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:: New Zealand pictures :: |
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:: New Zealand map :: |
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Click here
for a map of the world showing New Zealand. |
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:: New Zealand in brief :: |
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Official Name |
: The
Dominion of New Zealand |
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Country Name |
: Firstly named Aotearoa, 'Land of the long white cloud' |
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Location |
:
South Pacific Ocean, around 2000 km south-east of Australia |
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Latitude |
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Between the 34° S and 47° S, in the 'roaring forties' latitude |
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Geographic
coordinates |
: 41
00 S, 174 00 E |
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Area |
: 268, 680 km˛
(103,733 sq miles) |
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Area
Comparative |
: About the size
of Colorado (U.S.A) |
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North Island |
: 114,
600 km˛ |
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South Island |
: 152,
720 km˛ |
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Stewart
Island |
: 1700
km˛ |
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Population |
: 3, 8 millions |
| Capital
City |
: Wellington
since 1865 (population : 345, 000) |
| Biggest
City |
: Auckland
(population : 1, 1 million) |
| People |
: 80% European
(Pakeha), 12% Maori and polynesian |
| Official
Languages |
: English and
Maori |
| Climate |
: Maritime |
| Highest
Point |
: Mount Cook
(3764 m) |
| Discovery
of NZ |
: In 950 AD by
the Polynesian navigator Kupe |
| Government |
: Independent
member of the British Commonwealth |
| National
Day |
: February 6th
(Waitangi day) |
| Official
Currency |
: New Zealand
Dollar |
| Time
Zone |
: New Zealand is
12 hours ahead of Greenwich Mean Time |
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Current Time and
Date in New Zealand :
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| :: The
Environment :: |
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New Zealand is
located in the southern hemisphere. It spans 1600 km from north to
south. It is
made up of the North Island, the South Island, the Stewart Island and
of a various small islands surrounding. The national bird of New
Zealand is the Kiwi
(te many huna a Tane, 'the hidden bird of Tane') and the national
plant is the Pohutukawa (also called Christmas Tree.) The North Island has
numerous large volcanoes (including the currently active Mount Ruapehu,
2797 m) and highly active thermal areas, while the South Island
boasts the Southern Alps - a spine of magnificent mountains running
almost its entire length. New Zealand is of rare and awesome beauty, some of its
other notable features are its offshore waters (holding variety of
fishes and mammals including dolphins, seals and whales) and its
hissing geysers. The forests are filled with extraordinary varieties
of trees, ferns and other flora, 84% of which can be found nowhere
else in the world. |
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| :: A
little bit of History :: |
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Originally settled by
the Polynesian. The first European to
come to New Zealand was Dutch explorer Abel van Tasman who sailed to
New Zealand from Australia in 1642. In 1769, Captain James Cook claimed New
Zealand for Britain and the Treaty of Waitangi was signed on 6
February 1840 by Captain William Hobson, several English
residents and approximately forty-five Maori chiefs. New Zealand
became a self-governing Dominion in 1907. |
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| :: The
Icons of New Zealand :: |
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The Kiwi |
The Pohutukawa |
The Maori Art |
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| :: The
Lord Of The Rings Filming Locations :: |
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The LOTR trilogy has
been entirely shot in New Zealand. The Middle-Earth couldn't
have been portrayed better. Peter Jackson made all of us fall in love
with its abundant forests, clear lakes, fast-flowing rivers and its majestic mountains.
