This has actually been a very funny read. I'm thinking of moving from NZ to the UK, posts on this and similar boards for expats are full of "are you MAD?" and "the UK is a nightmare"!. Things like, there is so much crime, the education system is a total nightmare, it is so polluted, the traffic is out of control etc etc.

Then I come over for a quick look at the NZ site and what do I see....the crime, the pollution, the costs, the education...blah blah blah.

I think expats, but especially Brits outside Britain (and I've lived there before, my husband is English, and I know many many expat Brits) view home very much through rose-tinted glasses, and always have. If we're going to rely on newspaper websites to be an accurate guide to a country (and I wouldn't), then take a look any British newspaper. Its a wonder anyone is still alive and sane over there.

Of course, this is a totally one eyed response to any inquiry, you need to balance everything. Some of you have represented what happened to you as though everyone has the same experience...no-one can afford to buy things new? Speak for yourself. Housing is a national scandal...have owned three houses, probably lived in at least 15 more, no problems with any of them. 55% of water is polluted....obviously you can't just go and drink from any old stream, thats why we have water treatment plants in the majority of the world now. NZ is full of beaches and the vast, vast majority are totally safe for swimming in. Rains all the time? Thats just ridiculous, Auckland is quite a rainy city, but it is alone in that, and at least in NZ you can actually see a blue sky because it is not obscured by pollution.