History Revealed?

Remember my blog from a few months ago re the Majestic Theatre?
Well here I am banging on again - but in a slightly different vein.
On the same day I was there last time watching the old lady being nibbled at with little sensitivity, I noticed two areas - one on the east wall and the other on the north wall - which had appeared. These were revealed, not so much due to the demolition of the Majestic Theatre itself, but due to the surrounding buildings which had previously been demolished.

Majestic Theatre - East Wall

Majestic Theatre - North Wall

If you inspect these two images carefully, you will see that the concrete wall of the theatre has been poured directly against the back of these two old walls - one corrugated iron and the other wooden.

I wonder what these buildings were? Even now, only a short time after these buildings were destroyed, I've forgotten what was there!!

Akaroa

Sunset over French Hill and Hilltop

At reasonably regular intervals Chris and I like to get away from the shite of this earthquake damaged city for a few days of normality. More often than not, we do this with our good friends Sue and Graeme - and Hemi, their hunter way dog, when he's allowed.
School done for the week for Chris, traditional stop at the Little River Gallery (nothing to do with Ginger Slice and good coffee of course), then off to Takamatua to deliver a couple of my framed photographs to our now retired GP as a thank you for looking after four generations of the family - plus a quick vino - then finally on to Akaroa and our friends. And just in time for happy hour and their meal which they had been slaving over for half the afternoon.
Good weekends with good friends requires much chatting, cups of tea, walks, coffee and eating - and repeats of these five items!! For many trips to Akaroa I have been meaning to capture the sunset from Daley's Wharf, and the late afternoon sky dictated that this Saturday evening might just finally be that time, so with great discipline before happy hour, I slipped away for half an hour.

Daley's Wharf at sunset

Daley's Wharf in monochrome - the power of Black and White!

What better way to view the sunset?

A grand old church in Akaroa

As always a great weekend away. Next 'get - away' weekend mid September.

Unsung Heroes

If you read my last blog, you will have seen we spent a weekend in Akaroa a few weekends ago with good friends. Whilst there, we invariably walk along the waterfront - and this includes a wander out on the wharf to see what's wagging and a cafe visit.
But I always go and say hello to Frank - Frank Worsley. He was the captain of 'Endurance', Ernest Shackleton's ship of Antarctic fame just over one hundred years ago. In particular, he skippered and navigated the 'James Caird', the Endurance lifeboat, from Elephant Island to South Georgia - to this day, one of the most amazing feats of survival on this planet. I urge you to read 'Endurance', Shackleton's book on the entire expedition - the only book I have ever read from cover to cover without stopping.

Frank Worsley

Frank Worsley was an unsung hero.

This year, I have read two other great yarns................

1. The first is about Frank Wild, who was Shackleton's deputy on the famous expedition. Frank Wild has been awarded FOUR polar medals - to my knowledge the only person ever to receive this number - five expeditions in total to the Antarctic. Three with Shackleton, one with Scott and one with Mawson. Wild was left in charge of the shore team on Elephant Island whilst Worsley and Shackleton sailed off for help.
Frank Wild led a reclusive life after the expeditions - first in UK and then South Africa. He died of pneumonia in 1939 and his ashes were lost for decades. They were only recently found, and his ashes were taken to South Georgia and buried beside his close friend, 'the Boss',  Ernest Shackleton's grave on the island.

2. The second is about George Lowe, a kiwi mountaineer and close friend of Ed Hillary. George Lowe was a member of the successful 1953 British Himalayan expedition to Mt Everest. George worked tirelessly in the Khumbu Icefall, and masterminded the route up the Lhotse face and on to South Col, knowing all along that he personally would not be in the summit attempt teams. After Hillary and Tenzing's success, it was to George Lowe that Hillary pronounced (way above South Col when George climber up solo with thermoses for them) - "Well George, we knocked the bastard off!"
The next year, George Lowe was Best Man at Ed Hillary's wedding.

Both Frank Wild and George Lowe are unsung heroes too.