We have done the map bellow to show you the different set locations. |
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| + The Farmlands of Hinuera in
the Waikato were used to shoot the Shire |
| + Matamata was the home
of Hobbiton |
| + Port Waikato :
Weathertop hollow |
| + Whakapapa Ski Area :
Mordor, Gorgorath Plains, Emyn Muil |
| + Tukino Ski Area :
Mordor, Slopes of Mt. Doom |
| + Rangipo Desert :
Black Gate of Mordor |
| + Rangitikei River :
River Anduin |
| + Waitarere Forest :
Trollshaw Forest, Osgiliath Woodlands |
| + Otaki Gorge Road :
Hobbiton Woods |
| + Fernside, Featherston
: Silverlode Rivertank |
| + Kaistoke Regional Park
: Rivendell, River Anduin |
| + Keeling Farm, Manukau
: Bucklebury Ferry |
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+ Wellington
Region : Outer Shire, Chetwood Forest, Ferry Lane,
Trollshaw Forest, Dunharrow Plateau, Weathertop Hillside, Bree
Streets, Bree Gate, Mordor, Dunharrow Encampment, Gandalf's
Charge at Helm's Deep, Black Gate of Mordor, Helm's Deep,
Minas Tirith |
| + Makara, Wellington :
Crossroads of Mordor |
| + Harcourt Park, Upper Hutt
: Isengard Gardens |
| + Poet's Corner, Upper Hutt
: River Anduin |
| + Queen Elizabeth Park,
Raumati South : Pelennor Fields |
| + Putangirua Pinnacles
: Dimholt Road, Approach to Paths of the Dead |
| + Rocky Point, Cape
Palliser : Mordor |
| + Takaka Hill :
Chetwood Forest |
| + Mount Olympus :
Eregion Hills, Rough Country South of Rivendell |
| + Mount Owen, Nelson :
Dimrill Dale Hillside |
| + Mount Gun, Franz Joseph
: Lighting The Beacon |
| + Mount Potts Station,
Rangitata Valley : Edoras |
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+ Queenstown
Region : Rohan Refugees, Exit paths of the Dead, The West
Road, White Mountain, Eregion Hills, Emyn Muil, Hilltop, Misty
Mountains, Ithilien Camp, Summit of Amen Hen, Osgiliath
Hilltop, Pillars of Argonath, Ford of Bruinen |
| + Queenstown's Lake
Wakatipu was used as the location for Lothlorien |
| + Paradise, Glenorchy :
Parth Galen, Lothlorien Woods, Slopes of Amon Hen, Outskirts
of Fangorn Forest |
| + Greenstone Station,
Kinloch : Rohan Plains, Dunharrow Encampment |
| + Lake Alta, Remarkables
: Dimrill Dale Hillside, Eregion Hills |
| + Arrowtown Recreational
Reserve : Ford of Bruinen, Gladdenfields |
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+ Mavora
Lakes : Nen Hithoel Lake, Nen Hithoel Shore, Edge of
Fangorn Forest, Sloped of Amon Hen, Parth Galen Hillside |
| + Norwest Lakes : Rough
Country South of Rivendell, Misty Mountains |
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+ Kepler
Mire, Bog Pine Paddock, Te Anau Region : Dead Marshes,
Midgewater Marshes, Weathertop Countryside |
| + Poolburn Lake, Ida Valley
: Plains of Rohan, Rohan Village, Eastemnet Gullies |
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+ Tarras,
Wanaka (High Country of South Island) : East Road, Black
Riders chase Arwen and Frodo, Golden Plains |
| + Ben Ohau Station, Twizel
: Pelennor Fields, White Mountain, Foothills |
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+ Lower Hutt
(in the
Dry Creek Quarry south of Wellington) : Shots
showing Isengard, Minas Tirith, Minas Morgul and Helm's Deep |
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| :: The
map and the flag of New Zealand :: |
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For a very detailed map,
check out the map of New Zealand on Expedia.com, you can zoom in and out. The
flag
of New Zealand consists of the Union flag of Great Britain and the
four stars of the Southern Cross.
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| ::
Famous New Zealander :: |
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Peter
Jackson |
: Our master, born
on october 31st, 1961 in Pukerua Bay (North Island.) |
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Karl
Urban |
: Eomer in the
LOTR trilogy, born in june 7th, 1972 in Wellington. |
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Lawrence
Makoare |
: Lurtz/Witch-King
of Angmar in the LOTR trilogy, born in Bastion Point,
Auckland. |
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Marton
Csokas |
: Celeborn in the
LOTR trilogy, born
on june 30th, 1966, New Zealand. |
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Sarah
McLeod |
: Rosie Cotton in
the LOTR trilogy, born on July 18, 1971 in Putaruru. |
| Sam
Neill |
: Actor, born on
september 14th, 1947. |
| Russel
Crowe |
: Actor, born on
april 14th, 1964 in Auckland. |
| Jane
Campion |
: Director,
producer, born on april 30th, 1954 in Waikenae. |
| Sir
Edmund
Hillary |
: Explorator,
born in 1919. The first one who reached the summit of
Everest. |
| Ernest
Rutheford |
: Scientist,
1871-1937. Considered like the father of atomic physics. |
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Usefull links :: |
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