Chris Dawson's blog

Today we received our second ´retro´ or excavator. With two teams working on trenches, there were plenty of things to do. That is of course until we realized we still hadn't received our lateral connections (you know, the ones that were expected to be delivered 4 days ago). We managed to still squeeze out a productive day that consisted of manhole connections and teaching the community members how to continue the project after we leave. They are starting to quickly understand the necessary processes and we are confident that the project will be completed to specifications in our absence.

We were also joined today by David and Nancy Slinde from West Bend Rotary who have lived in the country for 3 years and had come to visit to see the progress of our work. During lunch, the Slindes and Eddie met with the mayor to discuss future project possibilities and there are now several possibilities on the table. After lunch, we got back to work and each of us took a short break to do an interview with David that will be shared in the future with those who are interested and also to the Rotary members in West Bend, Wisconsin. It was a long day and we are all looking forward to a little rest before our final push tomorrow.

Chris

¡Hola!

Today started like any other by waking up to the sounds of trucks, local music and fire works at about 5:30 AM. For breakfast we had fried plantains with creme and fried potatos.

We arrived at the worksite at about 8:00 AM and immediatley started setting grade for our first pipe. We did as much as we could, but we were waiting on supplies so part of the group went to the wastewayer treatment plant to contiune surveying. At the end of the work day Eddie, Jen and Chris went to meet with the mayor about the current project and other community buisness. They came back with good news, the wastewater treatment plant is getting allowed $209,000 for renivations.

After dinner we enjoyed some time to relax before bed as everyone was tuckered out. We played a few games of hearts and Norm taught some of us Sheeps Head, Don Jime didnt seem to get the difference between trump and any other suit, but still some how beat us almost every hand.

I am supposed to appoligize for all of the spelling errors in these posts...we are tired, dont have spell check and are not used to the spansih keyboard.

Adios

Colin Fitzgerald

Hello to all of our fans out there on the internet. We arrived safely in El Salvador this afternoon after a long day of flights and driving. We briefly stopped at a shopping center to get phones and an upgrade to our current bathwater situation (the promise of hot showers are always a good start to the trip). We arrived at Nejapa´s hostel around 5 PM and figured out which cabins were for which people. After some unpacking, we sat down for a delicious first meal of chicken and rice with steamed veggies. Everyone is pretty tuckered out now so it´s going to be an early night but we wanted to make sure an update went out to let everyone know we are safely in Nejapa and ready to get to work tomorrow.

Until the next post,
Chris

Good evening everyone, we have safely arrived in El Salvador and have settled in to our cabins in Nejapa. We had a nice lunch today once we got here and have taken the rest of the day to get settled and organize everything for the rest of the week. Tomorrow we have a meeting with the communities and will make sure everything is ready to go for our construction. The rest of tonight, we will be walking around Nejapa, eating dinner, and getting some much needed sleep. We will check in again later this week!
Chris

The bridge is finally open for use! Today we met with community members, Alcaldia members, and Daniel to have a ribbon cutting ceremony at the Bridge. Eric was asked to give a short speech, so he and other community leaders shared with everyone the importance of having the bridge, and thanked all the volunteers who helped. The community of Nuevo then made papusas for everyone to celebrate.
Following the bridge ceremony we headed to the coast for a little rest and relaxation on the ocean. All of us have had a great time but look forward to heading home tomorrow.

Lots to update on! We are ready to go with the bridge and tomorrow morning we have an unveiling ceremony for it and will celebrate with the communities in the morning. The past few days have involved some impromptu adjustments with our plans for the bridge but after the concrete pour today, it has all been worth it to see it finished while we are here.
Tuesday the survey team wrapped up logistics and planning and are now ready to step forward with a finalized budget and soon (fingers crossed) a finalized design. Flory and Jen headed to the wastewater treatment plant during the afternoon to collect samples. Chris went to join them later and it promptly started pouring when he arrived. The three then had to trudge through a downpour where some parts of streets required walking through 4 inches of running water. It was an experience to say the least. The rest of the night was devoted to drying off and relaxing.
 
We spent all of Wednesday around the bridge making sure the pipe underneath was at a suitable level and that the deck was ready for the concrete pour. This took up most of the day and was one of the longest days for us as well as one of the hottest.
Tomorrow we look forward to seeing the bridge complete and going to the beach for a little relaxation. We are all doing well and look forward to coming home soon, but of course not too soon!
 
Chris