A journey through the red zone

Picture the scene, you're in the middle of a city and it looks something out of an apocalypse film, empty derelict buildings, boarded up houses, barracades and warning signs everywhere. This is pretty much how central Christchurch looks 18 months on since the 6.3 magnitude earthquake which devastated the city on 22^nd February 2011.

A poignant memorial by the Oxford Terrace Baptist Church

Punting down the River Avon used to be one of the main tourist attractions, now, it's touring the borders of the red zone - these are the areas of the city which are off limit as they're too dangerous to walk through. There's a morbid curiousity which draws people to see how little has changed since the earthquake, which claimed 185 lives. Some people were even cruising around the red zone from the comfort of their cars where possible which makes the situation even more bizarre - more recently it was announced that CERA (the Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Authority) were running bus tours through the red zone. It might seem hypocritical that we did our own tour round the infamous red zone but it was more of a way of reacquainting ourselves with the city we saw when we first arrived in New Zealand 5 years ago and seeing what remained of the Christchurch we used to know. Some of the photos that I took on our first trip can be viewed here.

Christchurch CDB red zone taken from the Rebuild Christchurch website

It wasn't surprising that we hardly recognised where we were, empty plots of land lie where buildings used to be, certain main roads are fenced off and it's hard to tell what is earthquake damage and what is general reconstruction. More than half of the earthquake’s death toll (across 20 nationalities) occurred in the poorly constructed Canterbury TV building. Even the hostel we originally stayed at on Gloucester Street (Stonehurst Accommodation), no longer exists as it was too badly damaged to be salvaged.

The defunct Stonehurst Accomodation - source telegraph.co.uk

The worst affected area of the Central Business District is down by Cathdral Square which has been completely devestated. The once magnificent catherdral that stood on the square is now a shadow of it's former self. I have memories of taking photos on the Square whilst watching the "Wizard of Christchurch" giving a speech to a crowd of visitors, as a chess player pondered his next move whilst a vintage tram passed by. Christchurch is a very different place today, not quite the "vibrant city in transition" that the tourism collateral portrays it to be - sorry Lonely Planet but this just isn't the case.

The front of the cathedral where the spire used to stand and The Chalice

Aftershocks degraded the building before the Rose Window could be saved

The Citizen's War Memorial in front of the Cathedral 

It's not all doom and gloom though, as there are signs of regeneration, but at a slow pace. Maybe it's because of the current economic climate, down to bureaucracy or even waiting for all the seismic activity to settle (apparently there have been some big aftershocks since the earthquake) but it's getting in the way of decisions about what to do with the rebuilding the city. We saw some graffiti down by the High Street showing the general disatisfaction at how long its taking to deal with the damaged buidlings and get back to a sense of normality. It has been estimated that the earthquake is the third most expensive natural disaster in history, potentially costing over $20 billion NZD to rebuild the city, which gives you a bit of perspective as to how big the task at hand is.

In terms of the cathedral, the last I heard was that it had been deconsecrated on 9^th November 2011 and that it will eventually be pulled down, however, another one won't be rebuilt in it's place. This caused a lot of public outcry and opposition from groups such as the UNESCO World Heritage Centre calling for the landmark cathedral to be saved as it would testify to history and continuity of cultural life, that a brand new building wouldn't be able to convey.

Down by Cashel Street, near the Bridge of Remeberamce is a temporary "pop up village" called Re:START, which is next to where the old shopping precinct used to be. Opened at the end of October 2011, it's a novel idea as all the 29 retail units are based in vibrant colourful shipping containers designed to bring commercial life back to the CBD.

