Auckland to Whitianga (Mercury Bay)
Trip Start
Oct 01, 2006
1
4
75
Trip End
May 17, 2007
Whitianga,
New Zealand
Tuesday, October 10, 2006
We got an early coach (as they all are) to make our way to Whitianga. 1st stop was mount Eden on the edge of auckland, where we got more views of the city an Eden Park (the rugby ground).
We then stopped in a town called Thames for an hour. Apparently it was named Thames as it looks like the Thames - it doesn't. The town is like a derilict gold-mining town with nothing there, so we really didn't need an hour!
Next stop was Hot Water Beach, which is located particularly close to lava, so there are areas of the beach that are boiling - I managed to burn my feet! It was pretty bizarre. Everyone was digging hot tubs in the sand. Not an every day sight.
Then we went to Cathedral Cove - apparently one of the top 10 beaches in the world, but not 100% sure as our tour guide tends to lie a bit (He reckons Blackpool is the most visited place in Europe....). The beach is stunning though!
We got to Whitianga at about 5.30. We just dropped our bags and went to find the nearest pub - we always seem to be the 1st in the pub!!! The town isn't great and 2 pubs closed at 10 (Smitty's Sports Bar and the Hotel are the guilty culprits), so we went to a doorway that toook us up to a small bar and pool tables. Ad, myself, Jess, Hillary and Jaap sunk a few jars and I played the local imbreds at pool. The night ended there!
