Bethell Beach

Today, I enjoyed my last day in Auckland with Brooke and Lily. We took a bus tour from our hostel with a bunch of other people to Bethell Beach and then a small, private lake/sand dunes in Auckland. It was a blast and we got to see beautiful scenery! In the morning we hiked down to a sacred mauri waterfall and lots of people on the tour jumped in the freezing water! Then, we went to Bethell Beach where I got to experience black sand for the first time! It was really amazing and we couldn't have asked for a better day! Then, we finished the afternoon at a freshwater lake. We climbed huge sand dunes for about 20 minutes until we reached a beautiful clearing with mountains in the distance and a small, freshwater lake. It was really remote and relaxing and I had a great afternoon! Our tour guides were tons of fun and played music on the bus and were really interactive with us. It made the day much more fun, and they told us all about the culture and life in New Zealand! It was a blast! Then, we showered and grabbed some dinner. I think we're going up to the top deck of our hostel that overlooks Auckland tonight, to hang out with a bunch of the people we met on our tour today! Tomorrow, I fly back to Australia in the afternoon. I have to finish up some homework, do laundry, and unpack. Then, its back to school on Monday! Only two months left in Oz....