4/22/26: Onto Recovering Christchurch

 

Before the longish drive to Christchurch, Steven and I wandered around our accommodation in Weston, just a short drive from Ōamaru in New Zealand's South Island. We hadn't realized the afternoon before how large the Highlands on Homestead operation was!

Andrew and Jenny, the owners, must have had a connection to Australia, given the shape of the mirror on one of the paths!

Two of the namesake Highland cattle:

When we arrived at the Blue Penguin Colony the previous evening for their fun show, there hadn't been the opportunity to walk around the facility, as we'd been shepherded directly to the viewing stands. As we were curious to see where the penguins had made their trek from the sea and to look at their manmade nest boxes, we also returned to the colony.

I was initially surprised by how close the boxes were to each other, although on reflection it made sense, given there were almost 400 in a fairly small area.

More antics from the fun New Zealand fur seals: 

I've always liked animal crossing signs from our world travels, but since I never thought of including them in a single post, I'll never be able to retrieve them now.

We drove a little out of the way to view one of the most, if not the most, imposing welcome signs we'd seen anywhere. Ōamaru's welcome sign was constructed from a type of local limestone used for the town's famous and distinctive Victorian architecture.

The trees on the horizon acted as a windbreak and made for a pretty shot.

We stopped for a few minutes in Timaru, a port city on the eastern Pacific coast of the South Island, located 157 km southwest of Christchurch. The Sacred Heart Basilica was built in 1910 in the Renaissance Revival style from Ōamaru stone, brick, and reinforced concrete. Steven needed a quick ziz, so I was happy to tour the immense church that looked like it belonged in a capital city rather than a smallish regional town. I liked the large Open & Welcome to Visitors sign out front. Too bad that more churches and other places of worship don't also have similar signs.

I don't recall ever seeing a plaque in a church or elsewhere marking the donation as a memorial to the donor before. Or have I just not been observant?

An hour north was the town of Rakaia, whose early inhabitants were well-traveled Māori who traveled by canoe to fish and hunt for the now extinct moa, a flightless bird endemic to the country. When the townspeople decided in 1990 that Rakaia needed a memorable icon to put the town on the map, plans began for a giant salmon to honor the nearby Rakaia River and its world-class salmon fishery.

Rakaia's iconic 11-m salmon was commissioned by the local Lions Club and took shape in a Christchurch shed over 18 months. After being fabricated out of steel, wood, and fiberglass with a spiral-welded backbone, it was unveiled in April of 1991. Since then, the towering salmon has become a photo stop and meeting place for locals and travelers who see it rising from a park along State Highway 1.  

As in every town and city we'd been lucky enough to tour in New Zealand, the town of Rakaia had first-class bathrooms adjacent to the park. Why, oh why, can't that be the case in towns and cities throughout North America?

The sinks had plenty of hot water and even some nice-smelling soap!

Relocated to the park from the south end of town was the bridgekeeper's hut that was in operation from 1872 until 1939. Another hut had been at the north end. In addition to collecting road tolls and checking permits for large loads, the bridgekeepers had to ensure that all traffic promptly crossed the bridge and that both gates were closed at least an hour before the next train's scheduled arrival. If there were delays, the bridgekeepers wouldn't have been aware, as Rakaia had no telegraph service. Fortunately, there were only a few near misses as a result!

We lucked out grabbing a bite at  Harvey's Bakehouse in Rakaia, munching on hot, cheap, and delicious beef pies to tide us over until dinner. The old-school diner looked like a throwback to the 1950s with their Formica tabletops!

We reached Christchurch later than planned and in light rain. As you may recall, Steven and I had been within an hour's drive of the city about ten days earlier when we drove from Greymouth on the island's northwest coast toward Twizel and Aoraki, also called Mount Cook, further south and inland. Christchurch suffered a devastating earthquake on February 22, 2011, in which 185 lives were lost, and its iconic stone cathedral was also destroyed. 

Our first stop was the Transitional Cathedral, also known as the Cardboard Cathedral because of its predominantly cardboard-and-wood construction. Reclaimed materials from homes destroyed in the earthquake were also used in the design by Japanese architect Shigeru Ban.

We couldn't help but be impressed by the stunning triangular-shaped Trinity window as soon as we entered. It paid homage to the original cathedral's 25-ft-in-diameter rose window made by Clayton & Bell in London. Not only did the colored-glass triangles reflect the aesthetic of the original neo-Gothic cathedral, but they also matched the A-frame structural geometry of the new temporary building. I hadn't realized when I visited the city with a friend in 2019 that the window also incorporated actual photographs of the original cathedral's destroyed rose window, which had more than 4,000 pieces of glass. How brilliant was it that the city's history was seamlessly woven into the new structure!

