kiwi q&a.
When we were visiting the USA we were surprised at some of the questions people asked us about New Zealand. By the way, it is important to note that New Zealand is nothing like Australia (even the accents are different) and though Australia is the nearest country it's still a four hour plane ride away. Confusing the two is worse than mistaking Canada for the United States.
What is Kiwi TV like?
This question was asked by someone who is a fan of Australian TV and expected it to be similar. Kiwi's don't have a lot of original TV programming. Most of the shows produced in-country are reality television based off of foreign shows, we have X-Factor, The Block NZ, Master Chef New Zealand, and of course boarder patrol shows. As for scripted television we have a few comedies such as Short Poppies which is by the guys who brought the world Flight of the Concords, there are also one or two dramas and soap-operas, but I don't watch those.
The news is still a bit weird to me as there are only two stations to choose from and it's all national news. Even though Wellington is the capital city it's more common to hear about Auckland's high housing costs than anything happening down here. We also hear an awful lot about terrible things happening in the United States. It's embarrassing.
For the rest of television programming we get shows from all over, especially Australia, the UK, and the United States. Just in the past year it has become more common for international shows to air just one week after they premiere abroad. Netflix also just arrived in New Zealand, but most people opt to be super sneaky and use the US version.
Where do you buy food?
We buy food in a supermarket just like in the States. There are three major chains, New World (like Giant Eagle), Countdown (like Shop n Save), and Pak n Save (like Sam's Club, except without bulk items and a membership scheme). There are also a few outdoor farmers markets that pop up on Sunday.
The only huge differences are that items aren't always in stock and pricing fluctuates wildly on some products. There are foods that we will purchase religiously every week til one week they just disappear for a few months with no explanation. Then they will return just as suddenly as they disappeared. Prices can also be a bit dodgy especially for dairy products. A block of cheese ranges from $15 to $6 depending on the week. Usually there will be at least one brand on sale for $6, but which brand changes on a weekly basis. Therefore there is no brand loyalty, at least not when it comes to cheese and butter.
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| Impulse buy chocolates at the checkout |
People go crazy for Whitaker's Chocolate and when they released their chocolate milk people were lining up in the stores waiting for shipments. Pop really isn't popular here and it's normal to pay $15 for a sleeve of cans. There are far less pre-packaged food options, many meals are cooked from scratch.
What's it like driving on the other side of the road?
It's actually not bad, it's just like driving on the other, other side of the road. The biggest problem I have is accidentally flipping my windshield wipers on instead of my turn signal.
Roundabouts are amazing though! I don't know what the deal is with every roundabout I've encountered in the States, but you guys are doing them wrong. Roundabouts here keep the traffic moving so well that there are rarely any stops on my journey from downtown to my house.
You won't see any koalas around these parts either, not even at our local zoo. We do have penguins though. Most of New Zealand's wildlife consists of birds. There are also introduced invasive species such as hedgehogs and possums.
Way back in the day there were moa and giant eagles that preyed on the moa. I swear I am not making this up. They also refused to take the hobbits to Mount Doom. Giant eagles were pretty much jerks.
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| Historical re-enactment |
