Hobnobbing

Several times over the weekend we felt as if we were in a movie scene.  Why?  Let me recount some of the adventures we've had!

Saturday night, we were invited José's home to have an early dinner with his family.  José is our Precision contact here in Argentina and he's been of great help!  I say early dinner, because nobody eats the evening meal until around ten or eleven o'clock!  We ate around 8:30.

We left the hotel a little after seven, and following José's dropped pins on the satellite map (roads around here don't show up on the mapping software) we headed out of town.  Very soon after leaving the city limits, we realized why José's truck always looks like he just went mudding.  The roads were dirt, mud, and ruts lined on either side with corn and soybean fields.  After several miles, we turned onto another dirt road and saw a group of horseback riders up ahead.  We slowed down to pass them, but the mounted kids turned their horses and challenged us to a race, their blonde curls streaming behind them.  They laughed and smiled and waved, and it didn't take us too long to figure out they must be José's kids!

 Our mounted friends putting on a horse show for us!

We turned the corner and entered the drive of what looked like a plantation nestled in English countryside.  Old trees, tall groomed hedges, and a carpet green grass surrounded stately stone buildings. 

 Part of hhe main house.

I would have loved to wander around snapping pictures, but we arrived a dusk and our gracious hosts served us hors d'eouvres right after the horse show the kids put on for us.  

As we gathered around for the main course, Justin "blessed the table" after which they were all exclaiming, "Good blessing!".  I think they were expecting something  a little more generic.  The cook laid out the feast for us--steak, sausages, and grilled pork all steaming and perfectly seasoned.  The best meat I think I have ever had!

 So delicious!

We had a wonderful evening with the family!  Sunday afternoon we met them again, this time for lunch.  They took us, once again, outside of town on dirt roads.  We pulled into, once again, a scene strait from Great Britain: manicured fields of green grass, tall trees, and old stone buildings.  A sign read, Venado Tuerto Polo Club.  That's right, they are members at the local country club where there is a golf course, tennis courts, and two giant polo fields.  Turns out, our friend José actually plays polo, and the horses on his estate are bred for playing polo.  

 A picture of us outside the polo club.

Emma, José, Margarita, Toni, Cármen, Vanessa (José's wife), Isabel, Jonathan and I.

 Isabel and I waiting to be seated for lunch.

 Justin and lil' Toni, who is a riot of a two-year-old!

 Toni and Emma

All afternoon we sat at a table outside in the shade of a huge tree and enjoyed being waited on hand and foot.  The kids came and went from the table between eating and playing.  We sat and talked about everything from the rules and strategy of polo to José's sister-in-law's father's remote lodge in Patagonia.  

 "Saca la lengua!" ("Stick out your tongue!")

We stuck around after lunch because we wanted to see some polo!  This club used to be the biggest and most prominent polo club in Argentina.  In fact, the two teams who won the olympics trained here.  However, polo didn't last long as an international sport because nobody can beat Argentina.  Ever, apparently.  

 Snapshot of the polo players.

I can't imagine the expense and amount of set up in this sport!  Each player uses 6 horses each game!  These were only amateurs, but it was still really impressive!

The table where we ate lunch.

We felt like we were hobnobbing with the high class, though there wasn't any of the snobbiness we attribute to the high class in the States.  It was a wonderful, relaxing afternoon of sipping espresso and sharing good conversation.

We do work, too.  Just so everyone is aware.  The first two installations are almost done and those combines begin harvesting tomorrow.  

One of the greatest experiences of the weekend, was finding a local church where those familiar Spanish hymns and praise songs were sung!  What a blessing!  Love to all!

Intro to Good Airs and the One-Eyed Deer

Catchy title, I know!  (I knew I could entice you to check out the latest update regarding our adventurings!)  And sorry that my first post from Argentina is so late!  I mean, we've been here for 2 days already!  But, sadly, the state of this fabulous thing called the internet is not so reliable here, so I've been building up for this one!

First of all, let me say we had a wonderful weekend at the beach cottage!  It was glorious!  Lots of relaxing, catching up on sleep and various "home" things, as well as catching up with our friends and family in LA!  

IT WAS SO WONDERFUL TO BE BACK IN ALTADENA FOR SUNDAY!!  

