Since the last set of pictures, we've been working on my shop, getting the rough casting done on the porch, and starting the roof. The first picture shows the internet cafe where I
do all of my E-mail and web postings. A nice little place which also has great ice cream. After that are two pictures of Binghi's Place, the little neighborhood bar just around
the corner from where we are building. Then a couple of shots showing the progress in my shop.
The next four pictures show some of the rough casting work. For those not familiar with Jamaican construction technique, we first lay the block and cast the corners and decking. Rough
casting is the next step, in which a layer of about one half inch of mortar is applied to the entire surface by throwing it on and the scraping it smooth with a board. To get the
mortar to adhere to the cast concrete, they create a whole series of dents in the surface of the concrete by hitting it with a hatchet. The last step is called rendering, in which
a mortar made with very fine sand is plastered on.
On Wednesday the 31st we spent the entire day in Savanna La Mar purchasing all of the materials for the roof, and then started construction on the 1st of February. As you can see
in the pictures, not all of the construction techniques would pass an OSHA inspection.
The last few pictures show a couple of our more spectacular sunsets.
