employer (a hospital) when I went on maternity leave and had to return after 3 months to work. No free dental when pregnant or thereafter. The list goes on ......

On some level I assumed that things would be very similar to the UK way of life (regarding work hours, regulations, benefits, annual leave etc) it wasnt until we got here that these things became apparent. We were always hearing that people here worked to live rather than the other way about - but with 3 weeks annual leave each year, until recently, I cant see how that can be. We had 5-7 weeks in the NHS trust we worked for previously.

Also Christmas has never been the same and with small kids it seems a shame - there is no festivity here at all. We have often been made to feel very frivolous and silly Poms for insisting on having a Christmas dinner and not having a barby. Just one element of the silly/whining Pom stuff we have had to hear.

Overall, we leave here with some great memories and some really great personal growth. There will be some tears and some very missed places, such as our local beach. But I am looking forward to double glazing, central heating, no damp pervading all my belongings, ruining pictures in frames and making anything stored smell. I am looking forward to finding more food choice in supermarkets and clothes shops - and ToysRus!

Obviously, we are in a particular area that may have been the issue, but at this point we cant see that moving to Wellington or Auckland, where we might be more happy would be the answer. We need to go elsewhere and see how it feels to be away.

The oddest thing is that for all my ability to rant about some issues and niggles, no-one I work with would even know I felt like this. Because apparently I am one of the *good* poms...............

Good luck to those who love it here, I know many, many good UK and kiwi people here and they would live nowhere else. How we will miss those great people! I do understand completely how some people just love it here, it comes down to what is important to that person, that family. I dont think we could ever have prepared for the lack of commercialism, and that has been good in other ways too. So it has been worth our 4 years and a very memorable time we have had!

Rachel x

Avid

You are moving to Nova Scotia?

Will that be substantially different to living in NZ?

Poppy2

Er.....YES. Cant control the excitement, sorry.

The range of shops for all those things I mentioned will rival anything here on the North Island - hello 12 acres of shopping mall, 18 screen cinema and an IMAX. Museum after museum, the Tall Ships, the historic harbour front, little bijou shops, 5+ universities, lots of sports and out door acitivities. Nature everywhere, much like here. Closer to family in the UK, which is very important right now. 15 hour train journey to Montreal (we love trains). Things like that. Festive Autumn with Canadian Thanks Giving, Halloween and then the potential of a white christmas - with all the benefits of the cheapest housing markets in Canada, of course with the lowest pay as well, but we are moving like for like pay-wise. Also the jobs - not just working in small under funded hospitals, our jobs are back to being far more acute and research areas.

Have you been to Canada or Nova Scotia?

Avid

No, that's why I was asking!

But I've always imagined NS and NZ to be similar. They even look a bit like each other....well, I think so...

mazi

So they do!

Good luck, Poppy2 - I can well understand why you're doing it. After 3 years and equal thoughts to you, I did the same - but to Italy

Poppy2

OMG - they do look alike!! How wierd is that!! I think by Canadian standards it is like NZ.....a bit quiet and rural by contrast to Vancouver etc. Who knows, never been - off on another mad adventure!!

Italy...........Tuscany is my fantasy, but until I can retire there and try to sell some remedial daubings to passing tourists, it isnt an option. That, and the lingo! Wow though, sounds great!

Avid

My entire knowledge of Nova Scotia comes from working for 6 years with a guy from Halifax....he was the slowest talker I have ever met.....

But I wouldn't extrapolate anything from meeting one person....or would I?!

He told me that Halifax had the biggest non-nuclear explosion in the world when a ship carrying dynamite hit another ship.

Didn't say what was in the other ship. Matches, probably.

Poppy2

Dont even start me on that explosion...............I type as I hear the whole history of the situation from my husband who is now telling me the names and origins of the 2 ships involved..............december 7th or 6th he is now pondering! Sheesh!

Now dont forget the Titanic graves are there. I hope there is a tearoom.

Avid

December 6th.

mazi

One of my favourite words

Poppy2

You have got to be kidding - he is having kittens because I put that in and he was so worried it showed a chink in his otherwise perfect recal. He's off sulkily washing-up because I refused to remove that bit!! He wanted me to change it for bits he was sure about.

I say get registered and be right all over the site!! Boys!

Extrapolate sounds a little like the removal of leg hair with straps of some sort

Avid

Well....I'm not one for giving out the agony aunt advice but I'd suggest giving him a hug and saying...

"It doesn't matter that you could only pin down the exact date of The Halifax Explosion to a two day period in 1917. I still love you but I'll be secretly laughing at you and making v-signs behind your back whenever you do the dishes"

That should fix things...

Poppy2

Off to try that now...............hang on, should someone attempt reconciliation with someone trying to wash a heavy, cast iron skillet??

Dash it all I'll try!

brussels_sprout

Moving to another country because of ToysRus, Pumpkin Patch, fitted shoes, hmmmmmmm.
If you were so desperate could you not have them sent or shipped , you seem to have very banal reasons for moving to Canada, have you researched that country (i.e the TEMPERATURE !!) ?

I agree with some of the things, the low wages, houses, Xmas, did you claim family allowance for example ? Why didn't you choose a NZ city where you both worked, for example, i would never work away from my wife, she would have looked for a local job, ANY job.

Having come from Belgium, that has a proper health service for ALL(as opposed to England and NZ), proper unemployment benefits and social protection, i still love NZ and think your reasons for moving very trite, (although i have not been here for 4 years, admittedly). Anyone who has 35 days a holiday is obviously very spoiled, and as a freelance worker, i usually have 1 week a year holiday.
Did you see my post about NZ being the 4th best place in the world for mothers and children ?
http://britishexpats.com/forum/showthread.php?t=451086

Rascal

They are her reasons all the same.
same as you have your reasons for staying in NZ.