Palmerston North Advice
-
wow, I live in NZ, never been to Palmy but reading this thread I wouldn't want to go there!
I live in Whangarei, love it, plenty of people I know don't, plenty will simply drive through on their way north and only have shitty things to say about it.
A lot of the smaller provincial towns seem to get labeled and tough to shift perceptions, Whangarei is probably similar size to Palmy (purely guessing) but I expect Palmy services a larger population with the outer communities and towns?
-
-
@Rembrandt said in Palmerston North Advice:
Its all comparitive but if you're moving from SA because of safety and/or political concerns Palmy would be an absolute heaven
Well said. Also depending where you're moving from in SA, the climate will be a shock in the winter.
I've spent a bit of time in Palmy over the years for work (mainly living out of motels) but I also stayed at my then uni supervisor's home in the Hokowhitu suburb. That's a really nice area as @Nepia mentions.
-
Palmy is ok. Seriously @PN .
- Big country town.
- Lower North Island climate (has it's draw backs , yes)
- stink 2nd division NPC rugby team
- silly very recent tradition of wearing buckets on your head
- reasonably green and clean environment
- reasonable beaches at Himatangi and Foxton
- nothing so far away that you can't drive there in 6 hours (Auckland, Coromandel ... Northland is a bit further ... )
- beautiful bush within an hour (google Pohongina ... spots along the Rangitkei River ... the Tararuas ... seriously a fantastic part of the country)
- Palmy will have all services - health/hospitals, banks, government, shopping (in my day they had two quite large department stores on multi-levels buildings... the PDC and the DIC .. don't ask me what either of those stood for ... )
- close to Wellington ( meh)
- close to snow/skiing at Ruapehu
- not a long way from Lakes at Taupo
- not a long way from Hawkes Bay (wines and stuff)
- great rivers and swimming holes
I reckon go for it.
-
@booboo is the rugby museum still there? It's been a few years since I went to Palmy. Didn't mind it as it felt like a big country town.
-
@ACT-Crusader said in Palmerston North Advice:
@booboo is the rugby museum still there? It's been a few years since I went to Palmy. Didn't mind it as it felt like a big country town.
Yep, it's still there, but it has moved to flash new digs in the town (not next to the ground anymore) with a bunch of other museums and Art galleries.
@booboo - DIC and PDC? Seriously, how long ago were you there? There's an actual shopping mall there now ....
Reasonable beaches? Define reasonable? Has water?
But I agree @PN you should go for it.
-
@booboo said in Palmerston North Advice:
- Palmy will have all services - health/hospitals, banks, government, shopping (in my day they had two quite large department stores on multi-levels buildings... the PDC and the DIC .. don't ask me what either of those stood for ... )
The PDC was originally the 'Premier Drapery Company' but in the 50s became part of the flourishing local Co-operative Society that basically ran most of the corner stores and butcheries through town. How do I know such trivia? My grandfather was the chief accountant there for most of his working days.
DICs were right through NZ. I remember the one in Hamilton being the building that became the central library. Google tells me it was the Drapery and General Importing Company.
Must have been a great need for drapes in NZ last century -
@Nepia said in Palmerston North Advice:
@ACT-Crusader said in Palmerston North Advice:
@booboo is the rugby museum still there? It's been a few years since I went to Palmy. Didn't mind it as it felt like a big country town.
Yep, it's still there, but it has moved to flash new digs in the town (not next to the ground anymore) with a bunch of other museums and Art galleries.
@booboo - DIC and PDC? Seriously, how long ago were you there? There's an actual shopping mall there now ....
Reasonable beaches? Define reasonable? Has water?
But I agree @PN you should go for it.
I'm old. Well I'm old next year ...
-
the weather in palmy is no worse than wellington. sure that means it has shit weather, but it gets a worse rap than it deserves because most people who spend time there are students who leave for summer, thus seeing palmy at its worst and wherever else at its best, which makes for harsh comparisons.
foxton beach is quite nice, and some of the bush and river swimming spots within range are pretty good. -
@reprobate said in Palmerston North Advice:
the weather in palmy is no worse than wellington. sure that means it has shit weather, but it gets a worse rap than it deserves because most people who spend time there are students who leave for summer, thus seeing palmy at its worst and wherever else at its best, which makes for harsh comparisons.
foxton beach is quite nice, and some of the bush and river swimming spots within range are pretty good.I would say it rains more in Palmy than Wellington?
-
@Nepia said in Palmerston North Advice:
@booboo is the rugby museum still there? It's been a few years since I went to Palmy. Didn't mind it as it felt like a big country town.
