A Clean, Green Country That Works

How often have you read or heard someone say, ‘I’m going to chuck it all and move to New Zealand.’  An announcement frequently followed by:  ‘Where?  I’ve heard of it but I’m not sure I could find it on a map.’  Or the wag’s response:  ‘Don’t they have more sheep than people?’  (no, not Greece where the men are men and the sheep are nervous.)  And, yes, there are more sheep than people (way more) and based on our recent observations, the cows appear to be close to outnumbering the sheep, certainly in the North Island.

But back to why New Zealand has become a metaphor for where life is still idyllic.   It’s clean, it’s green, stuff works, the literacy rate is one of the highest in the world, the school system is good, the social safety net is robust, the military is a token item in the national budget, the middle class is big and thriving, the minimum wage is almost twice what it is in the US, immigrants are assimilated, and while gun ownership is high, gun violence is almost non-existent.  I could go on, and on but you get the idea.  This is one neat nation.

Sure they have their issues, it does sometimes feel a little ‘Nanny State-like’ and people are not happy with a lot that’s happened over the last 10 or so years, but we didn’t meet anyone, anywhere who said:  ‘I’m going to chuck it all and move to . . . ‘ 

This is our third visit in 16 years.  The first in 1999 to visit friends from Washington, DC (NZ natives), the second in 2012 when searching for a place to call home when a move from New Mexico was imminent, and now just cause we’re in the neighborhood.  When we returned home in 1999, we both wanted to pack up and move. (I threatened to move anywhere out of the US if George Bush was elected in 2000.)  When we returned home  after our 2012 visit, we both felt it was just too far from everything, and the only place in the whole country you could find free wi-fi was McDonald’s! 

And here we are in 2015 and I feel like we’ve almost come full circle.  We’re not quite ready to go home and plead our case as émigrés, but this is one terrific country.  

On our previous visits, we managed to cover most of the North Island and a good portion of the South Island, so this visit is short (two weeks).  We’re catching up with friends and ticking a few boxes of places we hadn’t already seen.  First stop, Lake Taupo where we’ll meet up with Judy and Don and do some fishing.  I met Don serendipitously in a parking lot in Silver City in 2007 while hustling memberships to our local arts council.  He and his wife Judy came back to the States and spent a week with us in 2008, and we spent a week with them during our 2012 visit. 

Don has been keen to introduce Tim to the joys of fishing, hence our first stop is Lake Taupo, a gorgeous volcanic lake a 4-hour drive south from Auckland.  

Once we arrive and settle into our comfy motel (all motels in NZ come fully kitted-out with kitchen gear including an electric kettle, egg cups, toast racks, as well as free wi-fi) It turns out that all four of us will be going fishing.   Richard, an old friend of Don and Judy’s, has generously invited us out on his fishing boat.  Off we go to Richard and Dale’s ‘bach’ where we meet the whole family and, in true NZ fashion, are warmly welcomed. 

‘Bach’ is short for bachelor place and harkens back to the days when single NZ guys had a place at the beach to do the stuff US guys do in their man caves except NZ guys did it with fishing poles.  Today a ‘bach’ refers to anyone’s beach or close-to-the-beach vacation digs, often handed down through generations and ranging from a tricked-out trailer to an Architectural Digest palace.  Everyone in NZ seems to have one, and they’re always near water.  Note:  wherever you are in NZ, it’s only 75 miles to some large body of water.

It would be wonderful to report that we were successful and caught something, but alas, we were not.  We did, however, have a perfectly beautiful day on the Lake, toodling around in Richard’s boat, exploring the coastline, marveling at the sapphire blue water, and watching the occasional fish wiggle across  the fish finder screen (I think they were grinning at us as they swam by.) 

Don, Co-First Mate, Captain Richard and Judy, Co-First Mate

We all agree Tim has the laidback makings of a first-rate fisherman.

I, on the other hand, may need some of Tim's relaxed demeanor to get this fishing thing right!

Meanwhile back at the bach, Dale, Richard’s wife, had been preparing a sumptuous dinner for 11, capped by a Pavlova that brought tears to my eyes it was so wonderful.  She graciously agreed to send me the recipe.   

Tomorrow we’re off to Hawera and Taranaki; where there are bees that need keeping at Judy and Don’s.