This channel is about moving to New Zealand, living in New Zealand, having travel adventures eating & drinking wine (because there always has to be wine).
We are Liz and Brian. A husband & wife who emigrated with their two kids to New Zealand from the UK in 2009 & now get together at the weekends & make podcasts about New Zealand & travel and stuff.
Because let's face it. What else is there to do now the kids are teenagers, and the house is empty?
We love to talk about how to jump into an adventure- big or small & live life to the fullest. Whatever your age. In fact, the older, the better. Keeping it real.
We're world travellers and adventurers & but most importantly, we are optimists who love living in New Zealand & our aim is to make you relax & smile! We really hope that you'll join us on this journey & subscribe!
Check out our second podcast NZ AHEAD! Dedicated only to moving to (and living in) New Zealand podcast (See link below!)
Back in the day if you had money you went to NZ but if were a convict you were sent to Australia. Australia did administer NZ for a while. My parents families originated from the UK. My mum's family were Jewish lawyers who came for the gold rush. My dad's family were anglo-saxon / celts who had a bit of money and bought land to farm. Neither were religious and fiercely British. My grandmother adored the Queen and Queen Mum, cups of tea and Coronation Street.
It's not TGIF, its POETS day (Piss Off Early Tomorrows Saturday). We moved to Australia in the 90's and when we started our own building business, we would all stop on Friday lunchtime and everyone got paid for the full day. Our Aussie employees loved it. I would come around with their pay packets at lunchtime and they would all be waiting :). We also don't do the BUMS on table either and always take your shoes off before going into someone's home (it's just good manners). The one thing I can't stand about going out in Australia is being invited to a restaurant for someone's birthday and you're expected to divide the amount with the number of people who are there. A really cheap trick. We got invited to one of these "dos" and couldn't afford much, so we only ordered the minimum on the menu. We ordered $50 dollars worth of food and got stiffed for $220. Never again.
Panic attacks are really sneaky b^st^rds. The first one I ever had was at work, minding my own business, not feeling in any way stressed when out of the blue, my heart started pounding so hard I thought it was trying to climb out of my chest. I sat quietly, breathing deeply trying not to draw attention to myself but nothing was working so I took myself off into the 'sick room' for a bit. Eventually it calmed down but then I found it would try again, sometimes just as I went to bed and I'd leap into action (mentally) being EXTREMELY firm and fierce and face it down with a "NO, you're not doing this crap again, we're NOT doing this" and mostly I'd win. They'd always come when I was calm, chilled and minding my own business. Like I said, sneaky b^st^rds. It wasn't until some years later when I was talking with a therapist and randomly mentioned it that she told me what it was. In hindsight being fierce and firm may have worked but I should probably found a therapist much earlier because I found it extremely helpful and supportive. I love the fact that nowadays many therapists offer sessions at home over Zoom. Having to attend mine in person in a building emblazoned with the name of the business where anyone who knew me could see that "Ohh, she's having counselling" was a situation I would have rather not had to deal with on top of everything else. I'd been trying to soldier on which is typical me, dealing with a lot of stuff on my own at the time and something had to give. It's the fact that they came out of the blue that I found difficult. I expect that everyone's journey with panic attacks and anxiety is quite different but they're very real and can really affect your self confidence. I was going for a walk some years later and out of nowhere I started getting really anxious. No reason that I was aware of at the time, just panicky and anxious. Hadn't had one in years and suddenly!!! but like I said - sneaky b^st^rds. (I did work out why later.) Sending much love to you and Brian, it's such an individual journey but you've had a lot to deal with and your life's still being quite challenging. Take care and loads of love to you both. ❤❤ (Apologies for being soooooo long winded) 😁
Another thing we have had to be mindful of is that there is a percentage of people, who choose not to share the joy of what we have done on our holidays. It's jealousy, and there's nothing we can do about it. People
Liz, I once listened to a person telling people "I used to fear showing any sort of weakness to my children, but one day I woke up and realised that children want to see adults vulnerable too as it makes it easier for them to realise we are all in this together"
Yeah know that feeling well guys. We've just returned from a 3 week trip to Singapore and Italy. Weareslowly settlung back in after 3 weeks of pleasure 😂😂😛
I wonder if it wouldn't help a bit to afford some of the vacation luxury at home... maybe once a week massage... pop a pool into a greenhouse out back.... things that could bring the vacation to home until you get through the worst part of the grief.... and build a space with no ties to your Mum or pup. Hoping things get easier to cope with, but what you've gone through this year is a lot. Be patient with your pain.
