Here in Costa Rica, houses are a lot less typical from what we're used to. The typical houses that we've been building do not have indoor plumbing, air condition, nor enough room to sleep a large family. La Casa Cielo's site is a perfect example of showing us "gringos" just how good we have it.
As stated previously, on the site for the house, there is no indoor plumbing, no air conditioning, nor a room big enough to comfortably house an average American family. The matriarch of the family, Indria is married to Allan. Allan and Indria have three children, with a fourth child on the way. Their current house is tiny. The whole house is no bigger than a typical American closet. The bedroom in Indria's house is a single bed, with a single queen sized mattress. Currently, all five family members (husband, wife, and three children) share the bed every night. Here in the states, we protest over sharing rooms with siblings; imaging sharing a queen sized bed with your whole family, every night of the week.
Indria and Allan's new house, La Casa Cielo is luxurious in comparison to their current arrangements. Their new house will be about 400 square feet. It has a roof, and more than two rooms, which will be nice for Indria and her baby that is due by the end of August.
The fat old sun was nice to us during the morning, but as the lunch hour waned, rain clouds moved in. The afternoon was primarily spent putting together La Casa Papaya. The family who is moving into the house is lead by a woman named Carol. Carol has four children living with her in the house. They are a little more fortunate than Indria and Allan, but that is pale in comparison to what typical American tenants expect. Carol's house has dirt floors. No carpeting, no tiles, no wood; floors constructed of the very earth itself. Carol's new house will be like Indria's; bigger, and feature more comfortable living arrangements for both her and her four boys. Most of the work tomorrow will be putting in windows and inside walls of both La Casa Cielo and La Casa Papaya.
As we relax in the middle of our week here in Costa Rica, the rain still falls steadily, and the power flickers. We are sitting around socializing by playing cards and other games. The rain kept us away from the beach tonight. But the rain is much welcomed, being that it's been brutally hot and sunny for our previous work days. Tomorrow both Indria's and Carol's houses will have windows and our work with their houses will be very nearly complete.
We may live on the same continent as the fantastic people we've met here in Costa Rica, but it feels like we're on another planet. The wildlife, the weather, the scenery, the locals, and the situation; everything is so vastly different that it is a stark comparison to life in the United States. It has really made us realize that we are quite fortunate for many things that we take for granted back at home. Our experience thus far in Costa Rica has really helped us open our eyes; in turn this has helped us open our hearts. Helping the people of Costa Rica is a rewarding experience for the work groups and the locals alike.
Written by Byron McGuire
