Erinn Goes Abroad

7 month reflection: Cultural Comparisons

Every time I think I’m going to get on top of my blogging, I realize a month has passed and nothing has been posted. Apologies!

Before diving into filmy waters, I want to preface this entry with a disclaimer. I in no way intend to stereotype or offend when drawing comparisons between the USA and NZ. No doubt there will be several whose experiences and opinions will be quite the contrary. So I urge you to take this entry with a grain of salt. Take the whole salt shaker, if you get my drift.

My observations:

Do-it-yourself: Kiwi ingenuity is considered a national trait. The term is thrown around frequently if not flippantly, but we can veritably credit New Zealanders for splitting the atom AND inventing the zorb, among other things. Even on the micro scale, it seems any arbitrary young kiwi you meet might know how to make a loaf of bread, whip her/his own cream, sand down and reassemble a table… without so much as a shrug. Admittedly I’m more inclined towards convenience. Can anyone tell me where I can find a roll of tollhouse cookie dough? Why sweep and mop separately when you can do both simultaneously with a Swiffer? And the only whipped cream I bother with comes in a can…. A week ago I came home to find one of my flatmates sanding the lounge’s coffee table. Two days later she was hunched over the sewing machine making a seat cover. It looks great. Reminds me of the time (circa ‘98) I tried cross stitching an elephant pattern on a baby bib. Heaven only knows where that abandoned bib may rest today, half finished and forsaken.

Conservation: There seems to be greater concern for the environment. It’s a core value (and why shouldn’t it be?) I think this is maintained through the media, tourism marketing, government policy, and education. For example recycling is mandated in Wellington and New Zealand sells itself as “green” in an appeal to draw in tourists. So obviously there are several avenues to propel and perpetuate this virtue. I acknowledge that there are certainly populations in the USA whom hold high regard for the environment but it just seems much more widespread… almost universal here.

Technology: Technology is different. Luxuries like unlimited Internet, dishwashers and clothes dryers are not a given. Utilities are more expensive (or perceived to be more expensive) and New Zealanders use methods for staying warm that may seem unconventional to Americans. For example, hot water bottles. You’d be hard pressed to find a household without at least one hot water bottle. As you might suspect, a hot water bottle is a rubber bottle with a screw-on cap. When one feels cold, she pauses to boil hot water and effortlessly funnels it into the bottle. A lot of the flats in town are not (well) insulated so the use of a hot water bottle (or a stand alone heater or an electric blanket or resorting to 58,686,948 layers of clothing) is essential in the winter.

Interpersonal Communication/Dating: Socializing is largely the same. I notice several differences between Wellington and Atlanta but I think describing those would unnecessarily narrow the scope for identifying American vs. Kiwi -isms. Dating seems WILDLY different (much to the lament of some of my American/Candian girlfriends) and truly warrants an entry of its own. Some other day!

Politics: Again, I could be wrong but it seems a lot less polarized here. I’ve gathered these observations from the newspaper and general conversation. Someone once told me that New Zealand’s most conservative party is still more liberal than the USA’s most liberal party. Interesting concept. In my Media & Popular Culture class last semester, one student observed aloud that the New Zealand media was generally reliable and did not sensationalize news. To my shock, no one challenged this assertion, not even the professor. I guess I should admit now that my journalism and communication coursework has taught me to be critical of the media, it’s hidden interests and its inclination to sensationalize. As delicately I could, I demanded to know why this assumption was tolerated by all present. The professor referred back to the issue of polarization of the parties. If the two main political parties have only a handful of differing stances, then what is there to sensationalize? I don’t consider this an exhaustive answer, but that’s where we left it.

Security: I may be biased based on my own past experiences living in the city of Atlanta, but Kiwis tend to believe that crime is low in NZ. They may not fret about locking their doors in the evening or leaving their laptops out in a cafe when they head to the loo. This was really hard for me to adjust to (it felt reckless) but lo, it has worn on me a little. It will probably be best if I re-engage in near-neurotic caution once I return to ATL.

Traveling: Sure, you can drop the “Less than 30% of Americans hold a current passport” or whatever that bogus, misused statistic is, but I think it’s important to acknowledge surrounding variables. For one thing, the USA is an elephant in comparison to petite NZ. To put things into perspective for my North American friends, the longest flight domestically on AirNewZealand is about 1 hr. If you want to go further, the next stop is Australia or a Pacific island. Whereas in the US you can be on a plane for nearly 5 hours to get to one coast from another. Furthermore, New Zealand and Australia have a special political relationship that allows Kiwis and Aussies to travel between each other without a passport. Unlike most of the other countries within the empire, New Zealand has maintained what I perceive to be a “close” relationship with mother England. It seems a lot of people visit England for their Overseas Experience (OE for short) and at one point, Kiwis had an easier time obtaining visas to go to England. There are political and social structures that encourage Kiwis to internationally travel. I argue that Americans aren’t persuaded to travel on quite the same level and I think part of this is due to the corporate culture. We covet our limited 2 weeks vacation time per year and once you calculate in transit time + round-trip + internationally, you’re bound to lose 2 days if not more in the process. It seems more economical, time efficient, and perhaps just as enjoyable to take a holiday domestically. A kiwi once observed to me that she was shocked at how many American students move away from home to another state to go to University. Maybe this is an indication of an American cultural norm that parallels the New Zealand idea of “OE”. They are both intended to yield similar results: it’s the young adults’ “coming of age” opportunity, where they can “find themselves”, experiment, and achieve liberation in a foreign environment.

Public transport: The buses, ferries and trains are widely used in Welly. I use it. It shall be weird to lack the resource when I return home. I remember my amusement of taking a ferry into town one morning after giving a Rotary presentation across the harbor. There I sat, next to business types ponderously reading their newspapers and checking stock prices on their iPhones whilst sipping their trim flat whites (read: coffee) as the ferry bopped to and fro. I couldn’t entirely wrap my head around the modern chicness of it all. Anyways, I don’t think the access to public transport is a relevant difference because America is afforded with at least a few cities that posses adequate public transport (sadly Atlanta is not one of them).

General Perceptions: This doesn’t happen all too often so hear me out, but I get a bit rattled when people describe to me their idea of an average American. Consumerism comes up a lot. Someone told me he thought Americans like to do a copious amount of clubbing. (No more than any other population of young people!) I’ve also heard recurring themes around arrogance and being overly-patriotic. As infrequent as these conversations are, they still stand out in my mind. Of course I want to be diplomatic and guide them towards a more positive perception… but that can be difficult when you feel insulted. Nonetheless, MOST people are inquisitive and curious. Lots will tell me about their experiences in the USA and they tend to be positive. I appreciate the people who want to discuss cultural differences in a constructive way. I think we all have a lot to learn from each other and to begin this process, we need to have some tolerance of our differences.

There is so much more to say on this topic and there are actually several topics I omitted (in the interest of time -I’m sure I’ve lost some of you already!- and I worry some of my observations will be construed as abrasive). Are you surprised by what you’ve read today? My hope is that if this has caused you any shock at all, that it will encourage you to step outside of your comfort zone culturally. Here seems like a good place to posit my favorite Mark Twain quote: “… Broad, wholesome, charitable views of men and things cannot be acquired while vegetating in one little corner of the earth all of one’s lifetime.”