The Bridge of Remembrance at the end of the Cashel Mall

Cashel Street looking back towards the Bridge of Remembrance 

The precinct includes a variety of retailers to boost the local economy

There's plenty of outdoor space to enjoy a coffee at one of the cafés

The earthquake devastated end of Cashel Street in the red zone

Hawke's Bay and Christchurch both share both share a common and tragic bond, however, if any lessons from the 1931 Hawke's Bay earthquake can be learnt, the rebuilding of Napier and Hastings presented unique opportunities for the replacement of the city centres. Architectural practices in Napier collaborated to share resources and ideas to design some of the most striking Art Deco and Spanish Mission style buildings of the time, in an era of economic depression where few insurance policies covered earthquakes. Truth be told, Christchurch wasn't really a city that appealed to my interests before the earthquake, but having seen what it is like now I feel a great sense of loss especially as it will be a long time before we see the new Christchurch, maybe even decades...

To the left, the Gothic Revival Trinity Church minus the collapsed tower

The relatively unscathed Spanish Mission façades of New Regent Street

The cordoned off area between Oxford Terrace and Hereford St

Michael Parekowhai's bronze bull at a vacant plot on Madras Street

It's odd which buildings survived but generally the older ones fared better

The remains of the Durham Street Methodist Mission offices  

A residential building which is clearly sinking on its foundations

Yellow placard declaring this home unsafe amongst hundreds of others

On a more positive note, the main reason why we came to Christchurch was to see the Crusaders play the Hurricanes in their new home ground, the AMI Stadium in Addington, for the very first time. Lancaster Park, the original home ground of the Crusaders was badly damaged in the February 2011 earthquake and as a result all the games scheduled in Christchurch for the Rugby World Cup had to be relocated. The match was also a special occasion for the Hurricanes as it was the first time they played in Christchurch since 2009. Last year the teams only played one of their two scheduled matches, after the February earthquake caused the first game to be cancelled and declared a draw. For us this will be the second time we've seen the Crusaders play in New Zealand as we saw them play the Chiefs at McLean Park in Napier for their first "home" game of the season.

As part of the pre-match building up a horseman circles the field whipping up the crowd!

More "knights" on horseback coming out to Conquest of Paradise by Greek composer, Vangelis

Us with our free foam swords!

View from the West Stand

It was a close game but the Hurricanes just edged the match on a penalty and won 23-22. We were absolutely freezing sitting in the open air West Stand for 80 minutes as the temperature dropped to -3^oC!

In and around Hawke's Bay: Hastings

Located 20km south of Napier is the town of Hastings, which is the commercial hub of Hawke's Bay. The district has a long history as a food producing region and it and is commonly referred to as the "Fruit Bowl of New Zealand", in particular for its strong associations with growing stone fruits and wine production.

Although it's the bigger brother to Napier, Hastings also shares a rich architectural heritage as much of it was also devastated by the 1931 Hawke's Bay earthquake. Whilst it didn't sustain quite the same level of devastation inflicted on its twin city, Hastings was also rebuilt to reflect the styles of the times - Stripped Classical, Spanish Mission and Art Deco. Where Art Deco is king in Napier, Spanish Mission has the upper hand in Hastings. In particular, the Westerman's Building (1932) is considered one of the best Spanish Mission style buildings in Hawke's Bay, rivalling that of the Criterion Hotel.

The magnificent Westerman's Building is home to the visitor centre

Decorative leadlights under the verandah

Picking up a couple of leaflets from i-SITE we decided to do some self-guided walks to explore the Central Business District. The most obvious building to begin with is the Clock Tower (1935), which towers over the city square. Art Deco in style, the tower was designed by young local architect Sydney Chaplin, who won a national design competition in 1934. The main Post Office with its clock tower was one of the main buildings to be destroyed  in the 1931 earthquake, so as part of the reconstruction efforts, a new clock tower was identified as one of the priorities. The Clock Tower is one of many buildings in Hastings registered with the New Zealand Historic Places Trust and serves as both a landmark and as a memorial to the 93 Hastings's residents who died in the earthquake.

On the edge of the city square is the Haukanui water feature, which is described as a point which serves as a link between the east and west ends of Hastings. Haukanui means "life giving waters" and apparently the feature symbolises the abundant natural water resource of the local aquifer system. However, I can't say that I've been to too many places where freight trains run through the middle of a fountain!

