New Zealand: Difference between revisions

Revision as of 01:47, 5 June 2015

New Zealand is divided in two islands, the North Island (or Te Ika-a-Māui) which is a bit smaller but has 3,5 million of NZ's 4,5 million inhabitants, and the South Island which is more touristic and supposely more beautiful although this is not scientifically proven yet. People often compare Australia to New Zealand and they indeed have a lot in common. The culture is very similar and people seem to be even more relaxed in NZ as they are in Australia, the fact of living on an island probably. Still there are two main differences: First New Zealanders play rubgy, and not this weird Australian "footie", and distances are much shorter than in Australia and you don't risk as much with NZ's climate and wildlife. Depending on when you travel, and on which island you should be careful that there can be heavy snow with blocked roads for some days (especially on the West Coast of the South Island). A story says that New Zealand has 20 sheep for one person but this is actually a myth. 1982 NZ indeed had 70 million sheep for 3,5 million people, but this number dropped to only 31 million in 2011. Which is not too bad already.

Because/thanks to the closeness to Asia, you will enjoy taking pictures in the touristic places with full buses of Asian tourists. The Working-Holiday Visa is a great opportunity for all young people of the countries in the convention, and you can soon feel at home surrounded by mainly Germans and Frenchs. You really have to go out of the beaten tracks if you don't like too much taking selfies in front of glaciers.

Now, once this is said, it is really understandable why New Zealand is so visited. It is a very safe country with amazing landscapes, in 15 minutes or half an hour the nature changes completely, from yellow sunshining hills to snowy mountains diving into deep blue sea, rivers and tropical forests, huge empty beaches. Even if you don't like to visit touristic places, you can still enjoy Kiwiland by taking other roads. A bit of an expensive country though, especially on beer and tobacco, but quite well paid and jobs even not declared are not too dificult to find.

Where the hell is Kiwi?

Although it is the dream of every NZ-traveler to see a kiwi, you would be very lucky if you see one elsewhere then on road boards, on the shops, on the banks, in the souvenir shops. If you want it so badly that you cannot come back without having seen one, go to Stewart Island also called Rakiura, otherwise you will have to stop dreaming. But no, don't give up your dreams godamm'it, you will see one! On the other hand, you can easily find another type of kiwi, as it is how New Zealanders call themselves "Hey I'm Kiwi, nice to meet you. What about you?". "Oh what nice, me I'm Sagittarius" could then be a typical conversation.

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 Rules have tightened up since the 2011 Rugby World Cup on freedom [[camping]]. However, this does not apply to the backcountry: "Freedom camping is permitted on public conservation land, except in areas where it is expressly prohibited or restricted to self contained vehicles. This is indicated by signage." [http://www.doc.govt.nz/parks-and-recreation/places-to-stay/stay-at-a-campsite/freedom-camping/] These areas are usually just car parks or other easily accessible entry points. Otherwise as soon as you are on public conservation land (and 30% of the country is), away from the road, you are free to set up your tent and enjoy the great outdoors! Please do not abuse this privilege! Pack it in, pack it out, leave no trace. Bury your waste far away from any water source so we can all keep drinking water directly from the streams.
-On council land such as raods, carparks however, in general if you pitch a [[tent]] basically anywhere that isn't a designated camping spot you can face a NZ$200-$300 fine. This depends on the council, if you want to be certain find the respective bylaws online or call. The main reason behind this is because too many tourists left their rubbish and poop on the ground in traditional free camping spots.  Please respect New Zealand and never leave anything, including your defecation, on the ground after camping somewhere.  A map with all camping spots including free ones can be found at [http://www.rankers.co.nz/respect http://www.rankers.co.nz/respect]. But unfortunately a lot of free ones are only available for the rich tourists with fully enclosed camper vans and you might find yourself woken up by a council person giving you a $200 fine if you are found tenting there. So check the rules first.
+On council land such as roads, (car)parks etc however, in general if you pitch a [[tent]] basically anywhere that isn't a designated camping spot you can face a NZ$200-$300 fine. This depends on the council, if you want to be certain find the respective bylaws online or call. The main reason behind this is because too many tourists left their rubbish and poop on the ground in traditional free camping spots.  Please respect New Zealand and never leave anything, including your defecation, on the ground after camping somewhere.  A map with all camping spots including free ones can be found at [http://www.rankers.co.nz/respect http://www.rankers.co.nz/respect]. But unfortunately a lot of free ones are only available for the rich tourists with fully enclosed camper vans and you might find yourself woken up by a council person giving you a $200 fine if you are found tenting there. So check the rules first.
 However, police and rangers are usually nice and will often let you a second chance, or even a third chance if they catch you again sleeping in a non-authorized place.