I was sitting at dinner last night and started to think of all the differences between NZ and the states.  Neither exhaustive nor important,  I'll add to the list as time goes on.

The bill at a restaurant.  There are two types.  You order at a counter, pay, and take a number to your table.  The order is then served to you.  Or you sit, your order is taken and you are served.  To pay you walk to the front desk and settle up.  Waiting for your bill to be delivered could take a while. There is no tipping, by the way.

Electrical sockets are fewer than accustomed to and each outlet has its own switch.

Heating your house or room seems something of a luxury.  Many places do not have central heat.  I bought a heater in Tauranga and left it behind.

Milk will be put into your motel room so you have it for your tea.  And I have yet to see a motel that did not have a kitchenette in it.

Electric bed warmers are one of the best ideas ever.

Bathroom Faucets are often separate so you need to pour a basin of warm water or oscillate between frostbite and being scalded.

Open Houses often last for thirty to sixty minutes.  The agents hold a few on a Sunday, not just one.

Sundays most places of business are closed.  Car dealers are closed from Saturday afternoon on as are most shops. And no Kiwis are not a super religious bunch.  They keep that a private matter (except for the damn evangelicals that have come this way), unlike some other parts of the world.

Restrooms in public places are called toilets which seems to me a better name.  Unless your name is Larry Craig, when did you last go into one for a rest?  Probably Puritanical roots that view bodily functions as inherently indecent are to blame.

Walking towards someone, which side do you veer to if on a collision course?  I tend to the right, here it is better to veer left (better for me given my left leaning tendencies).

Cars have the right of way versus pedestrians.  Makes sense-cars cannot stop as quickly as walkers and once you realize this, as a pedestrian you pay attention.  However, at certain downtown crosswalks marked with orange globes on sticks, take a step into traffic and cars immediately stop for you.

Newspapers are printed on larger paper.  And a business letter is also on larger paper.

Wal-Mart thankfully does not exist in NZ, at least in my experience.  KFC, Burger King, McDonalds, and Starbucks unfortunately do.

Diesel passenger cars are as common as the cold.  And diesel fuel is about forty cents cheaper.  Regular petrol is about $2 per liter. 

Toilet water may swirl in the opposite direction than in the northern hemisphere, but I have yet to see it.  Mine have all had a straight down flushing. Many toilets have a half-flush  button and a full flush one depending on one's needs.

Entrees are more like appetizers and Mains are full meals.

Shit is a perfectly acceptable word on television. 

The religious right is seen as a whacko faction, as they should be.

Catsup is called sauce and if you want it, it may cost extra at some establishments. 

Fries are chips.  I don't know what chips, if they even have them, are called. 

*  Yes they have them. "Corn Chips" but they are not tortilla chips, damn. Potato chips are available.  Pringles are sold here too.  We don't have any idea what's in those.

Dates are written DD/MM/YY.  Makes sense to me. Start small and go big rather than starting in the middle and then... you get the idea.

Political Parties.  There are a few but Labour (yup, that's spelled correctly) and National are the two major ones.  National is more conservative but on a spectrum from 0 to 100, Labour would be at 45% and National at 55%, not that far apart.  While I am considered a flaming liberal in the states, I would be at about 50% here.  Of course Goldwater would be a liberal in the U.S. these days.

Mail Carriers ride bikes.

Rent, car payments, rental furniture... are quoted in dollars per week, not month.

Hair Salons.  There have to be more of those per capita than anywhere else in the world - absolutely everywhere. 

Driving on the left side of the road.  Yes we do.

**Napkins are called serviettes and napkins.  A nappie is a diaper.

Door knobs are mounted high like in a pediatrician's office.

Refrigerators are smaller.

As I walked through Pukekura Park this afternoon, giving it a proper amount of time to explore it in full, I thought I needed to add this list.

Parks are everywhere as are reserves and domains, open areas preserved.  As an example, an extraordinary one admittedly, Pukekura Park has a cricket field with seating for thousands, a series of lakes, a waterfall, various play equipment, a rhododendron garden, another for azaleas, an amphitheater where big names play in summer, a tropical hot house that goes on forever, and a zoo.  The price of admission for all is zero, even for the very small and limited zoo.  Tax dollars go for this type of enrichment, not going to means of destruction.

The clarity of the air is like on Kauai (as opposed to the island of Hawaii which is often hazy on the Kona side).  You can see, in good detail, objects miles away.  The colors and textures come through distinctly, not as a blur.

The people are over the top nice.  That happens in the states too, especially away from the cities but it is pandemic here.  Have I mentioned the bus drivers?

Butchers, Bakers, and Produce stores are readily available.  A nice change from just the supermarket.  Candles stick makers however are AWOL.

Interesting cars.  There are so many models we do not have in the states, and I wonder why we don't.

Meat Pies.  See 19 August entry.

The pace of life suits me better.  Less rushing, more leisurely cadence. Like Hawaii without the rubes from Kansas.

Clean public restrooms.  They're everywhere.

Political insanity U.S. style is pretty avoidable.

Round abouts- Not that I am driving much these days, but when I do they work like magic.  No traffic lights to buy and erect, no electricity wasted, and no cars left idling for long periods spewing crap into the air.

Metric System.  So much more sensible but the Celsius temperature thing is a bit hard to get a handle on. Hint: take the Celsius number, add fifteen and then double.  Not spot on but close.

A country built on peace and attention to the environment.

The first verse of the national anthem mentions peace and love.

No tipping.  The wait help are well trained and polite, genuinely.  They also earn a decent wage. When the meal says its $10, that is all you pay.  See next item.

Tax is rarely added to the cost of something, it is already built into the price on the tag or sticker.

Its green as Hawaii in the middle of winter, except for the deciduous trees.  Camellias, rhodies, bird of paradise, and a zillions others are in flower.

Things I Miss

My people.  At least I talk to one or more of them daily. My guitars, my bike, my dogs, a real kitchen, central heat, and light fixtures designed after 1960.

Mexican Food.  Enough said, I'm sure you feel my pain.

700 channels on television, but really I can never find anything to watch on all those channels anyway. And one can get tons of channels on Sky, just not in this motel. So....

Netflix.  But there is one like it down here.

Broadband that you can pass more than a toothpick through.

Things I Dislike

No Mexican Food! I know that was redundant but I had to put something in this section.

* I did find El Paso salsa, beans ("Mexican Style") at about $2.80 USD for a can, seasoning pouches, and hard tortilla shells.  Like I said- No Mexican Food!

Aug 4-15

Aug 16-31

Sept 1-15

Sept 16-30

Nov 1-15

Bits & Pieces

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