Hamilton

We left the Harbour Oaks early and drove to Hamilton via The Coromandel Peninsula. The views were truly spectacular of this unspoiled and rugged coastline. See 4 photos. We had a leisurely journey, as we were not checking into The Kingsgate in Hamilton until later that afternoon. Foolishly, forgetting that we had no cooking facilities at this location we bought a Kg of live green lipped mussels, $2.00 Cdn per kilo, but we were able to keep them on ice in the fridge until we left for Rotorua so all was not lost. We also bought smoked mussels and smoked mussel pate. It was all very delicious.

The Kingsgate was an adequate stop over place but not salubrious. However, as we were out and about every day we only needed a clean comfortable place to sleep. On Wednesday morning we first drove to a small town east of Hamilton called Cambridge with a nice clock tower and a proper butcher shop. A nice friendly town where we purchased tickets to visit The Hobbiton movie set. The tickets were expensive and we found out why when we arrived. It was truly amazing. So much so it deserved a blog of its own. Hamilton is quite an industrial city but on our return we stopped at the Hamilton Gardens. These magnificent gardens are set in a large, beautiful park along the banks of the Waikato River. Unbelievably there is no entry fee. We arrived there late in the afternoon and although the info centre and all the other facilities close, with the exception of the toilets, the gardens stay open for all to enjoy. On our way round the battery ran out in Barbara’s camera so we left vowing to return the next day. We went into downtown for dinner finding a very nice Indian Restaurant and the Monday to Wednesday special was all curries $10 NZ. Our total bill including a glass of wine and a beer was $32.00 Cdn. The following night we went to an Italian Bistro. Equally good food and also reasonably priced. Hamilton’s downtown is very vibrant and eclectic and situated on the Waikato River.

Thursday we drove to Tauranga, via Matamata as we did not visit there when we stopped on the cruise ship, opting to stay in Mt. Maunganui instead. Tauranga was a little disappointing, not much to do or see. Matamata was a very nice little town and integral to Hobbiton, hence it will be included in that blog. On the way back to Hamilton we did indeed stop again at the Hamilton Gardens and enjoyed them all over again and some parts that we didn’t see the first time. Photos include the Italian, Chinese, Indian, Tudor and the Walled garden decorated with scarecrows made by local schoolchildren and a view of the river. Jim and Barbara’s photo, just in case you are wondering, was not in the Walled Garden.

We left early the next morning for Rotorua…………….