Hitchhiking in New Zealand: Coromandel Peninsula and Cheese Making
21st of June, 2025.
I’m still trying to put on my coat when the first car stops. A lovely woman called Doun, is going to her friends renewal of marital vowels, so she takes me in. She is so awesome and we talk about travels, principles, and how great it was back in the days. We have a lot of thoughts in common and our way of facing life is also very similar. It’s so nice that my very first lift in New Zealand is with someone so similar to me. Doun drops me off in Whenuakite, on an intersection nearby Hahei. The village by Cathedral Cove, and the name on my sign.
Again, in only two minutes another lovely woman stops. Deborah, immediately tells me that she will call her sister to tell her that she will be a bit late, and that’s why even though she’s not really going all the way to Hahei, she has already decided that she will take me there. How sweet! Her sister seems pretty cool about it on the phone. As our drive together is not so long, Debbie and I don’t get to know each other much, but I tell her about my travels, and she seems like a very sweet person. She drives me all the way to the entrance of the trail to Cathedral Cove, because she says that it only takes her two minutes, while for me it would be about 15 minutes walk, plus the 45 minutes down the Cove. How adorable!
The view from the parking lot is very nice! The trail is super well maintained and way less rough than I thought. Basically, it is a concrete path all the way to the Cove, with a few off-road moments. It’s simple but it’s nice.
Cathedral Cove is amazing! It’s really gorgeous and super worth it a visit! Cor9mandel Peninsula itself is very popular among tourists, and it certainly worth not only a drive around but also spending several day here and there exploring. I love the Cove so much that I just want to stay here for hours. It’s really pretty! And you can walk all around in the sand, sit and admire from both sides. When I first arrive, there are a few people, as it’s soon after 10.00 a.m., but as it’s Matariki, the Winter Solstice as well, around 11.00 a.m. it starts to get real busy. Luckily, I have to leave already by that time.
I walk all the way down to Hahei, which is a lovely village. What surprises me is the size of the houses around here. Massive!
As I’m walking to an intersection, a nice man offers to take me all the way to the actual highway, where my chances of getting cars going to Coromandel will be higher. That’s so nice of him, as he leaves nearby here. He tells me that he was trying to visit a friend but, apparently, he was not at home. Lucky me!
A family pick me up soon enough, and even though they are not going to Coromandel, they drop me off in another intersection. They have a lovely dog with them.
At this intersection, Sam, an Australian woman, and her lovely French Bulldog, give me a lift until Whatianga. Sam is very friendly and tells me about some places I should visit in NZ.
As I walk along the road, a campervan stops. Paul is a French guy, 27, travelling around NZ for a few months. He rented this campervan and he’s going to Coromandel. It’s nice talking to him, and he tells me I don’t look like a 35 years old woman. Yay!
I first eat my egg salad with bread for lunch before carrying on hitchhiking to Mana Meditation Centre. I’m not visiting Coromandel city, I only needed to get here so I can get to Mana. Mark suggested me to visit this place because they have a sanctuary built on the top of a hill, and all made of stone.
A young man called Alex, and his friend Katherine, stop for me. He’s driving a gorgeous vintage car, all green. I feel stupid for not having taken a photo. They drop me off right at the entrance to the road which leads to Mana.
It’s about 15 minutes walk to the reception, and another 15 minutes to the stone sanctuary. You can get a map at the reception (which you can give it back after), or simply take a photo, as I did. I encountered some people here and there.
The views from the sanctuary are magnificent. It really feels magic up here! The whole building is stunning, and so it’s the labyrinth they have drawn on the ground. Take your time here and enjoy this amazing place. The sanctuary itself was closed (at least I couldn’t open the door), but I enjoy some peace and quietude here for some time, apart from the gorgeous view, until a man came up with his dog, so I left.
I was planning to get back down the road around 16.30 hours, so I can still have some daylight on my drive to Thames, as it seems like the drive around the coast looks nice. And I get both things right!
Mary, from the United States, picks me up soon enough. She’s here for a few weeks, as her wife is teaching some students up in Auckland. She’s super cool and we talk about many things. She doesn’t drop me off in Thames, as she’s staying in a small village just before.
My last lift of the day comes from a young couple, and they drop me off, after 10 minutes, a few blocks before Kat’s house.
Kat is a friend of Kanani, who I met during the opening of Kanani’s and other artists exhibition. She is super sweet, and that night she invited me to come to her house and learn how to make cheese. She was playing harp at the opening, as she has played for many years and even has a CD.
Her house is super cute and she decorated amazingly well. Kat has spent most of her life making cheese, and in the past she used to sell it too; now she only does for herself and some close friends. I came here tonight because as she makes cheese with fresh milk, which will be collected tomorrow morning from a nearby farm, she invited me to stay overnight with her, so we can start doing the whole process together tomorrow morning.
When I arrive she shows me the bedroom where I’m staying. It has one of those medieval beds, those which were for rich people, like royal and important families, the ones with a wooden frame. I cannot believe it! I’ve always wanted to sleep in one of these beds! Yay! We have dinner together, an amazing cheese and spinach pie, with a ricotta dough, all made by Kat, But we also have some other delicious food which she prepared. We sit by the fire as we eat.
As we both are tired, and we must wake up early tomorrow, we go to sleep soon after dinner.
22nd of June, 2025.
After getting the milk around 7.00 a.m., we drive back and start!
Kat shows me everything and patiently also explains everything to me. And I make notes of everything too. We first make Hallumi cheese. With the whey left from the Hallumi, we make Ricotta. We then make Mozzarela, and also yoghurt; all with the 20 litres fresh milk she bought. It’s incredibly easy, as you wouldn’t believe it. And it’s also super fun.
We have our breakfast somewhere in between: muesli with homemade yogurt, and delicious coffee.
We are also chatting about many things middle time, and it’s super fun to spend this time with Kat. We talk about life, love, and a lot in between. Time pass so fast, and soon enough is lunch time.
When we finish all the cheeses, we prepare a marvelous table of cheeses, scones, crackers, veggies, and we have with coffee. Everything is delicious and I’m so happy to have the opportunity to enjoy so many different homemade cheeses. It’s like paradise and I love it! All of this only happened, including my trip around Coromandel Peninsula, simply because Kat was adorable enough to invite me to come here and make cheese with her. How wonderful is that?
As I will hitchhike back to Miranda, I must leave soon after 15.00 hours, just to make sure I can get back before dark. Before I leave, Kat gives me some cheese to take home, one of her CDs playing harp, and one of her books about cheese making. It’s with sadness but also the heart full of joy that I say goodbye to this lovely woman.
A young man called Daiul gives me a short lift to the main road going towards Miranda.
As I walk alongside the road, two friends come back for me. Ana from NZ, and Claudia from Argentina, are going to Auckland. As I tell them my travel story, they get so excited about it that they pass their actual turn, just so they can take me a bit further. How sweet!
At the intersection which leads home, I would have to walk for about 30 minutes if it wasn’t for Kevin, a man from the United States who has moved back here about six months ago, giving me a lift all the way to our driveway. I get back home around 16.30 hours.
And that’s the end of an amazing weekend, and my first adventure hitchhiking around. Much more is about to come…
10 Years Around the World 