I’ll make it easy. I’m in EESE, my desk is in Bldg. 5 but I spend 99% of my time in PDC GR-T24.
Well, my mother works for the Otago University in the biochemistry department, if we can help with information in some way, let me know.
I used to live by the beach. I don’t remember ever having a problem with sandflies. But then, as mentioned, it was cold, and probably not their scene. We did have a lot of sandhoppers, though.
If New Zealand decides to become a republic in order to have a Trump of it’s own, the respected populist half-Maori Winston Peters could become first president.
New republics generally veer sharp right after founding. Even the Jacobins were more of a Businessmans’ and Lawyers’ Party than ‘By Hammer and Hand’.
Actually, balloon wood framing has been around in the US since the 1830s.
Never really caught on elsewhere, but that doesn’t stop modern English house building being equal crap.
…Winston Peters is not generally “well respected” here. And considering there wasn’t even popular support to change our flag in the recent referendum, there is very little chance we will become a republic. Not while Winston is still around at least.
The vote on the flag was way closer than I thought it would be - I think one of the things that ultimately cost us a new flag was Key’s support.
And to anyone thinking of moving here - it’s an awesome place. I’m home after 16 years abroad, and loving it.
The biggest thing I miss though is food - quite literally there’s nothing available here in Christchurch after 10 pm or so (excluding the generic American fast food crap)…and stores closing at 6 pm is driving me nuts.
You keep on repeating this assertion without seeming to have done any amount of research. I’ve known plenty of people who have done the Australian immigration process and it’s not notoriously difficult. You basically need a Bachelor’s degree and a job offer, that’s it. That’s a pretty low bar and far easier than the American system where they have to prove an American can’t do the job and then enter into a lottery. New Zealand’s system appears to be roughly the same.
The bigger struggle is that there’s not a huge amount of highly skilled jobs in New Zealand, to the extent that many young professional New Zealanders end up having to leave the country for better career opportunities. But don’t be fooled into thinking that just because America’s immigration system is a nightmare, so are all other developed countries. It costs a bit of money and there’s a mind numbing amount of paperwork but most other countries are pretty friendly towards high skilled migrants wanting to economically contribute.
“Respected?” When did this happen?
Wash your mouth out lad. Dunedin is my favourite city! Mainly due to seven years of university and then work. But yes ok, it is a bit temperate, much like Edinburgh which it is a southern version of.
Cripes mate. What a small world. My friend’s wife worked there until recently. Another friend who is a clever geneticist works at Invermay in Mosgiel. They have a close relationship with the university.
I’ve just taken my daughter back to Otago university for her second year. She is studying law and zoology which is an odd mix although that is what I should have done in hindsight.
An appropriate song from Fascinating Aida - Suddenly New Zealand - YouTube
Otago University has a world ranking of 169 and Auckland of 81. Both are excellent and Otago is strong on science, law, and business.
The often overlooked aspects of a new home are the wider opportunities in that location. Dunedin is a pretty city on a harbour which is a bit cool in winter. As is much of the northern US and Canada. And indeed all of Scandanavia. But people happily live there.
Otago university is close to Central Otago which has a Colorado climate. Warm and sunny, mountains, lakes, skiing and hiking. It has taken a lifetime of work and I’m living there now. A lot of people have holiday homes in Central.
I’ll give you an example. Four ex-pat friends of ours are doctors. GPs. Three Scots and a South African. They moved as couples to work at the hospital in Invercargill which I have to tell you is nice but wet, windy, and unexciting. The city sits in the Roaring Forties. It is the last place you’d expect young immigrant doctors to choose.
Each couple soon bought a home and then shortly after they each bought holiday homes in Central Otago. It is a 2 1/2 hour drive from Invercargill. In their terms living in southern New Zealand is cheap.
One couple are now in practise and living in the country near Queenstown. The others still have their two houses.
These choices are simply not available in Auckland or elsewhere. Admittedly there are nice places to go but working life involves one hour commutes to and from work. So more driving in the weekend to a holiday home isn’t attractive.
Thanks for the additional info Ken001.
A few more things to add …
New housing construction in New Zealand has undergone a seismic shift (pun intended) in the last few years. The combination of the leaky homes crisis, the Christchurch Earthquake 2011, and growing environmental concerns mean that modern constructions are structurally more robust, are fully insulated, and have double glazing.
However, the building boom and high cost of housing means that there are still some construction firms that attempt to take significant shortcuts regarding these requirements. I have heard of sites where the insulation is fitted for the pre-line council inspection (before the drywall is fitted) and then removed to be fitted into the next house for pre-line. Council inspectors do try to keep on top of such things.
Older housing will probably not have these features. A good independent building inspection prior to purchase is necessary.
We returned to NZ from 12 years in the the UK in 2013, and I took a job in Auckland (against my better judgement). It was a very good decision and I don’t regret it.
We purchased an older house in a nice area of Auckland, about 40 minutes out of the CBD by train. We have had mineral fiber insulation blown into the walls (necessitating redecoration) and replaced all the joinery with double-glazed UPVC windows. With a new kitchen and an interior redevelopment, it has transformed the house into something modern and warm.
Cost of living is an odd thing. It sometimes looks from outside that NZ is fairly expensive, but we have ended up with more disposable income here than in the UK. But we have mentally accepted that overseas travel for holidays is going to be an occasional goal, not a regular option.
A professional landscape photo of Otago Harbour (Dunedin), taken from near where my Mother lives.
I find it hilarious that a lot of that matches things I hear from people who lived in the US or in European countries and decided to go back home. Not from everybody (my own opinions about US costs are a lot more nuanced) but from a lot. Usually they’ve lived in an expensive place; they’re likely to have chosen a bad(ish) part of a famous and expensive location rather than move a little bit out, to a place that’s not well-known but which happens to be cheaper and better. They’d rather live in the bad parts of Manhattan than move to Brooklyn. It’s their choice, but they don’t realize how much it is their choice because they didn’t even consider the “Brooklyn” option.
OTOH, my sister in law lived in NZ for several years and loved the place; she came back when her dad got sick, out of a combination of family duty and job market improvement. But she’s a small town girl and lived in small towns.
And looking toward where my mother lives (peninsular).
One of the appeals to me for New Zealand is it sure is a beautiful country.
Nice photo. Your mother lives in Corstorphine?
No, Waverley.
Corstorphine would have all of South Dunedin and St Kilda in shot.