We left Auckland Friday morning headed east to the Coromandel Peninsula with an eventual destination of Kuaotunu. After a few disruptions we finally made it out of the city. Outside the city limits the landscapes opened up into wide expanses of verdant pastureland alternating with grass-covered foothills. The flatlands and hills alike were dotted with cows, trees, more cows and a few horses… and then a few more cows. The grassland seems greener here than back home, and there are no overgrown thickets to be found. Apparently a herd of hungry cows is the best lawn service available… I’m thinking of buying a few when I get home :)

Thames / Butterfly and Orchid Gardens

The city of Thames sits at the southwest tip of the Coromandel Peninsula, just as the road turns north and heads up the coast towards Coromandel town. We stopped for lunch at a local eatery where I ordered my usual hamburger: lettuce, tomato and onion only. They looked at me like I had just asked for a glass of cheese or a plate of milk… apparently they do burgers differently over here. We finally straightened out my order, but I guess they didn’t understand the "only" part. They went ahead and added ketchup (which is fine), mayo (which I scraped off, ug!), and a potato fritter of equal size to the burger, upon which the burger rested. Weird, but edible. Melody loved her meat pies and other assorted nastiness.

Just north of Thames is a small local attraction that looked interesting. It is a small greenhouse in which 400 butterflies flit and flutter freely amongst various types of orchids. It was very relaxing and Mel purchased our first souvenir of the trip: a boxed (preserved) butterfly with some amazing colorations.

After Thames, the highway runs north along the west coast of the peninsula all the way to Coromandel town. And I mean right along the coast, which made for great viewing but tense driving. It got scarier when we got into the mountains and had to navigate narrow, winding roads with hairpin turns while driving on the wrong left side of the road.

It was worth it though, as the scenic lookouts offered some amazing views of the harbors below. It was nice to be out of the city and surrounded by natural beauty, and I could feel myself finally beginning to relax.

Click here for more pictures from our drive to our Kuaotunu B&B.

Up next: an awesome B&B overlooking the beach and adventure activities high above the ground.