Steve & Sara Down Under: Christchurch

After 3 flights, 19 hours in the air, and 8 hours of airport layover time, Steve and I touched down in New Zealand and checked into the lovely Distinction Hotel in the heart of downtown Christchurch on Friday, October 26. We purposely gave ourselves two days to recover from jetlag before our organized tour started on Monday morning.

Pre-Tour Exploring
The first thing that strikes you about Christchurch is the sound and sight of construction everywhere. This city is still reeling from the two earthquakes that devastated it in 2010 and 2011. As I understand it, the first quake in 2010 was strong but did not demolish the city. But before Christchurch had a chance to recover and stabilize all the buildings that had been weakened or compromised from the first quake, a second one hit and the city was clobbered.
Even seven years after that second quake, the city is far from normal. Apparently, so many enormous insurance claims were filed, that many insurance companies went broke. So then it fell to the government to pay for the rebuilding. The government required a thorough review before any claims would be paid off. But then the government changed hands and once the next government was installed, they demanded a second, even longer review, and on and on... It has been taking forever. In some places you see buildings being propped up and held in place by large shipping containers. In other city spaces what used to be buildings are now parking lots.

Perhaps the most dramatic example of the slow rate of repair is the iconic Christchurch Cathedral in the heart of downtown that was heavily damaged. It is being propped up by scaffolding while arguments fly back and forth as to whether the city should pay to restore it or simply raze it. There's the Heritage Trust that wants to save the cathedral and the government that feels it isn't worth the cost. Apparently, just recently the decision was finally made to save the cathedral, but during the seven years while the two sides were arguing whether it was worth it or not, the cost of repairs has at least doubled.

Christchurch Cathedral

Earthquake & WWI Memorials
Speaking of the earthquakes, we saw two moving memorials dedicated to the victims. The first one is a white wall along the Avon River bearing the names of those who perished. (Sorry, no picture of the actual names.)

The second memorial is an installation of empty white chairs of all shapes and sizes located next to the site of a large office building that collapsed during the second earthquake killing 185 people trapped inside. This memorial is located right next to the "Cardboard Cathedral" -- which is a temporary house of worship while the main cathedral is repaired. It looks like this transition church will need to be used for quite a few more years.

185 Empty Chairs

Steve and I also visited a powerful World War I memorial. This year commemorates the 100th anniversary of the Armistice of November 11, 1918. We did not realize that New Zealand was hit harder than any other country during WW I in terms of per capita deaths and injuries. The park pictured below is arrayed with 4,398 memorial crosses (and one Jewish star) symbolizing the New Zealanders from the greater Canterbury area who fell during the war. Each cross is adorned with a red poppy.

And one lonely Jewish Star

And Some Lovely Sights
Steve and I especially enjoyed walking through Christchurch's botanical gardens. This beautiful park is filled with healthy trees, blooming flowers, and two large lakes. This green oasis happily seems largely unaffected by the tragic earthquakes that hobbled so much of the rest of the city.

We also took a wonderful gondola ride about 20 minutes outside of Christchurch.

Rebuilding
Juxtaposed with all the damage and destruction, we saw many signs of the city's determination to rebuild itself. One bright spot was the beautiful new library that just opened a few weeks before we arrived. It was throbbing with activity and life.

We also heard a lot about the new convention center under construction and due to open in the heart of town in 2020. There was a long mural in many panels surrounding the construction site and it told an inspiring tale of a city besieged but fighting back stronger than ever.