I came to New Zealand in 2019.
At the time, I was on a working holiday in Australia when my closest friend, J, suggested I come over. I applied for a working holiday visa just before turning thirty, and fortunately, it was approved.
That’s how my New Zealand journey began.
But as it overlapped with the COVID quarantine period, what was meant to be a limited stay stretched on, longer and longer, without end.
Somewhere along the way, I parted ways with J and made my way to Christchurch—the largest city on New Zealand’s South Island.
I lived in hostels, drifting from one job to another. At one point, I found myself entangled in a bad relationship after meeting the wrong man, which caused me no small amount of heartache.
Just as I was beginning to consider ending it all and returning to Korea, I happened to find a job—
and that’s where I met M.
Slowly, we became a couple. Then we began living together.
Before I knew it, seven years had passed since I first arrived in New Zealand.
We are still together—
as partners, as housemates, and as best friends.
At the end of the year before last, we visited Korea. The crowded cities and astonishing convenience of everyday life felt both welcoming and strangely unfamiliar at the same time.
And in that moment, I realized—
I had grown quite used to life in New Zealand.
That’s when the thought came to me:
wouldn’t it be interesting to write about the differences between life in New Zealand and Korea, as I’ve experienced them?
“D in Wonderland” began from that simple idea.
That said, I want to make one thing clear—
this is, first and foremost, a personal account.
I don’t live in Auckland, where many Koreans reside, nor in Wellington, the capital. My life is based in Christchurch, a relatively small city on the South Island.
I’ve had little to no interaction with the Korean community here, so my experiences may differ from others’. From time to time, you may also come across the perspective of M, who was born and raised in New Zealand.
With that in mind, I hope you’ll read the following essays lightly and with enjoyment.
And with that—
I bring this introduction to a close.
To everyone reading this,
wherever you may be in the world,
I wish you peace.
—D.
