Friday, October 31, 2014

Christchurch, NZ - a city on the mend

There has been some bad weather near the Antarctic base, so we are delayed for a day waiting in Christchurch, which is the largest city on the South Island of New Zealand. It is a city that holds fond memories for me as a place to pass through while en route to mountaineering trips in the Southern Alps in the early 1990's as well as a place that I lived for several months in 2007 while working with colleagues at NIWA.

In February 2011 there was a devastating earthquake which destroyed large portions of Christchurch, particularly the center of the city. This part of the city now looks very different compared to my memories and it's quite sad to see the damage, particularly to some of the old historic buildings (such as the Cathedral). However, the locals are quite upbeat about the progress being made with reconstruction.


Much of the central business district of Christchurch is under construction

The famous Christchurch Cathedral, near the center of the city, suffered bad damage. The spire / bell tower is no longer standing.








In order to get businesses back on their feet, shipping containers are being used as temporary building. Sections of the containers have been cut out and replaced with windows.


Parts of the old Cashel Street Mall look quite hip with the brightly colored container shops




1 Comments:

At October 31, 2014 at 2:05 PM , Blogger KAPTOHKA said...

Good to see Christchurch rebuilding. Hope you get good weather and a smooth flight to the ice. ~Masha

 

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