New Zealand!

After a long day of travel (Phuket to Bangkok to Auckland) we arrived in New Zealand. Since we didn't have a departing ticket it took us about three hours to get out of the airport, finally walking out with a 3-month temporary visa. We rented our little car and made the 2-hour drive through gorgeous countryside and curvy "mountain" roads until we arrived in Whangamata, a small beach town on the East coast, where we plan to set up camp for the next three weeks.

We arrived to rain and dark clouds, but when there was a break we headed to the beach.

And since then, we've been at the beach playing in the waves and exploring the small town.

And collecting sea treasures...

And loving the sunsets...

The pace is slow here, and we've been taking a few days to relax and let it sink in that we get to be here for awhile. So far this little corner of New Zealand seems like a mixture of Oregon Coast and Hawaii with a lot of Irish green thrown in!

We ventured out to the grocery store and it took us about two hours to really scan the place for foods we could eat. It is pricey here! We're keeping things pretty simple.

We thought these Easter Kiwi bird chocolates were fun!

When we decided to come to New Zealand, everyone said we wouldn't want to leave. They were right!