The ferry trip to Waiheke Island was very cool but the Coromandel peninsula is THE vacation beach spot. White sand beaches, much warmer temperatures and relatively calm seas needed to be explored.  We booked a rental car for the scenic road trip to Coromandel Town, Whitianga, and then back to Auckland.  Winding through the  peninsula we passed hundreds of iconic,  brightly colored camper vans.  Everyone was pulling the same style boat, a Kiwi Kraft.  These are aluminium pontoon boats similar in purpose to California’s Radon style.  Metal crafts are needed because of all the rocks here. 

We discovered the Cathedral Cove Kayak Tours, which launched off of Hahei Beach on the east coast of the peninsula.  Kayaking in this area has been on my wish list for quite awhile.

From Kai:  ” However, it wasn’t just a normal kayak trip. I got into a double kayak with my dad and set out to paddle around an island about a kilometer away from shore. Once we reached the island, we admired its beauty for a couple minutes and paddled on through a cave and over to another volcanic island  (if you could even call it  that-  it was basically a house-sized rock protruding from the water).   I daydreamed about living on the island and being a pirate. Our guide caught up with us and instructed us to paddle to a small beach about 300 meters away. We left our possible pirate past behind and paddled to the beach.”

We kayaked a good portion of  Mercury Bay.  The bay was name by James Cook who “discovered”  New Zealand  around 1769.   He had to rely on crude devices and planets to navigate his way around the islands.  He was able to line up Mercury while sailing in this inlet,  hence the name, Mercury Bay.   Below are photos from Ross, our kayaking guide. He treated us to cappuccinos and hot chocolate on the beach!    (stock photos show Cathedral beach with it’s archways and caves.) Gorgeous As !!!!   

 

A few minutes down the road from Cathedral Cove, we stopped to see Hot Water Beach.  It seemed deserted until we strolled farther down and spotted a huge gathering of people.  At low tide you can dig down a foot or two and hot water wells up.   Everyone bathes in their little pools  until the warm water cools off , then they do again.  We didn’t bring a shovel and the tide came up so maybe next time we can “spa” on the beach!  Once back in Auckland we shopped a bit more.  The city centre is packed with international tourists and feels like a NYC-Hong Kong mix.   Des and Kai each made a shoe purchase after looking at 1000s of shoes. Stores provided  a hip-hop culture experience. Some had DJs playing loud rap music and lower levels with displays of  exclusive pieces (ie no price tags, if you have to ask you can’t afford it! ).   The main strip has Gucci, Louis Vuitton, Prada, and all the global design stores.  However, there was always a line.  The clerks are strict about the “personal shopping experience” and only a handful of customers can browse at a time.  We managed to slide into Prada and our attendant show us new jackets and other all-weather gear designed  for the  “America’s Cup” sailing line.  Kai said he had a new appreciation for nice things after inspecting the clothing up close.  We didn’t ask prices, just assumed we couldn’t afford it.

 

Auckland’s Art Gallery was very cool.  I especially liked Gottfried Lindauer’s  collection of Maori Portraits and the ever-relevant abstract modern art of the late New Zealander, Gordon Walters.  

 

Cheers from the big city.

Now back in our rural, more conservative, pastoral homestead, we all agreed to travel more!