One world, different people

I find it really strange how teenage cultures can differ so much. 

From being in New Zealand from the age of 14 to 18 i grew up in a country where going to the beach with all of your friends for the day, having an adventure around endless fields  lakes and natural surroundings and then going to Auckland City for the night was just the thing to do. I spent much of my 4 years outside finding our own entertainment and having fun whilst we did it. We did not need to spend money to have a good time, it was the togetherness and the adventure that seemed to have us all rolling round with laughter.

However, after being back in England for a year, it seems for some teenagers that is just weird. My home time seems to be about going to the pub everyday, driving round in botched up cars and putting bets on your friends on who would crash first. A constant drama, fight or argument was the normal thing to do day in and day out. Who is having sex with who, how they had sex, how many times and with how many people. It's like i am in a completely different world. Here, it seems as a teenager your not having fun unless you are spending a lot of money, or arguing with your friends. 

Don't get me wrong, New Zealand had it's downfall, teenagers were very keen on drugs, mostly weed more than anything, it isn't as innocent as you may think i am describing it. Every country has it's downfall right?

But tell me, which is better: Teenagers getting along, having fun, not spending all their money everyday on alcohol, but going out. Going to the beach, going camping, going to the skate parks and all just being together. Yes okay, quite a lot of these teenagers smoked weed... but is that better than being in the local pubs every night, drinking yourself so drunk you feel sober, having a fight with your friends..striving on the drama and then going home and waking up to do it all over again? I'm not so sure. 

It seems the two different countries have very different ideologies on how to live life.. 

Sometimes, in England i feel as though i don't fit in because i don't want to argue with my friends constantly or watch grown men hit on young girls and then boys fighting in the middle of the pub. I don't want my personal life to be known by everyone in your home town and it be used as your weakness. I want to travel and see the world... i want to go places, but do people who have lived in towns such as mine really want to do that? It seems they are 'born in England, die in England'.

Please don't get me wrong, i am not saying everyone in New Zealand took drugs and I'm not saying everyone in England wants to be in the pub every night fighting and not wanting to travel. However it appears  that the majority of New Zealand teenagers that i have met want to travel and the majority of English teenagers don't. 

What are your thoughts?

Undecided xxx