Much of New Zealand depends on their very efficient agricultural and horticultural systems. Leading NZ exports include dairy products, meat, fruit, veggies and wool. This was very evident when we attended our first A & P (agriculture & pastoral)event this past weekend. New Zealanders take farming very seriously. And they start the kids early. We were treated to a sheep shearing competition, various displays of tractors and other farm equipment and many judging competitions of sheep, cattle, alpaca and chickens. We arrived a wee bit too late to see the sheep dog competition, unfortunately. The atmosphere was similar to our North Stonington or Washington County fairs except the farm boys here wear oilskin vests and mudboots (also called Wellies). We enjoyed mingling with the crowd, and except for the camera around my neck, we don't look so much like tourists now. Yeah, right.
Nice pictures! Especially the sheep shearing! Near and dear to my little ol' heart. All Merino? Do you remember what breeds you might have seen?
ReplyDeleteToo bad you missed the sheep dog competition. That would have been very cool to see. Nie Pictures. Has Viva gotten smaller or is the tire that big?
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