Hanging out with Colin

Well, after 2 hours of trying to connect at the airport, missing each other several times, Colin and I finally managed to meet up. In case I forget to mention to anyone, Colin and I arranged to meet while he was/is here in NZ, and so far we haven't killed each other (which we both thought was likely to happen within a matter of hours!) So we headed from Auckland to Thames our first day, and after some serious persuasion, I managed to convince him that staying in a hostel dorm room was a good idea- lucky for him we stayed in a 7 person dorm where we were the only people staying the night. We didn't do too much on our first day, other than get lost several times in a small town- I am a terrible map reader, aren't you all glad that you aren't driving home with me next month!!! So we hung out with some fellow backpackers in our Dawson City styles hostel, and we each polished off our half of the 18 pack of beer- good thing it was only 4%!! We woke up today, made some breakfast, luckily seeing the millions of ants on the counter after we cooked our food, and headed out for our drive to Coromandel Town. It was a very twisty ride, which doesn't sit well with my motion sensitivity, and after an hour+ drive, and 54 kms (very slow going!) we arrived. We decided on a few activities; a train ride and a stop at Waiau Waterworks for the day. We went to the Waterworks first, which was incredibly fun- they had rides to do, including a large hamster wheel for humans, and some really neat creations that ran on water. Again, I took lots of pics, but everyone will have to wait until I post them (should likely happen at mom and dads) Then we headed to the Driving Creek Railway, where we took a train up the hill and got to see the Coromandel at a great view. The owner of the railway is also a potter, so there we interesting pottery pieces all along the railway line. So that's where we're at- thought that I should post to let everyone know that we are both still alive, at least until this point!!!