Street Art – Trouspinet travels

Today I said goodbye to Lake Tekapo. Before hitting the road to Christchurch, I headed up to the Astro Café at Mt John’s Observatory, situated on top of a steep hill just outside of town. The coffee was good and the views amazing, offering me one last look at Mount Cook.

From there I made the pleasant drive and uneventful drive to Christchurch, the biggest city on New Zealand’s South Island – albeit with only 400,000 inhabitants. I started by exploring the small but richly stocked botanical gardens.

Next, I headed into the city centre. Christchurch was devastated by a severe earthquake in 2011, which killed around 170 people and left extensive damage. It caused two major buildings to collapse and left many others badly damaged – around 1/3 of the city centre’s constructions had to be demolished and rebuilt as a result. On my visit, these efforts seemed to be nearing completion and had left an interesting mix of old and new architecture.

Cantebury University’s old buildings (1917) survived the earthquake

Work was still ongoing to repair the cathedral, whose spire collapsed in the earthquake. A temporary replacement had been built a short distance away and is nicknamed the “cardboard cathedral”.

The sides of the newer buildings often had impressive street art, like the huge mural at the top of the page and lots of other examples throughout the city.

Christchurch seemed to have a very young population…….and a lot of bars and restaurants to keep them amused. I stopped to have a drink in one of them before heading back to my motel to cook dinner.

New Regent Street in Christchurch is lined with bars

Whilst Christchurch is not a place you would travel across the world to see, in the context of my New Zealand trip it came as a pleasant break from the succession of natural wonders I had seen so far, and I liked it a lot. It had a dynamic, young and above all resilient vibe to it – an impressive outcome after the destruction of the 2011 earthquake. My brief visit left me refreshed for more adventures in New Zealand…..

Next Post: The Banks Peninsula, Akaroa and Dolphins

Previous Post: More Mount Cook

Melbourne was very different to Sydney. The streets were busy and slightly scruffy, and there were roadworks everywhere. The population seemed very young and very Asian. The city was laid out on a neat grid, but its buildings were an anarchic mix of elegant old constructions from Melbourne’s boom years in the late 1800s (with the Victoria gold rush) and improbably tall modern skyscrapers, sometimes built right next to modest two-storey houses.

My accommodation was a flat in one of the skyscrapers and I dropped my stuff off and went out to explore.

The city teamed with life, like an anthill on steroids. A lot of the modern architecture was very successful, like this shopping arcade….

Amongst the modern skyscrapers were some glorious old buildings.

The Forum, a Melbourne institution and performance venue

Some of the old buildings had semi-hidden entrances that an intrepid bear could walk through to admire the stylish interiors.

Melbourne turned out to be a city where the best things are hidden and need to be searched out – in contrast to Sydney’s in-your-face Opera House and harbour. Leading off the main streets are small arcades, filled with small shops, bars and cafes.

Gog and Magog guard a swanky arcade in Melbourne

Walking around and exploring this chaos was a lot of fun, and a good way to build up a thirst for another Melbourne tradition – the roof top bar, of which there were dozens. I dropped into one to enjoy the early evening atmosphere. I was half-way through my first beer, when five o’clock struck and suddenly a wave of visitors clambered up the stairs to join me – it seems that many Melburnians do not work a minute more than their contractual hours.

Another of Melbourne’s hidden attractions is its amazing collection of street art, mostly hidden away down dingy alleyways. An incredible diversity of art is mostly painted….

….and sometimes stuck onto the walls of the city.

Some of these art installations are in popular places that are firmly on the tourist trail, like the famous AC/DC Alley, and others are in quiet, edgy neighbourhoods where drug addicts and graffiti artists hang out.

Street art in edgy part of North Melbourne

I ended my tour of Melbourne street art in yet another rooftop bar. My initial impressions of the city were a bit negative, but after a couple of days of walking around exploring hidden arcades and alleyways, I am getting to like it a lot.

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Tag: Street Art

Christchurch (the one in New Zealand)

Melbourne – street art and hidden gems