Last days in New Zealand

Following on from Rotorua we planned to visit Waitomo and the glow worm caves. Waitomo was a very small town and other than visiting the cave we didn't have much else planned so enjoyed a bit of down time reflecting on our trip so far and planning the last few days in New Zealand as well as Hong Kong. Our visit to the cave was very enjoyable, the highlight being a boat ride through the pitch black cave with millions of glow worms lighting the ceiling like stars in the sky! Unfortunately we weren't able to take any pictures here to show you but it was amazing to see. 

Moving on from Waitomo we were stuck between two options before we made our way to Auckland. Eventually we decided to visit Hahei on the Coromandel Peninsular so that we could walk to see the famous Cathedral Cove! The journey there was a little awkward however and meant we had to spend a night in Hamilton due to the times the busses ran. Fortunately, we had met a lovely couple on the bus to Milford Sounds earlier on in our trip and they put us up for a night. On arrival at Hahei, we checked into the cosy hostel and got chatting to a man who was part of a large group from Auckland staying there for the weekend. As it so happened they had made too much food and so we were invited to join them for dinner and games that evening! The next couple of days were very quiet and other than a lovely walk down to see Cathedral Cove we spent most of our time enjoying some more down time before we moved on up to Auckland. We were unfortunately victims to a theft whilst in Hahei...a German boy stole some of our sausages that we had bought for dinner! Bloody Germans and their wurst! Still at least it was nothing too important and just more of an annoyance if anything so no harm done. 

 

 Cathedral Cove

 

 

Auckland was our last stop in New Zealand and we were looking forward to exploring the city and picking up some last minute souvenirs. On our first day in Auckland we hopped on the ferry and went over to nearby Waiheke island, which supposedly this used to be a very 'hippy' area full of artists and poets. The island was very quaint and we enjoyed the morning exploring the main town there before having lunch at a small cafe with fantastic views out over the bay. Returning back to Auckland for the afternoon we narrowly avoided a sudden downpour, taking refuge in an ice cream stop for some gelato before walking along Queens street looking around some of the shops. The next day we decided to have a walk up to the top of Mt. Eden, one of many dormant volcanos that surround Auckland. This was the highest point in Auckland and gave stunning views back over the city and surrounds, we couldn't have had a nicer day for the walk either and almost couldn't believe this was still winter weather for NZ! We have loved our time in NZ and are both sad to leave but also excited for the next few days in Hong Kong...back to Asia and back into our summer gear! 

 

 Auckland from the ferry

 

 Lunch on Waiheke island

 

 Atop Mt. Eden

 

 The crater of Mt. Eden

 

Auckland sky tower