Friday 1st May

OK - the other people staying here were wrong about last night - I lay in bed and was forced to listen to what was probably the worst karaoke ever! Luckily I was quite tired so fell asleep after a while, but was woken at 1.15am with shouting and goings-on in the car park below our window. I discovered this morning that there was a ‘fracas’ outside last night. The shouting, both male and female voices, seemed to go on for a long time. So, not the best night’s sleep ever.
And tonight a band is playing - a NZ group called One One One. Talking to one of the band, who were upstairs in the hotel accommodation relaxing before their gig, he said they play 70’s and 80’s music and it will go on until 1am and gets louder as time goes on. Hey Ho!
We have spent today around Coromandel Town area. This morning we rode on the Driving Creek Railway - a little train that runs up to the top of a mountain to a specially built look-out point (called the Eyefull Tower!) with tremendous views of the Peninsula and Hauraki Gulf across to Waiheke Island and the Auckland area.

http://www.drivingcreekrailway.co.nz/

The 60 acre wooded area the train runs up through is owned by a Barry Bricknell and it took him 27 years to build the nearly 3km track and has tunnels, spirals and viaducts. Barry has planted thousands of trees, including kauri, and the whole area will be left to the nation after his death with the proviso that no trees are ever cut down. Quite a man. Barry started out as a potter and the train first evolved as transport to carry clay down from the mountain, but it has grown and grown and is now one of the major tourist attractions in the area. He is now in his 70’s and spends his time ‘potting’ and writing his life story.
We spent this afternoon in the town. I have to confess to being a bit disappointed with the town. Having the same name as this fantastic peninsula I was expecting something a bit special, but it is a it seedy and run-down and not so nice as the other towns we drove through yesterday.