NZ In Tranzit: Christchurch - Apocalypse Now, but good coffee is on the way

Wednesday, June 27, 2012

Christchurch - Apocalypse Now, but good coffee is on the way

Photo Credit; - www.facebook.com/C1.espresso

Apocalypse Now? The much battered and demolished city of Christchurch as photographed from the top of the Alice in Videoland building in which C1 Espresso Cafe is setting up a new cafe. High St. foreground.

Photo Credit; - www.facebook.com/C1.espresso

High Street looking North, Grand Chancellor no more, wall on left is the interior side of the West wall of the Excelsior Hotel!

I am very aware many people I know, particularly over 40, are not on Facebook., so I asked the cafe's permission to show some samples of photos from their Facebook site on this blog, generously they said yes but can you credit our Facebook address. More background also here, on the C1 Espresso Cafe on their original website

Much of this area of the central city is still "red-stickered" - no entry to non-authorised persons, because so many demolitions are still going on. The three highest buildings in these two photos are also earmarked for demolition, so there isn't going be too much left!

But Alice's is building into their Video hire Palace (there is no other word) a small art house cinema, and the building will also host The Physic's Room Gallery. Everybody I know seems to be enchanted by going into Alice's - this good old public works building, solid as, a former post office, stands in the wasteland of sites now empty or crumbling edifices supported by steel bracing and yet inside it is like a magic treasure house of thousands of quality films and DVDs etc from across the world.

In other words an absolute culture-rich Oasis - complete with palms, as below, albeit in the snow!

www.facebook.com/C1.espresso

Here's more musical version of C1 Espresso a before and after Feb 22 quake on YouTube

And below some pre-quake photos

Photo NZ in Tranzit

Hi-Para Apartments - Lost Forever (see C1 website for immediate post quake photo)

Saved High Street facades - we hope - photos taken by David Welch in 2011 before February mega quake

Photo NZ in Tranzit

This lovely art nouveau facade appears as a just wall supported by red containers, in the bottom right corner of the second snow photo above. Presumably it is hoped it can retained and reattached to the new building.

Not quite rose tinted but a fairly zooty view, probably also taken from the roof of Alice in Videoland, looking north in the days before we knew what real earthquakes can mean! This appears from the C1 Espresso website (not Facebook) The centre high rise is still standing in the second snow photo, but others have gone or are going. They didn't fall over in the earthquake but are too structurally compromised and unsafe and, at very minimum, uninsurable, so down they come.

Sometimes the heart hurts with so much loss of familiar city, but then lots of great things are happening too! And we have all learnt in Christchurch that disasters are not necessarily consistent things, one person suffers catastrophic loss, some have loved ones brutally torn from their families, some suffer life changing injuries, others only suffer minor inconvenience and yet others again, suddenly make their fortune and gain unexpectedly in job promotion or a new career. Life goes on whatever.

2 comments:

UnknownSeptember 5, 2016 at 10:16 PM
At Pristine Maintenance, we urge all building owners NOT to ignore roofing problems that can easily result in substantial damage to the structure and its contents. Our expert technicians are ready to inspect your roof and provide you with a detailed assessment of its condition.
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Byle By LogdzieAugust 23, 2023 at 11:09 PM
Loved readinng this thank you
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WELCOME TO NZ IN TRANZIT

This blog is mostly about public transport and social infrastructure in Christchurch, and transit around New Zealand. Also tracked; transit developments in similar sized cities in Canada and Australia, kindred in demographic patterns, for added perspective and inspiration. NZ in Tranzit blog covers some of the new transit technology and discusses public transport concepts in general, as well. Because the blogster's day-job is in a high profile customer industry to preserve some degree of privacy he appears only as a rabbit in his profile, albeit using his real name.

Christchurch is a city of metropop c 400,000 in Te Wai Pounamu, the southern of the larger islands of NZ. Public transport is operated under the auspices of a regional council with bus operations (and those of one small cross harbour ferry) tendered out to private operators including one owned by the City Council, Redbus. We have a modern clean fleet of buses which offer fairly frequent services to all city areas. The city has been quick to adapt new technologies such as low-floor buses, smart-card (arguably the best in the world!), GPS and Real Time signage and interactive text, and online type information systems. Our busiest route is The Orbiter, a service that circulates around the middle suburbs, and the ring of shopping malls, high schools and the city University about 4-5km from the centre of town

Christchurch also has restored trams operating on a central city circuit. Note [May 2011] - Sadly, due to two huge earthquakes (that took 182 lives) and multiple aftershocks much of the central city of Christchurch will be closed to public access for up to a year to allow the demolition of 900 severely damaged buildings. This includes a great many heritage buildings that previously gave the central city its distinctive character and (such was the exceptional ferocity of the second earthquake in February) even some of the high rises, possibly including those shown in photo above. Tram operations are suspended for at least a year. Many other parts of the city have resumed active life for both residents and tourists..

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Wednesday, June 27, 2012

Christchurch - Apocalypse Now, but good coffee is on the way

2 comments:

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