No doubt there are many more. Let me know who you think of - please.

Two books well worth reading

Pier Pressure

New Brighton pier - yet again!!
It is like a magnet - I keep being drawn back to it. It presents so many moods.
Twice a year the sun rises directly off the end of the pier - approximately 26 April and again 17 August, as the sun moves south in the spring and north in the autumn.
I may have alluded to this in previous blogs several years ago.
The TPE (The Photographer's Ephemeris) software is a very useful tool (a free download and easy to use).

Arna

This year my lovely granddaughter, Arna - now the proud owner of a DSLR and keen to learn, was with me on the 26 April to capture the moment. No problems getting this young teenager out of bed way before dawn and down to the pier, not too far from her home.
I have set up my Manfrotto tripod so it will fit on the top of my 2 metre high aluminium stepladder. So on to the pier we hike - with tripod, stepladder, camera gear - and wet weather gear.
The weather gods were not being kind this morning - full cloud cover and threatening to rain - not what the forecast said!
Arna was beginning to think that the morning shoot was a non starter, and she was almost right. We chose to go ahead and use the time as a practice session, so set up her DSLR on my tripod and I sent her up the ladder to start composing her image. This very moment heralded a sudden onset of very heavy rain. Her bottom lip was out now, no doubt fearing for her camera - and rightly so.
"Don't abandon the moment Arna. Quickly compose your shot and grab a few shots". This she did, before grabbing the camera and racing back down the ladder. The rain had set in and further photography was out of the question for now.
Back in the vehicle to dry out - especially her camera, we headed back to my home and breakfast with Grandma.
The camera went in to the airing cupboard and the few images she captured didn't look too flash when downloaded onto my iMac. The bottom lip was out again.
And so began lesson #2 in the comfort of my study, whilst the rain bucketed down outside.........
A combination of Lightroom, Photoshop, and Nik software were played with - Arna at the helm with me tutoring at her level.
The result was this..................

Pier Pressure

Not a bad effort considering the situation. If it wasn't for the rain, she would not have got the lovely reflections on the pier. And her conversion to monochrome strengthens the mood of the moment.

The bottom lip was no longer out and she was happy again.

She now has this matted and framed (all done by herself) and up on the wall at home.
Even better, she has also sold a copy of this image which is now also framed and on display at a gallery in north Christchurch.

Well done Arna. Some valuable lessons learned on this shoot.

How Much is that Pussy in the Window?

Remember the song 'How Much is that Doggie in the Window'?
I'm showing my age! Patti Page first sang it in December 1952 - only 62 years ago. I hasten to add I was only a wee lad in shorts then.
These current school holidays we were supposed to head away to the West Coast to visit friends and do some photography. Sadly, we had to cancel, literally at the last minute, due to Chris's Mum breaking her hip, having surgery, and then getting pneumonia. Then having to find her a new home and transfer all her belongings. Not a good time to be away.
So to Plan B........a few day trips in between family commitments. The weather decided to have its say and virtually all plans were likewise cancelled - except for one.
I'd promised Chris lunch over at Lyttelton, one of our favourite places. Yes, it rained yet again but that wasn't an issue today.
The lunch was good - a cafe only opened three weeks ago. The town is slowly but surely coming alive again - and if ideas come to fruition, has a wonderful future. The place to be!!
Following lunch, between a lull in the rain showers, we wandered the streets - and almost immediately came across this cat. Ah, if only I had my big camera instead of the phone camera. The image ~1 second before this one was captured was priceless.

Puss

Afternoon tea at 'She Chocolate' in Governor's Bay was pretty good too.

At least we salvaged a little something from the holidays.

Selfie

You're never too old to learn!!

"Let's take a selfie Grandpa" said Arna during our tramp last week (see previous blog).
I'd heard about these things but never felt inclined to participate. Besides, who on earth wants to look at my ageing dial, complete with its 'Burt Jowls'.
But when a young teenager and modern technology collide what choice does one have? Go with the flow Johnnyboy.

