ESCAPE TO NEW ZEALAND (Part II)

Deciding to move to another country is only the first step in "making it happen".  For us, moving to New Zealand was a risk, but also an adventure.  We approached the entire process with an eye to experimentation.  After all, what would happen if we tried and failed at any juncture?  Though you may not think it at the time, you can always go backwards.  But few people ever do.  Jobs, houses, cars are obtainable in any country as long as you are able to put your enthusiasm into looking for them. 

On the way back from our first trip to New Zealand, we decided to try and immigrate.  We figured we could pull out at any time. So we drew up a master checklist with certain stops for us to contemplate before continuing to go forward. When we got back to the US, my husband John ordered up an immigration packet from the New Zealand Consulate in Los Angeles.  I was to research New Zealand and everything about it.  Fortunately, New Zealand makes this very easy to do. Not only do most libraries and the Internet have a lot of information available, but also New Zealand, being small, is great at capturing statistics. 

On our journey, we had run across a book called the New Zealand Official Yearbook. It is put out periodically and costs about $65 New Zealand (currently about $35 US.)   It has every statistic you could ever want on the country.  Each publication book has various aspects featured with great insert reading and excellent pictures.  They also hit all the high points that most prospective immigrants want to know. In the book you will find details on New Zealand's: Geography, Government, International relations, Population, Social Framework, Social Welfare system, Health and Safety, Education, Justice System, Art and the Medica, Leisure Pursuits, Employment, Science and Technology, the Land and Environment, Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing, Energy and Minerals, Housing and Construction, Transport and Communications, Commerce and Services, Overseas Trade, Money and Banking, Public Sector financing, National economy ETC.

The book is available through:

Statistics New Zealand
Publications Client Services
PO Box 2922
Wellington, New Zealand
Phone from US:  011-64-4-495 4600
Fax from US:  011-64-4-473-2626

The website is also useful for a quick look at New Zealand stats.  Check out:  www.stats.govt.nz.  It has further links to other government departments.  And if you are specifically looking for something, that organisation probably has quantified it, so write and ask for it !!

Each of the three major cities -- Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch -- has newspapers that we subscribed to for the year that we were preparing our move.  You can choose to take a few months of each city just to get the difference in reporting.  Even though you will receive the papers several weeks after the publication date, it is an excellent way to familiarise yourself with the country, the people, their values and even their spelling !!  If you know the city you might be heading to, take their local newspaper too.

Choosing a city was one of the best things about making a move.  Most people go to a city for a job, family or friends. We had none of those confining factors.  On both of our trips to New Zealand, we stopped at every petrol station, every dairy (short stop store), every bakery and asked people "where would you live if you had a choice of any place in New Zealand".  A majority of people on our "survey" chose Nelson.  Living now in this small town of 48,000 alongside the Tasman Sea and looking at the snow capped Richmond Ranges, it was a great choice.  People all over the world come to live in Nelson as a matter of choice. It reminds me of Laguna Beach, California...about 50 years ago.  Your survey should also be coupled with how you feel about the town, once you are there. Most people do well in a town that they feel good about, want to be in, want to contribute to the community and want to be part of the culture.  So the choice is both cerebral and "gut".

Filing out the applications we received from the Consulate was a study in discipline. We decided to approach it as we would a master's thesis.  We provided EXACTLY what they wanted in the application, no matter how small, no matter how trivial.  We put together a presentation packet with neatly typed labels.  We had indexes and tabbed sections.  We also had a cover letter telling them about us with some personal feelings about why we were moving. We went back over the instructions again and again, just prior to submission to make sure we had everything included.  It is our belief that getting it right the first time makes a good impression on the reviewer. 

We hand delivered our application.  Though we flew into Los Angeles and only spent 5 minutes to turn in the application, we wanted them to see us and know that we were interested in moving to New Zealand.  It is important not to make a pest of yourself, but approach the process in a professional and friendly manner.  For us, the application process did not take as long as represented in the packet.  We were approved in a matter of months and then the next step was actually ensuring that that was what we wanted.

Decision-making, of course, often revolves around trying to discern the "right" course of action amid several variables.  We sat down one night shortly after we were accepted and listed out all the reasons we thought it would be good to move. We also listed out the reasons we thought we would be "damaged" or hurt by leaving almost everything we knew behind in "the old world".  But like adventurers of old, we decided, heck let's "go for it anyways".  The next step was packing up.

To make such a big transition from one country to the next, the BEST advice I can render is "travel light".  We had made a conscious decision to ship very little. As noted in Part I of this series, each of the five of us had just two bags.  The children choose the clothes they wanted for one bag and toys and books they wanted for the other.  In retrospect this was a good decision.  It forces us to move lighter through life.  We gave away and sold a lot of things, most of which I can't even remember.  And New Zealand has just about everything anyone could need. 