Yes, it was.  We had lovely weather, too, so that was great!  But, come Wednesday we were off again!

There's the lil' beach cottage down there, see it?  

Yeah, me either.

It's between the big factory-looking thing closer to the wing and the stick-like thing down the beach aways, which would be the pier.

Out over the ocean, we took a left and headed southeast meeting Justin in Dallas.  Things went smoothly--much more smoothly than last time, praise the Lord!  However, we learned very quickly that we have been spoiled with Air New Zealand as our first overseas flight experience.  Yup.  This time we were stuck in the middle of the plane, a very nice family on our left with some squirmy little munchkins who weren't too nice to be seated by come early morning.  Really, it wasn't that bad, I exaggerate.  Our bodies' clocks were thrown off a little more this time, and we had a hard time sleeping on the plane, but then felt like it was 3 in the morning when we landed (at almost 9am).  

 Bienvenidos a Buenos Aires!

First things first, we faced customs.  No big deal except that we had some very expensive equipment with us which would most likely be a problem.  As our turn approached Justin said, "This is a win-win!  Either we get through with no hassle, or we have a great story!"  Actually, I have to say I can fully agree!  As stressful as customs can be, God definitely has put me through that faith-builder plenty of times!  It was just like Mexico.  I explained, heard all about the fines they would have to charge, how they would confiscate the equipment...all of it.  Turns out we made it out about an hour later with the equipment and paid a minimal fine, all things considered.  Not bad.  Not the first time I would be very grateful for our friend and coworker, José.

Headed toward downtown.

José led us downtown to meet with the Monsanto group.  It was a rather stressful drive considering the rules of the road are similar to those in Mexico.  There are none.  Fend for yourself.  But we made it, alive and well, although rather groggy and slimy from our night on the plane.  

The meeting was held in English, but turned out giving me loads of confidence with my Spanish skills. Not because I learned anything new, but because I saw how they were willing to do their best with English and we didn't hold it against them that it wasn't perfect.  Hopefully, Argentinians will return the favor!

 Typical downtown street--treelined and rather quaint.

I would describe Argentina like this: a cross between Portland and Mexico.  Really, that may seem totally opposite, but it's kind of true.  There is lots of character in the buildings--greenery, brick, windows, but it's definitely got the south-of-the-border feel in places.

View from Monsanto's office building.  

Really, it doesn't capture how beautiful the view was!  We were overlooking a park surrounded by some of the most diverse architecture I've seen all in one place!  Also note that in the background of the top photo is the glimmering sea.  Well, it would be glimmering, but it's a nasty shade of brown.  Gross.  The city claims good air, but I guess it never claimed anything about good water!

On the freeway leaving the city.

Obviously, there aren't many combines in the concrete jungle.  We left Buenos Aires yesterday evening for the long car ride to the farms.  Traffic is quite the nuisance, especially when you're overtired and feeling gross.  We made it to the town where we're staying, a place called Venado Tuerto, or one-eyed deer, and finally, crashed.

Today we hit the ground running.  First stop.  Anybody have a guess?  Hint: where did we go first in New Zealand?  That's right, the Argentinian Home Depot!

 Our friend Leandro (in the stripes) introduced us to his friend 

(in the "Mecan" shirt) to help us with our supplies.

 I think we got it all!  

Then it was out to the first farm.  Three shiny combines awaited us as we pulled up.  We met the owner and his crew and settled down to explain the system. 

Gather 'round!

Jonathan and Justin pulled out the toys and with José and Leandro doing the translation, I just sat back and listened.  Which was a blast!  These guys made it sound like magic!  Which is true, sort of, sometimes technology seems like magic!  The rest of the day was taken up with our first harvest monitor installation in Argentina.  

There you have it!  Now, I really should go to bed.  This proves how off our internal clocks are: it's after midnight.  Those who know me know that I don't do well after about 10:00pm usually.  Ugh, that means tomorrow morning will feel like the middle of the night!  

Thank you for joining us in our sojourning with love and prayers and emails and comments!  Love to all!

New Zealand: Our Favorites

At this time today, we left New Zealand.  That's weird.

