New Year's Eve Celebrations

It being New Year's Eve today, we wanted to take part in at least some of the festivities, without having to drive miles away from Christchurch. Luckily for us, there was a stage set up in Cathedral Square, with music and fireworks, so we headed down to that at about 11.30pm. There was a large crowd (15,000 according to the news reports), but it was very friendly and pleasant from what we saw. It was such a change from Belfast - no spides, no nastiness, no worry about walking around the town late at night. There were some policemen dotted here and there, but they didn't seem to be more than a friendly reminder not to get too carried away, and plenty of people were walking up to wish them a happy new year. It was just so much NICER than what we have become accusomed to. I know things aren't perfect here either - in fact there was a recent news report saying that Christchurch is the most violent city in New Zealand - but it's way less violent than where we came from. I have yet to read anything about innocent people being beaten up or stabbed just for walking down the street and making eye contact with the wrong people.

Anyway, suffice it to say that we enjoyed the atmosphere. The band playing when we arrived was typical try-to-please-everyone stuff, nothing to write home about, but it filled the gap between 11.45pm and midnight. The clock gradually counted down to zero and there was the obligatory cheering as the fireworks went off above us. A piper took to the stage and ushered the new year in with the sound of Auld Lang Syne (I think!) and as the last fireworks faded from the sky we walked back to Cashel Street with the satisfaction of knowing we had made the obligatory effort but could now return home without any hassle whatsoever.