I can only give you a very small taste of each place but a Google search of any key word will tell you all you need to know.
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| Christchurch City with the Southern Alps in the background |
Here we are in the beautiful city of Christchurch, spread out along the Canterbury Plain with the Cashmere Hills rising beyond.
The Avon River flows through the Botanical Gardens and visitors can enjoy trips
by punt to the heart of the city
Christchurch has seen more than its fair
share of tragedy.
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| Christchrch Cathedral before the quake |
On Saturday 4th Sept 2010, an
earthquake measuring 7.1 struck the area, causing widespread damage but with no loss of
life.
Six month later
Ruamoko, god of volcanoes and earthquakes, kicked off again, this time closer
to the city’s centre.
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| ...and after |
This was the strongest earthquake ever recorded in
an urban area and it killed 185 people from more than 20 countries.
Aftershocks continued and although many fled
from the city, most decided to stay on and defiantly rebuild.
Within weeks a vibrant container city was open for
business with banks, shops, restaurants, cafés and clubs, all housed in
repurposed containers.
Although I am not, in general a city person, this
place just hummed with life and cheeky
enthusiasm.
Everyone seemed upbeat and optimistic, cocking a snook at the
destructive gods.
Church
authorities commissioned Sigeru Ban to design and build The Cardboard Cathedral, to replace the historic stone building, adjudged beyond repair (at least
for many years)
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| The Cardboard Cathedral |
Then on 13th February, 2017 two bush fires began in the Port Hills. Eleven houses were destroyed and 1,000+ residents
evacuated but no lives were lost.
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| Al Noor Mosque |
Sadly, two years later, an insane and armed Australian nationalist killed fifty one
people, including little children, injuring many more in a hate attack on two Islamic centres whilst people were at prayer.
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said it was the darkest day in New
Zealand history but it led to something quite remarkable.
Thousands of non-Muslims, even gang members, volunteered to form human chains around every mosque so worshippers could pray in safety.
Literally millions of people came out onto the
streets to lay huge banks of flowers at every mosque and Islamic centre in the
country.
Muslim families, often subject to racism, were inundated with letters and gifts of sorrow and
apology.
No one could believe such a horrific thing should happen in this peaaceful country.
A little
later, every shop, factory, school, college, office, marae, café, church, bank
and home in New Zealand, stopped for a commemorative and deeply sad silence.
Support for
the bereaved and injured poured in, as did the money: $31 million in just a few
days. New Zealanders working and grieving together posted notices across the cities and on social
media:
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| Kia Kaha = be strong |
Visit Christchurch today and the flame of renewal
is still bright. A lesson to the world - if you can rise above so many
appalling setbacks, you can rise above anything.
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| Akaroa Harbour |
Akaroa has such charm that many people wish to retired here. Despite having only 630 residents, the influx of tourists makes it a very bustling settlement with all the usual gift, food and souvenier shops as well as French restaurants and cafes.
Like everywhere in New Zealand the scenery is amazing.
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| Akaroa Harbour |
Kaikōura
is over 180 km north from Christchurch
but still also subject to shakiness.
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| A beach at Kaikoura |
On 14 November 2016 a quake of 7.8 left 2 dead and
caused a tsunami. A thousand tourists and locals were stranded when the shaking
disrupted transport services. Not a bad place to be stranded really.
Kaikoura is famous for its dolphin and whale watching
tours, held on strictly ecological lines so that no sea creature is disturbed.
Up the coast 200 km and you’re in
arts-orientated Nelson (Whakatū) which hosts multiple festivals including those for jazz, blues and chamber music as well as the
famous Wearable Art Festival.
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| Wearable art |
Enjoying a temperate
climate with long hours of sunshine, it’s the ideal venue for all outdoor
sports and leisure activities.
Nelson has retained many historic old
buildings but the rot set in during 2012 when an international chain built an
hotel reminiscent of dismal Soviet Bloc apartment buildings.
Thin end of the unlovely
wedge?
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Hope you're a good sailor, I once crossed in an Force 10 gale - very invigorating.
Before we do, let’s stroll
around this attractive seaside town with its many cafés, galleries and restaurants.
The Foreshore gives a calming view of the sea whilst keeping the vibrancy of
friends meeting, interesting discussions and upbeat music.
A water taxi will take you to the Kaipupu Point Nature
Reserve where total peace and quiet (there is no vehicular access) allow you to
enjoy bird song.
Grab your ferry tickets, it’s nearly time to head for
the terminal and the 3 ½ hour journey across Cook Strait.
Listed in the world’s guidebooks as one of
the most beautiful journeys you’ll ever take.
You may see five
species of dolphin: Common, Bottlenose, Dusky and extremely rare Hctor
dolphin as well as the Orca. Birdlife included Australasian gannets,
shearwaters, shags and even blue penguins.
If you’re lucky you may spot a majestic
Royal Albatross heading down the coast to the Taiaroa Head sanctuary, 29km from Dunedin.
Before we leave the South Island, a word about boulders.
The Moeraki Boulders.
Maori have several legends about these concretions: they are the kumara seeds which the gods brought to Aotearoa; or eel baskets and calabashes from the wrecked canoe, Arai-te-uru, the waka (canoe) which brought the ancestors of the Ngai Tahu people to Aotearoa.
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| Moeraki Boulders |
They have hard shells but the stone inside is crumbly. A bit like Maltesers.
At Matakaea some 19 kilometres away, are the Katiki Boulders which contain the bones of Mosasaurs and Plesiosaurs.
I can just imagine them emerging from this giant egg which then calcified.
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