The DrsC have traveled in New Zealand twice - the first time in 1985 for two weeks, the second in 2001 for a month. Both times we rented a little motorhome and camped around the two main islands. It is very nice, we recommend it.
One of the things we noticed was the NZ accent, typified by a woman who ran a campground down near Invercargill at the south end of the South Island. She had a small dog and we asked its name, she replied with what sounded like the initials GC.
That sounded odd so we asked how it was spelled and learned it was Jesse. Americans pronounce that name with the two syllables jess and ee.
Our observation was that NZ women, and teens of both genders, tended to pronounce the short e sound like a long e. Adult men, not so much.
There is a new-to-us crime drama streaming on Prime, set and filmed in EnZed, called Brokenwood Mysteries. In one of the early episodes a minor character is named Jesse. Sure enough, the series' female lead pronounced the name GC or Jeesee if you prefer. Some things don't change much.
