Penguins and Dolphins

Saw my first penguin today. As well as a blue shark and loads of dolphins. We also went surfing (but not near the shark!). We left the house at 6am, to drive across to meet a boat at the harbour at Tauronga. The premise of the day was to go swimming with a pod of wild dolphins, but things didn't quite go to plan, so we had to settle for seeing, rather than interacting with them. It was a long, choppy ride from the shelter of the bay, but eventually we found a big pod of dolphins who swam alongside the boat with us, almost brushing Clare's feet as they jumped past!

The journey back to land was thankfully much calmer and we could enjoy the ride rather than clinging on and staying focused on the horizon. We were both a bit disappointed have only been spectators, so once back on land, we nipped round to the beach and tried a little surf instead. Doing is so much more invigorating than just seeing for us.

In our usual holiday style, the day perked up when we then stumbled across a free festival with live music and healthy food stalls from around the world! Bustling through the crowds, we enjoyed an organic berry smoothy, some good music and a few samosas before heading home at dusk. In a way it was lucky we'd stuck around for the festival as we got to enjoy a mega sunset all the way home!