The Coromandel Peninsula, Cathedral Cove, and Rotorua

The night before the trip to the Coromandel Peninsula, I spent it on a shell beach. Right by the water, I had the opportunity to park my camper for free and I took advantage of that since I really liked the scenery there. The next morning, I headed towards the peninsula very early. My first stop was in Coromandel, a small sleepy village in the far north of the peninsula. I walked through the streets for a little while, but it only took about 30 minutes, as Coromandel was not very big. Nevertheless, it had a very nice charm and the people seemed relaxed and in a good mood. How could they not be, with the location right by the sea and the wonderful weather. After that, I made myself a cup of coffee in the van and also sat in the sun for a while. After about an hour, I continued towards Cathedral Cove. Upon arrival, you had to park a little bit outside in a parking lot. Then you had the choice to take a paid shuttle to the start of the hiking trail or to walk the entire way yourself. I chose the latter. So I walked uphill and downhill for about 1 hour and 30 minutes until I reached Cathedral Cove. The path was really sweaty and strenuous. But when I arrived, I was once again rewarded for my efforts. Cathedral Cove is a huge cave in a rock, right by a beautiful beach. There were a few other people there, but they hardly made a difference. Because it is still the off-season here, it is sometimes very quiet at the main attractions. I strolled along the beach, enjoying the sun and the sound of the sea. After an hour, I started heading back. By now it was afternoon, and I began looking for a place to spend the night. I drove to a neighboring town where I stayed overnight at a free parking area. There was free WiFi at a public library nearby, which made the evening perfect. This morning, I continued on to Tauranga. It's not a particularly noteworthy city, but I stopped for an hour and walked around the streets. Afterwards, I headed to Rotorua, where a free hot shower awaited me in a mountain bike park. This is always a real highlight for me :) In the afternoon, I parked my camper in a spot for the night and went into town. The special thing about Rotorua is that it is located in a thermal area. Everywhere in the city, there is a smell of rotten eggs due to the sulfur fumes, and the earth is steaming. It's really fascinating. In a free park, there were small boiling lakes and bubbling mud pools to see. It was truly impressive. In the surrounding area, there are even more fascinating thermal parks, but they require an entrance fee. I have chosen the most famous one for tomorrow and will pay it a visit. Unfortunately, in New Zealand, it feels like every attraction costs a lot of admission fees, which takes away some of the fun. But I'm trying to make the best of it and only visit every 3rd or 4th attraction. The next few days will be quieter on the blog again, as I am heading to another remote cape where there will presumably be hardly any civilization (internet, etc.) again. However, if everything works out, I will have the chance to be one of the first people on Earth to see the sunrise. I will greet it for you in advance, as after about 11 hours, you should be able to see it too :) Once I am back from my trip, I will provide a detailed report on the next and previous days. Until then, stay healthy!