Yep, it's still there, but it has moved to flash new digs in the town (not next to the ground anymore) with a bunch of other museums and Art galleries.
The Rugby Museum is well worth visiting if you are in town. I was last there in 2015 as we drove down to the Manawatu-Waikato game. I had been to the old museum back in the mid-1990s so it had been a while. It's a pity the new venue isn't a little larger as they don't have the space to display all of their memorabilia.
-
Wow, I'm absolutely blown away with everyone's input! But then, considering the help I received on the forum back in 2011 when arranging my wedding proposal on the Skytower it shouldn't come as a surprise (The fact that there was a little tournament on during that time was merely incidental, hehe) Come to think of it, what ever happened to Gibbit? I don't see him post on here anymore?
We would need to buy a car once we're that side, and I'm not entirely sure of the motoring landscape that side? General Motors recently pulled out of South Africa, which has meant all owners of Chevrolet and Opel vehicles now need to pay a substantially higher price parts as they now have to be imported. I'm not exactly keen on buying a cheap car only to be smacked with expensive maintenance costs once the service plan expires. Any Advice as to what are good choices in this regard?
So the Wife and I still need to tie up a lot of loose ends this side (Medicals, English tests, Police Clearances, shipping container, house & cars etc). All of which should be a breeze in comparison with trying to obtain an Unabridged Birth Certificate from the Department of Home Affairs. A process that can take up to 4 months. Even then, my cousin only received hers after the allotted 4 month - With her husband listed as her father, but I hear results vary so one can only hope.. If the worst comes to the worst, I can pay to have this process expedited by a private company which somehow is able to get ID/Passports/Birth Docs etc within 2 weeks - For a price. Go Figure.
Any way, thanks again to everyone on the site for the assistance, and the laughs. Look forward to the responses in the morning.
-
@Gibbit is too cool for us plebs who post for free, he gets paid to talk shit about sport on the radio, among other things...
As to cars, access to parts, buy Japanese, so many of them imported in NZ so parts access is best there, otherwise all vehicles are imported to NZ anyway.
-
@PN said in Palmerston North Advice:
Wow, I'm absolutely blown away with everyone's input! But then, considering the help I received on the forum back in 2011 when arranging my wedding proposal on the Skytower it shouldn't come as a surprise (The fact that there was a little tournament on during that time was merely incidental, hehe) Come to think of it, what ever happened to Gibbit? I don't see him post on here anymore?
We would need to buy a car once we're that side, and I'm not entirely sure of the motoring landscape that side? General Motors recently pulled out of South Africa, which has meant all owners of Chevrolet and Opel vehicles now need to pay a substantially higher price parts as they now have to be imported. I'm not exactly keen on buying a cheap car only to be smacked with expensive maintenance costs once the service plan expires. Any Advice as to what are good choices in this regard?
So the Wife and I still need to tie up a lot of loose ends this side (Medicals, English tests, Police Clearances, shipping container, house & cars etc). All of which should be a breeze in comparison with trying to obtain an Unabridged Birth Certificate from the Department of Home Affairs. A process that can take up to 4 months. Even then, my cousin only received hers after the allotted 4 month - With her husband listed as her father, but I hear results vary so one can only hope.. If the worst comes to the worst, I can pay to have this process expedited by a private company which somehow is able to get ID/Passports/Birth Docs etc within 2 weeks - For a price. Go Figure.
Any way, thanks again to everyone on the site for the assistance, and the laughs. Look forward to the responses in the morning.
I guess your choices are dealing with armed gangs, roving thugs and living in constant fear or staying in South Africa.
Your call. -
- the NZ Ready planning tool is also worth a look if you haven't seen it already. The same site also has the official word on Palmy and the wider region: https://www.newzealandnow.govt.nz/regions-nz/whanganui-manawatu - looks like they avoided photos of @jegga causing carnage
NZ Ready planning tool
NZ Ready is a free online tool to help you plan your move to New Zealand, ensuring you know how things work here and have a hassle-free move.
-
@Donsteppa said in Palmerston North Advice:
- the NZ Ready planning tool is also worth a look if you haven't seen it already. The same site also has the official word on Palmy and the wider region: https://www.newzealandnow.govt.nz/regions-nz/whanganui-manawatu - looks like they avoided photos of @jegga causing carnage
NZ Ready planning tool
NZ Ready is a free online tool to help you plan your move to New Zealand, ensuring you know how things work here and have a hassle-free move.
Those photos of Palmie are quite good but in my experience the best views of the city are to be found in your rear view mirror.
-
Don't you live in Wellington?
-
-
I spent only 4 years in Pamly but I feel that video really does.... describe the city so bloody well!
