Slowly but surely the bridge is starting to take shape. It’s kind of cool to see it all come together. The posts are up and now they are working on the steps up to the platform. Once it is all connected it will make going to the cabin so much easier.
Tito Puente posts are set
Making the forms for the steps up
Life is moving right along at a good clip, but we still try to stop and enjoy the sunsets too.
A walk at sunset on Sandy Beach
The month of September was sort of a waiting month. In order to put on the siding (we found chanfles instead of T-111) we needed the windows. But the windows were supposed to take about 4 weeks to finish. So in the meantime, we had started on the footbridge. But our friend Walde could only work weekends. Basically we had a lot of mini-fires going just waiting to get bigger. We still always have plenty to do, however, and yard maintenance is pretty much front and center this time of year.
Britton and the turkeys under the large avocado tree in the “garden area”
But now the windows are here! It actually took a little less time than they estimated. Windows are a different sort of bird in Puerto Rico than in the states. In the states there are generally egress rules whereby you must be able to escape out of the windows in case of a fire or other emergency.
Here, that must not be the case, because it is very difficult to find any window that you could climb through. The vast majority of windows are Miami shutter style which works for ventilation, but they block out the view. Or you can get a picture window, but they can’t open. Well, we wanted good airflow as well as visibility, so we went with larger clear glass louvres. A good compromise I think given the options.
When the windows arrived we loaded them into the truck and then brought them to the cabin
The other difference with windows is that they are almost always custom made by an aluminum works type place. We learned that trick when we got our screen doors for the cabana. They are usually cheaper than what you can find in a big box store (like Home Depot) and they will fit perfectly! Plus it helps out local businesses.
Britton installing windows at the cabin
The bridge is the other big project that is moving right along. Since Britton only has Waldemar’s help one or two days a week, we made a big decision to get a cement mixer. To ligar cemento we would need to hire at least 2 other guys for at least 3-4 days to fill in the zapatones and the mini-columns, so we figured that even with this job it will pay off and then we can make cement stuff all over the property all by ourselves.
Britton and la máquina
We’ve decided to name this bridge Tito. You know, for Tito Puente! 🙂 Here’s one of our favorite songs of his (though most will know it as a Santana song).
We are becoming pretty good friends with these guys that have been helping us on various projects and planning lots of paseos with them. On Saturdays after the work is through, Papo comes over with a bunch of food and we set up a little mini-bar and tail-gate from it. We listen to bachata from his truck with the doors open, open up some coconuts and drink coconut water with whiskey and eat pollo, yuca, arroz con gandules and dance a little in the middle of the yard. Life is fun. We’re getting stuff done, but we’re enjoying it along the way.
Fun with friends
Future Turkey Crossing Point
We are in the early stages of bridge building. We had initially wanted to do a suspended wire bridge, but because we now are going to cross over at a lower point, we can build it in wood.
BK measuring to Waldemar on the other side of the currently invisible bridge
That makes it somewhat easier because it is just basically a long skinny deck and we already have about half of the materials. What makes it difficult are the holes for the poles, the distance (about 70 ft!) and the mixing of more concrete.
Footer holes are dug!
But we have done these things before and so we are at least familiar with the process. Our carpenter friend Waldy can only work on the weekends right now, so it may take a little extra time but we’re not in a hurry.
We are so looking forward to being able to access the cabin a little more easily. Plus it will be a kickass feature!
Oh, and as a little bonus, the other morning Britton noticed a huge hawk on the top of a Royal Palm spire. So I went out and took some photos. It was awesome! Nature’s regalia. We have come to an understanding with the hawks. As long as we keep the babies out of sight, they’ll leave the grown ups alone.
Hawk in the morning light on a tall palm tree spire
Luz is the shorthand way of saying electricidad in Spanish. It literally means light, but in our case it will eventually mean a full size fridge (amongst other things)!! Yay!
It may not look like much, but getting this hook-up was quite the achievement!
We finally made a decision about a month ago after much deliberation and chose to go with grid-tie electricity instead of solar power. Since then, it has been a lot of work to get to that point! Even though we hired out the work, we have learned that it is important to be involved or at least present in any project.
The first step was to dig a trench about 500 feet. At first there were only two middle-aged guys doing it and it was getting done, but the going was slooow because it was hot, steep, and hard work. I have never seen a skilled 50 something-year-old electrician getting down and dirty digging a trench like Papo, but I have come to expect the unexpected in Puerto Rico!
Checking out the sanja (trench) with our friend Anthony after the guys left
After a couple of days just working with one other guy, Papo brought in a larger crew and the trench-work (literally working in the trenches) went a lot faster. It was still super hot though and everyone on the team had to change clothes at the end of the day because they were just drenched in sweat. Late summer is not the ideal time to do manual labor in the tropics because if it wasn’t super blazing hot, it was raining! Also, Tropical Storm Erika did nothing in Rincón, but in Maricao it downed a lot of lines. So Papo took about a week working there instead, helping restore people’s power which was definitely more important than our project.
Trench almost to the cabin!
When work commenced again it was time to lay cable -the thickest cable I think that is available. In order to do this, they had to unspool it and send it down the trench. And then cover it with the conduit tubes and seal them.
Unspooling the wire!
Orlando, Papo, Cocolo and Ivan with the spool of wire
Covering the wire in conduit and running it down the trench
Tube is laid and ready to be filled in with caution tape
The next phase was to build a junction box and run the copper wire into the cabana and chip out a space in the wall for the breaker box. Britton helped bring supplies and materials and oversaw a lot of the work. His Spanish is still a little bit Tarzan, but I think he could work on a Puerto Rican construction crew now if he wanted. These guys speak virtually no English, so necessity is the mother of invention. As I reminded Britton, immersion is the key to learning any language (though construction Spanish has a distinct dialect and vocabulary ha!)!
Junction box
Double breaker boxes in the cabana
The final steps were to hook everything up, plaster the holes, cement the lower portion where the conduit crosses the quebrada and check to make sure it all worked. Well, everything seemed finished, until the sky opened up and just dumped an aguacero on us.
Trench in the torrential downpour
Britton and Papo went through the rain and mud back to the cabin to go do a final check, but alas, it didn’t work. No sense in trying to mess with electricity during a storm like this, so they called it a day. He would need to return a final time to figure out what went wrong. We were a little nervous that the fresh cement wouldn’t hold through all that rain, but the next day we checked and that, at least, stayed solid.
The turkeys went with us to check the quebrada crossing, and everything was still intact
When Papo returned, he figured out the small issue. He connected some wires and we all walked to the cabin for one final check. Amazingly, not only did everything work, but it had hardly any voltage drop at all! Well done!
Voltage at the cabin was almost exactly the same as at the studio cabana 500 feet away
Luz! Literally!
Afterward, our friends needed a little help from Papo but since Papo speaks no English and they don’t speak Spanish, I went along as interpreter. As we were heading up, Papo honked and signaled us to stop. For a beer! Then after we left our friends’ house, he wanted to stop again for more! Since it was Friday, and we had such a huge accomplishment we went with the flow. The bar was called called El Nuevo Encuentro (The New Encounter) after all! How could you not stop at least once (if not twice) with a name like that! It was hill top with a great view and the wind blew my hair all around as we enjoyed some cervezas, billares, alitas, and amistad.
Having a new encounter and beer with Papo!
Sometimes it’s hard to put into words exactly why I love Puerto Rico, but this is part of it! I mean, come on, our electrician took us out to the bar! How much more welcoming can it get?! Rarely are things completely straightforward here and lines (like working/playing) are often blurred. And I just can’t help but love it so much. It lights up my life! 😉
Hill top pool