A Canterbury Icon

This is Otahuna Lodge in the spring with its petticoat of yellow daffodils spread wide to welcome guests. Last spring, on September 4th, Otahuna sustained extensive damage following the 7.1 earthquake that shook the region. They closed the doors to their exclusive accommodation for several months while repairs were undertaken - and just as well, because that earthquake strengthening is credited with saving this iconic building when the even more devastating 6.3 earthquake struck on February 22nd. The lodge is once again closed for repairs, but is due to open in time for the New Zealand winter - very soon. Keep an eye on their website - www.otahuna.co.nz - for updated details because a stay in this divine 1895 mansion just 20-minutes out of the city, is a rare treat indeed. It's one of the grandest homesteads in the country and the level of craftsmanship and architectural detail is awe-inspiring.

Library Architecture

Taitapu, Canterbury. January 2009. Ajr

This is the super cute Tai Tapu Library in the little village of Tai Tapu on the outskirts of Christchurch. It was built in 1932 by Tai Tapu landowner, Sir Heaton Rhodes, who also built the magnificent homestead, Otahuna, which I've featured here previously. It's now a luxury lodge and one of my favourite giant houses in all of New Zealand - Otahuna that is, not the Tai Tapu Library. Click on Otahuna or Homesteads in the index line below and it should appear www.otahuna.co.nz

Old Stone Beauty

It’s Sunday again so time to reflect on a little church architecture. It was a blistering 30-degree day when the caretaker let me inside St Paul’s Anglican Church at Tai Tapu the other day. The interior air was cool, the mood serene and the atmosphere rich with the aromatic scent of Christmas lilies standing in the altar vases. This gorgeous little stone church was erected by Sir Robert Heaton Rhodes in memory of his wife Jessie. (Rhodes was the original owner of Otahuna, the magnificent homestead near Tai Tapu that now operates as a luxury lodge – click Otahuna in the label line below to see one of the best homesteads in New Zealand). The foundation stone was laid in 1930 and the church – designed by Christchurch architect Cecil Wood – now has a Historic Places Trust A listing.

Standing on the banks of a quiet, tree-lined stream, the stone church is as pretty as a picture; but beyond that, it has a number of interesting historical features. For a start, the stone inset on the north wall – an acanthus leaf carving – is from one of the piers supporting the dome of Saint Paul’s Cathedral in London. It formed part of the rebuilding of Saint Paul’s by Sir Christopher Wren after the Great Fire of London in 1666 – and was removed in 1930. And the flintstone inset in the south wall is a fragment of stone from St Patrick’s Cathedral in Dublin, which was erected in the 13th century.

Hop On Over

No one will ever be able to convince me that Otahuna isn’t one of the most magnificent houses in New Zealand. It’s my dream home. I adore it. Every inch of its 18,000 square foot, three-storied framework is riddled with history. Built in 1895 for Sir Heaton Rhodes it’s reputedly the finest example of Queen Anne architecture in Australasia and it’s now an Historic Places Trust Category 1 listed property. Who can blame Hall Cannon and Miles Refo for tossing in their New York jobs, buying Otahuna and turning it into one of New Zealand’s finest luxury lodges? And what better way to kick of Easter 2008 than joining Hall and Miles for Otahuna’s First Annual East Hunt & Lunch? When I first got the invitation I pictured horses, hounds and terrified rabbits. It wasn’t until a week later that the penny dropped and it became clear that we would only be hunting easter eggs. Creative guests turned up in Easter bonnets; there were bunny's ears aplenty, a divine lunch in the timber pannelled ballroom; and an egg hunt complete with straw lined baskets. How easily we all slipped in to the childish delight of it all. And as it turned out, the only bunny in sight was five-and-a-half feet tall and wearing gumboots. http://www.otahuna.co.nz/