New Zealand lies in the southern Pacific Ocean, 1600 km east of Australia. It is made up of the North and South Islands and a number of smaller islands, with a total area of 268 000 sq km. Mountain ranges and hill country dominate NZ's landscape; one of the most striking physical features is the Southern Alps.

These, along with fiords glaciers and lakes and the coastal plains of Canterbury and Southland add to the variety of the South Island scenery. In the North Island the volcanic interior contains NZ's largest lake, Lake Taupo, and most of the country's active volcanoes - Ruapehu, Ngauruhoe and Tongariro - Ruapehu erupted as recently as 1995 and 1996. Hot springs, geysers, mud pools also form part of the volcanic system centred around Rotorua.

Polynesians settlers arrived in Aotearoa/New Zealand around the tenth century, and by the 12th century settlements were scattered over most of the country. What the Polynesians found was a land much different to the South Pacific tropical isles of Polynesia, with the mountainous terrain and a more seasonal climate the most obvious differences. There were no large mammals to hunt for food, but there was a large flightless bird called the Moa. The Moa stood up to 15 feet tall and the Maori found it easy prey. By the time Europeans had reached New Zealand the Moa was hunted to extinction.

Abel Janzoon Tasman was the first European explorer to see New Zealand in 1642, but it was Captain James Cook who first set foot on New Zealand soil in 1769.The first permanent settlers didn't arrive until the 1830's. The Treaty of Waitangi was signed in 1840, giving sovereignty of New Zealand to Britain. The Maori were persuaded to cede vast tracts of land for mere token payments, but soon the Maori realised the true worth of what they had given away. The Maori rose up and attacked the British settlements repeatedly.

Today, New Zealand is a relatively peaceful country and its people are extraordinarily friendly and outgoing. One quarter of New Zealand is protected wilderness and much of the country is pollution-free.

Geography and Climate
New Zealand is comprised of two main islands (the North and South Islands) and several smaller islands of which the combined total land area is 270,534 sq. kms (104,454 sq. mls - approximately 36 times less than the US). To put this in context, it is similar in size to the US state of Colorado and somewhere in between Japan and the United Kingdom.

New Zealand's geography includes spectacular landscapes incorporating the vast mountain chain of the Southern Alps (larger than the French, Austrian and Swiss Alps combined), the volcano region of the North Island, fiords, glaciers, lakes, rainforests and extensive grassy plains.

Highest point: Mount Cook (3,754m or 12313ft)
Deepest lake: Lake Hauroko (462m 1515ft)
Largest lake: Lake Taupo (606km or 234 miles)
Longest river: Waikato River (425km or 264 miles long)
Largest glacier: Tasman Glacier (29km or 18 miles long)
Deepest cave: Nettlebed, Mount Arthur (889m or 2916ft)
Length of coastline: 15,811 km (9824 miles)

New Zealand experiences summer from December to February and winter from June to August. The climate is temperate with little extreme. Any huge variations in temperature can be accounted for by the combination of the mountainous geography and prevailing westerly winds.

Source: Statistics New Zealand, New Zealand In Profile 1998

Government
New Zealand is an independent state of the Commonwealth. The Queen is represented in New Zealand by the Governor General, Her Excellency Right Honourable Dame Silvia Cartwright. The democratic government operates under the Mixed Member Proportional (MMP) Parliamentary system of 120 seats (of which 67 Members of Parliament are from geographic areas and 53 from political parties). The government is led by coalition partners the Labour Party and United Future. The Prime Minister of New Zealand is the Right Honourable Helen Clark.

Leisure and Tourism
New Zealanders are heavily involved in outdoors activities. Its national image and the lifestyles of the population have been largely shaped by involvement in a wide variety of sports and leisure activities. It is often said that sports and leisure are the predominant focus of the New Zealand cultural identity, with the most obvious example being the country's involvement in international rugby. Tourism generated over $5.9 billion in foreign exchange for the year ended September 2002 and attracted more than two million international visitors in the year ended November 2002. New Zealand is a popular holiday destination for visitors from Australia, North America, the United Kingdom and Japan.

Population: 4 million
Capital: Wellington
Major languages: English, Maori
Major religion: Christianity
Monetary unit: 1 New Zealand dollar ($NZ) = 100 cents
Main exports: Wool, food and dairy products, wood and paper products
Internet domain: .nz
International dialling code: +64