The Inexhaustible Uniqueness of New Zealand

Springbok Online Casino began as THE online casino for South Africa.  It shows in our celebration of so many things that South Africa has to offer.  We have always felt that as an online casino, we are a lot more than just casino games.  We have since expanded our horizons to cover the entire world but we remain especially connected to South Africa, Australia, and New Zealand.

So, to continue our last article that focused on the uniqueness of New Zealand, here are more of the things that make New Zealand special and some of the reasons we feel that Springbok is THE online casino for New Zealand.

Strange Animals

New Zealand is home to some of the oddest animals in the world.  We thought that the Big Five of South Africa were tops; we thought that the marsupials of Australia were also tops; now we have the strange and wonderful animals of New Zealand.

• Try not to get in the way of a giant weta.  It is bigger than a small bird yet it is classified as an insect. 
• The kea bird likes to eat rubber.  It often pulls windshield wipers off cars to get at the delicious rubber blades.
• Bats are the only land animal that is native to New Zealand so watch out for guano if you are set on exploring a cave.
• The tuatara were brought to New Zealand by the Maori but now zoologists consider them native to New Zealand.  The tuatara are a rare type of amphibian because it is unlike any other type of amphibian that lives elsewhere.  Evolutionists consider the tuatara to be a lost dinosaur sub-species.  The Auckland baseball team’s nickname is the Tuatara.
• Sadly, you’ll not encounter the Moa birds in New Zealand anymore as the bird became extinct in the 20^th century.  Apparently its size made it difficult to survive in a modern ecosystem dominated by people.  The moa was close to four meters tall and weighed more than 250 kilograms.
• We also urge you to steer clear of the giant snails of the South Island as they are carnivorous.
• A dolphin became a national hero in the early years of the 20^th century as it guided ships through the treacherous boulder-strewn coastline of New Zealand.  The dolphin even got a name: Pelorus Jack.
• The smallest sub-species of dolphin live off the coat of New Zealand.

Famous Kiwis

• Harold Gillies was one of the first surgeons in the world to develop plastic surgery.
• A New Zealand man gave himself a name with fully 99 characters after he lost a bet in poker.
• Baron Ernest Rutherford was the first man to split the atom.  That gave him to authority to name the proton as it came “spilling out” of the atom (in the famous description of the contents of an atom voiced by Phoebe in the television series Friends which has no relationship at all to New Zealand)!
• Wayne Shelford will always be remembered as the rugby player whose scrotum was torn in a game, who had the sad sack sewn up, and returned to the match!
• New Zealand is the only country in the world with a National Wizard.
• Nancy Wake was wanted by the Gestapo, the German secret police during World War II.  Among her many feats, she killed a Gestapo officer with her bare hands.
• Sir Edmund Hillary, after whom Hillary Clinton was not named even though she says she was, was the first man to climb to the summit of Mount Everest.

Honesty

New Zealand has the world’s most honest political and business environment.  In terms of political corruption, New Zealand is tied with Denmark for first place.

A Seafaring People

Despite being a thoroughly modern country, fully 33% of all New Zealand families owns a boat of some sort.

Gay Rights

Same sex marriage became legal in New Zealand in 2013.

Local Beer

In the Lord of the Rings, the inhabitants and visitors to Middle Earth drank a local beer from New Zealand called Sobering Thought.

Movie Riches

The Lord of the Rings movies injected over $200,000,000 into the New Zealand economy.  The movies were so important that a Minister of the Lord of the Rings Movies was appointed.

Hobbit Symbols

As an indication of how much the Lord of the Rings movies meant to New Zealand, the country asked for and received exclusive permission to put Hobbit symbols on its coins.

Trains and Planes

The runway at the Gisborne airport has train tracks running down the middle.  Neither trains nor planes have a stated right of way so they give way to each other before continuing on their way.

Supplying the World

New Zealanders could not possibly consume all the cheese and butter they produce.  Most of the 100 kilograms per capita of butter and 65 kilograms per capita of cheese go for export.

Golf Anyone

New Zealand has over 400 golf courses which makes it the highest number per capita in the world. 

Bungee Jumping

As a commercial endeavor this exotic sports dates back as far as 1988!  It seems like it has been with us forever but the first commercial bungee jump took place off of the Kawarau Bridge in Queenstown.  Before that, natives used vines to hold their feet!

The Sainted Kiwi

The native New Zealand fruit is actually native to China!  At one time it was called the Chinese gooseberry.

Earthquakes and Volcanoes

Unfortunately, New Zealand is still active seismically but the 50 or more volcanoes are thought to all be extinct.

Connection to Australia

The Australian constitution lists New Zealand as a state in Australia which means that New Zealand can join Australia any time it wants to.  Australia shows no signs of trying to incorporate New Zealand by force and New Zealand shows no signs of wanting to join Australia by choice.

Springbok Casino

We hope that you have read enough about the wonderful facts that are unique to New Zealand that you will make Springbok Casino your online casino of choice.