Canterbury & Christchurch

Leaving the rain behind us, we set out from Dunedin (A), stopping to see some sights in Canterbury on our way to Christchurch (G), the South Island's largest & New Zealand's second largest city.

Ellie at the Moeraki Boulders (B)

The Waitaki Hydro Station ( C )

We stopped for lunch in Twizel (D), after which Ben & I played this HUGE hole of disc golf.

This is Hole # 4 on the Twizel Frisbee Golf course

Aoraki/Mount Cook from the Lake Pukaki overlook (E)

The Church of the Good Shepherd on Lake Tekapo (F)

After arriving in Christchurch (G), we were shocked to see the extent of the devastation in the downtown area still left by the earthquakes 2010 & 2011.  We had heard about it of course, but nothing could have prepared us for what we saw.  Many of the damaged buildings have been taken down and the few left standing are slated to be removed, with the exception of just a few hotels that were repaired and just reopened.  We stayed right on Cathedral Square - which was difficult to navigate because of all the road closures & demolition still taking place.

The view of The ChristChurch Cathedral from our hotel room

View of the front Christchurch Cathedral

The Transitional Cathedral (aka The Cardboard Cathedral) is the temporary home of the Anglican congregation displaced by the destruction of their Cathedral.  It was amazing to see.

Many of these green spaces & art installations take advantage 

of the abundant space made available by the removal of 1,350 damaged buildings

Because many of the central area shops & restaurants were damaged or destroyed, a new shopping & eating area has been created out of shipping containers.  It was impressive to see what they could make out of these simple metal boxes.  There was also a really cool museum dedicated to the earthquake experience & stories of those affected by the quakes.

Re:START Mall

Watching some Maori buskers

The Canterbury Museum

Our last afternoon, we drove out to Sumner for some time at the beach watching the surfers and getting some awesome Mexican food at the Headless Mexican.  Mexican food is scarce in NZ as it is & good Mexican food is even more exceptional!

The beach at Sumner

Surfers lined up & waiting for a choice wave

In 2012, Lonely Planet recommended Christchurch as one of the TOP 10 cities in the world to visit in 2013.   Having visited, I feel very fortunate to have seen & supported Christchurch at this moment in history.  Their 'Rebuild Plans' are very ambitious and exciting.  I am eager to monitor the recovery progress and, God willing, return to Christchurch one day - when the new precincts are complete.

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