We left Auckland for three days to head to the beaches of the Coromandel Penninsula, about 1.5 hours east of Auckland. We spent nights in two different towns, enjoying a nice dinner in one and sights in another. We hiked down to a place called Cathedral Cove, which includes a tunnel that can only be accessed during low tide. It leads to a secluded, beautiful stretch of white sand beach. We also went to a place called Hot Water Beach, where people dig pits in the sand with shovels, releasing thermally heated waters into the pits for a make-your-own jacuzzi right alongside white-capped waves crashing on the beach. It was superb.

Unfortunately, I got sick while on the penninsula, so I spent the better part of the last day-and-a-half just hanging out in the hostel and neighboring town trying to shake it off before Australia.

We returned to Auckland for one last day, where we spent it at Kelly Tarlton's Aquarium. We saw lots of great marine life up close, including enormous stingrays, sharks, puffer fish, giant squid, and more. It was a good day, but we got up early on the 22nd to bid farewell to New Zealand and move on to Australia. We absolutely loved New Zealand, and we are looking forward to more good times in Oz, starting with Sydney.