Living in a new country, there are bound to be things that seem, dare I say, foreign. Sure there’s the obvious like driving on the other side of the road (which seems totally normal now, BTW). And learning that nobody knows what you’re talking about when you say Fahrenheit or miles. Is this thing on? Thanks a lot, America.

Yesterday marked six months (gasp!) of living in New Zealand. Happy mother f-ing anniversary to us. Best. Move. Ever. And I thought it’d be a good time to recap some of the slightly odd/wonderful things I’ve learned about kiwi life.

1. Clothes dryers are pretty uncommon here. Sure they sell ’em, but it’s all about clothes lines. Which, I actually love. You can’t beat that fresh, nature smell. However, when it rains nonstop for days in the winter…it’s time to bust out the indoor drying rack.
2. Drip coffee makers? Not so much. Kiwis love their electric jug. I’m pretty sure you’re gifted one when you’re born here. Then, they take this jug and use with their plunger coffee (aka French press). Don’t worry, this American found herself a drip coffee maker. But this American couldn’t find coffee filters anywhere. Neat.
3. Being in the Southern Hemisphere, it’s a bit of a mind trip having seasons in reverse and discovering that you get colder as you head south. Whaat? Before ya know it, BOOM. You’re in Antarctica. Except not really. But it’s nice that when everyone else is bitchin’ about the cold in the states, we’ll be sitting on our deck drinking wine. This MN gal is used to a white Christmas, but in NZ it’ll be more like a white wine Christmas. Cheers to that. Oh, and watch this video.
4. Toilet talk time. Kiwi toilets all have two buttons providing you with different flush powers. Big hug to the environment. Just think of it as one button for number one and the second for number two.
5. Grocery stores don’t refrigerate eggs. Turns out that countries like the US have to wash eggs before selling. Which removes the lovely coating that protects the eggs from germs and shit. After that’s removed, the egg has to be refrigerated. Because, laws. My mom is flabbergasted by this fact, but we never put our chickens’ eggs in the fridge.
6. Kiwi life has left me in a bit of pickle. Or lack thereof. Pickles suck here. No joke. We purchased four different brands hoping one would provide that amazing crunch. And nada. So I took matters into my own hands and made some. And let me tell ya, they were bomb.com. #HumbleBrag
7. As I already mentioned, I’m from Minnesota. We’re the nicest, albeit passive aggressive people you’ll ever meet. We wave/chat to anyone. But kiwis take the cake. You must MUST wave to construction road workers and pretty much anyone you drive past. Especially if they do something nice, like pull off to shoulder so you can pass first because the road is so narrow.
8. We love the outdoors. Guess it’s a good thing we moved to a country that is ALL about Mother Nature. One of my biggest fears while hiking in the states was bear attacks. Valid, right? Well, have no fear. Because NZ has no predators to fuck with your hikes. Oh, and it’s not called hiking here. It’s called tramping. NBD. Now try and spot a dangerous animal in this pic. I dare ya.
9. Things, especially avos, are expensive AF here. I get it. We live on an island and shit has to be imported. But still.  That pretty green thing can cost ya lots of green. The most I saw an avo going for? $8.
10. So. Many. Birds. NZ doesn’t have anything scary. No snakes, no crazy deadly spiders. Just tons and tons of birds. I’ve still yet to see the adorable, flightless kiwi…but someday. We do have a pair of native Wekas livin’ in our flax bush. Scared the shit out of me. Their call sounds like a baby freakin’ out, but they’re still pretty cute. Even if they dig up our yard.
11. Fave topic of kiwis (the people, not the bird)? The weather. If ya wanna get on the good side of a fellow kiwi just drop words like southerlies and westerlies and you’re good as gold. Confession: I still don’t get what they mean.
12. They don’t ID you at the Nelson Airport OR scan your bags. The security is a friendly smile and ‘your plane is that way’ approach. Same goes for flying from Auckland to Nelson. Nothing. Just get on the plane and go. Talk about trustworthy.
13. Wine. So much wine. We’re talking an entire aisle at the grocery store, both sides, filled with wine. It’s my mecca. I knew I belonged here.
14. NZ is around a third the size of California and is left off a shit ton of maps. Don’t believe me? Watch this.
15. People LOVE to go barefoot during summer months. And not just at the beach. We’re talkin’ malls and supermarkets. Forget about those ‘no shoes, no shirt, no service’ signs here. People bare their soles in New Zealand.
16. Ya know how in the states you have to wait for ages for your server to bring you the bill? And then you wait again for them to return with your card? Well here, paying is easy breezy. They’ll never bring you the bill. You rock up to the counter and use paywave.  Done and done. And no tip. Amazing. Kiwis also use their eftpos (debit) card for everything. Even gum.
17. Living in San Francisco for 6 years, I dreaded/detested going to the post office or the DMV. But in NZ? You rock up to a furniture store, yes, furniture store, and walk to the back where you can apply for your license, etc. They are friendly and you’re out in like five minutes. The post office? Samesies. Not filled with angry people and lines. Be still my heart.
18. Speaking of the post office, mail only gets delivered three days a week here. Which I guess makes sense. And you get ZERO junk mail. Shocker.
19. All bathrooms have heated towel racks. Who knows why? I don’t. We never turn ours on, but I imagine it would make our towels all nice and warm. But for us, it’s just a rack right outside our shower door. How convenient?
20. Every outlet has an on/off switch. Forget to turn it on? No power for you. 

And there ya have it. Kiwi-ous things about livin’ the kiwi life. Now excuse me, I have to go stare at the wine aisle for 30 minutes while I try to figure out which one to choose. Wish me luck.