Week 9 – Semana Nueve

November 26th, 2007 by Sophie Hermann

Well another week gone, and now already 3/4 of my time in Honduras is over… At least I still have 3 weeks left to enjoy!
Workwise at Chiligatoro, it was a bit disappointing again. Although Monday was good, the weather dawned fantastic that morning and I took myself out on the truck and helped build the fogon (wood fired stove top that they use here), the adobe was already up for the base, but I put dirt that I dug up from the site, and compacted it into the base. Then I helped the carpenter while he installed one of the doors. Things were looking up on site, the weather looked promising and I was eager to work! However Tuesday I went out, again the weather was holding, however we were told they had run out of materials, but did we want to help the carpenter plough his field?! Fortunately I followed the other volunteer to the second building site, half an hour’s walk up the hill to Santa Cruz, where there was the kinder under construction. This is where I helped paint many weeks back, but this time we were sealing, sanding and varnishing the window sills. It looks good, and I’m glad the other volunteers pushed for the timber to be clear sealed, instead of the original plan to paint them. The richness of the timber has come up nicely, and the carpenter there was doing a fantastic job. I watched him while I worked, he was making a solid timber door with manual hand tools… he did a brilliant job! Every piece of timber which started as a greying rough piece of wood, was planed back to a smooth lighter surface, then cut to size, and every piece notched to receive the adjacent piece of timber. The slats which made the door were all finger jointed, and everything fit neatly like a jigsaw puzzle. The little glue and nails he used seemed almost redundant; he had done such a perfect job! I was well impressed! I wonder if this is a dying skill in today’s mechanised world…
The rest of the week I spent up at Santa Cruz, as I was assured by the coordinator that he would bring new materials to Chiligatoro by the start of next week… It was quite frustrating I have to say, after waiting over 2 weeks for good enough weather to build again, and now that beautiful weather has arrived in La Esperanza again we didn’t have the materials to continue with! Oh well, that’s part of the experience I guess and I was definately not bored between working at the kinder as well as a couple of afternoons with the kids at the daycare centre.
One of my most frustrating days at work occurred on Wednesday, where I mixed the timber sealer with the solvent to thin it down, but when I applied it on the sill, at first it appeared clear, then cloudy, then 5 minutes later downright white!! It looked like a whitewash all over the natural timber frames! The carpenter tried to thin it even further but for some reason it made it worse! I then spent the next 3 hours sanding back what we’d applied!! I almost wanted to cry! But again, all part of the experience, you live and learn! And by the time I’d finished that day I was back at square one when I’d arrived that morning! Later found out the solvent was not compatible with the sealer, and we needed a specialist solvent….
At the daycare centre in the afternoons we played soccer with the new football that we bought for the kids, they loved it! And after I helped the younger ones eat their dinner (it’s at about 3.30pm, however they get three cooked meals a day, and for some it’s the only food they will get, so I guess that’s why it’s their dinner in the afternoon), they were all enthusiastic about brushing their teeth! Two other volunteers went out and bought them all toothbrushes and named them, and now they can’t wait to finish eating and brush their teeth! They come running back to you and open their mouths so you can see how clean their teeth are! It’s so cute they get excited about stuff like that, it makes it easier, maybe they haven’t realised it’s ‘healthy’!