Selfie time

Swing Bridges

Grandpa

"Grandpa, I want to cross a swing bridge. I've just seen a poster at Macpac. Will you please take me tramping?" said my granddaughter, Arna, a few weeks ago.

Grandpa thinks to himself - blimey, it's mid winter, go easy on an old man!
New Zealand, and in particular the South Island, has many swing bridges in remote back country places. They certainly have their place - on the mainstream 'popular' tracks they enhance safety and guarantee completion of iconic routes, irrespective of weather conditions - even dry feet sometimes! In other more remote situations, progress would cease if the bridges did not exist - such is the ruggedness of the terrain and the flow of the river below. You have to admire the DOC staff who install them.
So where do you take your 14 year old granddaughter for a good experience and getting the balance right - not too boring and not so terrifying as to put her off for life!!
We settled on part of the St James Walkway in the Lewis Pass area, a two and a half hour drive from Christchurch.

Arna mastering her first swing bridge

Mission Accomplished!!

"How many swing bridges are there Grandpa?" asked Arna.
"Three" I replied.
"Is it a round trip?" she responded.
"No, in and out"
"Then how come there are three bridges? Are we going to cross a river?"
"Might be," I grinned. "We'll come back down the valley a slightly different route."

Magdalen Hut

Arna with wet and very cold feet!!

The walk out on Day Two - and getting the feet warm again

Fly Past of Canada Geese

Bridge #3 - and looking like an old hand at it

A perfect tramp - the weather gods were kind, we had the hut to ourselves, the firewood was dry, the meal was great, the morning frost was big (-10C). And the company was awesome.

A Legendary Guy

I enjoy a wee dram every now and again.
Nothing beats a good single malt - and there are a number of them.
Some close friends share my liking for the Scottish nectar too.
The annual tramp with the lads - now going 34 years, is a grand occasion and the rules now dictate that single malts are required with blended scotch unacceptable. The preference is for each person to bring a different single malt - thus requiring a tad of organisation!!
This year was no exception and the annual event was on Richard's yacht (see previous blog). Imagine my surprise when in a reflective moment sitting around the saloon table, I read the back of the bottle of the current tipple................

He gets around this John Smith!!

A lovely drop too.

Big Brother

My big brother, Barry, has just self published a new book "Mountains ... only Mountains" through the Blurb website.

It is a great book reflecting his love of the mountains, starting back in the 1950s. Search for it on Blurb and browse the preview. It can be purchased in hardback, soft back and ebook. Price is attractive!
Well done big brother. I'm proud to be your little brother. J

Of History and Coffee

My wanderings of the Christchurch CBD, usually to show visitors around the ever changing state of the area, invariably leave me in a morose state for a few days.
To bolster myself I continue to search for new items to photograph - the options are a constant variable - as buildings continue to be demolished, new street art appears, access changes, etc, etc.
Sometimes you need to go that extra step or two - around a corner, through a doorway, slip through an insecure fence........! You can only be shouted at or told politely to remove yourself - sometimes not so politely.
On a recent foray, I found a wall that up until recently had another wall abutted to it, but was no longer. A window had appeared - opaque glass. Eyes had not peered through this window for many a decade. A loo maybe?? Nevertheless it appealed to me.

Room with no view?

Oh, and what about the coffee I hear you cry? This old building is in High St adjacent to the intersection with Tuam Street. Directly over the road is C1 cafe - arguably one of the better caffeine establishments in town, and a regular haunt for my granddaughter and I.

Kaitoreti Spit

Kaitoreti Spit is a favourite place for me.
It is ~30kms from home, off the highway to Little River and Akaroa on Banks Peninsula.
The spit is a narrow stretch of land, approximately 25-30kms long. At its narrowest southern end at Taumutu it is only a matter of a few metres wide - the place where Lake Ellesmere potentially opens to the sea. At its widest northern end at Birdling's Flat, the spit is 2 kms wide. There is a shingle road down the spit for ~10 kms, followed by a rough 4WD track almost to the tip.
On one side is the Pacific Ocean, benign some days - threatening on others. Dramatic and frightening occasionally!

