NZ 3: Christchurch

Christchurch, NZ (May 27, 2008)

Christchurch is a nice little city. With a population of ~400,000 people, it is actually the largest city in the South Island, and the second largest in New Zealand. It seems however much more livable than similar sized cities in the US. Despite the comments of my taxi driver it still has the character of the traditional-style buildings that survive in the center. It was a pleasure to walk leisurely around, and to look at the architecture, the people and river crossing its center. Even though it was the beginning of winter, the temperature was just right.

One thing that I immediately noticed was the large amount of young japanese people roaming the streets. It turns out that they are mostly students studying english. New Zealand is cheaper than the US, not much farther away from Japan, and certainly at a more convenient time zone for japanese people. This makes it a conveniente destination for the japanese youth that wants to study the english language.

We stayed in the city for 5 days, as Mayli was finishing her meeting, during which I visited the city and its environs.