Timaru is a port city in the southern Canterbury Region of New Zealand, located 157 km (98 mi) southwest of Christchurch and about 196 km (122 mi) northeast of Dunedin on the eastern Pacific coast of the South Island. The Timaru urban area is home to 28,900 people, and is the largest urban area in South Canterbury, and the third-largest in the Canterbury Region overall, after Christchurch and Rolleston. The town is the seat of the Timaru District, which includes the surrounding rural area and the towns of Geraldine, Pleasant Point and Temuka, which combined have a total population of 48,900.
View down Stafford Street in 2006
Customs House, Timaru. Built in 1902 with local Bluestone
Sacred Heart Basilica, built in 1911
View from bus station in Timaru
Canterbury is a region of New Zealand, located in the central-eastern South Island. The region covers an area of 44,503.88 square kilometres (17,183.04 sq mi), making it the largest region in the country by area. It is home to a population of 666,300.
Building damage in Worcester Street, corner Manchester Street, with ChristChurch Cathedral in the background. (September 2010)
ChristChurch Cathedral showing the effects of the February 2011 earthquake (tower under demolition)
The Cardboard Cathedral in Christchurch opened in August 2013 as the transitional pro-cathedral for the Anglican Diocese of Christchurch. Anglicans make up 14.8 percent of Canterbury's population.
Crossing the Macauley River, Lilybank Station, Canterbury, New Zealand, 1977.
