We were sorry to leave Australia on Sunday especially after enjoying the Botanical gardens on Saturday in the sun shine. We had a lazy lunch and then went out to the Circular Quay to see the new film Australia. It is a heavily romanticised account a la Hollywood but the pictures are great and we both enjoyed it.Sunday was a frustrating day at Sydney airport with a delayed plane and lots of hanging about. By the time we reached Auckland and picked up the car it was getting late, so we did nothing else but eat some supper and go to bed.The weather was poor the next morning but we climbed up to the top of the hill and visited the Museum. Fantastic amount to see, including a Maori cultural show and a simulated eruption of a volcano in Auckland Harbour. This was little to realistic and I woke in the night with a nightmare. The next morning we set off across the north of New Zealand with some sunshine at least. We crossed the mountains to windy Waikei which proved to have an enormous gold mine and a museum. We also tried out the goldmine railway, a fun trip with a curious old fashioned tea room type café at the end. Arrived at Whangamata yesterday evening and spent today walking the beach and soaking in the sun. The beach has a famous surf beach with a sand bar that gives a perfect roll to waves and the town is very crowded during the holiday period. Today however, we had most of it to ourselves. The water was freezing so only one or two lone brave surfers in the water.Tomorrow we are off to Rotorua so we should find some hot water there!!