Where is the safest place to live in post pandemic NZ?

Recently TRM blog posted fifty wonderful irresistible reasons to visit and stay in Turangi. That was obviously to encourage Kiwi tourists who may be dithering while they can’t fly to Bali or Brisbane or Birmingham, wherever. That was just our annual reminder of all the advantages Turangi has to offer.

But as soon as we posted that, the country went into lockdown (aka level 4) so there were no tourists anywhere. So SWMBO (She Who Must Be Obeyed is the manager of everything at TRM) has to get cunning now and widen Her net with another irresistible attraction that everyone else has overlooked.

Having survived the Corona crisis everyone has re-evaluated their life styles. The lock-down proved that business and people can survive without offices and schools and fast foods etc. But the opportunity to look hard at our post pandemic circumstances has raised many questions – not only of where is the “best” place to live – we have already established that – but where is the “safest” place to live.

Where is the ultimate location for the new era of remote working? Compare the geography – the perfect location should be somewhere half way to everywhere. Halfway from Auckland to Wellington. Halfway from Hamilton to Palmerston North. Halfway from Napier to New Plymouth.

Obviously on a world wide scale, New Zealand has significant geographic advantages. Our isolation surrounded by a 1000 km wide moat has changed for those concerned about survival, from a disadvantage to now a unique advantage. OK?

But on a NZ wide scale many have done the same reckoning. Now consider this carefully. You can extend the advantages of this isolation even further. Kiwis are now asking: Where in NZ is the safest place to live? Everyone knows where the risk is greatest – the dense global cities where the most people have settled have lost their gloss.

Now everyone has experienced “isolation living” and realise they can survive perfectly well and remain happy without all those thousands of other people cluttering up and ruining the place. There is no need to endure all that city nonsense like traffic congestion and long expensive delays, but more to the point, they now have the advantage of choosing a nice little place that will survive the worst spread of any future nasty virus bugs.

Anyone who has done their sums on the impacts of this pandemic will realise it will not pass away quickly. So this is a good time to think about relocating to a little paradise that survived the crisis without a single positive test. The climate at a slightly higher altitude ensures everyone is healthy. The CBD is within easy walking or biking or scooter (spare the thought?) distance for everyone. The participation in a wide range of outdoor activities is a no brainer in terms of healthy living style. etc.

(In one village near a local river the inhabitants decided they could manage without needing anyone else – they blocked off the river from any foreign invaders to ensure they would survive alone. Where else in the world could you do that?)

On an affordability test alone, Turangi rocks. Just saying…

To control the anticipated flood of refugees from the cities, you should be warned that Turangi is thinking that (like Malta, Portugal, etc.) it might be wise to introduce a small citizens fee to those deciding to relocate here to benefit from all our unique advantages. To qualify for a pathway to local Turangi citizenship they are thinking of a mere $100,000 per refugee?

That is so cheap. What a good investment in health and safety survival.