It was a very smooth exit, especially compared to the stressful arrival!  Robin picked us up this afternoon and we've spent the day relishing the fact we're home and unpacking.

New Zealand was fantastic!  Far exceeding expectations, we can't wait to go back.  But we're glad to be home for the weekend.  And we're glad the travels are just beginning (at least at this point)---more adventures to be had up ahead!

Here's some of our New Zealand favorites:

Scenery.  Hands down the greatest part of our New Zealand experience.

Here's another scenery picture we haven't shared yet.

This is taken from the gravel road we took out to the field yesterday.

The people.  Kiwis.  Their friendliness, their accent...everyone was kind and fun to talk to!

Flat whites.  A coffee drink, available just about everywhere, which was developed in New Zealand about 30 years ago.  It's similar to a latté, but with a higher proportion of coffee to milk and more velvety in consistency.  

So delicious!

Hedges.  Leftover from when the English occupied New Zealand, there are beautiful tall hedges between many fields or separating houses.  

This one is made of trees, many are the bush-like piney type.

This is the lane up to the field we were harvesting in yesterday.

Round-a-bouts.  So fun!  Really, the U.S. should implement them as a method of road intersection.  Along with steering wheels on the right and driving in the left lane, it took Jonathan a little while to acclimate!

The houses.  I loved the houses!  They are so much smaller than in the U.S. (I guess they're not caught up in the bigger-is-better attitude we tend to have has Americans) and each one is unique, not this cookie-cutter subdivision stuff.  I wish I could have snapped a picture to capture how quaint the neighborhoods are!  You'll have to take my word for it.

All in all, New Zealand was an unforgettable experience and we can't wait to be back!  That said, this was looking pretty good this afternoon:

California!

It's good to be home!

Installs and Coveralls

Back up north, we met another grower and introduced him to the harvest yield monitor system.  He's a great guy who works with his dad and a hired hand.  A much smaller operation, it had the feel of a family farm in the midwest.  His dad was great--hard to come by a technology enthusiast of 70 years.  Anyway, the planned harvesting was cancelled due to rain, so we set up shop to get the install done. 

 Getting out the tools.

I would just like announce, that I now own a pair of those extremely fashionable coveralls Jonathan and Justin are modeling in the photo above.  Along with a very classy set of steel toe boots.  Oh yeah!

Farther north the scenery isn't quite as dramatic.  There are still rolling hills of farmland, but not so many tall mountains in the background.  Still, it's quite a view.  

From the top of the combine looking over the farmyard.

Jonathan did the install by himself, Justin was only there for guidance.

That was Wednesday.  Yesterday, Thursday, Jonathan and I went a few hours south again to do another install on the same grower's second combine.  I was supposed to be Jonathan's assistant, but it ended up that I spent all day in the office playing agronomist.  Lindy, the farm's professional agronomist needed some field maps printed, and since the current software is painfully tedious, I could help her out by doing the grunt work.  

Once again holed up in an office with a computer all day.

What happened is that through many frustrating hours of working my way around FarmWorks, I realized what a fantastic thing Precision's new product is bringing to farm data.  FieldView will be much easier to use.  No more clicking through 16 screens, scrolling through data files, waiting for the information to upload.  There, that's my shameless plug for Precision's new product (what we're testing, getting it ready for production).  

There were plenty of obstacles Jonathan had to overcome with the install--that's the name of the game and why he's an engineer--so it was late before we left the farm.  We faced a 2 hour drive yet, with a stop to unload gear and equipment.  We were tired.  But it was Valentine's Day!  So we picked up some takeaway Thai food and found a quiet little rose garden park where we enjoyed our romantic dinner as the sun set.  Not too bad!

Today, being the last day, is a full one.  We were up early, the guys doing some troubleshooting to get one the iPad's working.  We got the car cleaned out, found a place for the rubbish (we had quite a lot from the 7 boxes of equipment we brought with us!), and headed out to the field for some test runs.  

It's hard to believe it's been a week, and yet looking at all we did, it seems much longer than a week!  We're hoping for a much less-exciting airport scenario, a smooth flight, and an enjoyable weekend at the beach cottage!  We're looking forward to some processing time, and also more preparation.  Up next: Argentina!