Southerly Storm at Birdling's Flat

Lake Ellesmere (Waihora) is abundant in bird life - a total of 157 species have been identified, 133 of them native, using the lake or fringe areas.
Lake Forsyth (Wairewa) used to be open to the sea - another southern bay - until 3-400 years ago.
The coastal cliffs, up to 10 metres high, south of the Rakaia River are being eroded at up to 1 metre each year. This, along with outflow debris from the Rakaia and Rangitata rivers, drifts north up the coastline by the ocean currents and is deposited at the end of the beach where it meets the southern edge of Banks Peninsula at Birdling's Flat - and hence the growth of Kaitoreti Spit (or more correctly a barrier) at its northern end. Plus of course the eventual closing off of the bay which then became Lake Forsyth.
The area is rich in history - both European and Maori. There were several tribes living in the area - at least two pa, one at the southern end at Taumutu and another at at Matahapuka right where Lake Forsyth is closest to the sea at Birdling's Flat. There may be more and middens have been found along the spit.

Looking north from near Taumutu towards Birdling's Flat and Banks Peninsula

After the European settlers in Christchurch and the surrounding Canterbury Plains, wood was needed to build houses and bridges (the most significant being the Rakaia River bridge - longest in NZ). This wood (primarily totara) came from the hills above Lake Forsyth and Little River. There were at least 7 saw mills in the valley. The wood was brought down to Lake Forsyth, barged or rafted down the lake to near Birdling's Flat, then winched across Kaitoreti Spit to Lake Ellesmere, where again, it was barged across the lake to waiting trains and taken to either Christchurch or areas south.
Sadly today, both Lake Ellesmere (5th largest lake in NZ) and especially Lake Forsyth have suffered the ravages of farm run-off (effluent and chemicals) and are in bad shape with severe pollution.

The widest aspect of Kaitoreti Spit with Lake Forsyth and Banks Peninsula in the background

Take the time to explore this historical and fragile landscape. The silence will envelope you!

Cairns

I've been tramping and mountaineering for most of my life, frequently well off the beaten track. Sometimes you must simply follow your instinct for direction finding. On other occasions a party has been before you and left a cairn to indicate the route. Sometimes they are easy to follow - sometimes not. Finding one when you think you have got lost can be a huge relief after a lengthy period of uncertainty.

This image is a cairn with a difference - set up in Cathedral Square in what was once the heart of our city - speaks for itself.

Graffiti #4

I've banged on about this subject on three previous occasions - and I'm guessing this won't be the last.
I've grown to like and appreciate street art and good graffiti over the past few years. I think some of it is very clever. One of the best spots locally was the old Canterbury Sales yards and I've spent many hours on my own and with fellow photographers capturing the ever changing art there. Sadly it has recently gone - the site is clear.
I was incensed last week when I discovered this in town.

I had always understood that 'artists' respected each others work - particularly when it came to street art. How naive was I!! The tagging in the lower right was obviously deliberate - the tagger set out to ruin the street art already there. There was a huge blank wall further to the right. Moronic!

Big Brother

I have a big brother.
I also have a big sister.
I love them both immensely.
My big brother who lives in Hamilton frequents Christchurch occasionally to see family and friends. On a recent inner city trip he spied the remains of the Odeon Theatre.
"Did that used to be the St James Theatre" he asked.
On researching I announced that, yes indeed, it did.
"I can see the seats where we sat when Dad took me to hear Ed Hillary and George Lowe speak on their world lecture tour in 1954 after the successful first ascent of Mt Everest" he said.

