Cathedral Square
Cathedral Square of simply the square is the epicentre of the city of Christchurch and the point of departure for most buses and other services. It is also the site of the Cathedral that dominates not only the square but the entire city. The cathedral was started in 1860 and designed by George Gilbert Scott as a gothic revival of an Anglican church with a large interior. The native contribution to the cathedral is on the left hand side of the main entrance and is a series of tukutuku panels fashioned in leather and wood and with the inscription of the Maori Proverb: "What is the most important thing in life? It is people, people, people". The cathedral was finished in 1904. The cathedral has a spire sixty three metres high that contains 134 narrow steps to bring you to the top for the absolute best panoramas of the city. The square in front of the cathedral is a large paved area that houses an Italianate building of the late eighteen hundreds that was the Old Post Office and is now turned into a visitor centre. There is also the 1900s government built in Palladian style as a contrast. The square houses memorial to the first settlers, you can find the Memorial of the Four Ships in front of the old post office. Opposite is the statue of Robert Godley, who was the founding father of the Canterbury Association that sent the ships to the area to settle an Anglican community. Nearby is the Southern Encounter Aquarium that represents the inhabitants of the region in terms of aquatic life and replicates the habitats found on the south island. A notable figure in the square is the gentleman known as the wizard who amused audiences for a quarter of an hour with discourses on various topics. You may consider him the Englishman in New Zealand version of sex and the city. His arrival is marked by the red Volkswagen beetle.
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