Oh Liz I send you a big hug. A panic attack must be terrifying. You are both surrounded by love remember to lean into it. Remember to be gentle and patient with yourselves. As Bri says just breathe. Arohanui Tracy
A mother's love is precious.. something we store inside us forever and pass it on . Such a gift. For me, the grief of mum's passing came in waves, strong at first. As time went by, the waves became more gentle, until years later I now can peacefully float in beautiful memories and know she is only a thought away.. ❤❤
supermarket conveyer belt is also a real thing, I've lived in new Plymouth but I've also lived in wanganui and dunedin, its the same everywhere. you get the occasional nice employee who will take it out for you anyways. it catches me out sometimes to, and I've lived here my whole life.
kiwi here, the passing lane thing is the most real thing on this list in my experience. every single time. they speed up even if they were previously driving slow holding traffic up.
I live in Scotland, and my son and family have recently emigrated to New Zealand, more for a lifestyle improvement. It has been a costly time for them in emigrating as they are taking all their furniture and family pet. Aukland looks great place to bring up young family. As for Scotland I think it is a great country.
Interestingly I didn’t move to NZ with any of the assumptions or hopes you mention, but after 12 years I’m incredibly happy. The people are as beautiful as the places and everyone is incredibly friendly. The geographic isolation has indeed sheltered NZ and NZers from the conventional political problems of the rest of the world and the country has its own independent conscience.
I can highly recommend NZ Shores. We used them to get our Parent Retirement Investment Visa. However, NZ Immigration is hell to work with. It took us two years to finally get Resident Visa no fault of NZ Shores. I would not have wanted to do this on my own. There is so much paperwork required. Besides the money Immigration requires all the other requirements cost a lot of money as well and it all adds up. FBI reports are also required for background checks. Also, medicals are required so you must be in pretty good health to get here. It is a lot of money required which most comes from selling your home but then there isn't enough left over to buy a house here in NZ. I am also finding it hard to get a loan to buy a house as banks don't want to use the Investment account to show you can make the payments. As most parents are only getting older, waiting for the lottery system could be a long time which is hard on older persons to be in the waiting game. I think the Boost Visa for parents would be horrible. Your parents come over get 5-10 years all the while aging but now need to leave , where do they go?
Very interesting video. The Parent Retirement Visa would be great, but the additional $500,000 in the bank to live on is quite excessive. I would have thought a pension income threshold and $750,000 original investment would be more than enough. Thanks for the vid though guys appreciate it.
Hospitality works on about 1/3 of food/beverage cost pays for wages. So the 15% pays for the extra wages. $100 bill $33 wages. Time and a half would be $49isb. $16 more.
We are here on the Parent Retiree visa, just granted in May 2024, from the US. It took 2 years after submission for approval (it was not a contentious application, I think INZ is just falling behind). We used a barrister and had to pay his fees (registered agent might be cheaper). We came over on a visitor visa which was extended to a full year, and I then went back to work in order to stay until the visa arrived, a full year after that. We couldn't imagine it would take over a year for either rejection or approval, and are amazed it took two years.. Immigration was picky about exactly how we earned the investment money, and our money in general, over out lifetime. If you are retired and are likely to have saved and invested for decades, they wanted a paper trail of this money over the years. This can be an issue as most people don't have decades of bank records, or investment details, and most institutions will only have records going back 7 to 10 years (in the US). You are not allowed to borrow the money, even if it is collateralized by your own money. Some of our money came from house sales, but we had to sell retirement funds instead of getting a loan based on those funds. And a gift seems like a non-starter as the person giving the gift would have to prove it is not a loan, and then how they earned the money (and who is that good of a friend or relative). INZ is very concerned about money laundering. Our application for this visa was over 250 pages proving all of these details, many of which had to be notarized. We had to have an FBI background check, and I think your person seemed to indicate "we can work with it", but I thought immigration might be quite strict. I did have to see a specialist here for a preexisting condition, along with a general medical for both of us. Our son-in-law is an immigration advisor now (did not work on our case) and they have specialist to call at INZ when there is a particularly sticky wicket question. We strongly agree you need to seek professional help.
