Milk USA

Throughout my experiences in New Zealand, I have noticed one main difference between the mannerisms of New Zealanders and Americans. New Zealanders tend to be much more relaxed and open to conversations to strangers than the other countries that I have visited. This was evident in my very first day in Wellington visiting the farmer’s market. On my first full day in Wellington, I went for a run in the pouring rain. After the rain died down, I walked to the farmer’s market at the pier. The first place I stopped for was coffee. The café truck employees immediately caught on to my American accent and started a conversation with me on topics ranging from American culture to interesting aspects of New Zealand. The café baristas even took the time to discuss the differences between the American and New Zealand milk classifications after I inadvertently assumed that American milk was the same as New Zealand milk. It turns out that American usage is generally skim, 1%, 2%, and whole, on the other hand, New Zealand usage is generally trim, low-fat, and silver top. As a joke, the baristas, instead of asking for my name to label the coffee cup, wrote down “Milk USA”. 

A similar event happened in Rotorua, but with an interesting twist. After hearing about an open carnival that day by the front desk, my group headed towards that direction. We didn’t find the carnival very enjoyable and instead decided to walk over to the lake front. In between the lake front and the carnival was a large park where many people were relaxing on a hot and sunny Saturday morning. As I was relaxing in the shade by a tree, a local teenager next to me struck up a chat with me. The teenager was of indigenous descent and was shirtless with his jersey slung across his shoulder. He had buzzed hair on the sides of his head with a very long comb-over on the top side of his head. He started a conversation with me by asking me if I was from America due to my American accent which seemed to be the typical conversation starter in New Zealand. As we chatted back and forth, he later switched the topic to the local concert in town by UB40. After some pleasantries, I was about to leave and head back to the waterfront. However out of nowhere, he asked me if I smoked weed before talking about how there was nothing much to do in Rotorua except smoke and drink. Although I politely declined, we continued to chat about life in Rotorua from his perspective as a drug dealer. I was genuinely surprised about the environment in which the teen operated in. He had fascinating stories about gang-police collusion and how he conducted his drug business with his family. It made me realize that the touristy Rotorua areas, although beautiful and lively, have hidden undercurrents of crime and poverty. This was further exemplified at night in Rotorua where there is a very strong police presence, almost similar to that of College Park.  

Throughout my week in New Zealand, I have had the pleasure of interacting with many locals from a variety of backgrounds. Although I have learned so much from the museums and tours that I have attended, there is only so much culture and knowledge you can extract from your typical touristy locations. Museums offer a great amount of knowledge, but are generally restricted to specific topics or historical information. Walking around and analyzing places using my own views may also lead to a failure to fully comprehend the situation. However, it is incredibly useful to talk to locals as it leads to an expansion of perspective and information, ultimately leading to more knowledge and a better understanding of the daily lives of New Zealanders. To truly experience culture, one must immerse themselves in such a situation through interaction of people of different backgrounds. Each person has their own story, and the aggregation of each person’s experience helps create the overall culture of New Zealand.