Raise High the Roofbeams Carpenters?????

There has been a lot of progress on our house in the last couple of weeks….but, not as much as we had hoped for, due to the bi-annual occurrence of Galungan, a family holiday in which the preparation and festivities go on for about 2-3 weeks.



Although most of our crew is from Java, they too have stopped working in observance of this holiday (at least for a day). But, the roof is being worked on, and we are dependent on the Balinese to do this specialized form of craftsmanship. So, while the tiles sit on our building site, they are no closer to being raised to the roof then they were a couple of weeks ago

       

A small frustration, but the swimming pool continues to fill with rain water, and the timbers continue to warp with the humidity. We are anxious for the workers to begin the indoor work before the big rains start. Ah well, at this point we have little control over the process.



We now have about 8 men on the site. One of them left mysteriously last week, and we still can’t figure out why. His name is Nano and he was from Java. He was college educated, and could speak some English. When Henry saw him packing up to go, he was told that Nano’s wife was sick and he had to return home. When he asked the building supervisor, he was told that he wasn’t a good worker and was asked to leave. When we asked the architect, we were told to ask the building supervisor. We never feel like we get a straight answer here, and are always told either what they think we want to hear, or something that is pleasant. They never confront, and as New Yorkers, we are somewhat uncomfortable with that.

But, the stairs are now up and we can see the views from all directions. The plastering is being done inside and outside on both houses. We continue to window shop till we drop for toilets, sinks, plumbing supplies etc. Haven’t ordered anything yet, but at least we have an idea of the cost of everything, and the products that we want.

We also visited a Mask and Puppet collection the other day in a neighboring town that was extraordinary. It put our small collection to shame.

                      

The weather here has been pleasant. Usually rains at least once a day which helps to clear the air of excess humidity. Then the sun comes out and dries up all the rain. So much for Life in the fast lane…..