Welcome to NZ, Aotearoa, land of the long white cloud, and home to a heap of Kiwis from NZ. I’m sure that the kiwi, whilst it is our national bird, is a flightless ground dweller, but that announces little about the folks that from NZ who live in this stunning country. Perhaps at about that point I should say that the kiwi really is a pretty bird, and to see one in natural settings, or even in captivity, is an awesome event.
Right so now I am side tracked by the kiwi. Where was I? So, Kiwis, the residents of NZ, a. K. A the youngest country on the planet…. We really are an engaging bunch, and I say that in the absolute best way, and to come to NZ is to not only enjoy the stunning scenery, but in addition to meet some extraordinarily cool folk.
Hence let’s get straight into it. What precisely is Kiwi culture, putting races and folks groups aside, let’s find out what makes Kiwis tick.
we’ve got to start off with rugby, which was introduced to NZ in May 1870. The 1st game of rugby was organised in Nelson and from then rugby has been something that NZ has been quite great at. For years Kiwis have been rugby nutty, and it’s been each small boy’s dream to become adult and become an All Black. The AB’s are a global icon and whenever they lose a significant game the whole nation goes into mourning.
Locally, you can expect just about every city and city to have at least one rugby club, and most Saturdays, if you go down to the local sports parks you will be treated to local rugby at its best ; city against city, province against province and sometimes even bro against brother. I’ll talk from experience as I am now the substitute for a village 3rd division team which is truly a Kiwi move to make. I am in it only for fun , but for a lot of neighbors rugby is lived and breathed and a win on saturday is a total must, as is the after game event full of drinks and match stories.
perhaps one of the most familiar things about rugby is the short shorts the players wear. This piece of clothing is referred to as a stubby and it has filtered into the dress code for Kiwis everywhere. It’s not uncommon to see, even in the dead of winter, a good old Kiwi bloke wearing a pair of stubbies, seemingly oblivious to the cold. I can not say that I mostly support this symbol of Kiwi culture, but i have been known to put on a pair even if I am not playing rugby. Perhaps it’s good for topping up my leg tan.
i guess while we are chatting around sports it’d be fair to say another growing sport from NZ, which, whilst it has not loved the state acceptance of rugby yet, it is certainly becoming increasingly popular. The game is soccer ( or soccer dependent on where you come from ) and the most recent success of the New Zealand All Whites and Wellington Phoenix truly has boosted it in the state’s eyes. Bring on the soccer World Cup and the way ahead for soccer from NZ. Soccer really is a superb sport and for the more youthful generation is just as popular to play on the weekend as is rugby, so do not be stunned to see a rugby match being played alongside a soccer match when you visit that local sports park.
Kiwis are really not limited to rugby and soccer, however. We excel in sailing, cycling, endurance races, golfing, basketball, canoeing, horse racing, growing, cricket and netball. These sports can be discovered all over New Zealand in some degree and this all goes to show that Kiwis are not only rugby insane, but sports insane generally. Other sports that may be found are tennis, table tennis, bowls, boule, badminton, volleyball, mash, and athletics, not to mention all the self defence schools around.
O.K, so maybe everything isn’t centred on sports from NZ. We are a fun-loving gift givingnation, but our work ethic is exceedingly high and worldwide recognized. Perhaps you’ve heard of Kiwi ingenuity, also known as No. 8 wire mindset? We are a country that believes in just getting in and doing it, no matter what the stumbling blocks. If nonetheless , there are stumbling blocks then expect your average Kiwi to successfully and fast come up with a solution or some clever technique to get around the problem using radical means and whatever is available at the time. It will sometimes be to an extreme standard and achieve what’s required.
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