Today we started with a tour of the bridge. We
had signed up for it, but did not know until last night that we were scheduled
for this morning. It was very interesting seeing the bridge. The one where it
looks like a window in the floor is out on the wings and they look down and can
line the ship up with the dock.
We then jumped on the
shuttle that would take us from the port to Christchurch. The shuttle was
provided by Viking. We had a tour of Christchurch later, but we decided to do
it on our own. The tour also went to the botanical garden, but we had done that
yesterday.
Christchurch is the largest
city on New Zealand’s South Island, it fans out at the feet of the scenic
Southern Alps. Named by English pilgrims from Canterbury after Christ Church
College in Oxford, it retains much of its original British flavor, from the
Gothic Revival cathedral to the leisurely punting excursion boats on the
tranquil Avon River. The city embraces another English tradition: it is home to
so many green parks that it has been nicknamed the “Garden City.”
It has a rich Maori ad
European history with the area first being inhabited by the people of Ngai Tahu around a thousand years
ago before Europeans landed in 1815. Strong links to both Ngai Tahu and England
can be seen throughout the city.
In 2010/2011 the city
was hit by a series of seismic events which has resulted in the changing face of
the city. The focus is now on rebuilding and although the traditional English
Garden City roots remain there is a new air of creativity and innovation flowing
through the city.
The bus let us off at the Christchurch Art
Gallery, Te Puna O Waiwhetu.
As we walked around
they had a lot of what they called Pup-up Art. This is anything from graffiti to
displays.
Here are a few of the
homes and one old building that we saw.
In February 2011, the earthquake
destroyed large parts of the city and killed 185 people and injured many more. During
the quake, the tower of the neo-Gothic cathedral collapsed. Further aftershocks
destroyed the iconic rose window and cracked the whole Cathedra like a plate.
A few weeks after the earthquake,
one of the Cathedral staff saw an article in a NZ design magazine about a
Japanese “emergency architect” called Shigeru Ban. After the Kobe earthquake,
he had designed a cardboard church to replace one which had been destroyed. He
visited Christchurch ad offered to design a cardboard cathedral for them.
Little over two years later, the building became a reality. It is made of cardboard,
local wood, and steel, with a polished concrete floor and a strong
polycarbonate roof. It is built to 130% of the current New Zealand earthquake code,
making it very safe.
We then headed back to
town, as this was the furthest spot on our itinerary. They had a very nice
shopping mall and a neat trolley.
We also walked by the
City Hall.
Besides the cardboard Cathedral there is also Container Mall, a post-earthquake shopping center made
up of colorful shipping containers.
The Bridge of Remembrance
over the Avon River was erected by the citizens in remembrance of the Canterbury’s
sacrifice from 1914-1919. The first stone for the memorial was laid April 25,
1923. The
Canterburys were a NZ infantry regiment that saw action in Egypt, at Gallipoli
and on the Western Front and took part in the march into Germany. Three
battalions served. Total casualties were 8,206 of whom 2353 died.
They
also have something called punting on the river. These are flat bottomed boats,
no gondolas, that have an oarsman take you down the river.
We
are now done and head back to our shuttle bus and the trip back to the ship and
lunch. Tomorrow is our last port in New Zealand, and then we have three sea
days.
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