Tag Archives: new zealand

Saying Goodbye to the Pallet Pavilion, Christchurch

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I have said in previous posts that one of the most encouraging things about being in Christchurch is the inventive and creative ways they have come up with using the devastated empty spaces left over by the earthquake. The Re-Start Mall is still one of my favourites, but closest to me is the Pallet Pavilion. Sadly, this came to an end this weekend.

 

palletpavillion

 

The Pallet Pavilion is exactly what it says on the tin: a community event space built out of pallets. Part of the GapFiller project, it was one of many temporary pieces of architecture created by volunteers to utilise a space that would otherwise have remained a dull and depressing piece of waste ground.  It has also been a lot less temporary than first intended; so popular that it has been kept open until the cost has simply become too much.

Being halfway between my apartment and the library, I have probably walked past this structure more times than anywhere else in the city. From the moment I arrived it became part of my psychological landscape. I know that the next time I walk past it will be gone and that’s going to be a sad thing. But it also means that there is progress. The city around me is rebuilding even as I sit here, three months in, and it is ramping up to an even faster rate.

Created by a population that was coming together and building something out of nothing, I hope that spirit continues on as winter comes and the fourth anniversary of the biggest and original quake – a cracker with a magnitude of 7.1 – rolls around in September, with so much still left to do.

New Pen: Wooden Purple Heart

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Another impulse stationery purchase. Once again, I am holding the Pen Addict Podcast entirely responsible.

Whilst looking for Christmas ornaments (don’t ask) I stumbled across this little beauty in a small shop along the seafront. Field Notes included for a sense of scale:

 

purple heart pen2

It is made from Purple Heart wood and feels perfect in the hand. Did you know that Purple Heart is the colour of normal wood when first cut and then becomes purple with exposure to UV light? No? Well, you do now. This pen is already a lovely rich purple colour, so it will be interesting to see how it changes with time.

Not only does the barrel feel great, it is a nice little writer too. I’ve come to learn that a pen can look amazing, but if you don’t actually enjoy the experience of writing with it, then there is really no point. This has a nice smooth ink flow for a standard ballpoint.

Apparently it was handmade by someone named Ron Peterson, but I have been unable to find out any more information than that by browsing the interwebz. I’d be intrigued to find out more.

Serendipitous Field Notes, Black Estate Winery

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I have been hearing an increasing amount about Field Notes, first brought to my attention by the amazing Pen Addict Podcast. Whilst they have achieved cult status in the US, getting hold of them internationally is not so simple. Especially somewhere the back of beyond like New Zealand.

I was therefore surprised and suspicious when I saw that there was an alleged supplier a mere hour’s drive away from here at Black Estate Winery. I had to go past it on the way to somewhere else, so I decided to pop my head around the door to just double check that I must be mistaken. Which is where I found myself wrong and now the proud owner of:

Fieldnotes

I wasn’t sure what to expect as there is only so much you can do to judge a notebook without actually having it in your hands. In some ways they should be bland and nothing special. Yet the moment I first picked them up, I knew I could be completely sucked in. (I also stayed for a very nice cup of coffee, because I didn’t want to seem like someone with a notebook problem. I’ll go back there again and do a separate review at some point, I’m sure).

I opted for the graph paper, having used both plain and lined pocket notebooks plenty of times before. It feels like a natural fit; providing some structure if I need it, without being restrictive. Depending on how it goes, I feel this could become my format of choice.

I’ve decided that it is the perfect size to test on my trip to the US and Canada that is coming up. Marketed towards being rugged and durable, a road trip should be the most exertion I would normally put it under. If it holds up to that, then I might just be tempted to buy more once I’m out there. The new Shelterwood collection would be a no-brainer for me.

 

Finding Stephen King at twilight: Christchurch post-earthquake

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It is a very surreal experience when you take a wrong turn down a city street as the sun slips below the horizon, and find yourself inside a Stephen King novel. Really, that was how it felt. An entire row of abandoned shops, dust settling eerily on furniture that was just left after the earthquake struck. Like this florists, where the flowers were now most definitely dried rather than fresh:

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As if the spooky quiet and cracks in the walls weren’t enough to deter entry to the abandoned block, this friendly graffiti  sprayed onto the window was sufficient to send me hurriedly on my way…

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…before I could get invited in by a curious old man who would no doubt drag me into an eternal nightmare….

