Day 5 on site: A house completed and joy all around

We arrived on site for our final day of the build to see that the rest of the windows had been installed in our absence and that the top of the toilet had been installed by the skilled laborers.

We went to work getting the walls installed, the railing completed, front door installed and the bamboo floors finished. 

Since this was our last day on site our goal was to get the house completed.  We were so close to completion at lunch time. The floor was almost done and 2 walls were installed.  The railing was almost complete and painting was starting to happen on the completed walls.

We worked extra hard after lunch with the skilled laborers and stayed a little bit late to complete the house.  The floor was completed first, with the door quickly following.

Painting was happening as soon as the walls were completed and sealed.  We started to get the toilet structure put together.

The railing was completed and the final wall was put up.  Mr. Penh hung a banner on the roof beam and placed an offering inside the house.

Habitat Cambodia staff joined us for the house dedication ceremony and decorated the house with balloons.  Mr. Penh cleaned off the stairs of his new home for the first time and then we started off with a blessing from the town counsellor. 

We then had a ribbon cutting ceremony where our team was paired with family members and members from the community. 

We were given handfuls of chopped lotus and jasmine blooms to throw at Mr. Penh and Mrs. Mao when they cut through the ribbon.

We then passed the ceremonial key around the group and presented it to the family.

We then went back to the tent and had members of the Habitat Cambodia staff and community speak to us about the work we completed this week.

Mr. Penh and Mrs. Mao also thanked us for our work this week as well.  We presented the Habitat Cambodia staff with a painting brought from Longmont we all signed and framed as a gift of partnership.

We then layed hands on the house and said a prayer.

We then were surprised with a baby powder blessing from the community, which was a new experience for us all.  We were also treated to a rainbow in the sky from a light drizzle that happened during the ceremony.

It was a great week on site, and the first time that we were able to complete a house during a trip.  To show the progress that was made during our stay, here is a picture of what the site looked like on Monday.

And here is end of day Friday.

Day 4: Meetings and a roof raised

Today we started our day off with a meeting at the Habitat Cambodia Siem Reap office.  We learned about the different types of solutions they offer for both housing and sanitation.

We stopped at one of the Killing Fields in Siem Reap to see the memorials and get some perspective on the Khmer Rouge .

From there we made it to the work site to see that the family and the skilled laborers had gotten the roof fully installed.

We spent our time getting the bamboo flooring almost finished, chiseled out the grooves for the stairs and got the base of the toilet smoothed out so we can install the top and put up the walls for the toilet.

We finished the stairs and Mr. Penh lit some incense and placed it in the base while he said a prayer.

We installed the stairs and put down the capping layer of cement on top of the base of the stairs.

Tomorrow is our final day on the build site, and we should be able to complete the house 100% with the help of the skilled laborers and family members.