Baronial City Still Impressive

“A plan for [Dunedin] was laid out on paper in Scotland and given the old Gaelic name for Edinburgh, Dun Eideann,” The Independent’s Adrian Mourby explains. “There were high hopes of this port settlement, tucked away for safety inside the sea-washed crater of an extinct volcano. At first life was hard, but then came the Gold Rush of the 1860s. Rich seams in the Otago Peninsula made Dunedin’s fortune. Even today, Dunedin impresses. The railway station by Sir George Troup was built without a budget. The Edinburgh architect was just told to build the best, so he shipped in granite columns, Royal Doulton tiles and Italian mosaic. It’s not surprising the local tourist board claims this is New Zealand’s most photographed building.”