This past weekend, a group of the Auckland interns took a trip to the hot water beaches in coromandel. The beaches were about a 3 hour drive from the city and the drive itself was a sight to see. What felt like a movie driving through the night with a sea of stars above was truly breathtaking. After arriving at our airbnb which overlooked the hot water beaches we set out to look at the stars again with the waves crashing down from the beach. While there wasn’t a local large grocery store (quite common in NZ) there was a very cool cafe right next to our airbnb. It was quite a popular stop with the locals and our group continued the trend. The cafe was a combined restaurant and art gallery and was home to quite a few really interesting art collections. While some of the art was more eye catching than others, every single piece had its own beauty and value. After breakfast we planned our journey to the hot water beach, which was not a far journey at all and took us about 3 minutes to walk there. However we did have to plan when we’re going to go to see the hot water beach because it is only accessible at certain points in the day depending on the tide. So from 1pm-3pm we were sitting in the warm sand. The hot water beaches are actually hot springs in the ground that make certain parts of the sand very warm if you dig at certain spots. You could tell where the best places to dig where as the population of the beachgoers was very very dense. Most people dug a a hole big enough for a few people and could be see enjoying the warm natural water. Part of the beach that was very very hot was about 50 yards to the right of the majority of the group. In this spot which was right where the waves were crashing down, if you went only a few inches into the sand just enough to cover your ankles, it was enough to burn your feet it was so hot. When I first heard that it was a hot water beach I was wondering how hot could it really be, I was surprised when I felt boiling temperature sand hit my feet only a few inches into the sand. Overall it was a great weekend and I look forward to next weekends trip to the South Island!
