Well what a truly fabulous 4 weeks we’ve had here is New Zealand! Such a wonderfully and friendly country with such diverse and beautiful landscapes!

This evening as we enjoyed our last dinner here in Auckland, we chatted about our favourite places and activities….there were just so many! From glow worms to paradise beaches, from volcanos to bush baths, it really has been wonderful!

The last few days we have spent some time chilling in lovely Auckland. We have another beautiful Airbnb with a washing machine so everything had been washed and cleaned ready for the next adventure. I’ve weirdly liked getting it all clean and ironing everything ready to pack! Simple pleasures hey!

Yesterday after schooling was done we decided to drive out to the beaches on the west coast of Auckland, to see the black sands along the wild coast. Again so different from everywhere else, the soft volcanic sand is dark black, twinkly and feels amazing between your toes!

Firstly we stopped at gorgeous Piha beach, which was pretty busy as the national surfing competitions were on, such fun to watch! The turquoise waves were crashing in on the black sand, and the rocky backdrop looked rugged and beautiful in the sun. The waves were pretty crazy, but I guess that’s what you need for a surfing beach!

After a couple of hours on the beach we packed up our bits and on the way back to the car, stopped at the beach bar ‘Adey’s place’ for the best chips ever! Perhaps it was the added surfing vibe or salty sea air…Absolutely deelish!

We then drove further north to Muriwai and found an absolute gem of a beach, with hardly anyone else there! Sparkling black sands, steep cliffs with rocky nesting areas for the huge garnet colony, and a fantastic cave that went deep into the cliff face and out to the crashing sea waves!

When the waves went out we all loved running in to explore the cave and we even found the most amazing starfish clinging to the cave wall.

The girls loved playing in the shallow waters and thought it was hilarious covering themselves in the wet black sands! Their poor swimsuits will never be the same again, but hey it was great fun! We even left our mark with our name on the sand!

Today we have been to visit MOTAT, the museum of transport and technology. The girls loved all the exciting technology and water experiments, and the aeroplane hanger full of vintage planes was fascinating. We heard all about Jean Batten, the famous female New Zealand aviator who made many record breaking solo flights around the world…its funny the things we’ve learnt about as we go along!

Well tonight we say goodbye to Auckland and early tomorrow we catch our flight to Australia, we will be sad to leave, it’s been wonderful!

But looking forward to the next chapter!