New Zealand is the largest island country among the Polynesian Islands in the Pacific Ocean and the second largest country in Oceania.
It covers an area of ??260,000 square kilometers, a little smaller than Yunnan Province in China, and the longest distance between north and south is more than 1,600 kilometers.
About 85 million years ago, New Zealand broke away from the Earth's supercontinent and floated above the South Pacific. (What is the continental drift point here)
New Zealand is mainly composed of the North Island and the South It consists of two major islands, accounting for 99% of the total area. The shortest distance between the two islands is 32 kilometers.
There are more than 150 smaller islands scattered in the South Pacific.
Capital Wellington Located at the southern end of the North Island, Wellington is the capital closest to Antarctica in the world.
New Zealand also has the largest number of penguin species in the world.
The South Island has more than 3,000 glaciers, leaving a large number of glacial lakes and fjords, as well as helicopter glacier hiking. Tourists spend money. (What is the glacier point here and what is the fjord point here)
Isolated from the world
New Zealand is far away from most countries in the world.
It is about 1,000 kilometers away from New Caledonia, Tonga and Fiji in the South Pacific Islands, and at least 1,600 kilometers away from Australia, which hates each other. kilometers or more.
Experience After 80 million years of isolation, it has unique flora and fauna.
About 1,500 of the approximately 2,000 species of indigenous plants are found nowhere else in the world.
Before the arrival of humans, the only mammals were bats and no snakes.
Also because there are no ferocious natural enemies, many animals that could not survive the second episode in the cruel Eurasian continent survived here.
For example, the wedge-toothed lizard became extinct elsewhere 100 million years ago.
Because there are no beasts, the only natural enemy is the eagle.
New Zealand has evolved many birds that cannot fly but can drill holes, such as the national bird - the kiwi-like kiwi.
In order to prevent animals, plants and microorganisms from the outside world from causing annihilation of the local biological community. New Zealand’s customs entry policy is so strict that all mud on the soles of hiking shoes must be washed before entering the country.
Maori
Also because the location is too suburban, New Zealand became the last large island settled by humans.
Around 1300, immigrants from the Polynesian Islands migrated from the South Pacific Islands in canoes and became the aborigines of New Zealand. Maori.
Today, Maori account for 16% of New Zealand’s total population,
The Maori are a type of Polynesian people. Some scholars believe that the Maori may have come from China. Taiwan.
They also named it Aotearoa, which means long. The land of white clouds.
Maori people like to touch noses when meeting and greeting. They are brave and brave people. Legend has it that they even eat people.
I like to dance a kind of haka dance, which is said to be used among ancient tribes. Intimidate your opponents with your dance moves.
This method is healthy and environmentally friendly, so New Zealanders have to dance before sports competitions, so that the opponents do not know what the operation is.
Earth Power
New Zealand is located at the junction of the Pacific Plate and the Australian Plate, and is the most powerful on earth. The power dominates here. (Plate tectonics click here)
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Volcanic and seismic activities are frequent, and many volcanoes are concentrated in the North Island.
Some volcanoes are still active, and Tongariro National Park is the filming location for Mount Doom in "Lord of the Rings".
There are various hiking projects in the park, all of which are very difficult and require high physical equipment.
Annually There are 400 earthquakes, including one earthquake with magnitude 6 or above on the Richter scale once a year.
In Christchurch, you can see 185 empty chairs placed on the ruins to commemorate the victims of the earthquake.
It also has rich geothermal resources. Waiotapu Geothermal World is called Be the devil's bathhouse.
There is also a geyser that erupts regularly every day. The only drawback is that the smell of sulfur is so smelly that dogs think even devils can't stand it.
The impact of the two major plates also formed a deep sea near Kaikoura, New Zealand The ditch attracts sperm whales that like to swim in the deep sea.
New Zealand now has a mature view of boating The whales were active, and the wind and waves were extremely strong. Before seeing the whales, the dog became seasick and lost its martial arts skills.
Mountains and Seas Legend
The collision of tectonic plates made New Zealand a mountainous country, with mountains and hills accounting for More than three-quarters of the land area.
Half of the South Island is occupied by the Southern Alps. There are 19 peaks above 3,000 meters above sea level. The highest peak, Mount Cook, is 3,764 meters high.
There is very little arable land that can be planted, and the arable land area only accounts for 5.6 of the total area. .
The largest plain is the Canterbury Plains in the east of the South Island, which produces most of New Zealand's agricultural products.
But so far, New Zealand cannot be self-sufficient in food and needs to import it from Australia.
Initially, all the plants brought by the Maori from the tropics died; They can only make a living by fishing and hunting.
They often catch a moa bird that is taller than a human and eat it. Unexpectedly, Maori people have a strong taste and will eat them to extinction. .
Europe People are coming
In December 1642, Dutch explorers set out from Indonesia. Reached the west coast of New Zealand and was named New Zealand after the Dutch province of Zealandia.
Before they had time to go ashore for observation, the four Dutch sailors were killed by the Maori , the Dutch felt that the natives here were too ferocious and should not stay for a long time.
The landing place was also called "Murderer's Bay", which is today's Golden Bay on the west coast of New Zealand's South Island.
A hundred years later, an Englishman named Cook was smarter. I heard that Maori people are not easy to deal with, so I didn’t try hard.
I found a chief to establish a relationship and drew a map. The strait between the North Island and the South Island was also named Cook Strait.
In 1788, Britain added New Zealand to the Australian colony of New South Wales.
Rich in timber, whales, flax, and seal skins, a favorite of wealthy Chinese, this fresh island quickly attracted many European businessmen .
