Christchurch

I once saw Elvis Costello interviewed.

They asked him which was his scariest moment. He replied that it was a cold and rainy Sunday in Christchurch in 1984. He walked out of his hotel and the streets were empty with not a soul to be seen.

After a while, in the distance, he saw someone on a bicycle disappear around a corner. And he said he had never felt so lonely or scared.

Christchurch has improved a lot since then but the earthquakes have taken away most of the gains. It’s now a suburban donut, not a city. What life there is, is in malls. Just like most of the U.S.