Saturday in Christchurch

This past weekend we drove up the coast some 3.5 hours to sightsee in Christchurch which at 350,00 people is the largest city on the South Island. As we are so often experiencing during this time of lots of different sightseeing opportunities, you win some and you lose some. We cruised into downtown just in time to arrive out of breath for the free guided cathedral tour at 11 AM with a well meaning but not overly coherent guide. We probably would have done better with the purchased $10 audio tour on our own! As with so much of the history of the British settlement of NZ, Christchurch’s story is strongly linked with the church--in this case, Anglican--so it was a good first stop anyway.



A more modern stained glass window in the cathedral.  Is Jesus Maori?  Or a composite--hands and feet a different color than face.  Our guide said there was some controversy about it.

After some lunch, we opted for a 2 hour city walking tour. Ended up not being as stellar as our walking tour in Dunedin but informative nonetheless. The main downtown area is around the Cathedral Square and is systematically laid out on four main avenues. Many wonderful old buildings dating from the 1850s in this area. We particularly enjoyed the well maintained Provincial Council Chambers from the 1850s and a look around the Christ’s College Canterbury (a secondary school) that reminded us of Harry Potter’s Hogwarts. Meandering through the city is the shallow but lovely Avon River where one can kayak OR go punting. We did neither (since we were walking on a tour!) but enjoyed watching folks doing both. Bordering the river is one long continuous park and pathway shaded by many trees--very inviting. An interesting fact commemorated by a bronze statue at one point along the Avon: in 1893, NZ was the first country in the world to grant women, including Maori women, the right to vote. The tour ended at the Arts Centre, a large complex of shops, galleries, and restaurants housed in the Gothic Revival buildings once used by the Canterbury University. We wandered a while and then headed out to find our reserved hotel and prep for dinner before attending a Valentine’s Eve concert in the cathedral.

Provincial Council Chambers

Hogwarts?

punting on the Avon

The concert was both strange and wonderful. It was: one part harmonious men’s octet from the Cathedral Choir singing modern love songs; one part Cathedral organist playing an impressive classical suite followed by a “medley of popular love tunes” (which sounded like roller-skating rink music to us or as we say, “all skate“); and one part the fabulous Fiona Pears and Band. Fiona plays a wild violin while dancing around the stage accompanied by guitar, piano, bass and drums. On one too-brief song everyone sang and played together!! The concert also included a light show of sorts on the cathedral columns. While we wondered about all of this in the cathedral’s space, we did enjoy it.