New Zealand - Culture
The Culture in New Zealand was in some ways similar to that of the United States and in many ways different. Firstly, there was not a single person we met that was not very interested in talking to us or sharing their knowledge of New Zealand, the history, what to see, the brands of NZ, or any other thing really.
Overall I think I must have lost 5 pounds from walking throughout the city of Auckland. It's funny but it seems like a lot of people walk or use alternative transportation such as bicycles, scooters, or ferry. Also, we visited in the winter so it was a bit chilly. One of the things that did impress me was the dress. There were plenty of "hippie" types but also I saw a LOT of very well put together suits. In particular the men (of course I was looking at women too!) who were dressed in business attire were very particular about how their outfits are put together. They are all fitted perfectly and lots of three piece suits. Out of curiosity I did stop by a couple of stores to see how they operate. All I can say is very nice, very tailored, very proper, and very modern. Impressive.
The first time I crossed an intersection I was a bit confused because people not only cross directly but also cross diagonally! What a time saver...
Here's another shot of a street crossing where people are crossing normally as well as diagonally. Notice the dress code, it's all over the map here.
A huge part of the culture in New Zealand has to do with their heritage in boating. There are five million people in the country and nearly 4 million boats. This is a shot of some of the Emirates Team New Zealand boats over near the museum.
As mentioned in the post about friends and food, this was a restaurant that we really enjoyed. It had a very cool and fun atmosphere and the experimental artistic cultured showed through nicely here.
It was very typical to see bicycles in the work place. Here's a bike rack at one of our favorite cafes.
More on decor and creative atmosphere.
Unfortunately I did not take many shots of the ferry itself, but here's the side of one of the Ferry's from Auckland. The ferry's leave every hour and many do take the ferry daily in order to work in Auckland.
New Zealand is a very prideful culture. And they should be. For a country so far away it's amazing they keep up with other cultures and still yet have a very diverse culture of their own. Loved this shot of the New Zealand flag hanging off the back of the ferry.
