Day 1 & Day 2 of Construction

Day 1 of construction was incredibly strenuous and all of the volunteers worked harder than any of us thought was possible. The foundation was dug, rebar columns for seismic stability were constructed, and cement was hand mixed and poured for the foundations of the two homes we are constructing. The recipient families were with us as much as possible, while also minding their children and getting their regular work done. We came back to Piedra Menuda which is the school where we are living, dirtier than we have ever been but with smiles and pride for the accomplishments of the day. Dinner was shared with the recipient families and we were all in bed as soon as dinner and bucket showers were done.

On Day 2 of construction, we had an early start with a still energetic though slightly sore group of Infinity Volunteers. We sifted sand, hand missed cement and started building the walls. It was very exciting to see the walls start to rise! We all learned to use a Diablo (a tool to help pour cement between cinderblocks) and trowel to fill the spaces between each block. The process of hand mixing cement on the ground is difficult physically but our teams are now pros as we all rotate in and out of that most physical job. The recipient families are continuing to help us with all of the tasks, getting water, mixing cement and constructing the rebar towers that are used for construction stability.

All of us are having an incredible experience, learning new skills and lots of Spanish! We are looking forward to continuing construction, and are excited about our scheduled cultural exchange tomorrow night.