This weekend I stayed in La Esperanza, and I had one of the best weekends here! On Saturday morning myself and my roommate had a good long sleepin! Although it was interrupted due to the usual cacaphony of roosters, dogs, loud Honduran pop music, it was nice to just roll over and not have to go to work! I tihnk it was one of the first proper sleepins, as when we go away for the weekend we’re usually up and away checking out the sites! After breakfast (osmil however you spell it) which is like a very milky sweet porridge with about 20 miniature oats floating inside (I love it) we met up with Carlos, who is the foreman of the construction of the house in town, which my host parents are currently building. The house I am living in with them now is just a temporary place while they await the house to be finished. Anyway a couple of weeks ago I was talking to Carlos about the building site as I was interested in seeing the plans, so I spent an hour there one afternoon checking out the construction and seeing the plans (which I am well impressed that the building has turned out as well as it has considering the plans I saw were pencil sketches of a layout of the lower and upper level, and only three dimensions were shown. The rest, as Carlos indicated, were up here – tapping his head). Anyway since then he asked whether I could help him design his house out at Yamaranguila, and I said sure, but could I come and have a look at the site? So that’s what Saturday was about… we boarded a chicken bus (the yellow American school buses that they no longer use up there get sent down here for public transport), packed to the brim… at some random point along the journey, Carlos whistles to the driver, who stops the bus on the road, literally in the middle of nowhere, then we squeeze past a barbed wire fence onto a forest track and disappear for 20 minutes along this track in the pine forest. It was so peaceful and quiet! About half an hour later we arrive in a clearing, and then a small dirt road, where he points out his grandparent’s house, then takes us to his mother’s house, who quickly produces some plastic chairs for us to sit on in the shade and a cool lemonade each! It was so nice. They live simply, but Carlos showed the house was one he had built her 3 years ago. Then he took us to the site next door which is where he would like to site his house. Then I had one of the greatest times in my career (!) where I attempted, in Spanish, to formulate a brief with him for the house… I might say at this point, it will definately be one of the more memorable client briefings, as we sat down on the grass, him indicating the site boundary “Oh that tree there, that stick there and then over to those bushes, we’re all family here we won’t fight over the boundary”! Not to mention having to ask questions like “will there be glass in the windows?” (answer = no, only timber shutters) and “will the bathroom be inside or outdoors?” (answer = inside, but an outside washing stall for the laundry).
Also I was quite relieved when I managed to explain to him that his original idea of a 10m x 12m house plan could be improved by a more lineal arrangement, which would allow more natural light and ventilation to penetrate the house (the house is to be adobe, and from my experiences of this type of construction is that they are dark and damp inside). I think after about an hour or two of talking and sketching, he’d agreed to a rough plan as well as where to site the building. I then agreed to a deadline! (what’s that? I’ve lived in Honduras for too long!) of Wednesday where I’d show him a couple of worked options and then we could go from there to develop it into a more definate plan… will keep you updated how my new Honduran architecture office goes…
From the site, we then hiked to the township of Yamaranguila, about an hour away. But what a beautiful walk, through the pine forest, following a small stream. Carlos pointed out the 5 pine trees he planted 3 years ago, and told us that he will cut 3 of the pine trees to build this house in January, but will plant 15 in return, part of a new government scheme 3 new trees to every 1 cut tree to rejuvenate the forestry. I was impressed with the system.
Once in the village we passed the colonial church, which was quite beautiful, but in need of a bit of attention. We then walked for another 10 minutes to see the waterfalls that I’ve heard a few of the volunteers talk about… which included asking a local for the shortcut, slithering under a barbed wire fence, and jumping a stream to get to the waterfall… but well worth it! It was beautiful, and set almost like in a canyon. Worth a photo… so I thought, scrambling in my bag for my camera, just as a random dude turns up and says to me (the nearest) that we’re on private property! I apologised in my best Spanish, and got Carlos to do the explaining. As we slinked off again, he explained that was the mayor of Yamaranguila! Definately rubbing shoulders with the influential Hondurans, albeit in not quite the right way! It was funny, and we all agreed at least he only came up to us once we’d seen the fall! However the memory will have to do, no time to take a photo!
We caught the bus back for a quiet Saturday night in La Esperanza, knackered from our day´s events…
Sunday my roommate and I went for a walk to Los Pinos, about an hour from our place, on the main road to Siguatepeque which leads to San Pedro Sula and the capital, Tegucigalpa. Los Pinos is a hotel set amongst beautiful trees… we had a great lunch, I had fish kiev, and was probably the most balanced meal I´ve had in Honduras… accommpanied by rice, salad and vegies!! Yay! We then chilled out in the hammocks, while I sketched some ideas for the house in Yamaranguila…. all in all a fab weekend, which proves you do not need to leave far from La Esperanza to have a fantastic time in a beautiful setting…