The base of the Kahikatea Memorial Sculpture represented New Zealand's native Kahikatea tree, which grows in clumps, with its roots and branches intertwined. The aim of the sculpture was to illustrate the strength and unity of families who lost loved ones during the earthquake. The glass prism at the top represented Aoraki, with the melting snow "flowing to the peaceful and pure water of a New Zealand rainforest. The Spirits of our loved ones can travel to this world and return to heaven along this stream."

I had hoped to show Steven the tremendously moving 185 Chairs, a memorial I'd also viewed in an open space in 2019. It consisted simply of a variety of white-painted chairs, one for each victim, laid out in rows so that people could walk among and touch them.  Unfortunately, the memorial had been removed in 2025.

Instead, we drove and walked through the city's Central Business District, trying to dodge the rain. The restored heritage Buchanan and Son City Foundry had been converted into modern apartments and commercial office spaces, having previously housed the well-known nightclub Limbos in the 1980s. 

I've heard of pop-up restaurants, libraries, etc, but never seen a barber in an old RV before!

Spanning the Avon River was the imposing Bridge of Remembrance, a major war memorial arch unveiled in 1924 to commemorate New Zealanders who served in both World Wars and subsequent conflicts. Photos of the bridge from the front and back:

This colorful apartment-style hotel brightened up our walk.

A row of London plane trees graced the path along the river.

Along the river was the Canterbury Earthquake National Memorial, which honored the lives lost in the 6.3-magnitude earthquake. Its riverside location was designed to be a peaceful and respectful site for reflection.

A plaque had these stirring words: 

"We remember those who died, 

those who were hurt, and those who experienced loss. 

We offer our thanks to those who came for us, 

to those who risked their lives for ours, and to those who supported us. 

Together we are stronger."

By the memorial was a pounamu, or greenstone, gifted by the Ngāi Tahu, the principal Māori tribe of New Zealand's South Island, in accordance with the Māori tradition of placing pounamu at important thresholds. The ritual of touching the stone connects people to the land and all who were there before. 

Restored vintage tram carriages operated through the city center.

The 18-m-tall steel-and-aluminum Chalice sculpture in Cathedral Square was designed by Neil Dawson and installed in 2001. Featuring cutouts of native plant leaves, it marked the new millennium and the city's 150th anniversary.  

Overlooking the square was the historic Chief Post Office, built in 1877.

The photo showed the Anglican Christ Church Cathedral, which took 40 years to build, beginning in 1864, but the earthquake severely damaged the building, destroying its spire and 64.5-m-high upper tower. The Cathedral has been undergoing a long-term reconstruction, but work was temporarily paused in late 2024 to "mothball" the site due to ongoing funding challenges. The new cathedral is targeted to reopen in 2030.

Much as I liked being in Cathedral Square with Steven, it also brought back some tough memories. My friend and I were there on March 15, 2019, when we heard about the two consecutive terrorist mass shootings at Christchurch mosques. When we arrived at the airport a short while later for our flight to Melbourne, Australia, we discovered that all flights had been canceled because New Zealand airspace was closed down. A White supremacist gunman was later found guilty of murdering 51 people and attempting to murder 40 others during Friday prayers.

Following the Canterbury earthquakes, a time capsule was deposited here in 2016 to mark the repair and reinstatement of the John Robert Godley statue, the founder of Canterbury. The capsule is to be raised in 2067 on the 200th anniversary of the statue's unveiling. 

The square's Citizens' War Memorial honored New Zealanders who died in World War I.

Across from the square was the Te Pae Christchurch Convention Centre, a key project in the city's revitalization following the 2011 earthquake. As we viewed it from different angles, I liked how the design showcased a distinctive undulating facade made of thousands of herringbone tiles.

Nearby was the commanding Torowhakaara sculpture.

On another stretch of the Avon River was the Kate Sheppard National Memorial, which commemorated the women's suffrage movement. When New Zealand women won the right to vote in parliamentary elections on September 19, 1893, the country was the first self-governing nation in the world to grant this freedom to all women. The bronze relief sculpture, created by artist Margriet Windhausen, was unveiled in 1993. 

The marble statue of Antarctic explorer Robert Falcon Scott was sculpted by his widow, Kathleen Scott, and unveiled in 1917. The 2.6-m-high statue was a monument to early 20th-century Antarctic exploration.

Another historic building was the former Public Trust Building. 

Next post: The Art Deco New Regent Area, Lyttelton, and Sumner Beach, among other delights in the greater Christchurch area!

Posted on June 16th, 2026, from our home in the Denver suburb of Littleton. In light of the horrific fires here in Colorado and in Ontario, Canada, which are also affecting people south of the border, please take extra special care of yourself and your loved ones until there is much-needed relief.