Well we got back from the Coromandel yesterday and although absolutely shattered we have rugby games this weekend and a trip to the South Island starting on Monday so no time to stop! We all had tickets to the Australia v Ireland game and we planned on leaving early afternoon so that we could get to Kingsland and have a few drinks somewhere before heading over to the stadium for the game. The morning was a lazy one and for lunch Dale made a gorgeous frittata ...

Leaving the Coromandel, the International Boat Show (Dale had free tickets) and watching the NZ v Japan game at The Cloud were on the agenda today - and what a day it was. Driving back to Auckland from the Coromandel we stopped for lunch at a well-known Fish & Chips restaurant and had some GORGEOUS grub were the resident cat walked around quite unashamedly scouting for leftovers - he got them too. Well-fed and happy, we got back on the road and back to ...

Today we got up early and got ready to walk down to Cathedral Cove and the surrounding Bays before making our way back to the Batch for the afternoon before dinner (courtesy of Michelle and Darren) and the rugby. The morning started off well….so eager was I, to experience the Cove when I mentioned to Jac's and Chris that I was going to pop down to the Annexe to give Michelle and Darren a wake up call, that I was completely unprepared for what happened next...

...was one of the last and funniest things I had heard all day yesterday - Chris and I were sleeping in the living area, me on the sofa and Chris on the window seat, and I was just comfortable in my sleeping bag when I heard Chris say this. To be fair the Moon was very bright and we had no blinds, but it still made me laugh like hell and I couldn't stop laughing at it. Definitely another new saying for the rest of the trip me thinks!... Still laughing about ...

Today we travelled to the Coromandel which is the chosen holiday destination of New Zealanders as well as tourists. We stayed at a place called Hot Water beach which was one of the beaches around the point, along with, Hahei Beach with its famous bays and coves most notably Cathedral Cove which we are going to visit this week. I got to take my first trip in the Camper Van - very nice indeed and brilliant to be a passenger in, you get the odd wave and nod but m...