Figuring Things Out

We've spent the last 24 hours figuring out how to drive on the left side of the road and use a turn signal with our right hands; that tea kettles don't stay on the counter when the campervan is in motion; that when the money runs out for the shower, only the hot water turns off; and other such important important knowledge.

Yesterday morning, we met John, the owner of our campervan rental company, at the Auckland airport and went over all the details of the van. We then discussed our travel plans and headed out for the Coromandel Peninsula. Our change of plans was motivated by John's description of all the "wicked" areas on the peninsula and our feeling that our unplanned visit to Honolulu and surrounding areas was all we could handle of tourist hot spots for a while. John's kindness and helpfulness reassured us that we couldn't go wrong anywhere in New Zealand, but that we'd really enjoy the peninsula.

Last night was spent at a place on the road to Coromandel and were not disappointed. First stopping at Kawakawa Bay, where we took some pictures and napped, we headed to Orere Point around 3 p.m. The beach at the point is composed of rocks about the size of paperweights and was uneven from high tide coming up. The sky was cornflower blue in spots (check your Crayola crayon box for an illustration) and the clouds were small and fluffy with white tops and light grey bottoms. A pale emerald green, the water was coming up for high tide.

Our campsite was down the road from Orere Point and the spot where parked the van overlooked a creek. Our exploration was mostly limited to the confines of the campervan because our nesting instincts took over. We organized, ate, read, journaled and tried to redirect gnats (or a similar bug) our of our campervan. Hart provided the most spectacular scene of the evening as he stood outside the back of the van with a flashlight behind him. From inside the dark van, he looked almost mythic with a glow behind him and bugs swarming in the light. The endeavor was only partially successful, so we turned off all the lights, opened the windows and went to bed early.

Packing, showering and eating took up a large part of our morning after we slept in until 9:30. We're now in Thames, John's hometown, and are going to set off on the peninsula shortly. We can't download the pictures with these computers, but we'll post photos of this spectacular scenery as soon as we can.