Los Andes, Chile: 2005
Sunday, March 6: I have arrived
Arrived safely, and on time (almost--we were a little delayed leaving Miami because someone didn’t make the plane but their luggage did, so they had to find the luggage and get it off before we could take off.) Trip was uneventful (desirable in trips.) Completely full plane, and smaller (with less leg room) than we had to New Zealand. But I managed okay. We had dinner served around 2 a.m., followed by something that passed for breakfast before landing.
No problem finding the group at the airport. After introductions and a little orientation, we got on a bus to drive about 50 miles to Los Andes, where we are working/staying for the week. Checked into our hotel, which is modest but quite comfortable. I told the guys sharing my room that we had either a footbath or a bidet, depending on our need.
Just finished a very nice lunch/dinner, here in the hotel. I gather we will eat most of our meals in the hotel. And just off the lobby, in a very nice sitting room is.....an internet-connected computer! I love the electronic age.
Not much else to report for now. A couple of us are going to take a little walk into/around town in a few minutes. Then, perhaps a little nap (it’s around 3:30 now, and I haven’t actually laid prone for a while), then dinner and some further orientation this evening. We begin working tomorrow.
Our daily schedule is very Latin, i.e. breakfast around 8, begin work around 9:30, lunch at 1 or 2, resume working until 6, dinner around 9. I’ll have more to report after we’ve done something and we’ve had a chance to look around the area. For now, simply wanted to let you know that all’s well and I’m in Chile!
Monday, March 7: A good start
Home after our first day of work. Others are showering (since I’m in a triple, it will be a while before it's available) so I grabbed the computer first!
We had a good first day, all things considered. The job site is about a 15-minute drive from town, in a subdivision that is close to another quite small town. The area around is very agricultural--table grapes, mostly, but also some fruit trees of an indeterminate nature (larger than apricots or nectarines, not citrus, not apples, not pears, but....?) and very pretty. Nestled up against the mountains on three sides. Looks prosperous and is in the midst of the harvest season, so many people are employed and busily working in the fields. Went past some very pleasant looking houses--probably the landowners' rather than the workers.
The new subdivision that we are working in has a number of homes already built. Adjacent is the area we are now working in which I believe will ultimately have about 200 Habitat homes, to be completed over the next year. Currently, there are probably around 10 that are completed and occupied. The homes we are building are all brick, since in this area, termites are rampant and wood houses would only last about 5 years. Today some of us (me included) were working with the skilled mason doing some finishing up of the basic brickwork. Expect to finish that house's brickwork tomorrow. We were able to keep reasonably busy, without falling over one another. Not quite like I would be, but much better than I have sometimes been. The mason in charge was very gracious, very willing to have us help, and felt very honored (his word) to have the opportunity to work with people from another country. We felt likewise.
The economics of the houses are interesting. There is a major government grant program that subsidizes about 95% of the cost of the house. The family (carefully screened for income, etc.) has to come up with $320 as their total payment. They then can occupy the house forever, as long as it stays in the family. Or, after 5 years, if they want, they can sell it. But then, of course, they'd have no house. What's remarkable to me, of course, is that the $320 is a significant barrier for most families.
Where Habitat comes in is also curious. The government subsidy is sufficient for a house that is 24 square meters--about 200 square feet in total area. With the volunteer labor and the family's sweat equity, we are able to build a larger house--38 square meters (about 400 square feet--the size of the room we added to our house in Wayne.) Alternatively, sometimes the Habitat program will build an extension/addition to an existing smaller government built home. The family size will typically be 4-6 people living in a house this size. And a significant step up, in size, quality and most importantly, cost from what they currently rent.
Yesterday afternoon, a group of us walked into the center of Los Andes to look around. It’s a pleasant town, but very quiet on Sunday afternoon since virtually nothing is open. There was an ice cream shop open, and with encouragement (doesn’t take much) I sampled the local cream. Quite good, and incredibly cheap (for me)--about 25 cents for a nice single dip. We also managed to find an ATM that actually had cash, as opposed to the first four that were out. And we stopped at a little sidewalk cafe to have a beer. And others stopped at the local supermarket (which was open) to pick up wine for dinner for any who wanted it. So you can see, we are readily making ourselves comfortable!
