The 25-year-old moved from Jining City, in Shandong, four years ago and has chosen to make Matamata home.
"If I wanted to live in a city, I would have gone to Singapore or maybe even stayed on in China, not Auckland" Miss Ding said.
"I chose New Zealand because I want to be close to nature, and Matamata offers a lifestyle that is as close to nature as I can get."
Miss Ding lives in a three-bedroom house with her partner, whom she met through Bible study.
"Matamata has a community spirit that Auckland doesn't have, and something migrants to cities will never experience."
Through volunteering in local sports organisations and community groups, she has also made a few very good friends. Miss Ding said she knew about 10 Chinese families who lived in Matamata and most were running food outlets or family businesses.
"The thing about living in a little town is that almost everyone knows everyone, and we look out for each other," she said.
"The people I met have been truly amazing, and they make time to tell me stories about themselves and their lives which I just love to hear.
"Matamata has a community spirit that Auckland doesn't have, and something migrants to cities will never experience."
Matamata, with a population of 7500, is a rural farming town located near the base of the Kaimai Ranges and is known for thoroughbred horse breeding and training pursuits.
The Hobbiton Movie Set from Peter Jackson's The Lord of the Rings is located at a nearby farm. Miss Ding is pursuing an accountancy degree at Waikato University - which is about a 40-minute drive from where she lives.
"When I wake up to see the rolling hills and farmland every day, I feel like I am truly living in paradise," Ms Ding said.
From Korea to Rotorua
Korean immigrant Anna Song is so passionate about living in Rotorua she wants to tell every would-be migrant to consider settling there. Rotorua in the Bay of Plenty is the region's second largest urban area behind Tauranga, with a population of about 56,800.
Tourism is by far the largest industry in the district, that is also known for its geothermal activity, geysers and mudpools.
"It doesn't just offer lifestyle, but also opportunities that are far better than in cities like Auckland," said Miss Song, 32.
She first moved to New Zealand with her parents when she was 12, and grew up in Christchurch, Dunedin and Wellington.
"I feel Rotorua is my home now and I feel very privileged to be in a position where I can promote the town to others,"
Miss Song returned to Korea in 2011 to "reconnect" with her cultural roots and build her career - but found that she missed New Zealand too much. Her hometown, Jeju Island, an island off the southern coast of South Korea, is a popular tourist destination "just like Rotorua".
She jumped at the opportunity to come back to New Zealand when there was an opening for a business manager at ANZ Bank Rotorua.
"It was a perfect opportunity because I get to live somewhere that's not Auckland, and also to promote opportunities in the regions," Miss Song said.
"I travel quite a lot, but I love New Zealand so much and at the time I was feeling so homesick.
"I miss the food too, especially steak and cheese pies and cream doughnuts."
Rotorua is a major tourist destination for domestic and international visitors.
Miss Song, who returned last June, is also the vice-chairwoman of the NZ Alumni Association Korea and adviser to the NZ Chamber of Commerce.
"I feel Rotorua is my home now and I feel very privileged to be in a position where I can promote the town to others," she said.
"It is New Zealand's centre for tourism, and there are heaps of business opportunities for anyone who want to start their new lives here."
From Wisconsin to Hamilton
American Danyel Hosto, 28, grew up in Wisconsin where her family farms a small 60-cow Holstein Friesian herd. Now living in Hamilton, Miss Hosto said she chose to settle in the Waikato because it reminded her of home.
"Like for like, the Waikato is very much like my hometown in the States and it's been easy for me to adjust to life here," she said.
Hamilton is home to 156,800 people and is the most populous city of the Waikato region. Once an agricultural service centre, the city - New Zealand's fourth largest - is now the third fastest growing urban area in the country behind Pukekohe and Auckland.
Miss Hosto is working as a product marketing specialist at the Waikato Institute of Technology, also known as Wintec
"In my previous role, I got the chance to visit farmers around New Zealand and found the people here to be really friendly and amazing."
Education, and research and development, play a big part in the city's economy.
"It is a good feeling to know that I've got the skills that I can use to grow a key sector," said Miss Hosto, a former dairy industry marketer.
She first worked in New Zealand on a fixed term role with CRV Ambreed last year, but jumped at the opportunity to return when a full time role was available.
"In my previous role, I got the chance to visit farmers around New Zealand and found the people here to be really friendly and amazing."
Miss Hosto recently was approved in principle for residence under the skilled migrant category. Before moving to New Zealand, she had worked in the Netherlands, but said the idea of settling there never crossed her mind.
"I love the sun, and the weather there was just a little too gloomy for my liking," she said.
Miss Hosto lives in Hamilton East with two flatmates - a New Zealander and a South African.
"Migrants coming from mega cities might find the Waikato a little too quiet, but it's just perfect for me," Miss Hosto said.
From China to Turangi
Entrepreneur migrant Glen Chen says New Zealand's pine forests in the regions are paved with opportunities of gold. Beneath radiata pine trees in a commercial planted forest block in Turangi, the 38-year-old from China is growing a crop that is of a much higher value - ginseng.
Ginseng, a slow-growing perennial herb, has been considered as an important component of traditional medicine in China and Korea.
"In central North Island alone there are 450,000 hectares of pine forests, so the opportunities are endless," said Mr Chen.
"I found New Zealand to be really beautiful, and I just wanted to live here."
"These forests and New Zealand's climate are perfect to grow wild simulated ginseng, which is far more highly valued."
Ginseng takes about 14 years to reach maturity in China, but only seven years in New Zealand because of the climatic conditions. Mr Chen's farm is located in Turangi, on the west bank of the Tongariro River, 50km southwest of Lake Taupo. Well known for trout fishing, the town was designed to be a small servicing centre for exotic forest plantations south of the lake.
Mr Chen first came to New Zealand as a tourist in 2008, but he fell in love with the place and never went home.
"I found New Zealand to be really beautiful, and I just wanted to live here," he said.
"I extended my stay by becoming a student, but then this business opportunity came along."
The business, registered as KiwiSeng, was started by a Korean in 2003, before Mr Chen took over five years later.
"I am actually happy to live in Auckland or anywhere around the country, but I think unique opportunities are better in the regions," he said.
Mr Chen, who recently became a father, lives in Rotorua, and said living in a small town also meant he spent more time with the family.
"There are not many places we can go to after dark, so we end up spending a lot more quality time as a family."