In the Field

As we finished up our work in the south, it was time to say goodbye to the river.  We probably won't be back in this area since they should finish up the harvesting around here and will be mostly in the north with the maize (corn) in a few weeks.  

 I went for an early morning run down by the river to soak in it's beauty one more time.

Then we headed out to the field.

 Jonathan and I riding together in the combine.  Together with the operator, there was only the one seat we had to share!

It was great to see our monitors up and running and beginning to understand how they work.  It really is fascinating to see the barley coming in and check out all the numbers simultaneously.

 There she is.  This is a barley field.

As usual, the view was spectacular.  Nothing like harvesting with the volcano in the distance, along with a beautiful pine forest and the golden field...gorgeous!

After a quick shopping trip yesterday afternoon (where I was outfitted with coveralls and boots--yes, height of fashion, let me tell you!) we made it farther north and contacted the next grower we'll be working with.  We're hoping to do that install today.  More to come...

The Weekend

I have decided I love New Zealand.  The views are fantastic and breathtaking, the people are friendly and wonderful, the culture is different yet comfortingly similar to home.  I wish I could do justice to our experience here and describe it, somehow, in a worthy way so you could all enjoy it right along with us!

The early Saturday morning for Justin and Jonathan was not as successful as was hoped, so we stayed around the area instead of heading north like we'd originally planned.  Fine with me.  It is gorgeous here on the edge of the national park. 

 Another shot of the volcano.  Just outside this shot, to the right, is a picture-perfect cone-shaped volcano, which I learned was the inspiration for Mt. Doom in Lord of the Rings (although the actual mountain in the movies is a model).  The field where we met the combine was near this smoking beauty of a mountain.  It feels like Illinois and Colorado all rolled up in one!

 

The combine was harvesting canola (the grain we get canola oil from).  In my hand is the canola plant, and those little black dots are the beans.  The pink tutu in the corner belongs to my friend, Poseida, who was visiting the combine with her dad and older brother, Sam.  

We didn't get far with the combine install because they were happily harvesting away!  So, we headed into town to seek out food.  The Mustard Seed café was the choice and afforded some delicious breakfast and coffee!  Soon we set up camp at a picturesque lodge full of fishermen beside a crystal clear river running alongside the town and toward Lake Taupo which we'd passed the day before.  After a few hours of work, we took the time to walk along the river, which was gorgeous!  

 At the river overlook.

Sunday was another early morning for the guys as they tried to finish up the install on the combine while it wasn't running, at 3:30 in the morning.  They finished the mechanical work, but the software was giving them problems so we decided to stick around another day to get that figured out.  In the meantime, we drove up north for a few supplies and also for church!

We visited Hamilton Bible Church where Justin has gone several times when he's in New Zealand for Sunday.  It was a quaint little church in a residential area and reminded me a lot of Altadena.  Small, just a few families, but close-knit and family like.

 This little darling with the curly hair and spunky personality made me miss Nat!

After some meetings and supply runs in the afternoon, we had a few hours to burn, and found ourselves not too far from Hobbiton!  Jonathan and I had been thinking if the opportunity arose, we'd jump at the chance to visit, but no expectations.  I'm so glad it worked out!  The set was a beautiful mix of gorgeous scenery and fascinating human creativity at work!

 Justin and our fabulous guide, Georgia, a local whose summer job is giving tours of Hobbiton.

 Outside a hobbit hole.

 Inside a hobbit hole.  

 It's been a dry summer, but The Shire is irrigated.

 Turns out, the hobbit holes aren't very big, 

just enough room for a hobbit to disappear inside.

 They did such a fantastic job making the set perfect!

 The fence on the right is the one Bilbo hops over as he yells, 

"I'm going on an adventure!"

 Inside the Green Dragon where you can get a cold drink at the end of the tour.

 Such a beautiful location!

After Hobbiton, we stopped by the house of the combine operator we've been working with where we had dropped off some of our supplies.  It was locked so Jonathan had to do a little breaking and entering (with permission of course).  

Crawling in the window.

The weekend was lovely!  I've been wonderfully surprised how much time we've had for exploring and enjoying New Zealand!  Such a beautiful country!