20 Signs That You Miss New Zealand

Life as a Kiwi Expat in the UK is great, but are you missing New Zealand? Is it time to head back Down Under or should you continue your overseas adventure?

Use our fun check list to find out.

Many New Zealanders are having a tough time in the UK at the moment. The coronavirus outbreak has hit the economy hard especially the hospitality sector where so many Kiiws find temporary work. Travel opportunities have also been severely curtailed so it is no wonder that we , at PSS, have been helping so many New Zealanders return home to what is now condiered one of the world’s few safe havens from Covid-19.

Here we are taking a fun, positive look at what New Zealand has to offer over the UK so you can start to appreciate all the good things home has to offer.

We’ve put together a fun checklist for homesick Kiwis to see if you should stay in the UK or head back home to New Zealand.
You know that someday you’ll want to return home to Aotearoa – the Land of the Long White Cloud, but is now the right time?

So check out these 20 signs that you’re homesick and missing life in New Zealand…

1. You miss real beaches – day trips to the English ‘seaside’ are just not the same

NZ has the perfect beach for every occasion. No matter whether it’s sand, peace, surfing, rock pooling, penguin spotting or even having a thermal hot pool, New Zealand has the ideal beach for you. And there’s plenty to go around too, so you don’t have to struggle to find space for your towel the moment the sun comes out.

2. You are beginning to appreciate that Christmases in the summer are pretty cool after all

Admit it – when you left NZ you fantasised about snowy winters and having Christmas by a log fire with the snow gently falling outside. The reality is overcast, damp, and a bit depressing.

3. You want to wear Jandals to work without having people judge you

Other countries say they have a casual dress code, but they don’t really mean it. Kiwis get casual. It’s a lifestyle thing.

4. The only place to get a decent coffee in London is in a New Zealand coffee shop!

Do people really think that those chains sell decent coffee? Do you miss asking for a flat white without the ‘barista’ giving you a strange, confused look?

5. You miss sights like this and think it’s normal

Yes, there is something endearing and quirky about New Zealanders – no matter whether they’re humans or our fellow inhabitants.

It could be kea parrots having a go at your wipers or penguins crossing the road – you just come across things daily that you won’t find anywhere else.

 6. You’ve got over the thrill of cheap food and are now wondering why everything is so tasteless

OK, back home you didn’t quite have the same choice and a lot of ‘exotic’ fruit and veg required a second mortgage, but it did taste good. They may claim to have better chefs in Europe, but generally fresh ingredients are just so much better in New Zealand.

7. You’re experiencing travel fatigue after two years of visiting every European destination and Warsaw is next on your bucket list.

You’ve been just about everywhere and it’s getting harder and harder to move your growing souvenir collection every time you change flat.

8. Al Fresco dining, wearing a coat next to a busy road, just doesn’t cut it

9. Mum’s cooking. Need I say more?

10. You notice everyone is so tense and stressed and it’s starting to wear you down

When you arrived overseas you were the epitome of the laid back Kiwi lifestyle. You walked into a room and the place chilled. Now you increasingly find yourself screaming internally “Come on, people, PLEASE!!!!”

11. You’re finding it increasingly difficult not to scream at people who ask “Where in Australia do you come from?”

When you first left NZ you smiled good naturedly and politely corrected their ignorance. But that’s becoming increasingly difficult – especially when they shrug as if to say ‘what’s the difference?’.

12. You never thought it possible, but now you’re even starting to miss New Zealand politics

Yes, you’ve had it up to here with Trump, Brexit, etc., especially when back home you have a prime minister who’s so cool that she invited Ed Sheeran over to her house for tea and scones.

13. Living in a shoe box so you can afford to travel and be near the centre of town is losing its attraction

OK, New Zealand houses may not always have central heating and double glazing, but at least you have some personal space. Just why do double the population of New Zealand all want to live in the same city anyway?

14. You’re spending more and more of your time reading posts on forums like Kiwis In London and notice that more than half your friends in the UK are fellow Kiwis anyway

Yes, it’s true everywhere you go people are friendly. But there’s friendly, then there’s Kiwi friendly.

Kiwis In London is a great place to meet up with fellow Kiwis and Kiwis Migrating Home is helpful if you are thinking of returning down under.

 15. Kiwi treats – it never bothered you before, but now you have an increasingly unhealthy craving for many of the items below…

• L&P
• Pineapple lumps,
• hokey pokey ice cream
• sauce-topped meat pies
• Whittakers chocolate
• Speight’s beer
• Pascall Jet Planes
• NZ fish n chips
• Moro’s
• Squiggles
• Watties
• Cookie Time cookies
• Kiwi dip
• Arnott’s Shapes
• Reduced Cream
• Lamingtons
• You name it…

16. You’re searching through Netflix in a desperate attempt to find dramas based in New Zealand, but end up just drooling over re-runs of the Lord of the Rings

17. Everything is cooler about New Zealand – even the police

18. Celebrating Waitangi Day in February in the UK makes you feel so homesick

Is winter ever going to end? You’d hope to see a little more sun and warmth by now. Waitangi Day barbeques on the beach are a distant memory.

19. Half of your British friends say they want to move to New Zealand and you realise just what you’re missing!That time when you couldn’t wait to get away seems so long ago and now that you’re on the other side of the world, it looks like everyone would rather be down under!