So, after leaving Auckland we headed for Hot Water Beach which, if you dug down in the right place on the beach, you could sit in hot water!! This was due to the high geothermal activity in this part of NZ. In fact, just at the shoreline, boiling water was bubbling up from the sand- so hot that you literally couldn't stand there for any length of time! After sitting in our pool for a bit, we headed back to the bus, where a German girl from our tour slipped (fully clothed and with camera na dphone in hand!) and went neck deep in the tributary running out to sea!!! Harsh, but hilarious at the same time!!!

Next we stopped at a Winery (a friend of our driver's) for some wine and liqueur tasting... which was nice! The dude who owned it, Dan, was also pretty entertaining!! From there we headed to Whitianga and for our hostel. After checking in, we had spag bol courtesy of the old couple who ran the place, before a few drinks and bed!