Wyn Drabble is on the lookout for penguins. Photo / NZME
Wyn Drabble is on the lookout for penguins. Photo / NZME
In his book Land of Two Halves, Joe Bennett said, "Oamaru is Timaru with penguins."
Well, not any more. Timaru has its own penguins and they are at the port end of Caroline Bay.
Timaru's penguins even have a website and from it I learned all the collective terms thatcan be used for penguins. I can't vouch for their accuracy but I'm willing to take the list at face value (please don't write in).
The most common collective is colony but apparently you can also use parade, crèche, huddle, parcel, rookery, muster, formality, icing, march, pride, shiver, waddle (on land only) and raft (in water only).
Again, I missed seeing any penguins. A friend told me she took her Auckland grandchild and they had to wait until near midnight to see a waddle of faint shadows. Guess I should just keep searching for my penguin snowglobe.
Unlike Oamaru, with its solid record of hanging on to things, Timaru has a few bits missing. Patiti Point has lost some of its point, for example.
A local friend suggested that, for old time's sake, I might like to take to the Patiti Point waves. Ah, but I already knew about the erosion and the cordoning off for safety reasons.
With an acknowledged nod to John Clarke, he replied, "Only the front fell off."
"Well, that's a relief!"
Unfortunately another missing element was rather more concerning. Crowning the Bay Hill, a sentry watching over Caroline Bay, used to be the wedge-shaped, three-storey Hydro Grand Hotel with a dome atop the front of the wedge.
No, this wasn't just a matter of the dome falling off. The whole thing has been demolished.
For me it used to complete the seaside resort vibe but now it has been replaced by … well … gravel, which, as I'm sure you can imagine, lacks the required elevation. It also lacks the former grandeur but the underfoot crunch might feel pleasing to some.
Apparently a man with "vision" knocked it down so he could replace it with five-storey luxury apartments. The people did not want his apartments and spoke by not pre-buying them. Work has not yet been able to proceed.
So, the Bay Hill is left with a shingle shawl, a crown of gravel.
On the right day, the view from that gravel is one of my favourite in the world. Caroline Bay provides the foreground and the spine of the snowy Southern Alps, with Aoraki peeping through, provides the majestic background. Snow hadn't yet arrived for this visit even though I had pre-ordered it.
Another goner is the A&P Showgrounds. Currently an unattractive expanse of bare clay serving as a bulldozer playground, it is set to become a big box shopping centre.
Timaru's tourist must-dos include: Aigantighe Art Gallery (seismic strengthening occurring in the Heritage House), South Canterbury Museum (with its re-creation of the Richard Pearse "first flight" aircraft), Caroline Bay boardwalk (with possible blurry shadows of penguins), Sacred Heart Basilica and St Mary's Anglican Church (some reassembly occurring), Patiti Point (front missing) and Hydro Grand Hotel (gravel only).
Timaru has repurposed the three cinemas of my youth – Majestic, State, Regent – but the Theatre Royal (formerly the bug-house) has been restored. They failed to leave the door unlocked so I couldn't take a peep inside.
Here, apart from local musical productions, I saw live international acts such as Acker Bilk, Kenny Ball and the Dutch Swing College Band.
I also visited my alma mater but there were new and different buildings there so I just ran through some remembered highlights, mentally conjugated the Latin verb "to be" and drove back to my accommodation.
Timaru. Penguins now added but other bits missing.
Wyn Drabble is a teacher of English, a writer, musician and public speaker.
