Long-awaited update

Hey everyone! Thanks for being so patient—our internet has been down for over a week. Someone came by the center to fix it, and we can't wait to fill y’all in on everything that’s happened!

The wedding on Monday was beautiful. It was so sweet seeing the bride smile at the groom; everyone at the wedding was so excited to tell us how much the two of them were in love. The temple and the decorations were really colorful, and Juliana told us a bit about Hindu wedding traditions.

We were only at the wedding for a few hours, so we didn’t get to do any dancing while we were there. Luckily, we got our fill of dancing in the evening after our workday when some people in the Narikuravar community brought out a speaker and started a spontaneous dance party! Ken and Addis really stole the show, and we recognized a Hindi pop song that Michelle had showed us a few days prior.

Poul, our project officer, came back on Tuesday to check on our progress and help us get more materials. He also had a special request—a Texan meal cooked by us! We would have loved to make him some barbecue, but we opted for fajitas, which were quicker and easier to prepare. We ended up cooking for thirteen people including ourselves, and I think everyone was impressed by how well the Indian flavors complemented the Tex-mex dish.

The following evening, we went to a different community that CASA works with to watch a performance organized by Juliana's friend, Preethi. First, they gave us each a tree to plant, including neem (its branches are used as toothbrushes) and sapotas (its fruit looks sort of like a kiwi, but is white inside and SUPER sweet). Then came dancing, drumming, and even a bit of acrobatics. Poul gave a heartfelt speech about the importance of conserving water, and the kids in the community gave a "street theater" performance to dramatize the issue. We all got to dance with the kids and a few of the older community members. It was a night we’ll never forget.

As far as the foundations go, we’re just starting to get the hang of the work schedule. The evenings are surprisingly cool, and we definitely do our best work around sundown. The mornings are much harder to coordinate—we try to get to the site around 7 to beat the heat, but the masons take a breakfast break around 10. In the beginning, we’d go back to the center in the middle of the day when it’s hottest. But lately, we’ve been able to work through it.

It’s definitely paying off, because we’ve made a ton of progress. The below-ground portion is finished for all six foundations! It was heavy work carrying gravel, boulders, and pans of cement and concrete, so we were relieved to start the more delicate task of placing the shaped stones. The masons have been great about teaching us to do the skilled work, even though we’re much slower at it than they are. The shaped stone is finished on one plot and moving pretty quickly on the others. They’re starting to look like real foundations now!

For our next post, we'll write about our trip to Florina’s beautiful home. Stay tuned!