A Sobering Experience

We drove pretty much straight through from Dunedin to Christchurch as we wanted a bit of time in Christchurch before leaving New Zealand.  We did stop at the Moeraki  Boulders, a unique geological phenomenon.  We also stopped at Oamaru with all kinds of white limestone buildings.  Both stops were very interesting.

Moeraki Boulders

Opera House and Main Street in Oamaru

We arrived at our hotel in Christchurch at 3:30 PM.  Our hotel was 3 blocks from the Red Zone in downtown Christchurch.  It was a beautiful day so we walked over to see the devastation.  It was a very sobering experience to see the amount of damage.  It is one thing to see it on the news but another to see it in person.  Of course it is somewhat cleaned up from what it would have been a year ago February but to see building after building with a spray painted “C” (for condemned) and then a date from the week after the earthquake.   No work can begin on reconstruction because of continuing aftershocks.  They need 3 straight months without an aftershock before they will start any reconstruction.

A Small Part of the Devastation

Marked Condemed Building

 After passing several blocks of this devastation, you come upon a vibrant area a few blocks of shops – many upscale – that are in shipping containers painted bright colours.  The Christchurch people are very proud of this rebirth of the city center.

The Container Shopping Area

Salvaged Church Bells

We could only get within a couple of blocks of the cathedral.  What to do with it is very controversial.  The Anglican Bishop has said they will tear it down but the people of Christchurch see it is something which identifies their city so want it restored.  The bishop says it will cost $100 million to restore it, others say it can be done for $20 million.  There was an interesting article in the paper about this that I kept if anyone is interested in reading it.

As Close as We Could Get to the Cathedral - 2 Blocks Away - TakenTthrough Chainlink Fence

We had dinner at our hotel as there are no restaurants in the downtown area and we would have had to drive out to the suburbs