Our ride from Blenheim to Christchurch

(Sometimes, this blog just doesn't know where I am or what time it is.  For clarity, I'm posting this on Thursday, March 20, at 5:45 p.m.)

About half of our ride on this beautiful day was along the Pacific Ocean; much of the rest of it was alongside the Hurunui Mountain Range.  We had beautiful scenery nearly every minute.  We stopped for a break in the little town of Kaikoura.  (That is one of the many, many cities that have a Maori name: kai means eating, koura means crayfish, and there you have it--your first Maori language lesson; or, maybe that's your second--did I already teach you kia ora?  That has many meanings, including hello.)  As we rode along, our driver, Riki, taught us about the area, and about his Maori culture.

Pretty scene along the Pacific coast

Our group stopped to see some seals.

Scenic Hurunui Mountains

We arrived in Christchurch this afternoon.  Riki toured us around the city, and then we had some time to walk around on our own.  There was a devastating earthquake here on Feb. 22, 2011, which destroyed or severely damaged many of the buildings, and killed 185 people.  Christchurch is still trying to recover.  There is evidence of the damage everywhere we looked.  Many building have scaffolding around them, evidence that they are under repair or demolition.  Some buildings have huge braces supporting them.  There are many vacant lots where buildings used to be.  Some businesses have reopened in shipping containers, as a temporary measure.  We saw the severly damaged Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament, sitting forlornly behind a chain link fence.  A temporary Cardboard Cathedral is a block away--it's quite beautiful, and is an amazing architectural design.

Badly damaged cathedral

Damaged building, supported by braces

Amazing Cardboard Cathedral

Cardboard Cathedral

John and I, in front of the fountain in the Christchurch Botanic Gardens

This evening, we meet the ten new people who will be joining our group as we tour the South Island. Tomorrow, we have a train ride across the Southern Alps.  :-)