The Coromandel Peninsula is a narrow peninsula with a mountain range running down the middle. Whangamata, where I'm housesitting, is on the east side and has been voted as having the best beach in NZ. From my perspective it is certainly a pleasant change to be able to stroll along the sand in the middle of June. The weather here is so different to what I have experienced the last 2 weeks, it's hard to believe I am in the same country. And I have graduated from a tin shed to a very lovely house on 5 acres and 2 very easily managed dogs. It will be a nice way to end my time in New Zealand. The east coast of the peninsula holds a few well known attractions, one of them being Cathedral Cove. It's a 75 minute walk to get there, but the coastline views along the way are well worth it. In the cove is a giant "tunnel" through a cliff on the ocean shore. The shape of the tunnel resembles a cathedral ceiling and when you look through it, a massive rock formation almost appears to be the pulpit. It's quite stunning as are the numerous small islands and rock formations that are dotted around the bay.

My time here has been disrupted a bit by power outages. An all day one was planned but on Saturday night a huge electrical storm blew out a transformer just outside the house. Being without power is inconvenient at the best of times but when you depend on tank water and an electric pump to deliver it to the house the that's another dimension. So pretty much all day Sunday and for a few more hours on Monday I lived without power. I had to resort to a cold shower out of a bucket and cooking on a small gas camping stove. It was sort of like camping, but in a house.

On the bus trip from Auckland we passed through Karangahake Gorge. Towering cliffs and a fast flowing river provided some stunning scenery. What I didn't realise was that this was once a huge gold mining area. There is still much of the infrastructure visible today. Stamping plants, rail lines and even a 1km long rail tunnel that is now part of a walking/cycling track through the area. There was even an aerial cable car that was used to transport the mined quartz across the river to the crushing plant. The engineering required to make all this happen was amazing. Unfortunately the weather turned a tad nasty and cut short the day.

I haven't managed to see as much of the Coromandel Peninsula as I intended, which is a pity as it certainly appears to be a pleasant place to spend some time. Good beaches, picturesque mountains and, it appears, quite a bit of history. It might be enough of a reason to come back to NZ.