The old St James Theatre (later the Odeon)

"Grey seats on left. Three down from top. Second and third seats from aisle"!!
Big brother went on to become a very proficient mountaineer, and climbed many times with Ed.
I hope he expands on this story in his blog - http://barrysinparadise.blogspot.co.nz

My big brother is also an excellent artist in his retirement, specialising mainly in woodcuts. I am a great fan of his - you only have to see my walls. One of his works that I particularly like is titled "Stretching the Light (after Hotere)" - a 2009 effort. On touring the inner city for the umpteenth time with visitors, I spied this on a wall which kind of reminded me of big brother's artwork. He will understand what I mean.

After Barry Smith - and Hotere 

A Majestic Life!!

We live in Majestic Lane, a small private lane of only 8 houses in suburban Christchurch at the foot of the Port Hills.
Go back 14 years - almost.
I'd already departed Saudi Arabia and wandered the world for ~16 months, and was settled back into life in NZ. Chris completed her 'tour of duty' in mid 2000 and she too returned to NZ. We were now ready to purchase another house. Initially Chris was not working and I was back running the department at Christchurch Hospital, so it fell to her to do the donkey work of searching according to our rigorous list of 'must haves'. I looked at two properties with her - one north city, the other south city. After the latter visit, on a whim, I told her of a little lane I'd seen previously on my own whilst walking. There in the lane was the 7th completed house with a small handwritten mobile number number on the fence.
"Shall we call it" said Chris, looking eagerly through the window - it's probably way out of our price range anyway.
"I can't  live in a lane called Majestic Lane - it's too pretentious" I replied.
"We can at least call" she prompted.
To keep the story short, I did call. The house (brand new) had been on the market, but had been taken off and the builder was about to move his family in.
"Why, are you interested?" said the builder (his first mistake).
"I could have been if it had still be on the market" I replied.
"Would you like to have a look inside" said he (his second mistake).
In a last ditch effort to complete this story, we did look inside, we learned the story of how the lane got its name, we negotiated privately and we bought a house!
So to the name.................
The land the 8 houses in the lane are built on used to belong to the Bible College. They outgrew their buildings on the site and they negotiated with the Christchurch City Council to swap the land here for the Majestic Theatre in the central city (possibly some $$ changed hands also - who knows).
"So what" I hear you say!
Well, as it happens, on our first date I took Chris to see a movie and it was at the Majestic Theatre. I booked seats in the back row of the lounge area upstairs (as you did when you were a young lad trying to impress your girl on first date), got dressed up in my best garb - tie and all (I won't embarrass Chris by describing her outfit - that's her domain), and off we went.
And, oh yes.......... what was the movie we saw?
"The Odd Couple"
The rest is history!!

Which brings me to end of this very long winded story. In the previous blog, I spoke of the demise of Millers. Yes, on the same day another crew were starting on the demolition of the Majestic Theatre - despite loud protestations from the heritage people. Apparently it stands in the way of future plans for this city.

Majestic Theatre - almost no more!

Millers

I grew up in Christchurch - apart from the first few years.
I had a great Mum with the biggest and warmest heart you could imagine. We led a pretty humble existence in those days - Mum and Dad, and my brother and sister. But we managed somehow - largely thanks to Mum's wisdom and perseverance - much of it unappreciated at the time unfortunately.
Each week, Mum used to take me on the tram or the bus into town. Invariably we would go to Millers in Tuam St, where I would tentatively play on the escalator (I recently learned it was the first escalator in NZ - 1930s). Mum would buy material to make clothes for herself or us kids - and she would look longingly at the hats, gloves, and bags, etc that she could not afford. On rare occasions Mum would take me up to the cafeteria (no cafes then!) for a bun and a cup of tea - no doubt depriving herself of some needed item to do so. I thought it was a great event!
I also recall the vacuum pipes - the staff member serving you would put your money together with the sales docket into a wee 'rocket' which was put into the vacuum pipe - and whoosh, off it went (the 'ether' of the 1950s!! - no plastic cards then - totally cash). You would then twiddle your thumbs for 5 minutes, then lo and behold, back it came with your receipt and change. Not a bad system in hindsight!!
Unfortunately Millers succumbed to the 'Made in China' times. The building became the headquarters for the Christchurch City Council for many years. Eventually they too moved on, moving into new premises in the central City, leaving the building and its history lonely and unloved.
But then after a few months of emptiness came 22 February 2011 - earthquake day.
Now, in May 2014, the building is being demolished. The physical structure will soon be gone and yet another car park will appear, along with the hundreds of other vacant sites - but the memories will still be there. Bless you Mum.

