We are curious about the age of our building, but we get a variety of opinions from local people. 15 – 30 years old. We can’t imagine that it could deteriorate so much in only 15 years, so we go with 30.
AM work is to scrape off mud in between rocks for the inside walls. It is seemingly endless and mind-numbing, but at least it is not carrying and breaking rocks in the hot sun. After the scraping, we are to wash the walls in preparation for stucco. Again, minor team insurrections are repressed. More villagers are coming around to help, and after the short school day the faculty pitches in as well. It is really rewarding to work alongside the local people, and our spirits soar!
In the PM, we get the OK on cleaning and begin the floor installation. We learn the Nepali way – build a concrete mix volcano on the ground and fill the center with water. Shovel, shovel, shovel, and you get concrete! We carry it into the building a potful at a time (ie a zillion potfulls) and the skilled concrete guy rough-finishes the first room floor. This plus an unscheduled job of building a walkway around the foundation (many opinions on width and depth) take the rest of the day.
We go back to camp tired (again) and filthy (again). You should see our cleanup facilities – a spring in the woods about 20 minutes’ walk from the camp. Local people get their water here, wash clothes, and bathe. Quite a beehive of activity there all day. We just dive right in and “wash” our nasty stuff a little bit. It will have to do …
