A walk down Memory Lane

The last time I was in Kaikoura was with my husband and his parents. All of us loved the place and I remembered it as a quaint little beach village with all sorts of interesting little shops and a beautiful coastline. This was about 14/15 years ago. A lot has happened since. As I walked along the beach, I couldn't help but think that the coastline has changed. It was an odd feeling that some things are just not exactly where they used to be or how they used to be. The entrance to the town is different as well with a new information centre and a big parking area. It was only when I visited the local museum that I remembered why. The 7.8 magnitude earthquake that hit the town on 14 November 2016 caused severe landslides. I remember seeing on tele that Kaikoura was cut off from the rest of the world and thought: "Wow! that's bad". However, it is only now after revisiting that I realise four years later people are still adapting and to some extent still picking up the pieces. Two people had died and 57 was injured. The road on Blenheim's side has been fixed. There are however still roadworks as you head towards Christchurch. It was both heart-warming and gut wrenchingly sad to see the roadwork's and traffic controllers greet every single driver with a smile and a friendly wave - says something about resilience I recon.

View on the road from Blenheim to Kakoura

Kaikoura streetview and turnoff to Top10 Holiday Park.

This little cafe dishes up the loviest crispy bacon!

The war memorial garden with whale bone arches.

St Pauls on the Hill, Kaikoura

A mural on a footbridge.

Part of the earthquake exhibition at the Kaikoura museum.