Turns Out the Bottom of the World Is Pretty Hard to Beat

Someone left a comment asking why New Zealand. Out of everywhere in the world — why there? It's a fair question. And it deserves a real answer. This video is that answer. We didn't just pick it off a map. We spent months building an actual list — real criteria we ran every country through. English speaking. Stable government. Low corruption. Geographic isolation. High social trust. Actually safe — not relatively safe. And a place where Angela's dental license had reciprocity so we weren't just leaping into the void. Portugal. Costa Rica. Canada. Europe. They all went through the same filter. New Zealand rose to the top every single time. We get into the stuff most people don't say out loud — yes we thought about nuclear fallout patterns. Yes we noticed where the tech billionaires are quietly buying land. Yes we compared hurricane seasons and natural disasters after living through Hurricane Ian in 2022. And yes the data on safety, corruption, cost of living and quality of life is pretty hard to argue with. But beyond all of that — we talk about the culture we're walking into. The Māori traditions. The haka. The hāngī. The barefoot kids running around school with grass stained knees. The tall poppy syndrome. The fact that nobody cares what car you drive. And the very specific kind of humans we wanted to be surrounded by when things get hard. We also talk about the night we finally said yes — after almost a year of anxiety, panic attacks and Angela losing her hair over the decision. And what the feeling was when we finally made it. This one is for everyone who asked. Hope it answers the question. 🔔 Subscribe and follow the whole journey — we're just days away from leaving 👇 Drop something in the comments — I read and reply to every single one Previous videos in this series: ▶ Why We're Leaving America (It's Not What You'd Think)    • Why We're Leaving America (It's Not What Y...   ▶ Officially Homeless — Our Life is Bound for New Zealand    • Officially Homeless — Our Life is Bound fo...   ▶ The Hardest Goodbye Yet    • Leaving for New Zealand | The Hardest Good...   buymeacoffee.com/stillhumanco HASHTAGS #NewZealandLife #MovingToNewZealand #AmericanExpat #StillHuman #StillHumanProject #MovingAbroad #NewZealand2025 #BayOfPlenty #FamilyRelocation #LeavingAmerica #ExpatsInNewZealand #MaoriCulture #SlowLiving #IntentionalLiving #NewChapter #LifeAbroad #GlobalPeaceIndex #NewZealandImmigration #FamilyFirst #StartingOver