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Travelers Warning: The Problem with Pie in New Zealand
March 14 was Pi Day, but not in New Zealand. Living in a land where pie is not what I grew up with.
In this crazy, upside-down island nation on the far side of the world, they write the date using the day, month, and year format, so March 14 comes out as 14.3 ( a meaningless number) rather than 3.14 (the mathematical constant pi). But that is far from the only problem with pie in New Zealand.
I’m a Yankee who has been living with the Kiwis. I had initially planned to spend just one year here and then see what happened. Two years later, I’m still here. It could be the pristine and beautiful natural environment that has kept me here, the peace of mind that comes with living in a nation with a national healthcare system, or the friendly and welcoming people that remind me of the characters from 1950s TV. One thing that it is not is the pie.
The good news about Kiwi pies is that they can be found everywhere — from famous pie shops to every cafe, most restaurants, and many gas stations. The bad news is that these are not the pies you are looking for.
Shortly after arriving, I learned the difference between American and Kiwi pie. I was invited to a meeting and enticed to attend with the promise that there would be “pies.” Appetite wetted, I showed up for that meeting with enthusiasm I had not felt for a meeting in, well, ever. I mean, they would be serving pie at the conference. How awesome is that?
Imagine my disappointment when I arrived to find a tray of various shades of mush wrapped in what looked like parchment paper. The mushes were primarily brown, with white and yellow ones thrown in for variety. Some were individual pies with a bowl-shaped crust and a central filling. Others were brown goo wrapped in a soggy brown pastry, giving them an appearance more reminiscent of a sad version of pigs in a blanket.
