09/03/2010 (posted 17/03/2010)
Got up at 6:15 to wash. In the river.
It was a great experience and so refreshing. The water seems cold when you first walk in but after that it's great. It's also a nice change to have an abundance of water - last week we were using every drop from a bucket whereas it's so easy to get wet, lather up and rinse off and chill for a bit here.
I could get used to this.
We had a quick breakfast and then got down to our work for the day.
Our job for this week is to build an altar for the church as currently their concrete floor simply ends abruptly and there's an uneven section of grass and mud.
So we got to work.
The morning was mainly spent shifting a pile of rocks from about 200 yards down a small hill up to the church. We shovelled some into wheelbarrows which we took up and also enlisted the help of a horse, whom I named Neville.
He is a sweet little thing and I even had a go riding him. Unfortunately I wasn't good at steering and we went the wrong way twice which was impressive in itself. I enjoyed my first horseriding experience though.
Jess and I then went with the Pastor to fetch some pure sand from around ten minute's walk away. We filled eight bags and then waited on the road for someone to drive by and take them to the church for us as each could be just about lifted by one person so carrying by hand was massively impractical.
We started waiting at 12 and at quarter past, a guy said he'd turn around further down the road and then come to take the bags for us. By 1:15 he hadn't returned and luckily another friend of the Pastor drove by so we took them to the church and could then finally get some lunch. I managed to score some extra rice.
The afternoon was spent pick-axeing and shovelling clay into wheelbarrows. This will be used as the base for the altar - our plan is to fill inbetween the brick walls with this clay and then do a thin layer of concrete on top.
In the full glare of the sun, this was tough work and it was only later when we went to the river to cool off that I realised how badly my back was sunburnt. The water was a bit stingy on the burns but probably did them some good. We did some more floating down the river and washed some clothes - I'm truly awful at hand-washing clothes but as long as they get a nice rinse they're wearable in my opinion.
We seem to have all settled into this culture well.
Washing myself and my clothes in the river is such a world away from what I'm used to and so much fun. Also the beautiful food we are cooked every day has certainly helped settle me in and almost certainly isn't typical of what the locals normally eat but what can you do?
I'm having my earliest night yet - in bed and ready to nod off by 8:30.
I'll be up at 6:15 for a wash so I'll need my sleep.
My back is stinging A LOT so this will make getting to sleep interesting.
And the bloody dogs that run riot around this community are, of course, loudly barking just as I'm trying to get to sleep.
JG
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