Wikipedia
Timaru (; Māori: Te Tihi-o-Maru) is a port city in the southern Canterbury region of New Zealand, located 157 kilometres southwest of Christchurch and about 196 kilometres northeast of Dunedin on the eastern Pacific coast of the South Island. The Timaru urban area is home to people, and is the second largest city in the Canterbury Region, after Christchurch. The city is the seat of the Timaru District, which includes the surrounding rural area and the towns of Geraldine, New Zealand, Pleasant Point and Temuka, which combined has a total population of .
Caroline Bay beach is a popular recreational area located close to Timaru's city centre, just to the north of the substantial port facilities. Beyond Caroline Bay, the industrial suburb of Washdyke is at a major junction with State Highway 8, the main route into the Mackenzie Country. This provides a road link to Fairlie, Twizel, Lake Tekapo, Aoraki / Mount Cook and Queenstown.
Timaru has been built on rolling hills created from the lava flows of the extinct Mt Horrible volcano, which last erupted many thousands of years ago. The result is that most of the main streets are undulating, a clear contrast with the flat landscape of the Canterbury Plains to the north. This volcanic rock is used for the construction of local " bluestone" buildings.
Timaru is a former New Zealand Parliamentary electorate, in the South Island. It existed continuously from 1861 to 1996 and was represented by eleven Members of Parliament.