not your average Christmas tree farm

The four of us just got home from our annual "hunt for a Christmas tree". Buying a Christmas tree here just isn't the same as it is in the States... this is anything but a simple trip to the tree lot in the parking lot of the local home improvement store. Most people here don't even know what a Christmas tree is, why you would want one, or what it should look like.

Our first step was to locate the nearest tree/plant market. After church (and a quick lunch) we loaded into the car and told our driver, "we'd like to buy a pine tree, do you know where we should go?" He assured us he knew just the right place, and off we went. After a lot of stopping and asking folks and doing our fair share of u-turns we located a potential tree seller. At one stop, the owner assured us he had just the right thing, and led us through the tree lot to the back of his property, passing all sorts of trees (none looking the least bit like a Christmas tree). But, he did have a few pines, and we chose the only one that was small enough to fit in the apartment.

Next , while the workers at the farm dug the tree out of the ground and located an appropriate pot, the tree farm owner found a truck (with driver) that could deliver the tree to our house. So, here we are, back in our apartment, ready to get out our Christmas decorations (actually, it's just me and the girls, Matt had to run out to an appointment).

The only problem is, the tree is still downstairs. A live, potted, almost 2 meters tall Christmas tree is quite heavy, and we live on the 4th floor. It took four men (manual laborers) to lift the tree into the delivery truck. So, when Matt gets home we'll tackle the "how to get the tree up the stairs" problem. He'll probably end up going to the local market and looking for a few guys who want to make some quick money by carrying a Christmas tree up a few flights of stairs!

Here's Matt and Julianna with the tree farm staff. The guy on the right side of the photo facing the camera is Qiu - a driver that we frequently use (he really enjoyed the hunt and was quite determined that we get just the right tree).

And, me and Lydia with the tree we bought - on the left side of the photo. See the much larger tree over my left shoulder?? We thought it sure was nicely shaped, but it wouldn't even begin to fit in our apartment!