"You can't meet drunk people here." A Belarusian tells how he lives on the other side of the globe
Yegor Kurmanov, a 34-year-old programmer from Minsk, loved his hometown very much, but unexpectedly found himself in New Zealand — officially the country furthest from Belarus. The Belarusian told the "Onliner" publication about life on the opposite side of the globe, the glowing sea, relaxed people, and how much they earn there.
A Surprise
"I was born and raised in Minsk. Yes, I love to travel, I've been to many places, seen the world. But I never flew away from Belarus for long. I always adhered to a clear idea: 'Where you were born, there you belong.' My family is here. How can I leave, abandon everything? What kind of nonsense is that? Life in Belarus is good, comfortable, especially if you're lucky with your job.
I graduated from the Faculty of Computer Systems and Networks at BSUIR. In my fourth year, I got a two-month internship at a small, pleasant company, and ended up working there for 11 years. Yes, I'm that IT specialist, working in financial technology, mainly with Microsoft products.
In my industry, you need to change jobs every 2-3 years to grow quickly in salary. But I didn't do that; I was probably loyal to my company. In total, I worked in one place for 11 years — and began to realize that my salary hadn't been growing for a long time. It was time to change something. I finished renovations at home, equipped my office with the latest technology… I sent my resume to all corners of the planet. I was looking for options to stay in Belarus and work remotely.
Eventually, a large and cool company from New Zealand invited me for an interview. I went through all the interviews: first, second, third stage… I was very impressed. In the end, they told me: "We are waiting for you in the office!" — "But I applied for a remote position." — "Oh, sorry." And only then did it turn out that they didn't have a remote work option. I was required to get on a plane and fly to Auckland, New Zealand's largest city.
And I decided: why not, damn it! I just waved my hand: okay, I'll try. I decided to change everything. I remember a few years ago I was in Indonesia, in Bali, and I thought: "I'll never get this far from home again!" And here — Auckland…
Indeed, all Yegor had to do was get on a plane. All other matters, including the work visa, document processing, and flight expenses, were covered by the employer.
"I flew for three days to New Zealand. The flight was quite agonizing: Minsk — Moscow, Moscow — Beijing, Beijing — Auckland. All my life I've been used to thinking that Belarusians are the kindest, happiest, and friendliest people. In Moscow and Beijing, the border guards had grim faces, to put it mildly. And then I landed in Auckland on January 1, 2025, and everyone at the airport was genuinely smiling, coming up to me, saying: 'Hi! How great that you're here now.' I was genuinely shocked! Delighted! The people impressed me the most."
New Zealanders are one of the friendliest nations, Yegor reiterates. Despite this, he did not escape adaptation difficulties.
"Honestly, my English was always very poor. I've been learning it since first grade, but I left school with no knowledge. The same from university. All my English is what I picked up from video games. Thanks to my former colleagues and boss in Minsk: at first, they helped me reply to emails from European customers, then they entrusted me with chatting with client representatives, and at some point, we switched to voice calls.
Yes, it was very difficult, but each time I grew a little — and this lasted 11 years. After I passed the English interview for the New Zealand company, I decided I would survive. But in Auckland, it turned out that the local accent — Kiwi English — is very difficult to understand by ear.
So after 8 hours in the office, exhausted and tired, I didn't go home, but to meetups — gatherings for foreigners where people simply communicate and play board games. As a result, my vocabulary and listening comprehension improved significantly. Yes, after more than a year in New Zealand, I still construct sentences awkwardly, but I already feel much more confident: I can explain anything in English."
Farmers in their own helicopters
When describing New Zealand, people often note that a relaxed and chill vibe is literally in the air. As if everything here is "rustic," simple. No one is in a hurry.
"Yes, it's true, relaxation here is on point," Yegor agrees. "The vibe is chill, no one is rushing anywhere. You know how you can recognize a New Zealander? He just walks barefoot down the street — and that's normal. Or comes into a store in pajamas.
At work, no one works like crazy. No one wants to work overtime; New Zealanders care about work-life balance. On Fridays in my company, like in most others, everyone finishes an hour early, goes to the kitchen, grabs snacks, plays ping-pong, chats… And so it is every week.
My department is a mix of expats: Poles, Slovaks, Asians, people from South Africa… But if you are unlucky enough to end up in a company owned by Japanese or Chinese people, things won't be so sweet: even in New Zealand, they are completely uninterested in work-life balance; the goal is to squeeze everything out of the employee to bring in as much profit as possible.
And there are no pretenses or status games here. Nobody cares what car you drive or how you look. Let's say a person's salary allows them to drive the latest model BMW, but they'll come in an old Toyota – that's completely normal. People dress casually, no one is "slathered" in luxury handbags. And also – everyone has tattoos. Maori with tattooed faces and bodies are everywhere. And no one bullies anyone because of their appearance.
