Thursday, March 10, 2011

Feng Shui of New Zealand


Previously known as Niu Xi Lan (纽西兰), New Zealand is now known as Xin Xi Lan (新西兰) to the Chinese. Nonetheless, this linguistic change in the Chinese name for the country does not change the fact that New Zealand remains a new terrain amidst the sea.

In the studies of geology, the landscape of New Zealand was formed and shaped millions of years ago by the continuous interplay of the universal geological processes of earth movements, erosion, sedimentation, metamorphism, and igneous activity. Such a geological characteristic is similar to that of China and Japan except for the fact that the former faces Southeast while the latter faces Northeast.

With regards to topography, Japan resides in the North and resembles the shape of the Big Dipper while New Zealand, residing in the South, resembles that of the South Dipper. The land of the Big Dipper tends to be more active and favours innovation while the land of the South Dipper moves at a slower pace and favours an idyllic lifestyle. Both lands can be categorised under the Double Dragon Pulse formation. Such landforms are created as a result of earthquakes and usually comprise of more mountains and fewer plains.

In the aspect of ethnicity, the majority of Japan’s population originates from interracial marriages between the local Japanese and poor immigrants from China. For New Zealand, most of her population derives from miscegenation between the British and the Maori. Such unions allow these two nations to develop their distinctive culture through a unique blend of history, cultures as well as education from their forefathers. This brings forth a culture evolution that has become an intrinsic characteristic of many well-developed countries.

It is without doubt that a thin line exists between prosperity and adversity, even when one is living in paradise. People who live in Japan and New Zealand understand that one cannot take things for granted. Thus, they maintain a vigilant attitude despite a leisurely lifestyle.
I recall a Chinese saying that denotes ‘different countries breed different cultures’, yet there are great similarities between the population of these two countries that are located miles apart. Perhaps this is due to the similarities that both countries have in terms of feng shui and the environment.

On the various occasions that I have visited Japan, I fully enjoyed their food, culture and the country’s respect for nature. In comparison, my first trip to New Zealand gave me a wonderful experience of beautiful scenery and fresh food produce although I do not have much impression of their culture.

The Japanese believe in Buddhism while the New Zealanders believe in Christianity. Nevertheless, Japan and New Zealand are two destinations that are greatly favoured by the Taoists for their prosperous land and great nature. As a Taoist, I am drawn to these two destinations at first sight.

Nonetheless, the erratic climate of these two destinations poses a great challenge. It is most unusual to experience four seasons in a day but this is common for Japan and New Zealand as one is located near the North Pole while the other is located near the South Pole. On the other hand, such erratic climate can help one to forge a good physique and many people who live in these two places enjoy longevity. It goes to show that these are ideal destinations for retirement.

In the luck aspect, the current luck cycle is unfavourable for Japan but is extremely favourable for New Zealand, which has great potential for investments. Investment trends have not infiltrated New Zealand and development for various industries has slowed. In addition, exchange rate for the New Zealand Dollar is 20%-30% lower than that Australia Dollar. Therefore, many Australians are dabbling into property investment in New Zealand. As such, New Zealand has the potential to excel with regards to long-term investments.

In the analysis of feng shui, it is ideal to make long-term investments in the Southeast. However, the luck cycle within year 2012 to 2013 denotes natural calamities for both New Zealand and Australia.

Thus, I hope that New Zealand can avert disasters and that all matters will run smoothly after her change of Chinese name.

Land of Idyllic Beauty


The "land of idyllic beauty" is a perfect phrase to describe the life in New Zealand. The journey between Christchurch and Queenstown takes approximately 500 kilometers, and there are several vineyards along the way. The area is surrounded by many trees, a large number of well-developed parks and exquisite residential gardens.

Our destination, Queenstown, has an estimated resident population of 20,000. The beauty of this landscape draws thousands of visitors each day, with over one hundred thousand visitors during summer and winter months. This makes it one of New Zealand’s most visited tourist spots and a well-developed town.

The most well known place in Queenstown is Lake Wakatipu. Renowned for its scenic beauty, Lake Wakatipu is being surrounded by mountains, and is a popular venue for adventure tourism. In recent years, Lake Wakatipu’s hotels have become a popular destination for tourists from all over the world. Among them, there are some hotels owned by Singaporeans. It is a pity that I could not share with you how gorgeous the scenery is, because no camera can capture it fully. However, the purpose of this trip is not for sightseeing. I was there to provide some feng shui advice to my friend who invested in a resort home by the lakes. Such a resort house with lake view in New Zealand only costs two to three million Singapore dollars, while the same house in Singapore will cost ten to twenty million Singapore dollars.



At Queenstown, we took a scenic flight onboard an 8-seater aircraft to enjoy a scenic view of the lake. As we circled and hovered above the glaciers, overlooking the lake beneath, we noticed the magnificent blue sky and beautiful clear water.

The mountains resemble conical formations and are most likely sculpted by the heavy snow and strong wind throughout the years. In the aspect of feng shui studies, it is not a favourable landform because of the steep peaks and flat mountain plains. Previously, I saw such a landform in China’s Changbai Mountain. The only difference lies in the absence of a crater lake due to the year-round presence of strong winds.



After a 45 minutes’ flight, we reached Milford Sound, a fjord in the southwest of New Zealand’s south island. After cruising along the fjord for over an hour, we came across magnificent scenery of the Danxia landform. The Danxia landform is usually spotted only at inland China region. Nonetheless, the unusual appearance of the Danxia landform at this adjoining lake and river is indeed magnificent!

Occasionally, tourists can admire dolphins, sea lions and the play of the wind with the numerous waterfalls. The falls never reach the bottom of Milford Sound, drifting away in the wind.

It says on the advertisement that this is a place that you cannot afford to miss! Will you visit this place again?

I would like to! This is an enjoyable destination whereby one can linger on without any thoughts and learning, and it is definitely a destination worth visiting again! Nevertheless, I will leave it to fate to decide if I will be back again!