The first day of vacation

Today felt like a vacation!
I know, some might throw rotten eggs and tomatoes towards New Zealand, because we've been off since December while everyone else is battling through everyday life and work. But we finally arrived at the beach! After our second hiking tour at Mount Taranaki, we drove along the Forgotten World Highway and stayed overnight at a "Forgotten World" campsite. When the railway was still active, up to 1,800 people inhabited the area. Now only one family remains, running the campsite and the farm for personal use, and supposedly getting rich with Manuka honey. Unfortunately, we missed the music festival in the nearby canyon, but the peaceful hike there, with the sighting of wild horses, was still a highlight.
From there, we zoomed all the way to the north coast of the North Island. When I say zoomed: 300km and we were on the road between 11am and 6pm. Okay, with a lunch break and a shopping break. And today, today we didn't do anything. Breakfast, beach walk (me), reading (Helmut), Pilates on the beach (me), still reading (Helmut), battling the wild waves and then fish and chips (the both of us), coffee, sheep, more reading, and another beach walk! This beautiful ocean creates such a peaceful atmosphere. We're staying here on the coast until our departure. We'll still drive around a bit. Helmut would like to go snorkeling, and I would like to do the hiking trail with an overnight stay at the lighthouse. Let's see how the weather plays along.