Once the initial fascinations pass, you realize that New Zealand is, in essence, a very large farm. Huge.
You can find a redneck outlook on life here. There are many farmers here — they are very, very wealthy people. Farmers fly to Auckland in their own helicopters; everything is going well for them. There's an insane number of cows and sheep here. At its peak, the country had 70 million sheep for 5 million people. A person who owns a flock of a thousand heads is a well-off man. Farms stretch endlessly in all directions.
That's why the dairy products here are excellent and famous. I read somewhere that New Zealand is number one in dairy production and consumption, and Belarus is second. In that sense, we are very close. Even in a hotel in Qatar or on a Beijing-Moscow flight, they serve New Zealand butter."
Did Yegor manage to "get out into New Zealand," make friends with locals — or does he spend all his free time with other expats like himself?
"Back in Minsk, about 10 years ago, I got into fire-spinning: I perform with hot poi (balls connected by a rope), doing tricks. It's my hobby. It turned out that poi were invented by the Maori, the indigenous people of New Zealand. I accidentally met some guys in Auckland who perform with fire. So yes, I'm 'getting out into New Zealand,' I've joined the local scene.
A fact that surprised me: it's impossible to meet drunk people here. The establishment where a person is relaxing is responsible for whether they get drunk or not. The bartender simply won't pour you a drink if they think you're too drunk. I once asked for 6 shots of tequila. The bartender looked at me carefully, asked if I was alone or with company. Seeing my friends, he carefully counted each one, made sure there were six of us, and only then served us.
In New Zealand, it's the law: every establishment has a sign that says: "If you are intoxicated, we will not serve you." Similar rules apply in stores. If you want to buy beer, not only you, but everyone who came with you must show their passport to the cashier. I was shocked, to be honest.
And New Zealanders are very honest and decent. For example, "Black Friday," like other holiday discount days, is a real "Black Friday." People specifically put off purchases if they want to buy something worthwhile. Easter is coming very soon, and there are also discounts timed for it.
The only downside: no supermarket will be open for 4 days straight. Because Good Friday and Easter Monday are official public holidays. It was the same last year. And that shocked me! If I don't buy groceries in advance, I'll be sitting around like an idiot without food, or I'll have to go to a bar.
On regular days, stores close around 6 PM — that's also something to consider. Yes, small convenience stores, where there are only snacks and essential goods, are open almost 24/7. But the prices there can be x3, x4, because the owners simply set them from the ceiling."
Meteor Showers and the Glowing Sea
It's no coincidence that Peter Jackson filmed "The Lord of the Rings" and "The Hobbit" in the landscapes of his native New Zealand. Middle-earth would hardly have been so epic in other latitudes.
"The nature here is fantastic," Yegor confirms. "The ocean with huge, endless waves, everything is green, mountains, completely unique kiwi birds that everyone is crazy about…
Last year I flew to the neighboring South Island, to Queenstown: a very popular tourist spot. There are mountains and snow there, I went snowboarding. The beauty everywhere is indescribable. The beaches are simply incredible. Always endless. On one coast — light sands, on the other — black volcanic ones… And there can be zero people. True, the water is cold, like in Belarusian lakes: 19 degrees on a good summer day. I'm not a big fan of swimming here. But I go surfing: in a wetsuit, you feel like you're in a bathtub: warm, comfortable.
What's hard for a Belarusian to get used to: no matter where you live in Auckland, the ocean is only 10 minutes away. Go right — the Tasman Sea, go left — the Pacific Ocean.
This is a completely different part of the world, so there are many interesting things. For example, bioluminescent plankton reproduced here for a month: every night the sea glowed with blue flashes. Simply incredible shots, so cool! I've been hunting for this phenomenon for over a year now.
And kauri trees grow here — huge, thousands of years old. They are found nowhere else except New Zealand.
Kauri trees are diligently protected. A disease called Phytophthora agathidicida has appeared that feeds on them, and it can be accidentally transmitted through soil clinging to shoes. And there are a lot of walking tracks here. The whole country is dotted with hiking trails. Next to the kauri trees, there are brushes so you can clean your shoes, wash them with soap, and not infect the tree. And on the way back – the same thing. Everyone diligently cleans their shoes with brushes. They care so much about their nature, it's even touching.
I love to watch the dark starry sky. In Minsk, I used to go to watch the Perseids in August, but here it's a different hemisphere, so I catch different meteor showers — the Eta Aquariids.