Some of them were criminals sent to Australia from Britain. The first merchant ship that came to New Zealand was called the Fantasy.
Europeans also brought Christianity. In order to make Maori people believe in religion, the earliest missionaries taught people to read, write and grow wheat and corn.
In 1840, New Zealand had a university - the University of Otago.
Today, 70% of New Zealand residents claim to be of European descent.
Most of their ancestors come from the UK, and some also come from Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and other European countries.
Waitangi Ordinance
The arrival of Europeans caused great damage to the living order of the Maori people.
The diseases they brought caused a large number of Maori deaths. It is said that the last pure-blood Maori died in 1933.
Europeans also often bully people into being honest and kind, and defraud Maori land at extremely low prices.
However, in the many conflicts that broke out, the British regular army was beaten by the Maori guerrillas and had no temper at all.
Even if they failed, the Maori did not surrender. They hid in the jungle and professionally caused trouble for the British army. They were never really conquered by the British.
After a long struggle, the Maori people gained national dignity and legal rights. of equal status.
Today Maori is also the official language that New Zealanders can use in court, and many white people are learning Maori.
In 1840, the Treaty of Waitangi was signed between the British royal family and the Maori people, which is considered the founding document of New Zealand.
New Zealand finally broke away from Australia and became a left-behind child of the British Empire in the South Pacific.
The establishment of the British legal system also confirmed the Maori rights to own land and culture.
Today, the Treaty of Waitangi Signing House is a tourist attraction.
For a long time, New Zealand has been deeply influenced by British fathers. Government affairs, education and culture are all modeled on Britain.
The diet is also influenced by the British. There are many good ingredients, but the processing methods are hard to describe.
Pure Pasture
There are vast fertile grasslands on both the southern and northern islands of New Zealand. Coupled with the mild and humid temperate marine climate, pasture can grow all year round. , very suitable for grazing. (What is grassland? Click here)
Since the 1850s, New Zealand has introduced a kind of American sheep with fine wool from Australia.
Soon, New Zealand’s wool, dairy products, and meat were exported to Britain, New Zealand, like Australia, became the best pastures of the British Empire.
With the introduction of refrigerated ship technology, New Zealand has become a major exporter of meat and dairy products in the world.
The world-used mechanical milking equipment and frozen meat are both early inventions of New Zealand.
Today, half of New Zealand’s land is pasture, and it is the country with the most livestock per capita in the world.
New Zealand dairy products have always been popular around the world for their high quality and low price, and their export volume can and the entire EU.
It is also the world's largest producer and exporter of velvet antler, accounting for 30% of the world's output.
Visitors can visit farms in New Zealand on an open tractor and watch sheep shearing. There are also grassland-style competitions such as dog racing and horse racing.
The War Years
In 1907, Britain was forced to agree to New Zealand becoming a dominion, and New Zealand has basically gained independence since then.
In the war years when the world was raging, this small country in the South Pacific had to live a life of "going out to meet the big boss".
Helped Britain fight in World War I. The number of soldiers participating in World War I accounted for 40% of the young and middle-aged males. The number of casualties exceeded 56,000, and every 17 residents There was 1 casualty.
During World War II, seeing that the British father had no time to take care of himself, New Zealand hugged the thigh of the United States tightly.
1942 In 1944, there were approximately 100,000 U.S. troops stationed in New Zealand.
The New Zealand military actively dispatched its navy and air force to participate in a series of battles in the Pacific region.
Wealth and tranquility
Despite the heavy casualties, New Zealand became a Pacific logistics base for British and American troops during the war.
Comprehensive Supplying agricultural products, it has also successfully transformed from an agricultural country to an industrial country. The machine manufacturing industry, metal processing industry, chemical industry, petroleum industry and textile industry have developed rapidly.
Today, New Zealand’s government leads the world in corruption, with a per capita GDP of US$36,000. Economically developed welfare state.
China has surpassed Australia to become New Zealand's largest trading partner.
New Zealand The scenery can be either salty or sweet, with magnificent mountains, lakes and pastoral beauty. It is the world's most popular film location.
"The Lord of the Rings" series, "The Chronicles of Narnia", "King Kong" Movies such as "Wolf" and "Mulan" were shot in New Zealand.
It also attracts tourists from all over the world.
Currently, tourism revenue accounts for nearly 10% of New Zealand’s GDP and provides nearly 10% of jobs across the country.
Coming from afar
There have never been indigenous people in this remote land, and people come from afar.
Influenced by the Maori people, New Zealanders are generally tenacious, brave, simple and friendly. There are top players in all walks of life, and they have a good reputation all over the world. .
It may be that life is prosperous and peaceful, and people like to find some excitement.
Everyone in New Zealand is an enthusiast of outdoor sports. Hillary, a member of the British mountaineering team who climbed Mount Everest for the first time, is a New Zealand beekeeper. (What is Mount Everest? Click here)
If this was not enough, New Zealanders invented bungee jumping and developed Various extreme sports such as skydiving.
The origin of bungee jumping is at the Kawarau Bridge in Queenstown. The service is particularly attentive and there are three options: hand-into the water, head-into the water and no water. .
It doesn’t matter if you don’t dare to dance, we can buy tickets and watch the fun.
Love and wandering
The story of mountains and seas for hundreds of millions of years, the coming and going of nearly a thousand years.
On the loneliest island in the world, people share the thrilling nature and the slow and leisurely scenery of life.
I hope that we can all visit the hometown of Changbaiyun in our lifetime and continue the story of this island nation of wandering and love~