15/4/09 Dropoff time for the car was 10am, so we were up by 6 and left before 7. The roads were very bendy for quite a while through the mountains, with lots of curves - some quite sharp - one straight after the other. The scenery was mostly stunning, though Dave couldn't really get a look at it due to having to be so careful driving. Instead of going back to Surf 'n' Snow Backpackers, we paid for our last three nights in NZ at the Nomads Fusion hostel nearby. W...

12/4/09 Easter Day. We had originally planned on staying at Waingaro overnight, in order to visit the hot springs and spa pools etc. there, but then we decided that in order to cut down the costs (plus we weren't sure if they'd be open on Easter Day or the next day), we'd just go straight to the Coromandel Peninsula and stay the next three nights there before going back to Auckland. Driving there took up a lot of the day, but on the way we each had a Lindor truff...

10/4/09 Good Friday. A lot of the day was spent driving from Raglan to New Plymouth, but when we stopped at a supermarket to get a couple of drinks I made sure to get a packet of hot cross buns for ourselves! Strictly speaking we didn't stay in New Plymouth itself, but at a carvan park/campsite in the little village of Oakura nearby. This was next to a beautiful beach. The main attraction in this wider area is Mount Egmont, and although we didn't climb it, we got...

8/4/09 Our last night at Surf 'n Snow Backpackers at last! We had to pick up our hired car from Auckland airport rather than at the city branch, so to save having to pay for both of our transfers, Dave went and picked it up alone while I checked us out and looked after the luggage until he came back to pick me up. We drove down to Raglan, made and ate some sandwiches by the harbour, and paid for two nights at the campsite in town. After we'd done this we drove t...

17/3/09 - 7/4/09 When we first got back to Auckland from Waimana, we only booked three nights because we hoped to fly to the South Island after that (or hire another car and get the ferry across.) However, then we realised that our funds weren't big enough to let us get over there until our next installment went through, so we had to extend our stay for another two weeks and five days! When it did come through, we were finally able to try and book our flights dow...