Kristin Macfarlane: New Zealand has issues but not like Europe or the US

The lighthouse at Cape Reinga in Northland. Photo / Getty Images

OPINION:

Life is tough and New Zealand has plenty of downfalls - but there is no doubt we are in a privileged position that many others around the world would love to be in.

Europe's Covid-19 reality is that it never really seemed to flatten the curve, facing a second wave of infections resulting in intensive care wards filling up again and bars shutting down.

European countries are seeing record numbers of daily infections.

Spain has declared a state of emergency for Madrid; Germany has seen newly flaring hotspots; Italy mandated masks outdoors and revealed its health system was facing "significant critical issues" as hospitals fill up; the Czech Republic has the highest per-capita infection rate on the continent; Belgium, Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Spain and France are all diagnosing more new cases every day per capita than the United States and in England residents are gearing up for further virus restrictions.

There are also reports that the US has seen a massive increase in infections, prompting fears of a second wave.

All of these once alluring travel destinations have slowly started to lose their appeal and just about everyone I know on that side of the world has contacted me wishing they were in New Zealand because of our handling of the pandemic.

No matter what issues we have with the way New Zealand has dealt with Covid, we are in a position where we can travel throughout our country, getting to see towns, cities and places we've never been yet.

Many others around the world can not.

Many people will know someone who has been to Queenstown in recent months, taking in more of their own country now that the opportunity to travel internationally has been pulled away from them.

Not being able to look elsewhere forces you to find appreciation in what you have in front of you - and that's surely a positive.

At least once every year my children travel to western Australia to see our family, spending the Christmas holidays across the ditch. These Christmas holidays, however, will not be the same and will mean a much quieter Christmas and New Year.

And for that reason, I'm focused on distracting them with a plethora of new experiences right here, at home.

We've spent the last couple of school holidays visiting new places nearby purely to get out and about and see what we've not bothered to see before.

But replacing the summer holiday they are used to surrounded by family calls for a bigger adventure.

For our next journey I am weighing up destinations we've never been such as Taranaki, Northland and Hawke's Bay, as well as places I've never even thought of visiting such as Manawatu.

Covid has stripped us of a sense of freedom but the fact we can still do so much in our small country should be enough incentive to make the most of every opportunity in front of us.