Paradise Left

As perfect as Opoutere may have been, I couldn’t spend the rest of my trip there and it was time to move on. In fact, everyone had to move on as by 10am an invasion of around 40 12 year olds and their harried chaperones had the hostel overrun, a school trip which had been booked months in advance. The hostel manager seemed unfazed as the kids were the chaperone’s responsibility; she had but to hide in her office until the storm passed. I started the walk back to the main Coromandel highway (State Highway no. 25) but didn’t wait long before a car stopped – two actually. One car had two Canadian friends, Megs and Jesse, both in the mid twenties, and the following car was a German friend they had made who had his own wheels. They were spending another night on the Coromandel and offered to take me as far as I wanted, even as far as Auckland the next day. I agreed to think about Auckland while we continued on. Their – and now my – first objective was Hot Water Beach, famed for the thermal spring water which runs under the sand out to sea. If you arrive two hours either side of low tide, you can dig a hole big enough for yourself, and be amazed as it fills with hot-tub-warm water. We were a bit too late and unfortunately the effect had passed, but we enjoyed a leisurely stroll down the beach taking photos and testing out the water. I didn’t bring my camera along as I was still content with my beach in Opoutere but was happy to be Megs photographer with her digital SLR. After saying goodbye to their German friend, our next stop north along the 25 was Cathedral Cove (not to be confused with Cathedral Caves in the Catlins). This magnificent beach requires a 20 minute hike along the side of some cliffs before descending to the wonderful beach. We stayed here for a while to  have a swim in the magnificent water, playing in the metre high surf and admiring the arched rock which separates the beach in two, also giving the beach its name. We swam, enjoyed the sun, and lazed for a couple hours before taking the far less attractive route back up the cliff. From here, we hit the road up to Whitianga, my original destination before the best sidetrack of my trip to Opoutere. We checked into a shared room, just the three of us, paying a couple extra dollars per person for the privacy. I thought about the rest of my time, trying to decide how I would get to Auckland. My flight out was on the 1^st and travelling to Auckland now would mean five nights in a city which I had heard many negative things about from other backpackers. On the other hand, it was a guaranteed ride with these Canadians all the way to Auckland, and they were willing to drive me to whatever hostel I booked. I decided to travel with them to Auckland and thanked them for giving me the opportunity. Dinner was at a carvery in town where patrons choose a meat and get to help themselves to a buffet of vegetables. Predictably, I went with the lamb and loaded on the crisp roasted vegetables for what turned out to be a delicious dinner choice.

I booked the YHA International in Auckland at reception the next morning before we set out to traverse the rest of highway 25. It was $23/night, which at the time seemed expensive, but only because I was spoiled by the cheap hostels throughout New Zealand’s more rural destinations. The rest of the drive was nearly as twisty as the Queen Charlotte Pass, but with a near empty stomach I managed not to feel sick as I read my way along the highway from the back seat. We reached Coromandel Town on the west coast and stopped for a short while, enjoying a hike to the shoreline which took only an hour return. The towns in this area have little to offer themselves in the way of attractions, although they all seem to have their own rendition of a gold museum, a gold mining experience, and a gold miner’s house to tour. One might start to suspect that the region was initially populated in the late 1800’s by opportunists seeking their fortune in the Coromandel’s own gold rush! One might also suspect that there is still a lot of prospecting going on, and Opoutere’s residents are currently trying to fight off a big mining company that wants to mine the region heavily. We hit the road and enjoyed a considerably straighter ride the rest of the way to State Highway 1, where we joined multilane traffic all the way to Auckland. This was some of the first multilane highway I’d seen in New Zealand, and as we approached the city and got stuck in gridlock (it was around 3pm) I appreciated the need for it. New Zealand has a funny population distribution: of 4.4 million people, just over one million live in the South Island. Of these people, around 400 thousand live in one of the two cities, Christchurch and Invercargill. Of the 3.3 million on the North Island, around 1.2 live in Auckland and its environs. I wonder why the majority of the tourism happens away from the main population in New Zealand, and the majority of the population live far away from the main sights the country has to offer, but I suppose I cannot work my way into the psyche of a Kiwi; or rather, an English settler. This uneven population distribution does leave Auckland alone in the category of ‘large cities in New Zealand’, and often times it shows – usually not in their favour. State Highway 1 for example, as it approaches the city, is nowhere near sufficient to handle the droves of commuting Aucklanders. The city streets – even in the newer parts of town – are far too small or poorly organised to handle the thousands of people who ride them daily. In fact, if Auckland is notorious for one thing, it is the hodgepodge style in which everything seems organised, from roads and public transit, to zoning and public works. It is a constant source of frustration for Aucklanders and – according to my Lonely Planet – tourists alike. This coupled with a poor reputation amongst backpackers for quality of accommodation, sights, and prices; and you might start to understand my apprehension at spending too much time here. Red flags were raised left, right and centre as we fought our way through the crowded city streets towards the hostel, my drivers having a hard time with oddly placed one ways, crowded intersections, and confusing roundabouts. I found myself rather dreading my time here, and even regretting a bit deciding to stay as long as I would. The YHA International however, was a delightful surprise. Lonely Planet says that when most people recount the terrible experiences with Auckland hostels, they are usually referring to the grungy central hostels, and LP recommends staying in the surrounding suburbs. Apparently they missed YHA International. After a quick visit to an incredibly cheap Asian food restaurant (yumm, MSG...), I set about finding things to do in the city back at the hostel.

As I read my way through some brochures, checked out online resources, and perused information on current events; I had to scratch my head when recalling all the Auckland naysayers who claimed it was a boring city with little to offer. During my visit there was the opening of the Lantern Festival, a documentary festival, a 24 hour observathon at the observatory with gold coin donation for entry, and more, plus, of course, the usual attractions. Whatever I ended up doing, I knew my visit to Auckland was not going to be boring and uneventful. The plethora of activities plus the generally cheap prices throughout the city had me thinking that my visit was in fact going to be quite enjoyable, a fitting end to a wonderful time in New Zealand.