New Zealand has entered in the spotlight in West after the

people could see the exotic locations in the blockbuster Lord of

the Rings. Located in the east of Australia, New Zealand has a
lot of beautiful tourist atrractions like Milford Sound, South
Island, Franz Josef Glacier, Rotorua, Bay of Islands and National
Park Tongariro. Natural beauty of this country is often mentioned
to be a image of a postcard. The urban hubs from New Zealand as
Auckland, Wellington and Queenstown are also an interesting
place to visit.
-New Zealand was first discovered by Europeans in 1642
when Dutch sailor Abel Tasman arrived. He left New Zealand after
several of his crew were killed by Maoris.
- Queen Elizabeth II is officially Queen of New Zealand. She is
represented in New Zealand by a Governor General, who ratifies
all laws put before him or her by the elected parliament of New
Zealand.
- New Zealand is one of only three countries that have two
official (and of equal standing) national Anthems. The first is God
Save the Queen (the English National Anthem) and the other is
God Defend New Zealand.
- Wellington, the Capital City of New Zealand
southernmost capital city in the world.

is the

- New Zealand is a plastic nation almost all personal

financial transactions are made with a card credit or otherwise.
Most shops offer EFTPOS (similar to the UK Chip and Pin which
appeared two years later) and cash is seen less and less.
- Lake Taupo (one of New Zealands most popular tourist
destinations) was the source of the largest known eruption in the
world in the last 70 thousand years. It had a Volcanic Explosivity
Index of 8. It released over 530 cubit kilometers of magma
- New Zealander and Nobel Prize Winner, Ernest Rutherford
is known as the father of nuclear physics for his orbital theory of
the atom.
- Children in New Zealands secondary schools spend more
time than the OECD average learning mathematics, science,

technology and physical education. They spend less time learning

foreign languages, arts and religion than children in other
countries.
- 24% of New Zealand families have only one parent. Over
40% of Maori children live in one-parent families.
- With 2.5 million cars for four million people, including
children, New Zealands car ownership rate is one of the worlds
highest.
- The graduates from New Zealands universities who tend to
earn the highest salaries are those qualified in sciences,
engineering and management & commerce. Creative arts, food,
hospitality and personal services graduates tended to have lower
salaries.
- New Zealands school students reported better relations
with their teachers than the average for students in the OECD.
New Zealands students also reported more pressure to achieve
good results is applied by their teachers than the OECD average.
- Christmas in New Zealand follows soon after midsummers
day. Many northern hemisphere traditions prevail in NZ, including
tinsel-covered pine trees and christmas cards portraying snow &
reindeer. The pohutukawa tree comes into peak-bloom in late
December and is known as New Zealands Christmas tree.
- A kiwi is not a fruit it is New Zealands native flightless
bird (pictured above) and a slang term for a New Zealander. Kiwis
call the fruit kiwifruit they are also known as Chinese
Gooseberries.
- New Zealand was the first major nation to have universal
suffrage. In 1893 it became legal for all male and female citizens
of New Zealand to vote.
- Another native bird of New Zealand (the Moa) was one of
the largest birds in history standing up to 3.6m (12 foot) tall
and weighing 300kg. Unfortunately they were hunted to
extinction by the Maoris by the end of the 1500s.
- The Pasifika Festival is a Pacific Islands-themed festival
held annually in Western Springs, Auckland City, New Zealand.

Celebrated since 1993, it is the largest festival of its type in the

world, and attracts over 225,000 visitors every year. The festival
presents a wide variety of cultural experiences, including
traditional cuisine and performances from Samoa, Tonga, Cook
Islands, Fiji, Niue, Tahiti, Tokelau, Tuvalu, Kiribati and the Tangata
Whenua (New Zealand Maori).
- New Zealand has a strong hold on the international trade in
sheep meat. There are presently around 9 sheep to every 1
human in New Zealand (the population of New Zealand is 4
million).