Inside the heart of Christchurch

Although we'd visited Christchurch back in June, the city was still raw from the February 22 earthquake. Businesses were just re-opening, the red zone was under lockdown, and the people were still reeling.

We returned this weekend to see if any of that had changed.

There seems to be a bit more life gradually being breathed into the place. Decisions have been made about many of the buildings, the council has endeavoured to revitalise the city in the earthquake's aftermath.

Cashel Street, where the shopping mall collapsed killing many inside, has received an innovative shopping area created by shipping containers. It sounds quite dull, but as the photos show, they've actually made it quite sexy!

And we were quite lucky that the council opened a walkway through some of the worst hit areas, including Cathedral Square.

We've never seen the cathedral before, so to see it like this is quite sad. I'm sure that it's reminiscent of war times in the UK, like the result of a German air raid.

It is certainly quite a sobering experience. But we're glad we had the opportunity to see it as today was the last day.

One thing's for sure. It's going to be a long road to recovery.