Christchurch, 5 years on

Walking around Christchurch NZ, five years after the devastating earthquakes, the city is slowly putting itself together.

Ginkgo tree, Christchurch NZ

In late May, the ginkgo leaves are turning, falling and making a carpet of their precious yellow leaves.

The earthquake-damaged Christchurch Cathedral

The cathedral still has a gaping hole, but there is no inner city ‘red zone’ any more, and visitors can see the damage for themselves.

inside Christchurch’s cardboard cathedral. Tubes are made of cardboard

And a new, temporary cathedral substantially made of cardboard provides a place of worship.

Each chair represents a life lost in the earthquake

Nearby, a moving memorial of chairs represent the 185 people who died. Fittingly, it is next to one of the many temporary carparks that have sprung up in the vacant lots where buildings used to be.

While life has not completely returned to normal – for some it never will – cranes fill the skyline as the reconstruction continues. And there are patches of normality. One of the shiny new places is the Tannery, and

The Apothecary at the Tannery, Christchurch

one of the shiniest places there is the Apothecary. A lovely space filled with wonderful medicinal plants – many of them locally grown, and bursting with vibrancy. Good on you Simone for establishing such a place.