Our Wicked Walkabout

Today we saw two testaments to creative genius.

Our first stop of the day was the Steam Punk HQ. Oamaru is the World’s Center for steam punk, the Victorian charm of the downtown lends itself to this form of expression. The HQ is nestled next to the old train station, and on the other side, the train restoration centre… great source for materials!

The building surrounding this iconic building have been beautifully preserved, keeping the retro style, although it was not the festival, you can certainly picture all the people in the steam punk regalia, walking the streets.

So much fun! We then wandered the streets a bit to enjoy the architecture around.

From there we headed to Christchurch, to visit the Transitional Cathedral. The cathedral in Christchurch was badly damaged in the earthquakes that rolled through in the early 2000s, devastating the CBD, and the old buildings were all condemned, and many are now parking lots. :(. But you can see some revitalization.

The Anglican Church commissioned a “temporary church” to hold services in. It is know around the world as the “Cardboard Cathedral”

It too is a great testament to the creative spirit. The foundation is concrete slab, the walls/offices around the outside are shipping containers. And the roof is plastic and cardboard (reinforced with metal!)

The church was given a 50 year lifespan. But the volunteer who told us some details said that it actually had a much longer lifespan, at the time it was built all “temporary” buildings needed a 50 year stamp… so they got that from the designers.

It was an interesting experience, and today, 14 years after the Cathedral was destroyed, they have unfortunately had to put the restoration on hold, as they have run out of money. We drove around to the old Cathedral, but as it was Saturday, the CBD was extremely busy, and parking was not to be found. The following pictures I got from the internet.

They did hold Ash Wednesday services in the old cathedral, but everyone had to wear hard hats and safety gear.

It was a sobering sight.

We returned to Culverden for two days, before we head north, the final leg of our NZ journey.