fish and chips – The Adventures of Elle Coco

Having said our good bye to an awesome year and tided in an equally good one, with great company, it was now time to head north, even further north. Because of where Russell was situated, and the road we needed to reach, it was quickest to take the ferry back across (earlier on in the Coromandel we had decided dirt tracks were out of the question). A good tip off from our friends lead us to the most amazing chocolate shop and factory in Kerikeri – The Boutique Chocolate Factory, part of Makana Confections. This was essentially elevenses, having cooked an epic fry up storm for our hosts to try and cure our hangovers before we left. Continue reading “Happy New Year – Happy New Chocolate”

Touching down in Mordor (sorry, I mean Auckland, New Zealand) I really do feel, strangely, like I’ve come home. Even though I’ve never been here in my life there is a strange similarity to the place. Our first stop, having picked up the car, was to head out to The Coromandel. A beautiful peninsula east of Auckland, encompassing Coromandel Forest Park, Hot Water Beach (yes, really, due to volcanic activity in the area, the water on a stretch of this beach is hot, very hot, and if you dig a hole and sit in it it’s like having a bath – only a very salty, sandy one).