A picture of calmness and serenity at the Hastings city square...

... is shattered by a filthy, great big freight train

Walking west of the railway line we walked past some notable buildings including the Heretauga Club (1936), Medical and Dental Chambers (1935), Villa d' Este (1929) and Roach's Department Store (1934), among other buildings of interest.

The initials of the Heretauga Club can be seen on the exterior

The streamline Medical and Dental Chambers has curved walls projecting from the façade at each end

The most distinctive feature is the triangle-shaped window projecting  above the entrance

Villa d'Este on Heretaunga Street

The former Roach's Department Store

The Russell Street precinct has some of the most stunning Spanish Mission style buildings in Hastings, such as the CML (1939), Harvey's (1933) and Fitzpatrick's (1924) buildings. The CML Building was the last significant pre-World War II heritage building constructed in Hastings.

The Colonial Mutual Life (CML) Assurance Building is an eclectic mix of Art Deco, Spanish Mission and Stripped Classical styles

Decorative motifs of Maori origin are an unusual feature in the archway

The Harvey's Building is currently home to the Hastings Community Art Centre and inside there is an impressive leadlight skylight which fills the gallery with natural light.

The Spanish Mission Harvey's Building on Russell Street

The impressive leadlight design above the main gallery

Green Celtic knots can be seen in the design on the pilasters of the Fitzpatrick's Building

The Hastings Post Office was originally built in 1910 and extended in 1928. However, only the extension survived the earthquake. This was incorporated in a new Stripped Classical building designed by J.T. Muir who also designed the Former Government Buildings in Napier.

The former Hastings Post Office is one of the best known and historically important buildings in Hastings

The Stripped Classical design has subtle ionic decoration

The Former Government Buildings in Napier

The cream of crop of Hastings' heritage buildings is the Hastings Municipal Theatre (1915) which forms part of the Hawke's Bay Opera House. This was the first Spanish Mission building façade to be completed in Hastings. While the building survived the earthquake, extensive repairs and strengthening were required. Adjoining the Municipal Theatre is the Muncipal Building and Assembly Hall (1917). The building was designed by local architect Albert Garnett who won a design competition, which neighbouring Napier architects banned from entering. He drew on an eclectic blend of visual styles to design a Renaissance-style building for the Hastings Borough Council's administration staff.

The Municipal Theatre is one of the last remaining theatres in New Zealand built by the eminent Australasian theatre designer Henry Eli White

The leadlight glass at the Hastings St side entrance is Art Nouveau in style

In 2004, the District Council commissioned the restoration of these two heritage buildings and a new third building comprising of a foyer and plaza linking the Opera House to the existing historical buildings.

The Municipal Buildings also house Hawke's Bay's largest ballroom as part of the Opera House complex

Opposite the Opera House is the Wesley Methodist Church (1932) which completes this iconic part of Hastings. This Spanish Mission style church was designed to replace the original, which was destroyed by the 1931 earthquake. The redeveloped site contains stone seats and a low perimeter stone wall, which are constructed from the concrete rubble recovered from the original Methodist church.

Wesley Methodist Church is set across the road from the Opera House

The outside of the church has been painted in colours to complement the Opera House

Finally, the Dominion Restaurant (1935) on Heretaunga Street is the only remaining asymmetrical shop front design in Hastings. Although Hastings was predominately rebuilt in the Spanish Mission style architecture, this is most definitely Art Deco!

The Dominion Restaurant was designed by the prominent the architecture practice Edmund Anscombe and Associates.

Although, we enjoyed doing our own tour round Hastings it definitely felt more rough around the edges than Napier, especially with all the boy racers. I would recommend it as good day trip if you're looking for some more unique architecture. Hastings was less than an hour away from Napier on the bus, which is considered a good connection if your using public transport in the more remote parts of New Zealand.