MIT Design/Build in El Salvador

It’s been a while, but other SAP_Builds projects have still been going on despite the silence.  While we go through some administrative growing pains, check out the Cambodia workshop’s blog for news on the kitchen/dining pavilion they designed and built for the Ampil Peam school in Siem Reap.  That project is going to be getting some awesome press soon, and hopefully the El Salvador project will also get some recognition as well.

– eLo

more detail shots from ron…

these drawings give an idea of what (i hope) they’re going to build around the corner from where we worked… this got sorted out after the group left. it’s basically some raised garden beds for vegetables, and a simple steel structure along the windows of the building (which i didn’t bother to draw) for vine plants (ron envisions cucumbers) to grow up and create a sun screen.

the water will flow along a channel on top of the retaining wall to a pool somewhere around the corner, where it will be pumped up to a tank and recirculated. the kids will be able to scoop water out of the channel with little buckets to water the garden.

-ethan

perhaps we’re a little premature for a before/after, but here’s the latest from perkin, in contrast to the day we arrived about a month ago…

followed by a bunch of new shots from ron. it looks like all the tiling is done – they just need to hook up the pump system, and finish the lower wall and garden area, which will probably take a few more weeks… and plants and trees – hopefully coming along soon.

-ethan

before/after

last sunset before leaving amun shea

It’s nearing the start of week 3 in the spring semester, and although we’re no longer in El Salvador and our tans are starting to fade, Perquin is still on many of our minds.  We’re now in the process of compiling all the documentation from the project, from photos and hand sketches to final drawings and renderings of the finished plaza.

There’s also the task of writing reflection papers to get our thoughts and lessons learned down in ink rather than let them recede into the background.  John Ochsendorf, the faculty advisor for the project, is encouraging us to do it sooner than later, and hopefully in this way we’ll get the word out about what we’ve done and what we hope to do for the future.

I’ve been going through my notes and photos.  My sketchbook still has Salvadoran dust encrusted in the binding.  And the photos have a colorful vibrance to them that I miss, now being back in the dreary winter of Cambridge.  Hope we’ll be able to put everything together soon so we can \spread the word about the project and continue it for next year and beyond.

bye…only for now!

– eLo

Hi all

Ron sent along some new photos of the work. These are from Tuesday morning.

so here’s a collection of photos from our last day on the job – it was a long one… we managed to get everything done that we set out to do – all the pools are finished, tile is well underway, bench is in, lights on the pavilion are wired and ready to be installed… also we built a screen and bench for the pavilion up by the clinic, and ordered tiles for the floor. now it’s just up to the guys to finish up, we left with a strong sense that they, as well as ron, are committed to seeing it through.

it was a hectic but fun 5 days. we started eating breakfast and lunch with the boys in their little hideaway room behind the kitchen. this was great, we got to bond a bit, and the food was really nice, much more in line with what the local people actually eat, and fast.

it’s good to be home, i have to say. the past 24 hours were not a pleasant journey, mostly due to a bad lunch in san salvador on the way, coupled with complete exhaustion from being totally wrapped up in the project for the past two weeks.

-ethan

this is the pavilion we built last year with new screen and bench

I’m pretty happy that the weather in Cambridge isn’t as bad, coming back from a Central American climate.

Well… I have another story to share after we left Perquin. I missed the flight….

I was on my way back to Boston transferring at Houston, Texas. I was going through the customs with Keith, Jordan, and Emily as usual all ready to fly back. But just me… they didn’t let me through.
They stared at my face for few seconds, stared at my passport for few seconds, asked me,
“You don’t look like the one in the photo.”
“Well,,, I got tanned. I was in El Salvador”
“How long?”
“2 weeks.”
“What were you doing?”
“Digging earth for a school.”
“…….Ok, it’s not that I don’t trust you, but I want you to go through the security. Its only gonna take few minutes.”

Then they take my passport, I go into this room in the corner. I was told to sit there and wait to be called.
There were few other people in the room but my passport was just left on their table. All they’re doing is chatting, laughing, hugging with every single staff that walks in, with coffee after another.
I told them that my flight was leaving in 30 minutes, but they just said “No worries.”
Finally, after going through every single trivia they have to share, one of them picks up my passport, asks me one question,
“Oh you go to MIT, what do you study?”

This was about 40 minutes later.

Then he takes his right hand out of his pocket, starts typing letter by letter with his finger (and he does this while chatting again) for about 10 minutes.

“Ok. You’re all set. Be carefull next time.”

“(Of what!!!!)” I screamed in my mind with a big fake smile.

By the time I left the room, it was 3 minutes before departure. I gave up…

One savior for me was that Emily had waited for me in front of the door and the next flight to Boston was 2 hours later.

One lesson I’ve learned is that
Next time I’m tanned, I will need to borrow some make up tools from the ladies. especially near the south border.

After all, it was an amazing journey.
What a healthy 2 weeks we had!
Waking up 6:30 in the morning, eating breakfast at 7:00, start working at 8:00 till dark, eat dinner, in bed by 10:00.
I miss the boys.

I’m excited for the reunion guys.

yushiro

It’s always fun to see how the locals do things, especially in a country like el salvador where materials are used sparingly and often cleverly.  On this particular trip i was immediately drawn to what i consider a local furniture vernacular:  chairs, stools and rockers made from metal frames and brightly colored plastic cane.

I don’t think most visitors would even notice the stuff, due to it’s immediate similarities to cheap american 70’s lawn furniture, but once you do notice it, you see it everywhere.  Some of it is definitely mass produced somewhere in central america, as i saw piles of it for sale in town markets, but a lot of it is homemade, resulting in an interesting range of styles and experiments.  Some of the frames are made of bent tubing, while others are rebar or square stock.

All the materials needed are available at local hardware stores (ferretarias) and are relatively cheap and durable.  I freaked out when i saw the colors of cane available…and was immediatley inspired to try a few designs myself back in cambridge.  Perhaps you’ll see some tacky bright stuff floating around N51 soon!

chachi

moving along, slowly. today we set all the levels for the tiles. tiling seems to take forever, not sure how much we’ll see finished. hopefully we can fill the pools with water on sunday and do a little test.

chachi and i are wiped out, for sure. we miss the energy of the group, but the quiet is nice too, and it’s nice working with the local guys more intimately. my construction spanish is getting pretty good…