Christening ChCh
Trip Start
Dec 29, 2007
1
42
Trip End
Ongoing
Christening Christchurch I,
South Island,
New Zealand
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
Charlie Bs, our hostel was clean & basic as expected & only a few blocks away from the Square ($60 dbl/night). As always we spent the minimum time in the hostel during our stay. Once we regained our bearings we went searching for a full Irish to make us feel human. The forecast for once got it right so we made the most of the outdoor touristy things.
After recharging the batteries we returned to the square to its focal point of Canterbury Cathedral
clouds
. You can go to the top for $5/head. In the other corners of the Square there is an aquarium/kiwi-house, post office, various sculptures/monuments & the i-site. At weekends they have little markets there selling artisan crafts like whale bone, green stone, Maori designs, paintings etc.We were told it was the most English city in Nz before arriving & it added up after looking around. It's very clean with various monuments of famous names from years gone by like Captain Cook & Victoria I scattered through the city's green areas. The city is spread out considering its population is under 400k. Strolling along Worcester St we crossed the path of the city tram heading to the Square on its loop before hitting the artistic end of the city ending up in the Botanic Gardens & Hagley Park.
Mingling amongst the holy show of newly weds taking photos under cherry blossoms you would swear you were in Kyoto. The grounds are immaculately maintained & so vast they hold a golf course which must be a compo magnet! Each genre of tree & flower has an area dedicated to it even Mr. Miyagis bonsais. Our afternoon was passed away wandering its entirety & relaxing with our long lost friend, the sunshine. Adjacent to it sits the museum which was worth a visit but once you have been to Te Papa in Wellington it's hard for others to compete
Papanui bridge
.Just in time for happy hour we found a little pizzeria around the corner. The spring chill hit us while taking a gander at Chch by night. The shopping area around Colombo St which we breezed through earlier was small & quiet possibly because there was a lot of construction in the centre as they revamp the stonework in the streets. Contrary to what I had been told we didn't come across many boy racers. Mini cinemas like the Kino in Cork are scattered around the city. The larger ones are a trudge from the centre. After a little searching we settled on a cozy one that reminded me of a 70s style Irish sitting room. The chick flick was not very memorable mainly as I nodded off shortly after sitting down.
Day 2 was a little chillier but the farmers market was going down on Worcester Boulevard. The Arts Centre is where the crowds congregate. There's a decent number of stalls selling everything from leather belts to woodwork to homemade soaps to paua shells to paella & crêpes. Kids played musical instruments along the promenade, another duo were performing circus tricks for young children & a Planxty duo were in full swing at the market. It was all very animated & gay!
The buildings previously formed the University of Canterbury and its greatest son is Ernest Rutherford who split the atom
cathedral 2
. There have areas dedicated to him, most predominantly his den where he carried out some of his studies. The grounds resemble those of UCC with a green in the centre quadrant. There are little wings off each building which hold numerous little stores selling more upmarket arty merchandise. One of our brochures advised taking a few historical walks around the centre so we obeyed. Like the UK they pride themselves on preserving their heritage & old monuments. We stumbled upon several jointed oriental restaurants at one end of the town which we opted to try. In true Chinese style it was called Joyful which reflected how cheap & cheerful it was! To crown the trip off we went to see The Ugly Truth which matched its title in quality! Nice while it lasted, Chch will be revisited in November when we tour the south island.
