Coromandel Peninsula - You spin my head right round, because it's getting hot in here!

The next day we set off early towards Coromandel Peninsula after breakfast. Since 3.5 weeks is naturally a tight schedule for all of New Zealand, we always have some driving time ahead of us. We need about 3 hours, plus we have a supermarket stop. I am very grateful that the majority of the group enjoys fresh food just as much as I do, so we decide on a large salad for the evening. Finally, we arrive in Hahei, where, in addition to a very beautiful beach, there are also some caves, including the famous Cathedral Cove and the Hot Water Beach. After a short beach walk, we take a boat to the different caves. The geology is quite fascinating, consisting of volcanic rock, and you can clearly see where the boundary between lava and volcanic ash lies, in which direction the lava flowed, and so on. The wonderful thing about traveling is that you can share experiences with people of all backgrounds and ages, and it doesn't matter who you are in everyday life. And so I dance and sing with someone from the group, with whom I could have casually shared my high school graduation two years ago, to a few rounds spun by our guide on the boat - 'You spin my head right round, right round...' Cathedral Cove is crowded with people, partly due to it being Waitangi Day - the New Zealand national holiday. After the boat tour, we cool off in the water - a wave got me when I was getting out anyway - take a beach nap, and then check into our accommodation for the night. In the evening, we head back to the beach equipped with shovels. Under the so-called Hot Water Beach, there are about 2 km of hot rock layers from volcanic activity beneath the sand. Although this was a few million years ago, it’s still hot. If you dig a hole in the sand, the hot water rises from below, creating a little sand bathtub on the beach. This is so cool, or actually the opposite (in terms of temperature), at some places it's even too hot for me. Again we sing ('It's getting hot in here.'), leading to funny conversations. The light has long since disappeared. Nevertheless, I could spend an eternity here, watching the sun set in a beach hot tub.