We made it back safely. At 10:00pm last night, after a total of 54 hours on the road, we were welcomed by an encouraging gathering of friends and family in the church parking lot. Thank you all so much for being there. We love you all!
Internet access and computer usage was extremely limited (and one reason we didn’t update the blog), so there’s still lots of adventures to share. We’ll continue to add our stories and photos to this blog, so please check back.
Mangoteen (or Mangosteen) is one of those exotic fruits that you’d probably never see in the store. And because of its rough looks many people wouldn’t even try it. But once you take a bite, you’ll always want more. …Don’t forget to peel it first!
The VBS team did a great job with the kids at the Community Center. There are no time schedules. Children come when they come. Our motto: Be Flexible. [And Be Ready.]
Planes, trains, and automobiles… And what about the rest?! We also traveled by tuk tuk (motorized three wheeled trucks), boat, and motorcycle (only very short distances going very slow).
One of our groups prepped these brick walls for painting. They filled in about 5,800 feet of cracks. That’s over one mile!
Here’s Ryan learning the art of reboo. Dave made up the term reboo, but it’s a good working term. Stalks of bamboo were harvested, quartered, and shaved smooth. Once we had the amount we needed, the bamboo strips were woven to create a firm, flexible reinforcement for our concrete floors.
Who needs a cement truck when you have a Bucket Brigade?! There is one cement truck on this island. The story is that the truck never leaves the garage. It remains there as a status symbol for the owner, yet it probably doesn’t work.
When the bees are less active, the locals harvest honey from this 2′ x 5′ hive.
We worked with a team from California to grade and pour the floors of this library. Instead of iron rebar, we used strips of bamboo to reinforce the concrete (a.k.a reboo). Bamboo is a commonly used building material and is extremely resilient in this hot and humid region.
Monsoon season has arrived and massive, torrential rains would come and go. It made it easy to know when to take those 5 minute breaks from digging holes.