New Zealand~Auckland~Rotorua~Hahei

Last 5 days of our trip landed us in Auckland the Northern part of  New Zealand.  Auckland was forecast for the next 5 days heavy rain, so, we only spent 1 day there and decided to rent a car to see the land.  Sooo, glad we did….wait til I show you the amazing cove.  

We purchase our jade from there, did you know it was bad luck to buy jade for yourself?  So, Gabby bought some gifts for her friends and Jimmy got one for me and Gabby.  They have traditional designs:

I got Gabby the Hei Matau (Fish Hook):  Signifies strength, worn for catching good luck giving protection in travel, especially over water.  And Jimmy got me the Hei Tiki:  He is good luck, a traditional carving with great spiritual value.  A guardian and reminder of family forbearers. 

Super hilly!  This was one of the museum’s we saw.

Of course, remember I got to go to Scrapaholics,  yeah.   Ok, say good-bye to Auckland and heading to Rotorua about 3 hrs.

Here are the hot glaciers in Kuirau Park in Rotorua.

We ate at Fat Dog were they severed the traditional hamburger with an egg on top instead of cheese!

Next we spent the last two day in Hahei where there is a magnificent cove.  Cathedral Cove is so beautiful and a climb to get to.  You have to get there before low tide in order to see the smaller cave.

 

The rainbows here in New Zealand are so beautiful and we saw several each day.

And this is Cathedral Cove.

See the cave at the bottom, that is where we have to get to 35 min. walk.  This is the path we had to take to get there.

This is on the other side another opening, the water is so crystal clear.  I walked and thought I was half way there and this is what the first marker said:

Remember it is a 40 minute walk…lol I had only gone 5 minutes!  Most of you don’t know but I have had my left knee replaced twice and have sever Rheumatoid arthritis in my legs so this walk took me over an hour and a half, but I made myself do it as it was  a once in a lifetime opportunity.  Believe me I paid for it the next three days, but so, glad I did it.

Here I’m in the cave looking out.  Now this is the other cove.

Well, that’s it for my journey, I hoped you liked it and thanks for hanging in there with me.  Have a great weekend.  Hugz, Z