When promoting studying abroad in the U.S., the most successful students are often credited as those who gained an immense appreciation for other lands and peoples. After all, what often attracts any one aspiring world scholar to a certain part of the world is the culture that's so unlike their own.

As a study abroad student myself, I've just returned to the U.S. from spending my first-ever college semester at the University of Auckland (UoA) in New Zealand.

I know, I know: Most American students don't dare to dream, much less think of New Zealand as their ideal study abroad location. Sure, it boasts some of the most beautiful, exotic flora and fauna in the world due to its endemic nature, but for many, just because this country offers unique geography and biology doesn't necessarily qualify it as a place of enlightening the cultural and academic senses.

And after all, the nonexistent language barrier that's in many other foreign nations deters some (besides perhaps the quirky, drawling, British-esque accent that all native New Zealanders possess) from believing this country has non-Western culture.

So clearly, New Zealand's the world traveler enthusiast's greatest fantasy. But what what's in it for American world scholars?

Just as how learning about Native Americans is fundamental to American education, all New Zealand children must know the basics of Māori (the nation's indigenous Polynesian people) culture. Ask any native New Zealander—even those of non-Māori descent—and they'll rattle off lists of various foods, parts of the body, modes of transportation and the like, all in Māori. And being the reputably friendly people they are, they'll also teach you greetings and everyday phrases. They may also slip in some New Zealand slang, with an enthusiastic "sweet as" (meaning "cool") as you repeat the Māori words back to them.

You can even ask the policemen, so long as they're not fighting crime (although New Zealand's considered one of the safest countries worldwide). Donning friendly smiles and black-and-white checkered uniforms, their reputation as the least corrupt police force in the world is well-deserved.

But the evident cultural appreciation extends even further, with providing English and Māori wording in academic and leisure readings, street names and on entrance and exit signs in buildings.

Cultural events are also prevalent. When I was first abroad, UoA's New Student Orientation opened with the ceremonial Haka—a dance once done in tradition of preparing male warriors for battle, but nowadays used in social functions to welcome guests—as a means of greeting newcomers to not only the school, but also its surrounding culture and nation.

And just as how American football is popular in the U.S., rugby is rampant in New Zealand. As the nation's national rugby team, the All Blacks maintain top international ranking. On the days leading up to any one match, you'd see cars driving with large flags boasting the All Blacks' team emblem—a white fern frond set against a black background—along with horn honking and hollering out the window.

During my time abroad, I attended an All Blacks game against the Australian Outbacks. The Australians lost miserably, and with my friends and I accidentally purchasing (but not regretting) front-row tickets, we were all the more thrilled when the players came by after the game to sign posters and take selfies with the lucky few who sat in the first few rows. Up close, each player bared traditional Māori tattoos, a now universal art form that actually originated from Māori culture) and disfigured, elfish ears due to the lack of head protection during gameplay.

And of course, the match wasn't complete without the players doing a Haka performance at its start.

So to prospective study abroad students: Don't doubt that culture can lack, especially in more Westernized countries like New Zealand. Simply part this nation's lush greenery, and you'll be surprised that underneath the brush lies a culture rich not in stark cultural contrasts, but rather the mundane, overlooked cultural nuances by Americans that make New Zealand just that much more endearing.