Consultant Sanne during her internship in New Zealand!

Hey! Who are you and where are you from? Where do you study/live/work?

Hey, my name is Sanne, I was born and raised in Ermelo. I studied in Enschede, after that I went to Auckland and now I'm living in Ermelo again. Recently, I started working as a consultant at Abroad Internships and I’m absolutely loving it!

What was the first thing you thought when you got off the plane? (bus/train/car)

Let start this off good shall we. One of my first thoughts when I came off the airplane was: ‘’Shit, I forgot my pants’’. Of course I was wearing pants, but during the flight I changed from jeans to nice and comfy sweatpants. So, sadly, my pair of jeans had flown all the way back to Honk Kong or had simply ended up in an Auckland trashcan.

What was the most shocking difference between the Netherlands and New Zealand?

The most shocking difference probably are literally the shocks. In New Zealand there are a lot of earthquakes that have set/are setting the countryside. Other than that Auckland just so happens to be set upon 50 volcanoes, making walking and especially cycling a bit different compared to the Netherlands. But wow, those mountains are beautiful and it's amazing when you, after a gigantic climb up, suddenly look over the entire city center while being all the way on the other side of the city.

What did your daily working day look like?

In the morning I would normally head towards the office around nine o’clock. I would walk ten steps straight forward, head to the right, into the shed, go up the stairs and just like that, I was at work. The route there was so easy because I lived in a host family with my boyfriend and by coincidence, my host dad was also my boss. On a sunny attic with a view on the palm trees in the garden I did my work as a marketing intern. Around one o’clock we would go back to the kitchen for lunch with fresh bread that I would usually bake the same morning. After that I would carry on working until 5PM or so. Before dinner I would usually go on a walk with my boyfriend and the dog through the park located behind the house. In the evening we would eat with the host family and the other working students that were working there and then the day would be pretty much done!

What's the working-atmosphere at your internship-company like?

The working days in Auckland were very nice and relaxed. Because of the fact that the company pretty much only consisted of my host dad and Anna (who was doing the administration), I was able to look for tasks that I liked to do. It took some time getting used to that in the beginning, but after a week or two I was already doing all sorts of things.

Did you ever feel homesick? How did you cope with this?

Not really, weirdly enough. I expected to get homesick but eventually I really didn’t have any issues at all. It probably helped a lot that my boyfriend went along for this journey and that the time difference was so huge. For the majority of the day in New Zealand, it is nighttime in the Netherlands. Waiting for messages and phone-calls doesn’t really make sense, so you just go out and do other things. And there are so many things to do and see that you eventually even forget that you had wanted to text your mom ;)

Did you feel at home in New Zealand? Why (not)? 

Yes, very! This, I think, was due to the amazing people there. Everyone in New Zealand is so open and curious. A lot of people also come from other countries and have all settled in New Zealand because it is so much nicer there. More nature, less hassle, less stress. That feeling is just everywhere and it is amazing to be in the middle of that! And yes, it does rain quite a lot here, so that also feels a lot like home haha ;).

Please give us tips about who to befriend when living abroad. The Russians? The Irish? The Chileans? (Honestly, we want to know some gossip about other internationals you’ve met.)

You need to become friends with everyone! Everyone here comes from all over the world to enjoy the country of the long white cloud and everybody has their own story. Having a host family was incredibly fun, as they made sure that we quickly got to know some real Kiwis (New Zealanders). The students were also all nice to meet, but I encourage you to have a chat with the native citizens living there. For example, a visit to a cloting store and a question about a pair of jeans they were selling, turned into a lovely conversation about studies, future plans and traveling! That was so much fun!

Describe the inhabitants of the new country in three words.

Helpful, open, curious.

Was there a typical local dish that you REALLY couldn’t eat (or actually REALLY liked)?

Hokey Pokey Ice Cream! Typically something from New Zealand. I miss that so much! It is really lovely vanilla ice cream with a toffee made from honeycomb. Furthermore, my host mom and dad could cook incredibly well, so we always enjoyed every dish we were served up.

What did you learn from your experience abroad? Was it the loving community you liked? The cheap cocktails? The overwhelming nature? Or was the experience less helpful than expected? Details, we want details!

I think it might be clear by now that I love Kiwis! Other than that, I completely fell in love with the wondrous nature of New Zealand. The beaches of the Coromandel Peninsula (but in Onemana, not at the Cathedral Cove per se), the mountains over the whole island, the green everywhere... It is all gorgeous. But I think what stuck with me the most is the open and always positively curious mentality of the people, along with their willingness to always help one another. At home I try to look at people with that ‘’Kiwi-vision’’ much more often. When a lady is dragging along a heavy shopping bag, I help her out with carrying it... If a student also wants to go abroad for an amazing experience like mine, I will help them out with that as my internship was without a doubt for 100% my main inspiration to come work at Abroad Internships.