A View to Warm the Heart

I love Lyttelton Harbour. I find it good for the soul. Looking down the harbour always relaxes me and lifts my heart. One of my favourite spots - a place I invite only a few special people to share with me - is Coopers Knob. The highest point of the port hills surrounding the city.

This image from Coopers Knob- titled 'Wedding Vista' - was captured at the exact time Juliet was getting married in Melbourne ~14 years ago. Given less than 48 hours notice, none of the family were present, but I did clamber up to my favourite thinking spot with a bottle of vino to celebrate her union from afar through weepy eyes. Unfortunately the union did not survive and thus this image is soured in my mind.
However, it has not diminished my love of the harbour.
10 days ago I walked around the Allandale - Governor's Bay waterfront track - the intent being to help a photographic friend to complete a project she was working on. The day was lovely, the lighting bang on for the task in hand (a geological impressionism). Behind me, looking down the harbour was this view............ helped by the low tide.

This image was taken with my zoom lens set at the wider end of its limits, and thus pushing everything seemingly away into the distance. Our eyes, however, do not see it this way - we see life at about the same as a 50mm lens (in 35mm camera terms). So......... turning the camera through 90 degrees, I captured a series of images at the 50mm setting, sweeping from left to right, and overlapping by a third - 17 images in total. Now, thanks to the newer versions of Photoshop, these can easily and quickly be merged together to create a lovely panorama.

It does look the same here, but I've had to minimise it so much to allow it to fit on here. The file size is 325MB and a print with a height of 40cms is 2.5 metres wide!! A good wallpaper perhaps??

Photo Tour 2015

I have finalised my dates for the next photo tour to Oman - hotels booked, vehicles sorted, and people paying their deposits and ensuring a place on the tour already.
If you know of anyone who might be interested, share this with them.

Frustrated Pensioner

Does anyone read these blogs?
Maybe a few!!
Does anyone understand Blog set-up?
It does many weird things, most of which appear to be completely beyond my control - and I cannot fathom the nuances of this wonderful technology.
Help - please!!

Spring is in the Air

As well as the annual tramp with 'the lads' (most of us in our 60s now - one, heaven forbid, as of January now 70, but the apprentice is only in his early 50s!) we also like to take the spring air for 2-3 days before Christmas each year.

This year had to be early for me as I was heading back to the Middle East early December.
No one had been up the Crow Valley (Arthur's Pass area) for years, so that got the nod of approval from the team. Due to commitments all round, it was only to be a single night out.

Crossing the Waimakariri River

Entering the Crow Valley

Crossing the Crow River is pretty straightforward when the river is low

The new Crow Hut - new to me anyway

Ranunculus lyallii (Mt Cook Lily) within metres of the hut door

Alas, the weather gods did not play ball the next morning

A brief sojourn into the hills, but great company - as always. Our batteries were recharged and the world's issues were solved over a few drams.
I had not visited the Crow Valley for ~30+ years. The last visit, if my memory serves me right, was with my elder daughter, Rachael about the time she started high school! I used to visit this area regularly - usually traversing over from Avalanche Peak, frequently as a day trip. One of the lads did gift me the door bolt of the old Crow Hut when it was demolished - it sits here on my shelf today!
All the images posted here (6 of them) were all captured on my iPhone and nothing has been done to them - apart from making them square and downsizing them. I'll soon convince myself that I don't need to lug my big DSLR and lenses with me every trip - technology is improving unabated, and my ageing body is looking for any excuse to lighten up!!