We took the Metro bus from the Amber Park campground to the Christchurch city center. Christchurch is NZ's second largest city.   We visited the city center three years ago and we expected to see changes today, but we didn’t anticipate the devastation we saw.

First we walked through the "City Mall." This is where temporary stores, banks and restaurants have been constructed where damaged buildings once were.

On Tuesday, February 22, 2011 at 12:51 PM a 6.3 magnitude earthquake struck the Canterbury region. It severely damaged Christchurch, which was 6 miles from the epicenter. This earthquake was nearly six months after the 7.1 earthquake of September 4, 2010, which caused significant damage but no fatalities. However, the second earthquake was much more severe since it was a very shallow earthquake, only 5 – 6 km under the surface. The full force of the earthquake lasted for 20 – 30 seconds. It is estimated that it increased in energy during that time, having the highest recorded ground acceleration and making it equivalent to a magnitude 9 earthquake.

The center of the city is now called The Red Zone, and it is a working demolition area. We joined a narrated bus tour to travel behind the scenes of the Red Zone. We were not allowed off the bus, so our photos had to be taken through the windows. Many, many buildings have been demolished, some are in the process, and some will be demolished soon. The city lost 2/3 of its historical buildings. It is estimated that it will be ten years before the city can be back to normal.

There is a memorial for the185 people who died from the earthquake; it consists of 185 white chairs, each having a potted flowering plant beneath it. They selected an empty lot where a building has been removed and that is across the road from where the six-story Canterbury Television building collapsed, leaving only the elevator shaft standing, and which caught fire, killing 115 people.

The Red Zone includes Cathedral Square, which was one of the most important areas in the city. The cathedral was a cornerstone, but the square was where people gathered. When we were there three years ago, we saw street entertainers, sculptures, art displays, vendors, and people enjoying their ice cream and fish and chips. Now the cathedral is a major topic of dispute. Many local people do not want to spend already stretched tax money to repair a place of worship; others consider the cathedral as a city landmark and feel it should be repaired at any cost. The decision is now left to the courts to decide.

After the Red Zone bus tour, we toured the Canterbury Museum which is next to the city botanic gardens. This area is just on the edge of the earthquake damaged center. We enjoyed walking through the "streets" of old Christchurch, visiting the Antarctic exploration exhibits, seeing Fred and Myrtle’s reconstructed living room decorated with 1140 paua shells, and seeing the Triple Crown Speedway Champion. The rider was told after he won two championships, if he won it a third time, they would gold plate the cycle. He did and they did, costing a half million dollars in 1970.