Weather has turned quite cool and cloudy. Great for working, of course, compared to the 90s+ they had last week. In fact, I'm a little cold, since I brought clothes for last week and have only shorts and a t-shirt to work in. Next time, maybe I’ll be smart and throw in a sweatshirt at the last minute. But not to worry--much more tolerable to be cold than too hot when we are outdoors all day and doing construction work.
Enough for now. Having a good time, pleased to be able to be here, enjoying getting acquainted with another part of the world. Best to all.
Tuesday, March 8: A good day
When Mark was little, Anne used to say that he’d had a good day if he came home dirty. My Habitat version of this is dirty and sweaty. I had a good day today.
The dirty came from mixing, hauling and shoveling concrete to Francisco (nickname: Pancho), the skilled mason, who has become a good friend. Then digging, shoveling and hauling dirt to fill in the rooms beneath what will ultimately be a poured concrete floor, which is covered with decorative tile. The sweaty came because the weather cleared and we had a much warmer day--sunny much of the day, though some clouds came in to provide a little relief in the afternoon, along with a wonderful breeze. It is quite dry here, too, so the heat is not the least oppressive. But after the day’s work, it did take quite a while to get the cement dust out of my hair and off various parts of my body.
The food high point of the day continues to be lunch, prepared by the homeowner of the home I’ve been working on. Today’s entree was a wonderful chicken soup, with a chicken leg, fantastic broth, a potato, a piece of squash, a piece of corn on the cob, and some great seasonings. And the truly wonderful bread, which is quite similar to the French bread I make at home. This is made by the man whose house we eat at, and it is of course dead fresh. Baked in his stone oven in the backyard, which I saw. I want a stone oven in my backyard. (Wonder whether that would violate the Lochmere Association’s rules?) This was topped off with the usual table grapes, fresh from the local vineyard. And then, the absolutely most wonderful honeydew melons I have ever tasted. Bought from the shop across the street, dead ripe, dripping juice, and the sweetest you can imagine. We have some more for the next few days. But I doubt I will ever try them again at home--there just won’t be any comparison.
Other meals are okay as well. Dinners at the hotel vary between okay and quite good. Breakfast the first day was a bit spare---bread, butter, jam, and dry cake (sort of like pound cake), along with tea and instant coffee. We augmented it some this morning---bought some bananas and eggs, and they were happy to scramble the eggs for us. We’re getting some other things for the remaining breakfasts--more fresh fruit, yogurt, cereal, etc. We also have fresh fruit snacks in the morning and afternoon on the jobsite. Peaches this morning, table grapes this afternoon.
I was able to walk around a little more of Los Andes this morning. We stopped on the way to the job site so that some people could go to the bank and money exchange. Since it didn’t open until 9, we had a few minutes to wait, and I walked around several of the blocks in and around the plaza. Fun to see a little more of the town, especially as it was coming to life with the opening of the shops and offices. Gave me a little better sense of the place. We’ll probably have some more time for that tomorrow, since we are going to "the" museum tomorrow afternoon, which I expect is on the plaza, or near it. This is not a shopping town, though, other than the usual household items. No sense of tourists darkening their boundaries. That will have to wait until we have a Saturday in Santiago.
Enough for now. Time to kick back a bit with a beer and a book, before dinnertime. Hope all’s well with everyone. It is with me.
Wednesday, March 9: A little slow
Today the ratio of people to tasks was a bit high. This meant more standing around than I like, shifting to other groups to try and find work, etc. A little frustrating for this type A person, but fortunately, our schedule was for only working on site until lunch, then having the afternoon off for cultural activities. Fortunate also because it has turned quite warm again--I’m guessing mid to upper 80`s, virtually no clouds, only a light breeze. Four more hours working in the sun this afternoon might have been difficult for many. Maybe even me.
Instead, we toured a local family-owned grape packaging plant. Interesting to see the sources of the bags of grapes we buy at the Harris Teeter. I expect I’ll see the faces of the packaging ladies for a while each time I pick up one of these packages that says "product of Chile."
We then toured the local archeological museum. Knowing of my extensive interest in museums, especially those where virtually all the labels are in a language other than my own, you can imagine how pleased I was that the museum, like the town, is small. Walked around the town some more, shooting some pictures, then back to clean up and send this.
A few miscellaneous unrelated stories:
· Same but different--a couple of us went off with Francisco, the maestro mason, this morning to set up for a new project at a house nearby to where we have lunch. The usual scene that many of us are familiar with. The contractor arrives, greeted warmly by the owner (at least partly because they are so surprised and delighted the contractor finally showed up!), they converse happily about the project while the workers stand by, smiling, not being able to speak the language but trying to look pleasant and competent. Of course, this time, we were the laborers, not the contractor.
