Hamilton Arrival
We were picked up by our host families at the train station and driven to the local Methodist church for a dinner reception. They had four kinds of homemade soups, breads, and meat muffins. It was not the type of wine reception we had in Dunedin, but after all this was a Methodist church.
We went home with our prospective families about 6:00. Richard and Sue have a beautiful home on the far western part of the city. Their back yard, which is a wonderful garden, abuts fields as far as one can see with cows, horses and sheep. Yes, they come up and munch on their roses on occasions. After a walk in the neighborhood, we spent the evening with tea, biscuits, and a nature show on the television. The neighborhood has a wetland, and big park for the kids, and best of all a bus stop at the end of the road, a block away.
We had the morning free, and Sue had her volunteer work, so after a good breakfast of porridge, fruit, toast, jams, and homemade yogurt, Zosia and I took the bus downtown which took about 15 minutes. When we arrived we asked a woman on the bus where we might find a thrift store, she told us about the free downtown bus that brought us all around downtown. We stopped at not one, but five Op shops (thrift stores), buy clothes, trinkets and of course a computer bag from the Dunedin College to carry all our goodies in. For $12 we thought we struck a gold mine. Back at home we had a delicious lunch of sandwiches and home-made relishes. Then off to the Milk Shed– we had no idea what this would be but assumed it had to do with cows. We stopped by Richard’s old farm and the city where Sue used to live with the most amazing rose garden – everything is so orderly and well maintained.
It was amazing seeing this high tech milking operation. It was a large lazy susan that held 46 cows. They would cue up to enter because they really wanted to be milked and they were also fed with grain and nutrients. They would hose them down, slap on the utter hoses, and the computer chips on their legs would coordinate information about what cow, and they would like everything about the cow. After the merry go round went around they gave about 15 liters of milk, the hoses would automatically drop off and when they reached the exit point, they cows would know that should back out and move on down to the pasture. They milk 600 cows in three hours twice a day, operated only by a married couple. Amazing! The owners could check on any cow knowing the quality and quantity of the milk, and how much the cow weighed that day.
We dropped by the food store on the way home for beer and snacks, and then home for dinner. We needed some beer because it is election night. Yahoo, Barack Obama won his second term and the Democrats retained the Senate. We were glued to the telly wanting to hear every piece of information. Romney made a wonderful concession speech and Obama has a powerful speech with hope for the future. I really hope the country comes together and learns that we must compromise and work for the whole country, not one party line.
We were picked up by our host families at the train station and driven to the local Methodist church for a dinner reception. They had four kinds of homemade soups, breads, and meat muffins. It was not the type of wine reception we had in Dunedin, but after all this was a Methodist church.
We went home with our prospective families about 6:00. Richard and Sue have a beautiful home on the far western part of the city. Their back yard, which is a wonderful garden, abuts fields as far as one can see with cows, horses and sheep. Yes, they come up and munch on their roses on occasions. After a walk in the neighborhood, we spent the evening with tea, biscuits, and a nature show on the television. The neighborhood has a wetland, and big park for the kids, and best of all a bus stop at the end of the road, a block away.
We had the morning free, and Sue had her volunteer work, so after a good breakfast of porridge, fruit, toast, jams, and homemade yogurt, Zosia and I took the bus downtown which took about 15 minutes. When we arrived we asked a woman on the bus where we might find a thrift store, she told us about the free downtown bus that brought us all around downtown. We stopped at not one, but five Op shops (thrift stores), buy clothes, trinkets and of course a computer bag from the Dunedin College to carry all our goodies in. For $12 we thought we struck a gold mine. Back at home we had a delicious lunch of sandwiches and home-made relishes. Then off to the Milk Shed– we had no idea what this would be but assumed it had to do with cows. We stopped by Richard’s old farm and the city where Sue used to live with the most amazing rose garden – everything is so orderly and well maintained.
It was amazing seeing this high tech milking operation. It was a large lazy susan that held 46 cows. They would cue up to enter because they really wanted to be milked and they were also fed with grain and nutrients. They would hose them down, slap on the utter hoses, and the computer chips on their legs would coordinate information about what cow, and they would like everything about the cow. After the merry go round went around they gave about 15 liters of milk, the hoses would automatically drop off and when they reached the exit point, they cows would know that should back out and move on down to the pasture. They milk 600 cows in three hours twice a day, operated only by a married couple. Amazing! The owners could check on any cow knowing the quality and quantity of the milk, and how much the cow weighed that day.
We dropped by the food store on the way home for beer and snacks, and then home for dinner. We needed some beer because it is election night. Yahoo, Barack Obama won his second term and the Democrats retained the Senate. We were glued to the telly wanting to hear every piece of information. Romney made a wonderful concession speech and Obama has a powerful speech with hope for the future. I really hope the country comes together and learns that we must compromise and work for the whole country, not one party line.
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