Once again our method for getting through this phase was a detailed checklist.  There are plenty of moving guides on the market, but we custom made our own and kept updating it for the year we made the transition. We also had fall-back options.  On the day of our departure, we loaded up the car with our bags, Money Magazine came and took some pictures and we left for the airport.  We have never looked back and regretted our decision.

ESCAPE TO NEW ZEALAND (Part III)

For some, moving to a new country where you know no one, have no jobs, no house, no car and no connection can be pretty scary.  For our move to New Zealand, we found a lot of new friends, interesting jobs, a great house overlooking the Tasman sea and a lot of connections with a new community.   And best of all, we found we don't have to "give up the US" either. 

In this world of ever-increasing economic cohesiveness, having an understanding of another culture becomes important for you and for your children.  Living in another country is one of the best ways of understanding how other people think and react in life. Even though New Zealand has lots of similarity to the US, it is different. We found the process of making the transition to a "new land" interesting and fulfilling.  In fact the opportunities for living and working abroad are limitless.  All's you need is the desire to do it and you'll find a way even, if it is just for a year or two. Coming back to the US, you will have a much greater understanding of the rest of the world. 

As we made the transition to New Zealand from the US, we wanted to maintain a bit of security for awhile.  For us this meant that John stayed in the US for a few months while the three boys and I moved to New Zealand.  We wanted to make sure as we transitioned to New Zealand, we had a fall-back position.  We had no guarantee that we would like New Zealand or even more importantly that New Zealanders would like us.  We came to Nelson (our town of choice to live) and rented a furnished house for a few months. We even had a PERT chart with go-no go options throughout this entire transition!

There are some easy things you can do to get to know your new country and your new town.  These include:
1.  Get and read the paper every day.
2.  Visit the Library and check out every "Public Notice Board". 
3.  Become friendly with every public service person you talk to including the bank tellers, shopkeepers, NZ Postal employees, Petrol Station attendants who do your windows, even the rubbishmen collecting the rubbish. These people have incredible information all at your fingertips.
4.  Get into the education system. For us with three boys, we had two different schools where we were affiliated.  We did this with gusto.  Schools are a great place to meet people, get information, and get connected.
5.  Volunteer.  If you don't have a school connection, find something that interests you and volunteer for that organisation.  (In Nelson we have a directory of volunteer groups, so finding them is no problem.)  Most organisations love volunteers and they in turn become great information givers.
6. Ask Questions.  Perhaps the biggest thing you can do is ask questions about your current needs.  Write down what you need to know and ask two or three people about that topic.  Most people have and love to give information. So just ask for it.

Attitude is an important part of making the transition successful.  Whether it is created or captured by the media, books or our general nature, Americans in another country have the perception of being loud, brash, aggressive and demanding.  Do everything in your power to downplay this image. Even though you might be leaving the US for awhile, you will always be a representative of it.  The minute you open your mouth, you will be judged as an American.  And that judgement stays with that listening and observing individual and is often passed around to their family and friends.  We were determined to make the image they received of us a good one.  The boys and I went out of our way to be as polite as possible, as friendly as possible and smile to everyone we met.  We got a lot more done and felt better about where we were, when we obtained cooperation though our own positive attitudes. Most people on vacation find they love the country they go to because they are relaxed and enjoying themselves.  We dedicated ourselves to being on a permanent vacation.

Nelson and New Zealand became our own research project.  We gathered and read everything we could about where we were.  We took small trips around our city and beyond.  We became friends with our neighbours and people we met.  We had people over for dinners and served homemade "tortillas" and Mexican food.  We walked a lot in the cities and hiked in the mountains.  After a few months of living in New Zealand, we were still on "green light go".  We then made the decision for John to move over. We also decided to find a more permanent housing arrangements. This lead to an initial house and then about nine months later to a more spacious house overlooking the Tasman Sea.

While we arrived with just our bags, we had no problem filling up our house with everything we needed.  Auctions and garage sales are very popular in New Zealand (almost viewed as a sport).  We got everything we needed to fill a large house without costing the dollars we would have spent on shipping it over.  It became fun to try and locate something we needed and further helped us in our exploration of our area.  The "Saturday Market" in Nelson was a great place to co-mingle.

While we have met a lot of Americans who have moved to New Zealand, we have also tried to broaden our base of friends.  We have enjoyed meeting many Kiwis (as New Zealanders call themselves) as well as others from around the world.  There are few things that we miss from the US.  Some Americans complain about specific products that they can't live without.  However as with many networks, there are ways to get a relative or friend to bring back Lawrys Seasoning Salt or Diet Dr Pepper if you crave it.  We have enjoyed eating some of the tradition Maori foods as well as the traditional Kiwi fare. Most of all we have found the freshness of the vegetables and fish to be a healthy alternative to our previous existence in the US.

After eight years we have enjoyed our transition to New Zealand.  We feel that our children have gained advantages that they never would have had staying in the same school. They have been able to see how other people in other countries live, work and play.   Most of all we have gained the knowledge that what seems an insurmountable task with a million reasons of why it can't be done, turns out to be just a collection of small steps to making it achievable.