[noweena]

Hey
I have lived in Hamilton for the majority of my life, but am currently living in Melbourne. Although there is much publication of drug problems within the media, the number of patients which I had to nurse who are IV drug users or on P (ICE/ Methamphetamine) are few and far between. The situation may be different in Auckland or Wellington however, and in the hospital I work in in Melbourne we get people with Drug problems very frequently. Waikato is an excellent place to work, the staff are friendly and new staff members get a lot of support. I hope that you enjoy youself and feel at home in NZ.

[babyminder]

I work in the NICU at Waikato and I see enough babies coming through with drug withdrawal or conditions related to maternal drug use and see enough social problems related to drugs to still say there is a drug problem. It may not be as bad here as other places in the world but I wouldn't like anyone to think that it is perfect. But then where is??

[shazniko]

Hi

I was just wondering if anyone can tell me where the best area to live would be - between Whangarei and Hawkes Bay? Can't quite decide. I am a midwife with 2 young children so would be looking for a fairly rural area with good schools.

I have heard mixed stories about Whangarei - this was the original area we considered to settle in but then when we holidayed in NZ for 3 weeks we spoke to several kiwis and they said tried to put us off the area! That's when we started researching other areas. However, we plan to build our own home but the cheaper sections tend to be in Hawkes Bay or Whangarei.

Any advice would be greatfully received as getting more and more confused by the day!!

[Djuna]

I hate being a negative Nancy, but with the present economic climate in New Zealand I would not recommend living there to anyone. In fact my younger sister as well as my parents have left NZ to go to Australia because the cost of living is so much more affordable.

If you are determined to go however, rent for a year to really get a feel for the place before you commit to building a house. Until you live there you can never really know how difficult it can be to enjoy the lush countryside and supposedly 'laid back' lifestyle, due to many socio-economic factors that are problematic in New Zealand.

[babyminder]

The area between Whangarei and Hawkes Bay is a very big one. I agree that you should try renting before committing yourself to anything besides which it could take you a year to get the house built. We built a house when we got here, much too quickly I think. Anyway, it was a very harrowing experience and unless you are experienced inown builds i wouldn't recommend it. Rural? How rural? Don't forget how expensive petrol is and you proabably need to decide where you would like to work as a priority. How big a place do you want to work in or do you want to be independent? Also don't forget that your children will get older and may not want to live rural (as I have found out to may cost, they don't find it easy when there is no public transport). There are many places to choose from but you need to think about what you need and then look for something that fits.

[shazniko]

Hi

Djuna, Don't mind you being negative. Can NZ really be any worse than the UK?? The UK is going into recession now. It is getting so expensive to live - all our immigrants are leaving now as it is so expensive to live! We are emigrating for a better lifestyle for our kids - there is absolutely nothing for them here. Crime is increasing rapidly with a major major drug problem even in the 'good areas'. So New Zealand here we come! If it doesn't work out at least we can say we've tried and then go to Australia. Australia didn't really appeal to us because it is too big and has lots of deadly beasties though!!

[shazniko]

Originally Posted by babyminder

The area between Whangarei and Hawkes Bay is a very big one. I agree that you should try renting before committing yourself to anything besides which it could take you a year to get the house built. We built a house when we got here, much too quickly I think. Anyway, it was a very harrowing experience and unless you are experienced inown builds i wouldn't recommend it. Rural? How rural? Don't forget how expensive petrol is and you proabably need to decide where you would like to work as a priority. How big a place do you want to work in or do you want to be independent? Also don't forget that your children will get older and may not want to live rural (as I have found out to may cost, they don't find it easy when there is no public transport). There are many places to choose from but you need to think about what you need and then look for something that fits.

Hi Babyminder

Who did you get to build your house? Its just the firm we were going to use said it would take 2 months to build our home! That would just be the shell though.

We need to live in a rural area as my husband plans to start a business so we need a fair sized plot of land. I still want to be within close proximity to shops though - I don't want to be in the middle of nowhere! It is so hard to decide where to settle. You hear so many different stories about places that you think would be ideal for you then it can all change again the next day! To get the business set up quickly we really need to decide on an area then buy a section. Schools need to be close by though too cos my husband will need to collect the girls when I am working.

We had really liked the sound of Nelson/Tasman bays but sections are too expensive there. So I think it is going to be between Whangarei or Hawkes Bay. My head is spinning!!!!

[babyminder]

We had our house built by Lockwood. You need to be careful, you will get told alot of stuff but don't take it all verbatim, you may be told what you want to hear to keep you happy but that doesn't mean it WILL happen!. You may be able to have a house built in 2 months but you might have to wait considerably longer for the building to actually get started. If you want a fair bit of land then that puts you outside of a main town. As I have said before there is NO public transport outside of the main cities. Most schools have a bus system that picks up the children from the surrounding ares, this can mean quite long bus trips at each end of the day. What shops do you want to be near to? If you just want a supermarket then that is not too bad but if you want good fashion shops etc then you need to be near to a city or big town. As an example we live about 40kms outside of Hamilton, (outside a township called Pirongia) I work in Hamilton, a 35 - 40 min car trip. We live here because my husband wanted natural environment we have 8 acres of lovely land, lots of bush. My children are both at High school, one has an hour long bus trip twice a day to get to school in Hamilton on the chool bus, the other has a 40 min trip home on the school bus (slightly shorter inward journey). Primary schools are usually closer, some are very small, our local primaries are 10 & 11 kms away (bus service provided). My children don't drive so are reliant on us to transport them wherever they want to go. My husband works from home. My nearest supermarket is a 25 min drive away, the best ones are in Hamilton again. If you want to live rural then this is not (I believe ) an uncommon situation. Would you like to rent our house, we are thinking of going to Canada for a while?

[rhenmag9]

We r planning to move to NZ this year. I am a registered nurse in the philippines and just received my invitation to residence last month.can I ask some information re: how much will it cost to live work and settle in NZ??? dont have any idea regarding per hour salary and benefits especially we r planning to settle in auckland NZ...most of the nurses said that auckland city is very expensive when it comes to living standards.... thank u so much...I will appreciate your info's....

[prendela]

Hi Susan

When you say Northland, I presume you mean the region at the top of the North Island? There is also a suburb called Northland in Wellington.

I have lived in Wellington my whole life and it's a beautiful place. I have heard bad things about Wellington Hospital so I don't recommend working there. It is really run down and under staffed. They are in the stages of a big re-vamp however, so it could be better next year. Lower Hutt is a really nice hospital and that is about 20 mintues drive out of Wellington. Lower Hutt is a really nice place for raising kids.

A friend of mine works at Auckland Hospital as a neo-natal nurse and loves it! She said it's a really good hospital there.

Wellington does get a lot of wind but that blows away all the pollution!

I hope this helps in making your decision.