· Look dumb and smile--ventured to the Super Mercado yesterday evening to get some beer. Found the beer I was looking for (wonderful dark ale that reminds me of England), confidently took it up to the checkout line, money in hand. Reached the cashier, who asked a question. Look dumb and smile. Asked again. Look dumb and smile. Seemed to be indicating that I had to take it someplace else to purchase it. Man behind me asked me something, trying to be helpful. Look dumb and smile. Man indicated to the cashier to "just do it" which she did, looking a little nervous. I looked.....dumb and smiled, and said muchos gracias.
· News at 1, film tomorrow--yesterday, a young man from the local radio station came by the job site to interview some of us. Those who spoke Spanish, of course. The interview was broadcast at 1 that day, while we were having lunch. Today, he returned for photographs. Not sure whether they’ll make the local newspaper or what. It’s a slow day/week in town, though.
· Tooth brushing--we have drilled into us "don’t drink the water." I don’t. But what I find most difficult is remembering this when brushing my teeth. This involves pouring bottled water on the toothbrush, brushing, rinsing the toothbrush with bottled water, and drinking the bottled water to rinse. I’m good on most of this, but all too often forget and wet the brush with the tap water and/or rinse it with the tap water. Bad dog, John. Then requires cleansing the brush with even more bottled water.
Tomorrow looks to be a busier day on the site. Hope so, since I really do like to work hard. It’s also about this time that I puzzle over the fact that I enjoy this kind of trip so much. My puzzle is why everyone else wouldn’t. It is just lots and lots of fun as we get better acquainted with the people involved on the work site, those in the hotel, etc.
Time to go off and catch up with the gang at the local cafe. All for now.
Thursday, March 10: New skills
I was part of a small group that worked with Francisco/Pancho, building the walls of the addition to a house nearby to where we have lunch. Pancho had learned yesterday that I was a retired college professor and, from another person, that I had a doctorate. A little after we started working this morning, he announced he was going to teach "the professor" how to lay bricks. (I thought "finally, a saleable skill!) And he did.
He turns out to be a gifted and natural teacher. Patiently showing me each of the many steps, then showing them again as I helped him, then showing me again as he helped me, then leaving me alone to do a few and coming back and "adjusting" with extensive praise, then leaving me longer to "do the row" and coming back, praising and adjusting as needed.
An added benefit was that he then wanted to give all of us a surprise. We had learned yesterday that he was an accordion player, and singer, and we asked him to play and sing for us. He declined. Today, after teaching me brick laying, he felt good enough to bring his accordion to lunch and sing some Chilean songs. A remarkable event, in so many ways.
I also learned that we are the first Americans he has ever met, let alone worked with. I assured him that most Americans were nicer than we are, but not necessarily any harder workers.
I have always had great respect and admiration for people who know the building trades. Every time I try one of them, even with great teaching, my admiration only increases. Today was no exception. I won’t quit my day job (even if I had one.)
Today was also the day that everyone realizes the end of the work period is nearing. For us workers, this means a greater interest and willingness to work harder and, if necessary, longer. For the site supervisors, it means that the 15-person work crew is about to leave. The specific translation today was that we really wanted to get the concrete poured for the bond beam (the top of the walls of the house) and the wood trusses built (for the roof) so that we could put them up tomorrow while there are lots of people around. And we did. But it meant working until past 7 to do it, and everyone wanted to.
At the end of the longer workday, at the invitation of the site supervisors, we gathered across the street (hence, not on the Habitat site) for beers and snacks. Pancho brought his accordion and played. Mario (founder of the Los Andes Habitat chapter, aged 78 and hoisting buckets of concrete all day!) knows and loves to sing "When the Saints Go Marching In." I picked up with him and sang along. Pancho then got out his accordion and picked up the tune as well. You haven’t lived until you’ve heard Mario and me, along with many others, singing "Saints" in Los Andes, Chile together. I doubt I will ever hear/sing that song again without that vivid memory.
And then a little more singing, and a little dancing, and a little beer, and then....time to get back to the hotel, clean up and have dinner.
More tomorrow, in every respect.
