Tapia Construction

We’re currently building a security wall around the offices here in San Jorge. We previously had chain link fence. We’re in a neighborhood (on a dirt road) and our neighbors have everything from glass shard topped concrete walls to wooden rail fences.

I’m not sure what led us to need this change. Although it will keep the neighbors' chickens out, I’m pretty sure this was not the tipping point for the decision.

In most Central American towns and cities the view from the road is not pretty. They're usually quite dirty and lined with these security walls. But when you walk by in the evening and the doors are open, often you can see through a room where everyone has congregated after work and school to socialize, back to a courtyard where nature is still a part of their everyday lives.

We're lucky to have enough clay in the soil, we don't need formwork for the footings.

Mixing concrete by hand

Carrying concrete by hand (Miguel wanted me to take this picture, I'm not sure why they ask me, but then so frequently they look like it's the last place in the world they want to be when it's taken).

Building scaffolding

Esteban is our most experienced lead