It’s a slight connection, but Dunedin, New Zealand, which was settled by many Scottish immigrants, has a statue to Robbie Burns and celebrates his birthday in January. Burn’s nephew was a Presbyterian minister and brought the Protestant religion to the young city. There may be a statue of the nephew somewhere, but the uncle (who never set foot in New Zealand) gets prime billing.
We arrived on a rainy morning and took a chilly, wet walking tour while passing time before most of our Road Scholar group departed for home. By some accounts, the Dunedin rail station is the most photographed building in New Zealand. It is pretty and rather elborate. It did not remind me of any other building I’ve seen in the country so far. Today rail traffic is quite low, and this station only serves some scenic old railway routes.
Another stop was to see the Anglican church. Very traditional on the outside, the project ran out of funding before the apse and chancel were completed. A more modern, perhaps brutalist, design was used to finish the project, making the two parts of the church very different. I guess people can get used to anything.
After about an hour of walking in the cold drizzle, we were ready to plunk down in the bright lobby of the Early Settlers Museum and visit with our group for just a little longer before they departed for the airport. Mark and I stayed on in Dunedin for the night before heading up north for a few days.
We returned to the Early Settlers Museum, and recommend it. It’s a nicely done and contemporary set of displays that really works to engage the visitor with interactive screens in many locations. Dunedin had been one of New Zealand’s larger cities, but now ranks sixth. It has the oldest university, although on this day it was hard to get the sense of vibrancy that a university town usually has. I think it could be a delightful place, but needs continued city planning and some restoration.
