Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
ESSENTIAL CANTERBURY
Eat
Salmon spawned in the shadow of NZ's tallest mountains
Drink
NZ's best craft beer at Pomeroy's Old Brewery Inn (
Click here
)
Read
Old Bucky & Me,
a poignant account of the 2011 earthquake by Christchurch journalist Jane Bowron
Listen to
Scribe's
The Crusader
(2003), still the best shout-out to the region, with a name that references Canter-
bury's Super Rugby team
Watch
Heavenly Creatures,
Sir Peter Jackson's best film not involving hobbits, set in Christchurch
Go green
At the ecofriendly Okuti Garden (
Click here
) on Banks Peninsula
Area code
03
Cathedral Square
Christchurch's historic hub sits at the heart of the grid of streets that delineate the devast-
ated city centre. At its centre (at the time of writing, at least) is what remains of
ChristChurch Cathedral. Built in 1881, this much-loved icon of the city has become em-
blematic of the battle between those who seek to preserve what remains of Christchurch's
heritage, the fiscal pragmatists, and those ideologically inclined to things new.
The February 2011 earthquake brought down the Gothic church's 63m-high spire, leav-
ing only the bottom half of the tower. Subsequent earthquakes in June 2011 and December
2011 destroyed the cathedral's prized stained-glass rose window. Despite the nave remain-
ing largely intact, the deconstruction and demolition of the cathedral was announced in
March 2012 by the Anglican Diocese. Heritage advocates launched court proceedings to
prevent the demolition, and at the time of writing, cases were still pending.
Other heritage buildings around Cathedral Sq were also badly damaged, but one mod-
ern landmark left unscathed is the 18m-high metal sculpture
Chalice,
designed by Neil
Dawson. It was erected in 2001 to commemorate the new millennium.
SQUARE
Gap Filler
(
www.gapfiller.org.nz
)
With so much empty space around the city, this organisation is doing its
best to fill it with interesting things. Installations range from whimsical bits of art, to mov-
ing memorials to earthquake victims, to a minigolf course scattered around different aban-
doned lots. There are pianos to play, books to read and giant chess pieces to manoeuvre.
One of the larger projects is the
Pallet Pavilion
OUTDOORS
GOOGLE MAP
(
www.palletpavilion.com
; cnr Kimore
MAP