Also, in Auckland, the tap water is very tasty and clean. I was surprised. I've been using the same kettle for 7 months — not only is there no limescale, it shines. I Googled how this is possible. They say the reason is that the water here doesn't come from underground mineral springs, but falls as rain into lakes and rivers.
And did you know that the kiwi fruit was named after the bird, not the other way around? New Zealanders consider kiwi their national fruit, although it was supposedly brought from China. Locals often eat kiwi like an apple: with the skin, with the fuzz, whole. I tried it — it's not so bad."
Prices
New Zealand has its own currency — the New Zealand dollar, NZ$. And it's worth approximately 0.57 of a regular American dollar. But for the convenience of our readers, we will convert all prices to US dollars.
"The minimum wage in New Zealand is about $14 per hour. That's what waiters and store clerks are paid, for example. IT salaries, I think, are typical for the industry. The average developer's monthly salary is about $5000," says Yegor.
— But the cost of living is no less impressive. Rental prices in Auckland scared me. By the way, 95% of New Zealanders live in private houses. And only a small part of the urban development in the center, two square kilometers, is occupied by high-rise buildings — offices and business apartments where you can rent a flat. And it's customary to pay rent weekly here, not once a month.
Initially, I rented a business apartment for $1375 a month. But then I moved to a cheaper one — for $1030. My apartment is a "Euro-two-room" flat, as we call it: a separate bedroom and a kitchen with a small living room.
Why are New Zealanders so friendly? From my observations, it's directly related to the housing issue. Real estate here is very expensive. Not everyone is ready to pay $1 million for a house in Auckland. As soon as a New Zealander grows up and leaves the parental nest, he doesn't have the option of renting an apartment for $1400 a month. So he rents a room in a house. There are 3-5 other neighbors living there: each has their own room, and the kitchen is shared. And they live in such communes. As a result, New Zealanders are very highly socialized. They communicate a lot, know how to be polite and convenient neighbors.
Almost immediately I bought a car: it's very cheap because there are no high import duties. For a 2012 Honda Freed, I paid $4000. Inexpensive, clean, and reliable cars come directly from Japan. I pay about $160 a month for parking — for Belarusians, these are crazy numbers.
The prices for utilities, internet, mobile phone — all of this can horrify a Belarusian. The cheapest unlimited internet plan for a phone is $26, and a regular one is $46. Electricity costs from $35 to $65 a month depending on the season.
Healthcare here isn't free, but about 70% of the costs are sponsored by the state. For example, a visit to a general practitioner costs $120, but a person actually only has to pay $35-40. The wealthier the area, the more the patient pays at the clinic. With a 5-year work visa, I have the same rights as New Zealand citizens. Therefore, the state pays for my medical expenses in the same way. But a doctor's visit for tourists is, of course, a painful blow to the wallet.
By the way, another surprising fact: here, unlike in Minsk, almost every medicine requires a doctor's prescription. Some things are quite unexpected. For example, diclofenac. In Belarus, you can buy an ampoule, a syringe, inject yourself — and be happy. And no one will ask why. But in New Zealand, if your back hurts, you won't be able to buy either pills or injection ampoules at the pharmacy without a prescription.
Another spending item: public transport. Trains run around the city (they very rarely go underground, so it's impossible to call it a "metro") and double-decker buses, like in London. And some parts of Auckland are faster to reach by ferry than by train. Each time you enter and exit transport, you have to tap your card — and you never know in advance how much will be charged. Some incredibly complex algorithms calculate how many zones you've traveled and boundaries you've crossed. The cheapest trip will cost $2.30, the most expensive — $4.60.
All services are also more expensive. I was in Minsk recently, visited my parents for New Year's. A haircut at a barbershop cost me 80 rubles. In New Zealand, it's a minimum of $40, which is 120 rubles. As you can see, the difference is one and a half, and in some places even twofold. Moreover, in Belarus, in a barbershop, they will pamper you from all sides, spray you with everything possible, wash your hair before and after the haircut, do your styling… In Auckland, for 120 rubles… they'll just cut your hair.
Also, in New Zealand, there's a 2% commission for Apple Pay. You have to take out your bank card the old-fashioned way, insert it into the machine, and enter your PIN code every time, otherwise your whole life becomes 2% more expensive. This is really annoying. All foreigners are shocked! Far from home, I miss familiar marketplaces. And the "Onliner" catalog! And free delivery from supermarkets.
Loneliness
Sometimes Yegor misses home. After all, he is separated from Minsk by approximately 17,000 kilometers, a three-day journey — and tickets costing $2000.
"Unfortunately, I've never met Belarusians here in New Zealand. Once I met a person who said they knew a person who had seen a Belarusian," Yegor laughs.
It's not easy being the only Belarusian on the opposite side of the globe. But Yegor seems to be handling it with dignity.
Comments