Delivering Katrina to University - Day 3 cont…

But wait there's more…

While walking the streets of inner Christchurch Callum wanted to show us some positives. 

Around a corner we came across the container mall. 

Yes that is the two of them posing in the middle of one of the malls!

Now when he first told me about it I was thinking of some old rusty containers but no, Cantabrians have constructed a pleasant place from these and it was a buzz with some people making music and enjoying the late afternoon.

Yes these are all made from containers.
 

There were banks, cafes, clothing outlets and generally a good section of places to call into with the security that nothing was really going to flatten a container. while you were in there doing what was needed to be done.

And yes even there I was just part of some of the tourists wanting to take snapshots of the aftermath of the quakes. 

We walked to the museum and were able to escape the glare of the earthquakes damage by enjoying all that a museum should be. If you call into Christchurch do visit it.

I loved it and remarked that I hoped they would never turn it into a place like Te Papa in Wellington.

Back in the Wizard we drove through the peak hour traffic and I came across this. 

Now to me it looked like the remains of the Twin Towers in New York but I wondered if it was to do with Christchurch. 

It had little lights on in the buildings and was overgrowing as if it had been left to ruin.

It was up high on what looked like the bottom level of a crane. You can see the rungs of the internal ladder to give you an idea of its size.

If anyone knows what this was or its significance do let me know.

 

As we headed out of the city centre we saw some houses that had been “red zoned” – unfit to live in, and others that were “green zoned” 'safe'. In the midst of it all we stopped at the lights by the Methodist Pacific Island church. There it was all fenced with its steeple on the ground, brinks missing and a gaping whole. The lawns and gardens could no long be attended to. And as I watched thinking of the parishioners who could no longer worship in this building the light hanging down swung in the wind. How I inwardly wept for these people.

And then we passed the Foodstuffs Depot and the lawns were perfectly mowed and the flowers in the gardens bloomed beautifully. And in all the drought and catastrophe of Christchurch I thought here was something to support Christchurch and show the world that, they are strong and will keep going.

Dinner that night was with Callums mother and partner and I listened as he told us about the vast other areas of Christchurch that had been damaged.