Two Americans emigrate to New Zealand from Colorado,
USA.
We talk about
our life in Nelson, New Zealand.
We have revisited these questions--and we will revisit them periodically--and answered after our six-month anniversary of arriving and our two-year anniversary of arriving. If you like to read our minds a bit more as to where our heads were shortly after we arrived, read what we thought the first time we posted our answers, after only 3 months in the country. Or if you're keen to know where we are today, find out after we re-worked our answers to the most commonly asked questions after two years.
1. What is the most surprising thing you've found since you arrived?
2. What is the most annoying thing so far?
3. What is the coolest thing so far?
4. What do you miss most about Colorado?
5. What do you miss most about the U.S.?
6. What have you found to be drastically different than the U.S.?
7. What do you find to be nearly the same?
8. What don't you miss at all?
9. Do you have a wish list of items you'd want from the U.S.?
I know I said this after 3 months, but I'd have to say I still find it surprising about how friendly people are, how easy it has been to meet people and just relax and be yourself. I really don't know what it is, but I find so much less pretension here and I am able to be myself very easily with people, without having to put on some facade to impress anyone on any level. I'm not saying I was insecure before, that's not my point, but you don't have to interview for a job, for example, by walking into an office here and acting like you are the best person for the job. They just want you to be you. Same with shopping at a store or meeting people. There is just no need for any sort of pretension or facade here.
Cost of housing and the number of undisciplined youth.
I continue to be thoroughly annoyed at how people and treat this beautiful part of the world with their careless, glass-throwing attitude. But something new that I have started to find annoying with Nelson in particular is truly the lack of good shopping, even if I wanted to buy something of quality like a towel or sheet or a purse...it's either you buy crap or you buy boutiquey and I wish I had a Foley's or a Nordstrom to get mid-level quality and selection.
I've changed my tune a bit on this one. I still agree with Angela about the broken bottles - really sucks when cycling. The clothes dryers don't annoy me anymore, i've gotten used to it. I still don’t like the faucets that have one spigot for cold and one for hot. Also, I really can't stand that windows don't have screens, simply don't understand it.
I really really want it to be the beach, but our summer weather has been subpar to say the least, we've spent only a few days there! I still love walking everywhere for the most part, but the coolest thing lately has to be just walking or biking out to the water and knowing I can see ocean and a gorgeous landscape at any time of the day. It is so cool to live near water, and I mean this after living in San Diego and Seattle--I live 5 minutes from the water, so there is no comparison!
In addition to the things in my 3-month reply, which are all still valid, the Tuesday night bike racing that I've started participating in. Anyone can join in as there are 4 different levels based on your skill level. This has given me the opportunity to see what it is really like to be part of a bike race. I've been riding in C grade and it is really difficult, there are a lot really strong riders out here, even if they don't look like it at first glance (old bikes, still using toe clips, etc.)
I miss talking to my friends more, I miss girl time with Star, I miss shopping just awfully, so much it hurts sometimes (like real bad on Dec 26 when the sales here SUCKED).
Same one here. Friends (Tequila night) & Parents (LePeep breakfasts). Chipotle & good mexican food.
After the easy answer of family and friends, I am starting to miss the availability of having a lot of selection in most anything one needs. I keep having my mom send me packages of stuff that is either not available here, is too expensive (maybe 2x or more as much) to buy here, or the substitute is terrible here. Honestly, we can make do with nearly everything one can find here, and it was noticeably better when we moved here than it was 1.5 years earlier when we vacationed here. But still, the choices are limited and if you think you can shop around and get something different at another store, think again--they all order from the same place and they all stock the same stuff.
Difficult because I'm not missing a lot from the states - the main things are noted in answer #4. I'll add window screens because that has been a big issue for me lately. I'm used to the TV season and I can watch enough US sports to survive.
It has been refreshing, entertaining, and completely democratic to watch press coverage and read news about politics here. The reporters say what they want, they ask tough questions, they try to get to the truth. The politicians do give pat lines, but more often they say what they think and you get very little spin here. Even better, the people don't take shit from their politicians, they question, they speak out, they really challenge everyone. You see this in Nelson as well, the letters to the editor in the paper are often hilarious. I hope to bring you more of this during the year as Nelson holds its mayoral election.
Also, women wear very little makeup and I have not found one person (I know or on TV or in print or anywhere) in this country to date who is not environmentally conscious.
A lot less focus on buying new things. People just don't buy a lot of new stuff here. They wear the same clothes every week and new cars are very rare. People just don't look to spend money on buying new things. The pre-owned market is huge here.
Recent example - I took my watch for a replacement battery and the strap is worn pretty bad. I mentioned to the guy that I might need a new strap (his chance to make a sale) and he simply replied that it looked in good condition and should last for awhile. Funny.
My office environment is drastically different. Probably not something that has to do with NZ vs US, maybe more just family owned vs large corporation. This ties in with what I said above about new stuff - my computer must be around 5 years old, the service agreement expired 2 years ago and I'm still running Windows 2000.
Cyclists everywhere, that is the same as Colorado. It's just the hills that are annoying different.
Weather report – they can’t predict it down here either.
I do not miss my car and I don't miss Don's car. I don't miss having an awesome car, I don't miss having a luxury car, I just don't. I've learned a personal lesson about this that I won't elaborate on here!
This is easy and still the same as last time.
My old job – after 6 years of it I was ready for something new. I have my challenges in my new role but for the most part I can work pretty independently and actually get stuff done without having to get approval from several people. It's really nice to take an idea and execute it quickly. I'm glad to be out of the corporate BS.
The urban sprawl of the Denver/ Boulder area – I love that you can just drive a short distance to be away from the city (loosely termed city since Nelson is only pop 50k). We were in Christchurch recently (largest town on the South Island - 350k) and I was amazed by all the traffic and people. I can visit the big city, just don't want to live there. I really enjoy the small town life.
Still lint rollers, although my mom is keeping me in good supply (it was my b-day gift last year and it was an awesome gift!). What else. Cycling gels, they are so so expensive here. It's almost the time to get new ipods, but I will wait until the last possible second because I hear there is one that will be the size of my pinky fingernail, so best to wait.
Not really, i'm adapting pretty well. I can get mostly everything I want here, it's only the cost that makes getting it in the US a better option. Mostly I just like getting mail from people. Doesn't matter if it is just a card, kind of nice to just get something. We've ordered a few things from LL Bean and it felt like another Christmas when they arrived. So thanks to everyone who have sent us stuff.
