Quake City

Standing behind a wire fence, I stare at the battered and broken grand old lady of this wounded city. Its famous spire fell in ruins along with a section of the tower during the magnitude 6.3 earthquake that struck Christchurch in 2011.

I had no idea that, over five years after a series of earthquakes had destroyed the city, diggers would still be rattling about Christchurch's gridded streets, tearing down buildings.

That said, all around a new city is gradually emerging. A vibrant city coping creatively with project rebuild. The Transitional Cathedral, made mostly of cardboard, is a potent symbol of the renewal. The ingenious Re:Start Mall, a temporary shopping precinct made of shipping containers, is a place of enthusiasm and cheer. In the empty gravel lots and abandoned buildings left in the wake of the earthquake, interesting art projects known as Gap Fillers have sprung up. As a result, Christchurch is changing and developing fast as it is being rebuilt and reborn - making an interesting and inspiring day.