Christchurch: Gateway to Antarctica, rich in heritage, recovering from crises

A Maverick Traveller: The Podcasts of Mary Jane Walker

With an abundance of gothic stone architecture and a large pedestrian area, Christchurch, New Zealand, is like a quaint old city in Europe.

Indeed, I never get sick of visiting the thriving metropolis of Christchurch, or Ōtautahi, which is in fact now the largest city in the South Island, its current population about 420,000 overall. Much of its heritage has, thankfully, survived the earthquakes of a decade ago.

The river that runs through the city, named the Avon by the colonists, not after Shakespeare’s Avon but a river of the same name in Scotland, also bears the Māori name of Ōtākaro. The Māori name means ‘of games’, because children always traditionally played alongside it while adults gathered food such as flounder, eels, ducks, whitebait and freshwater fish from the river, its swampy surroundings and its estuary, which it shares with another small river called the Ōpāwaho, or Heathcote.

To continue, Christchurch has strong Antarctic traditions. The New Zealand, American and Italian Antarctic programmes are all based in Christchurch. The unique working museum known as the International Antarctic Centre, beside Christchurch International Airport, is definitely worth a visit.

Original blog post: a-maverick.com/blog/christchurch-gateway-antarctica-heritage-recovering-crises