Moving to NZ in Sept for 18 months - Where do we go??? What do we need???

[Rob Shillito]

Hi,

I am moving with my wife in September to Wellington and am looking for some advise from people who have made the move themselves.

We are a young professional couple (doctor + web designer) wondering where abouts in wellington would be a good place to live? We have heard the aro valley is quite young and hip, which sounds good as it would be good to be around a social area where there is a bit of a music scene. Is this a good place to live?

Also, is there anything I should take with me that isn't obvious as I know I would always do things slightly differently the second time I go anywhere.

What is the local cuisine like in NZ? Is there anything I might not have tried over here in the UK?

Cheers for any advise

Rob

[tokboy]

I migrated to NZ 18 years ago. Its a good place. Wellington is a great city. Grey and damp just like the UK too! You might find that Auckland offers a bit more variety though being a bit bigger. Asian in NZ means chinese type person (like me). Pretty good variety of food, then again, I couldnt afford "fine" food in the UK.

Once word of advice though is to try and secure a job in NZ before migrating there, or at the very least do your home work on transferability of your qualifications. Many professionals have moved to NZ only to end up jobless for an extended period of time for some silly reason or another.

[Rob Shillito]

Cheers Tokboy,

the wife (the doctor) has a job in wellington so we need to be by that city. I work freelance so will probably continue unless I can find something.

[sfed]

Hi Rob--

The Aro Valley is 'hip,' but it has a lot of students. I used to walk in that area for exercise, and it was common for people to still be drinking in the public park at 7:30am on a Sunday morning. It is very close to the CBD, though.

Another 'hip' area is Thorndon. It is very convenient to the city, and you might not have as much of a 'vomit' issue as Aro!

Be aware that the drinking age in NZ is 18, so it can be a drag to live amongst a bunch of students or near a popular bar. Take that into consideration when looking for a 'hip' area.

When we moved, we stayed in a temporary apartment until we could find a place to live. I would suggest that you do that for at least two weeks to get a 'feel' for the city before renting a place.

What to bring.....

Clothes are expensive here, and no Old Navy. Never thought we would miss it so much! Hard to find decent, casual, inexpensive clothes like that. So, definitely stock up on jeans, T-shirts, etc. before you leave. And, bring stuff you can layer.

If you are only planning to stay for 18 months, it will be difficult for you to decide what to bring and what to replace. Despite the voltage differences, if you have high-quality kitchen appliances--blender, food processor, mixer, etc I would bring them. If you figure you will only use one at a time, that's only one (expensive) transformer, but still MUCH cheaper than buying new. The Sunbeam mixer I purchased in the US for $100 costs $400NZ here, for example. I finally just had my mom ship mine over. Also, if you like waffles, they only have 2 kinds of waffle-makers here. Again, I got my parents to send mine after being very disappointed with the one I purchased here.

Prices of TVs and other electronics seem to be declining, so I would just buy here.

Best of luck to you!

When you arrive, you should register on the 'Meetin' Wellington web site--it's a free site for social activities. Good way to meet people. Just google 'Meetin' + 'Wellington' and the site should come up.

~Stacey