New Zealand

At the moment, there is an interesting discussion in New Zealand about the flag. There will be two flag referendums taking place in New Zealand. The first referendum will take place this year and it will be discussed whether or not to change the national flag.
The second referendum is scheduled for April 2016 where New Zealand`s current flag will go head-to-head against the most popular new proposal. But if one flag gains over 50 per cent of the votes in the first referendum, then the second referendum could be cancelled. There is already one favoured alternative of the people who want a new flag: A silver fern on a black background which is known from the sports teams of New Zealand. So it is argued that this flag proposal is too closely associated with New Zealand`s sports teams.





Let me now present you some arguments for and against a new New Zealand flag:

PROS:
- The current flag is too similar to Australia`s flag.
- There is no Maori representation on the current flag.
- It does not really represent New Zealand`s status
as an independet nation.

CONS:
- It represents New Zealand`s links with the United
Kingdom and the Southern Cross represents its
location on Earth.
- New Zealanders have fought and died under their
flag, for example in the Battle of the River Plate
(1939).

You can read more arguments here: http://www.nzflag.com/whychange.cfm

Many people believe that the time has come to choose a flag which represents New Zealanders as they see themselves today. That they could better respect and reflect the history as a nation, represent to others as they like them to see the country and carry the New Zealanders forward with their hopes and aspirations for New Zealand`s future.

Now Kiwis can officially tell their opinion about changing the New Zealand flag (see http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff-nation/assignments/9662873/What-should-be-on-NZs-flag)

In my opinion, the New Zealand flag should represent New Zealand as a country with a great cultural and natural diversity.

It is unbelievable what kind of news appeared in New Zealand last week!

A guest blog from an anonymous waitress was discovered in which she describes the way the Prime Minister John Key kept touching her when he repeatedly visited her place of work. The question is whether this strange behaviour of the Prime Minister is acceptable?!?

The waitress said his behaviour began during the election campaign last year and continued until March, 2015. He often went to the cafe where the waitress works, approached her from behind and pulled her hair. At first she did not comment on his behaviour but a few times later she stated very clearly that she did not like the hair pulling and that he should stop this. She started keeping the distance to him, told his security and her manager. But it didn`t help. He still didn`t care.
But a little bit later he brought her two bottles of good red wine. He excused with big smiles and said he didn`t realise that she didn`t like the hair pulling.
Really? This is very ironic. She often told him and made it perfectly clear that she didn`t like. On Saturday, 28th March, his security personnel were in for their morning coffee and one of them asked the waitress "how was the wine?", so it is really clear that someone must have recommended the Prime Minister to excuse and give her the bottles of red wine, which she does not even like but photographed it as some form of evidence that all of this really did happen.

John Key showed that sometimes he is not professional in his job, which is not really a good thing when you are running an entire country. The waitress wants to remind the Prime Minister as well as the country that John Key is just a man, not a god!

It will be very interesting to see how John Key will respond to the blog that was published by the waitress and if the attitudes of people towards John Key will develop by this story.

1) The people. Kiwis are the friendliest, most welcoming people you could ever hope to meet, and they love their country.

2) New Zealand is made for road trippin´. The population is only 4 million people – that’s hardly anyone.

3) The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings. The masses first realized the beauty of New Zealand after watching these films.

4) Kiwis are very proud of their Maori heritage. The language, culture and traditions are still a massive part of modern New Zealand.

5) New Zealand is home to the world’s best wine. You can go to the wineries and taste it from the source.

6) New Zealand has fantastic glaciers like Franz Josef that you can land on in a helicopter, before walking over them. Incredible.

7) You can do a lot of adrenalin sports! Where else could you bungee jump, canyon swing, sky dive, jet boat ride, scuba dive and more, all in the same day if you wanted too? Basically, nowhere else.

8) If you’re in New Zealand, you’re in one of the first places in the world to see the sun rise.

9) It’s as beautiful, accessible and fun-packed as it is in winter as it is in summer.

10) It’s beautiful. Like, seriously beautiful – and so unspoilt. From the turquoise glacial lakes and soaring snow-capped mountains of the South Island to the subtropical rainforests and stunning beaches of the north, New Zealand is diverse and picture perfect in its beauty.

11) It’s so easy to get around! Compared to Australia, New Zealand really isn’t that big. You could comfortably explore both islands in a month.

12) No part of the country is more than 128km from the sea! Great!

I am sure there are hundreds of more reasons why New Zealand is a great country but I need to stop here :)

WELCOME TO MY NEW ZEALAND BLOG !

My blog is not only intended to create interest in a journey to the wonderful country of New Zealand, but it should also inform you about current events in New Zealand that you usually would not even notice here in Germany and topics regarding New Zealand you perhaps have never thought of before.

I hope you enjoy reading my blog!