The adventures of Jeremy and Bridget part 2: Days 6-8

And we're back! Believe it or not, there are still places in the world without WiFi and we were at one of them. But no worries, we'll catch you back up now.

Day 6 - Coromandel
We got up (somewhat) early and drove from Auckland to the Coromandel Peninsula (Hahei beach, to be specific). We stayed at a little chalet about a 10-minute walk from the beach. Once we arrived and got settled in a bit, we took off on a hike to see Cathedral Cove and some other vistas along the coast. The hike was a nice ~3hr adventure up and down the bluffs along the coast, providing some fantastic views at (pretty much) every turn. Rather than bore you with text, I'll let the pics do the talking (below)

Day 7 - Hot Water Beach
We actually got up early (5:30am) this morning to see the sunrise over the beach. Only problem was this giant rock sticking out and blocking the horizon. But, the water was calm, the breeze was nice, and we made the best of it. After heading back (and some of us getting a cat nap), we went to a place called Hot Water Beach. There is a natural hot spring under the beach and the scalding hot water seeps up through the sand. So, people bring shovels and dig holes in the sand to form makeshift hot tubs that fill with the hot water. Only problem is that it is way too hot to just sit in, so you have to try to have some of the ocean (quite cold) mix in to cool it down. Oh, and there are like hundreds of people with the same idea, so it's pretty much mayhem trying to find the "best" spot to set up camp. We were successful and enjoyed a bit of time in our "hot tub" before the tide came in and knocked the walls down. We moved away from the masses to actually enjoy the beach and water. There was a nice swell coming in, so body surfing the waves was pretty fun. And then we rented a surfboard and rode on top of the waves, which was a blast (as expected). Apparently the GoPro does a better job for Bridget than me, but no surprise there... She got some nice shots of us riding the waves. After a nice session in the water, we packed up and grabbed dinner at "Serial Griller: Killer Burgers"; a food-truck type joint near the beach. The burgers were to die for... (#dadjoke)

Day 8 - Hobbiton
After yesterday's sunrise not being ideal (but still pretty spectacular), Bridget and I got up early again and hiked out onto that rock in the way to see the sunrise again. Unfortunately, it was cloudy (go figure, right?). But it's really hard to not enjoy sitting atop a bluff overlooking the water, so we were cool with it. After heading back and packing up (cat naps were saved for the car drive), we drove to Matamata; the home to the Hobbiton set from Lord of the Rings movies. It was pretty cool to be there and imagine being in the movie, but as could be expected, the set was just for looks on the outside. None of the hobbit holes had insides. All of that filming was done in a studio. Anyway, we finished up with a buffet lunch (not sure if it was authentic Hobbit food or not, but it was delicious) and then continued on the road to Rotorua, our next destination. This place has WiFi, so here I've sat since we arrived to get this post finished up.