American shares surprise at electric kettles in New Zealand in funny TikTok

Electric kettles are commonplace in New Zealand but surprised a recent American expat. Photo / @konner_m, TikTok

This article was one of Herald Travel’s best-read stories of 2023

An American has shared his astonishment towards an everyday kitchen item he’s come across while living in New Zealand, which he did not have in the US.

The 18-year-old, who posts TikTok videos under the name Konnor, has shared videos of his life since moving from Hawaii to Auckland earlier this year.

Konnor has already shared five culture shocks he has experienced in Aotearoa.

However, most recently, he dedicated an entire video to the humble electric kettle, which he was comically impressed by.

“Something I absolutely love about New Zealand as an America are these things - an electric kettle,” he said in the video.

For Kiwis, the appliance is nothing special and is found in kitchens around the country. But to Konnor, it was a rarity back home.

“It’s always on your counter and I absolutely love it because in America we literally have to use a stovetop kettle - we don’t have electric ones - which is always a hassle,” he said, before demonstrating how it worked, for those who may not have known.

“I literally fill this up, click this switch right here and it started boiling the water, made it all hot and then it turned off by itself,” he said.

@konner_m

we need these in america #fyp #auckland #nz #usa #newzealand #americaninnewzealand

♬ original sound - Konner | 🇺🇸 in 🇳🇿

Konnor boasted he made the tea in just two minutes before admitting he was possibly a little overenthusiastic about the appliance.

In the past four days, the clip has been viewed more than 334,000 times. Many viewers commented on the video, expressing surprise that Americans still use traditional stovetop kettles.

‘Wait Americans don’t have this? I thought every country had one,’ one person wrote in the comments.

Another person wrote that stovetop kettles were “a thing” in New Zealand, but in the 1980s.

“Blows my mind that America doesn’t have kettles,” one person added. In response, Konnor said Americans did have electric kettles, but it was “very rare to own one due to the voltage and it taking so long for the water to boil”.

It wasn’t the only thing Konnor had been surprised by during his short time in New Zealand.

In another video, Konnor shared five culture shocks he had experienced since moving, which included driving on the left side of the road, how dairies were not exclusively filled with dairy products and the word “keen”.

“We do not say that in the US and it’s so funny to hear y’all say it,” he said of the common word.

Other Americans have also shared their surprise about New Zealand customs or objects.

Carly Koemptgen said she had been tripped up by another phrase used regularly in Aotearoa, while some have commented about their delight in an “attraction” many would consider a chore to visit.

This article was originally published on August 15, 2023