My husband is a well and truly kiwi but he won't hesitate in putting shoes, working tools, etc . very yucky things over our dinning table !! And yet, you say it's not the right thing to do to sit on a public picnic table?
Sometimes when I would be driving my truck around NZ I would sometimes throw out packets of bluebird or a drink or something to the lollipop guys because they would be there all day when I went through early in the morning and again at night when I came back through. A pretty thankless job but I use to enjoy their smiles giving a little something.
Wife and I just returned on Friday from a trip around the world. Went to Hilo Hawaii for waka ama world sprints. And then on to Europe ( France, Ireland, London) to see our daughter who lives in London. Went through some big Airports and some interesting things from different countries. In Honolulu Airport we were flying through San Francisco to Paris and security in Honolulu asked for a visa and also an address where we were staying in France. I told him NZers don't need visas for Europe and he actually checked. Interesting thing about that was the French in Paris just asked for my passport , stamped it and sent us through without any questions. Also San Francisco and Frankfurt on the way home don't do security while you're in transit. Must be a thing they do in Asia because we had a security check in Singapore on our way to Auckland. If people miss thier flights they take your luggage off the planes for security reasons. Something I noticed in London you may relate to is we were thier 6 days and I only saw one road cone. I knew we were back in NZ when we landed at Auckland Airport as we went past about 300 pf the bloody things just walking to the domestic terminal to catch our plane to Napier
As a physiotherapist that just moved to NZ from the US, this was such a great interview to help me put a finger on some of the differences in the health system that I’ve been seeing and experiencing. NZ has a strained system but it’s not nearly as financial devastating or predatory as the US.
I've left my items in the basket plenty of times when at the checkout, and I don't think they've ever refused to take items out of it, nor do I remember getting a dirty look. I suppose it could be I might ignore them, except for the payment part, but that's my experience. I also noticed they don't pack your groceries in English supermarkets. I'm noticing they are not doing it in NZ now. Probably because of Covid in NZ. The bum on the table thing is something to do with Maori culture, but I think it's being adopted by the general kiwi public these days. It depends on the household I think, as there are still plenty of Kiwis whose ancestors were from England and don't care that much. Not that there's much call to sit on tables when there are perfectly good chairs available, and I doubt many Pakeha will appreciate you sitting on their dining table anyway. And yes I noticed that slow drivers tend to speed up at passing lanes, which is very annoying. And I have had more free drinks from one of my previous British employers than any of my kiwi ones. I suppose it depends on the boss and the way your work schedule works, as in industry.
My Dads family is from England and Mum is Maori but all Kiwis. when I was growing up My Maori Nana & Pop who lived in an old style state house bought a new flash lounge sweet for the first time ever. They were so proud of there new flash couches they thought it would be great to leave the plastic on them so that they would not get dirty and they wouldn't need to wash them. I don't think they ever removed the plastic and this was 40 years ago so I understand how the Maori guy liked to care for his new campervan.
Does NZ have a buyers additional small insurance program covering used appliances for usually a year, on a property? It is usually very affordable in the US, and sometimes a seller may offer to purchase it for the buyer as a negotiating point.
Nah this is all wrong. I don't think anyone has said howzit to me since the 90s and you don't just ignore them lol you have to say something back. Usually g'day and a smile
Liz, I am kiwi born and your videos would be totally different if you had moved and settled in a bigger place than where you are... If you had settled in Auckland and had ten plus years in Auckland you would have different opinion on NZ.. Your point of view is the same as any small county town...
Don’t see the time to get out from uk ….i am sorry but i just had bad experiences in UK….recently racism! I do live in uk,have been living for 10 years and I got British citizenship.