Friday, March 11: It’s more than a house
Finished our workweek today at lunchtime. That wasn’t the plan, but it began raining (for the first time this year!) during lunch, and that ended our ability to work outdoors. (Note to shoppers: once it rains in Chile, they can no longer export grapes to the U.S. So approximately 2 weeks from now, Chilean grapes should disappear from U.S. supermarkets.)
I was doing bricklaying today. Went better than yesterday, but I’m still a far cry from skilled. Pancho was most encouraging and generous with his praise. I would have been delighted to continue working this afternoon, and indeed, all next week (though my body did express itself this afternoon and said "I’m tired.") We did get most of the trusses made and put up on the house, which is good since it involves heavy, awkward lifting that is best done with many folks.
After sitting in the warehouse for a couple of hours, seeing whether the rain would stop, we took local taxis back to the hotel. An interesting experience, since it involved going a different route-- more back roads than the bus takes. Saw apricot grove, and a eucalyptus grove, and raisins out in the field, drying. And more of the back road scenery that is always my favorite. (I love wandering along 1-lane roads in England.)
The evening was spent with the usual end-of-work ceremony. Local officials giving short speeches, handing out memorabilia, putting on some wonderful Chilean dancers, samples of various Chilean liquors (I’m still looking for one that I don’t like--even the "national drink" is good, probably because it isn’t fermented mare’s milk.) And of course, lots of good feeling. The only difficult part is saying goodbye, especially to the construction supervisors with whom we’ve formed very close bonds.
I’ve wrestled at various times with a question a friend of mine posed to me after my last trip: wouldn’t it be better to send the money I spend on making this trip directly to Habitat so they could build more houses? I think I’m beginning to get an answer--at least one that makes sense to me. A lot more houses could/would be built if I sent the money instead of myself. While my volunteer labor at home clearly adds value to the housing, it’s not as clear when there are significant costs to traveling and housing and feeding me elsewhere.
But that would miss an important dimension. Our being here gives people like Reina (the homeowner and cook) the opportunity to do what she does so well--prepare fabulous lunches under difficult conditions for 20 hungry people. And for Francisco/Pancho to meet his first people from the U.S., discover that he is a great teacher of his accomplished skill, and feel good enough about us to share his accordion playing and singing. And for Reina`s neighbors to participate by lending her the dishes and silverware to feed 20. And to help clean up after. And for many people in the community to see us trooping in daily, happy to be there, grateful to be there, and happy to work on Reina`s new house.
And for me to experience another culture, close up and personal--to share their food, their home, their bathrooms, their lives, even for a short period of time. My body is tired, but I could go back to the job site and lay brick, or build trusses, or whatever first thing tomorrow. And the next day. And the next. It’s all about helping people build a home, not just a house. It’s a privilege to be a part of this.
Off to Santiago tomorrow, including a full tour of the city. Then on Sunday, off to a resort in the mountains. We’re hoping the forecast (rain the next 7 days) is either wrong or doesn’t pertain to us. But if it does, who can whine about being in a Chilean resort for a couple of days in the Andes Mountains?
Monday, March 14: R&R
This is idyllic. A small resort nestled along a fast flowing stream, high in the Andes Mountains. Crystal clear skies, temperature around 80 midday 50 at night, light breeze. We arrived late Sunday morning, time enough to lounge around a pool fed by the stream, where you could choose how much of you you wanted to have in the cooling water, the rest in the sun or shade, depending on your mood, all the time looking up at mountains. Then lunch of grilled salmon, with plenty of wine, and then my long-awaited horseback ride!
The ride was everything I wanted. My horse gave me a real understanding of the word "plodding", which was fine with me. The first hour we went up the mountain, with a constant succession of fantastic views. Then a little ride across the top, then descending gently, this time in the shade because the sun had dipped behind the mountain (it was after 6 p.m.).
We a nice dinner and dancing, then fall asleep to the sound of a rushing stream. What a perfect day!
Geographic note: in the southern hemisphere, the sun rises in the east, sets in the west (obviously) but tracks across the northern sky, not the southern (not so obvious to us northerners.) This is particularly important if you are siting a house, say, a solar-powered house. A point missed by a North American architect who designed and built a solar-powered house in Bolivia which was facing.....south. As Mark would say, "due to poor planning...." the solar part didn’t work to well. Ah well, back to the drawing board.
And so, to home. As much fun and as rewarding as these trips are, it’s always good to get home. See you real soon. Off to the spa.
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