"WHAT ARE THEY LIKE?"

Ducie & Mt Maunganui

Ducie High School Manchester We had different ideas on the size of New Zealand. They varied between "pretty small" to about the same size of the UK if you join all the islands together. Everyone knew that New Zealand is made up of more than one island and that it is near the Australia in the Southern Hemisphere. Population size caused us some problems. The ideas ranged from 500, 000 to 9 million. We reckon that you look very like us but with a better tan!!!! Most of us think that you speak english but with a different accent. The native culture question caused us a problem, some didn't know anything about it, one or two people came up with the idea of an aboriginal culture "like Australia" and one person mentioned the Maori culture, even though he spelt it "mowiis". Generally though we know very little about the culture surrounding the native population. As a result the question about traditional costume was a problem. Someone suggested it was a shepherds outfit! ( I think, because of the two major imports we see of New Zealand are Lamb and Anchor Butter!) There were two strands of thought about how "old" the country is. Some took the line that it was about 200-400 years old while another group took the view that it was about 2000 years old. One person hedged his bets and said an "immenseley long time." We were unaware of the history of the country, although Captain Cook's name came into the conversation at some point. Rosa thinks the countryside is flat and the climate is hot and dry (obviously she wasn't watching the cricket!!!) Christian reckons there are deserts and mountains. Mark reckons there are lots of mountains and the weather is wet and windy. Daniel thinks it's hot wet and hilly, Micheal thinks there are lots of trees and some bright spark said that the countryside was very flat with lots of sheep! Basically, as you can see, we know very little about New Zealand! I doubt that you know as little about the UK! I hope that you find this interesting and not too insulting. One thing I hope is that we will learn a lot more about our different cultures. Ian Jackson, teacher Now take a look at Mt Maunganui's responses to these first impressions! Find out about what New Zealand's REALLY like! You can also check out the complete project on their website.

Mt Maunganui College Mt Maunganui Highlights from students in 3Vo: I think England is a pretty rainy place. Michelle I like all of the castles and old buildings around the place. Andrew Living in Manchester would be different from living in New Zealand. I think that Britain is about half the size of the world. Bobby There's beef eaters in the Tower of London and lots of places to go sightseeing. I think English people eat fish and chips and often go to the pub. Catherine I would like to go to England but since it is half way around the world, I would have to save up a lot of money to get there. Chris P I think the big cities would be a lot like L.A (But not as big). The buildings would probably look more interesting with gargoils and stuff like that. Norton The towns are all made up of old buildings and cobblestone streets. People go around in dark clothes talking in funny accents about the soccer game yesterday or what happend on Corronation Street last night. Chris S I think that England is still quite in touch with the past because of the fact that they have a lot of old buildings and the fact that they still have a royal family. Dana I think of England as a cold place with old buildings and soccer fans. The cricket team isn't crash hot but they still beat New Zealand. Jonathon I think England has about 15 million people in it. It is connected to Scotland and Wales. It is in Europe. Joshua I think it would be mainly a lot of old buildings in long streets, with not much grass area. Larissa I think that living in Manchester would be okay, but it would be too far from the beach and it would get too cold in the winter. Maria Even though I was born in London I always thought that the whole of England (its people) were really snobby, now I still think the same because people over there have a lot of money and all they do is spend it on themselves (eg. clothes) Martina I think living in the U.K. would be crowded because it is about the same size as New Zealand in area but it has about 56 million people whereas New Zealand only has 3.5 million people. Matthew I think England would have heaps of 2 storied shops. Michelle From what I know about England (Not a Lot), I think that the climate is totally different (often cold and humid, or so my grandparents say from when they had a holiday there). Shane Now take a look at Ducie's responses to these first impressions! Find out about what Manchester's REALLY like!