Saturday, August 27, 2011

Getting There

The last week was a slow week in terms of seeing actual changes to the boma. However, progress is still being made every day. The Village bartered with a nearby village for the final shipment of bricks so we now have enough bricks to complete the boma. The timber frames for the roofing were constructed and finished and the electrical conduits/boxes were put in place. The big task was to work on completing the front and back veranda’s, which involved a struggle to find small stone and water for the site. The verandas are necessary because the roof beams are connected to them. This house will have cement columns and that it something novel for the village.  Wednesday saw a slowdown in the work due to market day and the majority of workers needed to go obtain essentials for their families. However, by Friday, we had about 20 workers back at it and ready to complete the roof framing install and verandas for the start of iron sheeting (the roof) first thing Monday morning. 

2 doors and 7 windows were ordered this last week, complete with glass and handles. They will be installed sometime this coming week. We also placed an order for roof venting so there will be decent air circulation. In addition to the roof and windows and doors, we must also plaster the inside of the boma and place a layer of concrete down for the flooring. While it looks like we still have a long way to go, and at times it certainly feels like it, I have been reassured by the Village Council, Headmaster Sanka, contractors,  and the School Committee that what work is left can reasonably be completed by September 5. 


The first photo shows the roof beams being put into place and the second photo shows the beams after completion. At the end of this week, 4 more layers of brick were placed on top of the beams with openings for the roof framing and the columns for the verandas were also constructed. It is hoped that this final week sees tremendous progress, up to and including completion.

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