I Didn’t Sign Up For This…

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I thought moving down under from an English winter would result in something that was fairly consistently summer-ish. Instead, we are about to finish day 2 of gale force winds, thousands of properties outside the city have no power and the water on the balcony is several inches deep and rising.

This just about sums it up, courtesy of tvnz:

lyttleton_wild_weather_boat_fallen_Master

Three Years On, Remembering The Earthquake of 22nd Feb 2011

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One thing it is impossible to ignore in Christchurch is the fact there was a big earthquake here. Even if you know nothing about it, just a simple walk around the CBD will hit you in the face with the enormity of it. Three years on, and so much of the city is still destroyed that it seems amazing that people could still feel optimistic.

Speaking to local people, there is a sense this year that whilst things will be sombre on this day, including a minutes silence across the city at 12:51pm to mark the moment the most devastating of the quakes hit, that it is time to look forward. That rebuilding, whilst slow, is underway and that progress will eventually be made.

I’ve always been fascinated by earthquakes and volcanoes so finding this time-lapse map of that day was a good way for me to get perspective of the scale. The first thirty seconds or so, nothing really happens, which actually gives a great sense of how there were no warnings. No sense that before the moment where the clock rolls round to 12:51 there is something big coming.

Something that would end up leaving the city looking like this (courtesy of google):

chch

Even some of those buildings are gone now, with others being demolished around me as we speak.

So yes, as a visitor to the city, I can see how hope can be a little thin on the ground sometimes, but people sure are trying their best.

 

Sense memory in Christchurch Botanical Gardens

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It never ceases to amaze me how something can take you back so vividly and unexpectedly.

Today was a sunny day, so I went to explore Christchurch Botanical Gardens. There, in the middle, is the rose garden. I had noticed it before, but not really had chance to wander in.

I leant in to take this photograph…

rose

…and the scent that fills the air instantly takes me back to childhood.

My father was a master with roses and for a second, across the miles and the years, it felt like he was right there with me.

 

Things To Do In Christchurch – Memorial: 185 Chairs

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I actually stumbled across 185 Chairs by accident. From a distance, apparently a random collection of stuff on a street corner, but up close, a poignant memorial to those who lost their lives in the 2011 earthquake.

185chairs

 

Painted white and in all different shapes and sizes, artist Pete Majendie created a quiet space of reflection rising up from yet another space where the city remains desolate. 1 chair for everyone who lost their lives, designed to symbolise the different personalities and making it less anonymous than time tends to render these things.

I confess to shedding a tear as I stood there.

Happy Waitangi Day

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Yesterday was Waitangi Day here in New Zealand. Whilst I find it odd to have a public holiday on a Thursday, I certainly have no complaints.

The weather was amazing, so we decided to have dinner in the park. Which was a perfect excuse to have a meal from what is consistently voted the top eatery in Christchurch: Pedro’s House Of Lamb.

Pedro’s does only one thing, and it does it well. You guessed it, lamb. All from a venue that can only be described as unassuming:

pedros

 

Don’t let appearances fool you. Yes, there is only one thing on the menu, but when something this simple is done so perfectly, there really is no need for anything else. So tonight’s (and every night’s) offering is a whole shoulder of lamb laid on a generous helping of potatoes, all seasoned with garlic and rosemary:

lamb

 

This is (I think), aimed at four people, but the fact there was only two of us was hardly going to be a deterrent. Safe to say, we managed to finish it all whilst sitting on our little bench in the sun, enjoying the park ahead of us. Plus the following picture not only reeks of satisfaction, it gives you a sense of scale that the above picture doesn’t…

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Re-Starting The City

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One of the amazing things about being here in Christchurch is the way the locals face dealing with the substantial aftermath of the earthquake. The rebuild process is a slow one for sure, but it is approached with inventiveness and good humour wherever possible.

One of the brightest examples of this is the Re-Start Mall. What do you do when you have no building to host your retail outlet? Why, you take a shipping container, paint it a bright and cheerful colour, then just set up shop anyway!

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This kind of optimism and ingenuity is evident everywhere in the city, but this is one of my favourite places so far. It is vibrant, friendly and the epitome of the ‘just get on and do’ spirit. It also shows how, despite the financial and commercial impacts, the sense of art and culture is equally part of the rebuild process. There is a definite feeling that when times are tough, it is more than money that gets you through here. It is the community and the humanities that are playing a significant role – and the writer in me just loves that.