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introduction
There is such a country, with beautiful scenery, dozens of tourist attractions scattered in their long and narrow territory, large and small, and it is also known as a tourist resort. But at the same time, some people say that it is the loneliest country in the world, so what is going on? Today, let's enter this mysterious country - New Zealand.
(New Zealand Beauty)
1. Geographically, New Zealand is indeed lonely
As we all know, the mainland is a vast country, and as a behemoth with a territory of 9.6 million square kilometers, we have 14 neighbors on land alone.
But New Zealand is different, it doesn't even have a land-based neighbor. The whole of New Zealand is a union of islands consisting of two relatively large islands, the South Island and the North Island, plus a number of small islands, including Stewart Island. It covers an area of 270,000 square kilometers, but there are only about 5 million people.
(New Zealand map)
New Zealand's closest neighbor is Australia, which is also part of Australia. But even Australia is separated from New Zealand by more than 1,600 kilometers.
So it's true that New Zealand is the loneliest country in the world. The absence of land neighbours means that New Zealand itself is a semi-independent geographical unit, and there is no stable land communication between New Zealand and other countries.
(Geographic location of New Zealand)
That's why New Zealand is a mysterious country for many countries.
Because there is a lack of channels to learn about New Zealand, the most we can do is to see the beautiful scenery of New Zealand on social media, but it is not so simple to actually visit. But New Zealand also makes loneliness relative because of its unique national positioning.
Second, the opposite side of relative loneliness is absolutely lively
New Zealand is very closed geographically, but on an international level, it is a lively country.
Because the scenery of New Zealand is particularly good, New Zealand is originally an island country in the Pacific Ocean.
The Pacific Ocean is not bad compared to other oceanic environments, there are not so many natural disasters, coupled with the temperate oceanic climate, so New Zealand is quite rich in forest resources, and there are many narrow plains that are divided into pieces, which forms a unique and magnificent natural scenery.
(New Zealand's Forests)
And although New Zealand was colonized, it did not receive much industrial development. Historically, Maori settled in New Zealand in the mid-14th century, and Dutch settlers landed in New Zealand in the mid-17th century.
However, due to distance constraints, the number of Dutch living in New Zealand was very small, after all, New Zealand was not on an important shipping route at that time.
With the decline of the Netherlands and the rise of the British, New Zealand was brought into the British bag. At that time, the British recruited many colonists to settle in New Zealand and began small-scale development here, but because of the existence of indigenous people, the British colonists have not been able to open the situation.
It wasn't until the mid-19th century, when the British signed the Treaty of with local indigenous tribal chiefs, that New Zealand became part of the British overseas colonial empire, but the British did not value New Zealand either.
(Treaty of)
After all, compared to New Zealand, Australia next door has more resources and a larger land area.
In the eyes of the British Empire's upper echelons, New Zealand was little more than a small appendage to their control of Australia. While many cities in Australia are industrialising, New Zealand is still able to maintain its pristine natural scenery.
(Old New Zealand photo)
After the end of World War II, the British global colonial empire collapsed.
New Zealand also managed to gain independence in 1947. After independence, New Zealand did not have a well-developed industrial system like other colonial brothers. Its unique geographical location also made it impossible to modernize industry on a large scale, so the New Zealand government began to promote tourism.
After half a century of hard work, New Zealand's tourism industry is considered to be developed in the whole world. And with the support of the government, New Zealand's tourism industry is systematic and large-scale.
Travelling to New Zealand is both skiing and hiking. There are also beautiful harbor cities along the long coastline, and it is not uncommon to want to go to the sea to take a wave.
Therefore, New Zealand is indeed a tourist destination in the minds of many people, which leads to the fact that although the population of New Zealand itself is not large, the number of foreigners who travel to New Zealand every year is an astronomical number. It also gives New Zealand a sense of solitude that is relative, but hilarious is almost an absolute spectacle.
(Skiing in New Zealand)
3. New Zealand is also the first destination for many Chinese immigrants
Moreover, New Zealand also has a special significance for Chinese people, it is the first destination for many Chinese to settle overseas.
Speaking of which, many friends may find it a little strange, shouldn't they go to Europe or the United States if they want to immigrate? Why go to an island country in the Pacific Ocean? Because New Zealand has advantages that neither Europe nor the United States can match.
(Migrate to New Zealand)
New Zealand is also a serious developed country, with a high per capita income level, after all, so many tourists come every year to New Zealand with money to spend, which directly promotes the local economic development. Therefore, when you go to settle in New Zealand, you don't have to worry about finding a job.
And New Zealand's landscape is certainly much stronger than that of the United States and Europe, both of which have experienced a high degree of industrial development. So over time, the number of Chinese settling in New Zealand has also increased.
Five years ago, 200,000 Chinese lived in New Zealand for a long time, which is close to 5% of New Zealand's total population.
Even the New Zealand Herald has reported that the number of Chinese living in New Zealand could reach 500,000 by 2038, double the figure in 2013.
(Chinese in New Zealand)
But New Zealand is not without its own problems, and countries around the world have locked down their doors since the outbreak of the new crown epidemic. Although the epidemic situation has since eased, fewer and fewer people are willing to travel abroad.
Because the new crown epidemic has brought an impact on the world economy, many people can't even find a job, where do they get the spare money to travel. The New Zealand economy, which is already heavily dependent on tourism, is also in trouble.
(New Zealand's tourism industry has been hit hard by the pandemic)
The New Zealand Institute of Economic Research pointed out in its forecast report that the country's economic growth will slow significantly in the next two years. By 2025, their economy will also grow at a rate of only 1.1%.
But for New Zealand, they are already a developed country, as long as they don't have too many extravagant expectations, it is still okay to lie flat in their current position. And with the continuous deepening of human industrialization, it is unlikely that New Zealand will become a rare natural pure land in human civilization in the future.
Reference Links:
Nandao-Du Yanchen, Fang Fangtu.New Zealand,"100% green and pure"?Year of the Ox "Niu Island"[J].World Expo, 2021(6):4.
New Zealand's Chinese population is expected to double in 20 years and is expected to reach 500,000