We've Arrived!

[MotherBear]

Hi Julie,

Good to see you back here again. Hope things have settled down for you now and your bumpy start has given way to smoother times.

[TobeornottobeaKiwi]

KH glad you and your family made it safe & sound.

I haven't read all the threads that you have posted, BUT what made you move to New Zealand? What were your other choices? Did you vist NZ before deciding to move there?

Your input is greatly appreciated, being from the USA.
(Mostly everyone is from UK.)

[MotherBear]

Originally Posted by TobeornottobeaKiwi

Your input is greatly appreciated, being from the USA.
(Mostly everyone is from UK.)

We do have quite a few from the US on here. Apart from KH, there's Selchie, Duane1x, Pianist, Duke, Expat, Carl, to name but a few. Admittedly some of them only post now and then but they are lurking there somewhere in the background.

[KiwiHopeful]

Originally Posted by TobeornottobeaKiwi

KH glad you and your family made it safe & sound.

I haven't read all the threads that you have posted, BUT what made you move to New Zealand? What were your other choices? Did you vist NZ before deciding to move there?

Your input is greatly appreciated, being from the USA.
(Mostly everyone is from UK.)

Hello ToBe ...

You ask a very big question. It's hard to explain all the reasons, but I think it comes down to three main ideas:
1. Believing that the US is headed down the wrong road. Not just with the disaster that has been the GWB presidency, but with the out of control corporations, the widening gap between rich and poor, the health care crisis ... and the failure of most people in the US to *demand* better from their government and to expect more from themselves.

2. Desiring to find a healthier lifestyle for my 2 sons. Not just physically healthier, but healthier in all senses of the word. As a high school teacher, I saw a lot of kids that really were damaged in many ways. Not that they had abusive parents or anything like that, but it was almost as though the steady diet of XBOX, artificial colors, and mall air was poisoning them.

3. Wanting adventure. I've lived in the US all my life, never traveled overseas before, and don't speak any other languages (except enough Spanish and French to ask where the bathroom is, and too much Latin and Greek). I didn't want to be like the majority of Americans who don't hold a passport or who never ventured further than Tijuana or Toronto. I wanted to have a better story.

So, nope, I never visited NZ before coming here. But the people I met on this forum as well as all the reading I had done (both books and online) convinced me that if I were to make a go of it, NZ would be the best place. Besides, Canada is just too darn cold!

[duane1x]

Yes, we are here... lurking and plotting an exploratory trip over in September. Will post some related questions separately so as not to hijack the thread.

Many of the same reasons (sentiments) for us as KH gives, yet perhaps even moreso just a desire to shake things up and have an adventure. I think we're a bit older than KH and family and maybe a bit more stuck in the same place for a long while and thinking, it's now or never...

[ExPat]

The ever so watchful eye of the Expat is here. I'm waiting for the housing market to crash in NZ so I can swoop in and pick up some property on the cheap.....


In the meantime, working my butt off to make some extra cash ;)

Expat

[Duke]

Glad to hear everything went smoothly for you KiwiHopeful...as we all would know the nightmare in the US security process...geez, can you people make US taxpaying citizens feel like a terrorist or what?.....I remember our landing in ChCh...Wow!!! what a refresher in flying..open airport, no lines, smiling faces, a greeting, and some may wonder why NZ??, I dont anymore. Im green with jealousy, I want to be in NZ too Good luck and I hope you all stay healthy and the American dollar holds for a little longer( or until I get there of course)

[Dawn]

Hey KH, according to Taffy you are absolutely loving your NZ experience. I'm so glad you are, it's pretty amazing isn't it and we haven't even travelled to your island yet, by all accounts it's the most scenic. Put that cabernet on the shelf for me matey, our paths will cross at some point, I feel sure of it. We have some world issues to solve don't we?

Hope that your beautiful babies are well and that their journey was OK. There was a couple with a couple of rugrats on our flight and they were upset most of the time. I really felt for them, hope your experience was better than theirs

[KiwiHopeful]

Dawn, we are loving it. I've met some wonderful people (including our own Kokopeli and his lovely family) and had nothing but positive experiences thus far. I can't wait until we really get a chance to explore beyond Chch and see some more of this beautiful country.

Our flight experience was fine ... of all of the toddlers on board, ours cried the least! ;) Our four year old slept most of the way, and when he wasn't asleep he was making friends with this 27 year old Aussie woman who was sitting next to him. I think he's got her phone number someplace. I think both of them probably traveled better than I did--I know they certainly slept more than I did.

Duane and Expat--keep the dream alive! If I can do it, you can!

[kokopeli]

Originally Posted by KiwiHopeful

Dawn, we are loving it. I've met some wonderful people (including our own Kokopeli and his lovely family) and had nothing but positive experiences thus far. :

Ahh mate, that's awfully kind of you to say that Are you including today's swim in the Waimakariri River in that portfolio of positive experiences....?