Why London ?

It's funny. I often get asked why, as a kiwi, and lived in Australia for years, I want to live in London. 

I will always be grateful being brought up in New Zealand, one of the most beautiful countries in the world. One of the most friendly countries in the world and  a place which encompasses its history in all ways possible. 

NZ is one of the most advanced, both technologically and forward thinking, countries in the world. Where women first got to vote, where our indigenous culture and European settlers have embraced changes and each other's history. Where earth meets land and sea. A country filled with a national pride and an election can be decided on the national rugby team winning or losing a World Cup. This is who I am. 

Unfortunately, it is also remote. Yes, NZ has everything Europe does geographically- the mountains, the beaches, the natural beauty and the friendly towns and villages of Europe. 

What it hasn't got, and which I crave, is the history. It hasn't got the thousands of years of history from the first people to build a house, a wooden fort to a stone castle. It hasn't got the stories from ancient lore which have been passed down through the generations. 

It doesn't have the cobbled streets which millions upon millions of people have walked. It hasn't got the rooms or theatres Shakespeare wrote his plays in, or Michaelangelo painted in, or Da Vinci created his masterpieces in. It doesn't have the seas the Spanish Armada or vikings crossed to try to conquer our ancestors, or the mountains, beaches or fields our forefathers fought for our liberty on.  

To see and understand the world we live in, I believe we must experience it. As a New Zealander, and then to live in Australia freely and without worry, I believe to really experience any kind of form of understanding of the world, to be able to understand where people's ideas and ideals of the world, first we must live in part of this world. NZ, and to some extent, Australia, are isolated nations. Yes they have been victims of horrific crimes over the years. Some of the worst things possible have happened in both countries. And they have learned from these and implemented new laws because of them. 

But for me, living in London is to embrace new cultures, new ways of life and being more open to changes around these. I don't regret a day of moving back to this country. Travelling the world is something I've wanted to do since a young age. Experiencing different cultures and meeting people from such different backgrounds is as important to me to understand our history and ways of life as a cup of coffee is on a Monday morning. There is more to the world than my back yard and the why the price of my coffee has gone up. It's to understand why the price of my coffee has gone up. It's to walk the steps of the people who have walked before me, and to understand the choices they made, the times and conditions they lived through. To be able to appreciate what we have now, and to understand what we need to leave behind for the generations to follow us.