Earthquake

Yesterday I had the morning off from classes so I decided to stroll down into the city and visit some sites.  I went to the beach which was very nice and enjoyed a long black (watered down expresso with the option of cream) while reading for one of my classes watching people surf on the waves adjacent to the pier.  However for one of my classes I had to obtain a number of tourist brochures to write about so after asking around and hopping on the bus found my self at the I-site visitor center and the Canterbury Museum.  The Museum was very nice and free (a big plus) and had many exhibits including one on the Earthquake.  If you have read any of my earlier posts or been listening to the news over the past year you would have known that one of the largest ever recorded earthquakes struck downtown christchurch almost directly under the city in February 2011.  The entire center of downtown since and still remains fenced off deemed "The Red Zone" a roughly 8 x 15 block square of the center of downtown christchurch.  However what you may not of seen are the things you would from walking around the city.  On most business windows around the city there are gravity marks accounting the chilling days that followed the quakes.  These gravity marks list the date the building was cleared and how many people were found.  Random store fronts from Lincoln to New Brighton to Lyttleton and North remain vacant as if one day people just got up and left with advertisements still in the windows due to the buildings no longer being structurally sound.  Walls all around peoples yards still lay in heaps of rubble.    Glass shards frequent many of the store front business as signs of the looting the time after the quake.  Struts and temporary bracing can be found on roughly 20% of all the buildings in the region and most of all the old buildings have been vacated as they are made structurally sound again or wait to be demolished.  Corners of buildings and walls are simply missing.  Even half of the historic building here on campus attached to the library remains vacant along with most of the lecture halls in the Burns building.  Most of the roads around the city still have road cones and signs of the liquefaction that took place.  Parts of the city do indeed look frankly slummy but the damage has been done.  However while all this is true the city has stood strong, vying to rebuild and gain from such a hugs loss that took the lives of many people.  They are currently home to the #1 NZ rugby team and everyone is looking towards the bright side and the future rather than staying stuck in the past.  I look forward to continuing to experience the joy that people have in this city for the future and the dedication they have to rebuilding their city.  I'll post some pictures sometime soon. I just always forget to take them because I'm so intrigued.  If you's like to see some though, check out the link below.  At least NZ isn't as much well known for its cities as it is for its natural beauty.  Off to go skiing in the Southern Alps this weekend!

Cheers!
Austin


Earthquake Photos