Downtown Christchurch

Today after school Liam and I hopped on a bus (the Number 3) and went to downtown Christchurch.  This was a our first trip there.  It was incredible.  It’s a lovely city, but so much has been destroyed.  Our brief adventures – and much of the destruction – are the subject of today’s blog.

Liam waiting at the bus stop in his Ilam School uniform.

Liam, and the mortar and super-pestle.

 When we came out of the store, we were in downtown.  Just over two years ago, a earthquake destroyed most of the it.  Now people are rebuilding.  Putting up new buildings is hard and slow – and of course every construction worker in the country is fully booked.  So people found a new solution; they moved their shops out of damaged or collapses buildings and into converted box cars and shipping containers.  It’s one of the noblest things I’ve seen in some time.

Shops made of cargo containers.

Sections have been cut away, and glass put in instead.

They are actually quite attractive, aren't they?

We were hungry, so we stopped at a café (half open-air, have cargo container) so a snack.  It was bigger than I had thought!  Liam enjoyed it, and the local birds kept a close eye on it, too.

Liam and our "snack"  (We didn't finish it!)  Note the open newspaper, describing the
controversy over the rebuilding of  the Christchurch Cathedral. 

A local bird considers going for our food.

Other birds do more than consider the food of the woman one table over from us!

We found a souvenir shop, where Liam modeled some hats, and we picked up a few gifts for people.

Liam modelling a lamb hat in the souvenir shop.

Liam modeling a Kiwi hat.  Somehow he talked me into buying this one.  I became
convinced when I realized that not only is it cool, but it's a functional
winter hat!

 We walked from the souvenir shop to the Bridge of Remembrance, an arch erected to the soldiers who died fighting in the First World War.  Because of structural instabilities caused by the earthquake, nobody can approach it today.

It seems a bit odd, somehow, honoring the dead of a century ago
when those who died just two years ago have no memorial.

We made our way to the lovely Avon river, where Liam was captivated by the ducks!

Liam near the Avon.

Named for the Avon River in England, this little stream flows all through downtown Christchurch.

I assume these are mallard ducks -- or possibly some close relative.

    We reached even more closed buildings and shops -- all empty and boarded up due to the structural damage.

    We next passed what must have been an extremely cute clock shop two years ago -- it's now slated for demolition.

It looks almost okay from the front.

Not so much from the side.

Liam, demonstrating again that he notices utterly different things than I do,
was more interested in trying to climb the fence keeping people out!

    We next got as close as we could to the Cathedral -- that's it in the background, two blocks away....

We left downtown by another route, and were met by more blocks of abandoned roads, shops, and buildings.

There is still life in the city, though.  We found a shopping mall, and Liam, who had been flagging, discovered that he had more than enough energy to play on the indoor playset!

   We grabbed lunch in the food court.  Then, in a final reminder that we are far from home, another alien event occurred.  They closed at 6:00!  I couldn't understand what was happening at first, as the restaurants turned out their lights.  We are still, it seems, in a strange land.