The last fabulous days

Drove from cold, wet Napier to sunny, warm Tauranga. A bit disappointing but okay. We had lunch outdoors and a lovely walk along the water--enough said. Headed off yesterday (Monday here) to Whangamata where we played a round of golf (the front greens were being punched so played the back twice, got a deal) and stayed in a B and B homestay, which really means that you have your own room and bath and share the "living rooms" with the hosts. We went out for Indian, which was great, and had a good look around the locale and beaches, then headed back to crash and I do mean crash - the night before we had almost no sleep. Geoff turned off his Ipad at 7:30 pm and went directly to sleep. I managed to stay alert until 7:45. We both slept until almost 8:00am. Obviously we needed a bit of a catch up! Our host, Peter, rustled up the usual cereal, yoghurt, toast and scrambled eggs (Ed. note: Thought he somewhat reluctantly offered the eggs), then we headed off.

Drove north on the Coromandel Peninsula to the Hot Beach, north of Whangamata. What fun! There are underground thermal springs that heat up portions of the beach. People dig little pools to sit in and enjoy the relaxation. Quite funny to look at them, digging away.(Ed. note: looked like wayyyy too much work to me) It was a blowy day but we could feel the heat below once we dug in our feet up to our ankles. We hung out for an hour or so then drove on to Whatiangi where we played the most fun course of our trip. (Ed. note: does not mean the best round) We thoroughly enjoyed Mercury Bay! Met an Anglo-Quebec who told us he and his wife had been coming there for 8 years, rented a house and paid $400 for 4 months of unlimited golf! Really?! Enticing!(Ed. note: A few years ago someone wrote a book about the 18 worst golf holes in NZ and the 5th hole here was #1 - a par 5 shaped exactly like a U - I birdied it and Terry parred!!)

After our fun on the greens, Geoff had an ice cold Speight's while I had water. The driver has to take it safe, especially on the curly-Q roads of NZ coastlines. At 4:00pm we headed north for our final destination of Thames via the Town of Coromandel. We passed through numerous bergs on the way and were, as usual, blown away by the beauty of this country.  It is astonishing that so few people live in these fabulous places. As we drew closer to Coromandel, the beauty increased. I don't think it is likely that there are many places more beautiful. We were breathless as we approached from the hills above the town. Spectacular - but then, we have said that about so much of NZ!

The rest of the trip to Thames was alongside the ocean (Ed. note: and we mean right along the ocean). Very narrow roads, so the driver had to be attentive, but the ocean itself was fantastic and we were stunned by the amount of unspoiled waterfront. Truly amazing that it is not yet developed but it cannot last forever, we think.

Finally around 6:00 we arrive in Thames and search for a motel. In the end, we choose one that is not great but are too hungry to play around any longer. We sign in then head off immediately to eat, an impulse that cannot be ignored.; We head to the center of town to Gastronomics, which is first class hyperbole but the food was pretty good, especially the calamari which was NOT deep fried (halleluah!)(Ed. note: and the Kim Crawford Sauvignon Blanc).

Tomorrow, we fly out at 7:00pm so we have a whole lot of time to kill between here and the airport. We have a few places to stop on the way out and have to check in by 4:00, so will have a relaxing day. I suspect we may have fun before we board the plane as Geoff has moved a half bottle of red to a water bottle in order to consume at the airport! Well, it has been a grand trip, well worth the long flight. We have been so happy to see my relatives and thoroughly enjoyed every minute with them. It's been an educational trip as well; so much info on earthquakes and volcanoes, geography, and flora and fauna. The plant life here is superb! I have been fascinated--today spotted giant impatiens the size of rhodos! The kauri and rata trees; the national emblem, the silver ferns; cabbage trees; the plethora of succulents--they are all wonderful! I have thought and said many times, I don't know if one could find a more beautiful place than this. It is truly spectacular and we love it. (Ed. note: the most disappointing thing is that the photos do not do justice to how truly spectacular (have we overused this word?) this country is. As beautiful as Canada is, this may be moreso - or perhaps because it is so small you see it all in a short period of time.)