Many of us only know a few facts about New Zealand. It’s located in the south Pacific – that one’s easy. It’s comprised of two main islands conveniently called the North Island and the South Island, which is also pretty easy. But there are some other facts about New Zealand that most of us don’t know that are, in and of themselves, worth knowing.

The capital of New Zealand is Wellington, which is located at the southern tip of the North Island. Wikipedia’s entry on Wellington describes the city thus:

Wellington is the capital of New Zealand, at the southwestern tip of the North Island between Cook Strait and the Rimutaka Range. The Wellington urban area is the major population centre of the southern North Island and is New Zealand’s third most populous urban area with 381,900 residents. There are 473,700 residents in the Wellington Region (June 2008 estimates).

Wellington’s suburbs lie across four cities. Wellington City, on the peninsula between Cook Strait and Wellington Harbour, contains the central business district and about half of Wellington’s population. Porirua City on Porirua Harbour to the north is notable for its large Maori and Pacific Island communities. Lower Hutt City and Upper Hutt City are suburban areas to the northeast, together known as the Hutt Valley. Although each of the four cities also contains a rural hinterland, almost all of the population is within the urban area.

Some sporting facts about New Zealand are that the most popular sport is rugby, and New Zealand’s national team is called the “All Blacks” for their entirely black uniforms. The All Blacks have been one of the dominant teams in world rugby for more than a century, along with Tonga, South Africa and England.

New Zealand’s government is described as follows by Wikipedia:

New Zealand is a constitutional monarchy with a parliamentary democracy. Although it has no codified constitution, the Constitution Act 1986 is the principal formal statement of New Zealand’s constitutional structure. The constitution has been described as “largely unwritten” and a “mixture of statutes and constitutional convention.” Queen Elizabeth II is the head of state and is titled Queen of New Zealand under the Royal Titles Act 1974. She is represented by the Governor-General, whom she appoints on the exclusive advice of the Prime Minister. The current Governor-General is Anand Satyanand.

There are, of course, more facts about New Zealand if you’re willing to do the research. Appreciation should go further than skin deep!

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