Quake City

Walking into Christchurch didn't feel like walking into a city centre. No big tall skyscrapers, no massive branded shops that are in every city in the world; There's corners without coffee shops, and there's barely a road anywhere without road-works on. We wandered and wondered where all the people were, why it was so quiet, why the tram goes round on a tiny loop to nowhere, desperate for passengers to give it some purpose. It wasn't until we sat down in Cathedral Square, in front of a derelict old cathedral that we realised the earthquake of five years ago was the answer to all of our questions, and the reason that there is a definite lack of identity in the middle of the second largest city New Zealand.

Christchurch is desperately trying to find itself again, after being literally shaken to the ground. Beautiful buildings that once stood are now piles of rubble, in an area waiting for a new building. New buildings have developed, and are bright shining beacons of the future in a world that has few reminders of the past. Office blocks are growing, museums have found new homes (or been created from the events themselves - Quake City). Hotels are appearing again, and tourists are slowly making their way back to a city (and wider area) that desperately needs their income. There's one lonely food cart on Cathedral Square (who sells some decent French Fries - try the chilli mayo!), and a city mall (Re:Start) made from shipping containers, which hopefully isn't temporary, because it is a great visual representation of the incredible things we can do in the face of adversity. A new memorial is being created by the river bank, to all of those who lost their lives during the quakes. Christchurch is rebuilding itself.

And amidst all of this is the cathedral, part standing by itself, part being held up by scaffolding, and part demolished, fenced all around, with no access to a once proud structure which is now clearly not safe to enter. Due to disagreements about who should pay for the next step, it stands alone in the city, the one last remnant of 22^nd February 2011. One last reminder to those who lived through it and are trying to piece their lives back together, to the tourists who only saw what happened on the TV and can't quite picture it (because that kind of thing doesn't happen to you, right?), and to those who have simply forgotten it happened, and need to remember the reason why Christchurch still isn't quite up to full strength.