Christchurch and Thereabouts

NZAS 2013-2014 at Lincoln University (All photos courtesy of Jam Jacob)

Part of my south island trip last year was to visit New Zealand's second largest city, Christchurch. And if I had only known that it was flatter than Auckland and Wellington, well, I might have studied there. That's because I've always wanted to bike commute while doing my postgrad abroad, but I couldn't do that in Auckland because it was ridiculously hilly (It was easier just to walk). Christchurch is relatively flat. And the city is bike friendly with lots of bike lanes. In fact, my friend Ace, who studied at Lincoln University, biked to school. Another scholar Meikko, who was at the University of Canterbury naman, also rode his bike to campus. Anyway, we visited them last September 2014, and explored their city, which has so much more to offer than bike lanes.

My friends and I who were based in Auckland flew in to Christchurch in Autumn. We were welcomed by our counterparts based in Lincoln University and the University of Canterbury.  It was a bit chillier than Auckland (you'll learn that as one goes further south in New Zealand, the temperature gets colder). 

On our first day, Meikko, Rico and Ace toured us around the central business district. Christchurch, which suffered an earthquake in 2011, was still picking itself up from the rubble. Many of its commercial and historical buildings, including Christchurch Cathedral, were severely damaged and were undergoing repair and reconstruction.

At Christchurch Botanic Gardens and Canterbury Museum

Nevertheless, Christchurch is still a beautiful place to visit. Some even say it's the most English city in New Zealand. We went to the Canterbury Museum and the Botanical Gardens. We saw the River Avon, which went around the CBD. They used to have scenic boat rides, but not on that day we went. The city also had an old tram network, but only one line was operational at that time.

University of Canterbury

On our second day in Christchurch, we visited the campuses where our friends studied. First stop was the University of Canterbury. Really nice school. It reminded me of UP Diliman. Meikko, Rico, Tin and Michael were studying here.

Lincoln University

Our next stop was Lincoln University where Ace and Mikey were studying. This campus naman reminded me of UP Los Baños because of its rural ambiance, and rightly so, because it is agriculture and environment focused. 

Film location for Chronicles of Narnia

From Lincoln, we drove 90 minutes north to Castle Hill, famous for its huge limestone rocks and boulders. It's a film location for the battle scene of Chronicles of Narnia. And I'm quite sure they used it also in Lord of the Rings.

Group photo at Castle Hill

Castle Hill was the highlight of my trip because the scenery just takes your breath away. God truly is a great artist.

From Christchurch, the group travelled west to Lake Tekapo, which will be the subject of another post. Thank you to Jam Jacob for the wonderful photos.