In February 1931 Napier was flattened by a huge earthquake that went on for over 2 minutes, a loing time for an earthquake it seems. Buildings not destroyed by that stood a good chance of being consumed by the fire that followed, firemen got the engines out of the damaged fire station but the water pipes had been fractured.
The rebuilding process was highly organised and the decision only to allow reinforced concrete suited the in-mode buiklding style of the day, Art DEco . So trhe who town is a riot of Art DEco style, with some Spanish Mission, and the preservation society does a great job helping to ensure it stays looking right and organising tours and a huge Art Deco weekend once a year on the anniversary of the quake.

We stayed in one of the prime Art DEco buildings - the Masonic Art DEco hotel where we had a huge apartment with loads of Art DEco furniture and fittings and Barnaby had cleverly organised for us to do an Art Deco walking tour. It had rained overnight but managed to hold off during the tour and we had a great intro to the Art Deco town. Liz limped rather than walked - still suffering from her Tongariro excesses!

Then on - to Wellington