The work at the site has continued steadily since the last posting. The crew have been working on the installation of the pavilion floor, windows, and preparing for the pour of the fourth column, which is happening today.

Since the last post Segundo, Cyrille, Nick, and Paul have all left us for the Christmas season. We wish them safe travels and a happy holidays. They will all be returning in early January hopefully refreshed and ready to finish up the construction project.

Stafford our carpenter has been chosen to run the crew in Segundo's absence. Since he has been working with us on the columns he has already gained the respect of the crew and the transition is working quite well.

In the image above the crew work together to sturdy the scaffolding so they can begin the pour of the fourth column. It takes the entire crew working together to mix and move the buckets of concrete up to the top of the column.

Nat and Alfredo are perched high up on the scaffolding ready for the buckets of cement to be passed up to them by the other crew members. The crew form a line and pass the buckets along to the next person in the bucket brigade.

Edward smiles for the camera as usual as he works to fill the buckets with sand and gravel so they can be mixed by hand for the column pour. The column cement mixture is very different than that of the walls and the ceiling which can be poured using a cement truck. The mix for the columns takes a much more intricate procedure. Stafford oversees the mix to insure its structural quality.

The awning window installation has been completed and they have turned out very nicely. In the image above you can see both the upstairs store and the two windows in the back of the kitchen area downstairs. These windows are all equipped with screens so they can be opened for ventilation but also keep out those pesky mosquitoes. Once the backhoe arrives we will begin removing dirt from this area and dig for the two remaining columns. A staircase will also be added on the backside of the cafe for access to the pavilion.

In his last day on the job Paul worked to place more of the floor boards for the pavilion. As you can see above the entire floor is almost complete. Once all of the floor has been laid a satin finish will be applied to insure a smooth and soft surface for our yoga classes and other functions in the pavilion. The trecks you can seen in the left side of the photo will be placed on the outer edge of the pavilion deck.

Francis Finishes mortar company that was hired to apply the stucco and mortar to the buildings are moving along quickly. The have almost finished the work on the bathroom building and they will soon be applying the colored stucco to the outside of both building's. In the image above you can see one of their workers applying the mortar to the wall of the cafe managers office. The mortar must cure for two weeks prior to being painted.

The outer glass block windows have been installed and they look wonderful!!

Of course we have managed to break a few in the process but like everything else it is a learning process. Once the windows have been installed on the inside the colors will be much darker but I think they look great. The aqua color in the middle row is definitely my favorite. The guys in the Maho Bay Glass Studio are working on the vertical windows for the store and bathroom so I will keep you updated on the status of that project as well.

Be sure to scroll down to see how this glass concept has evolved to what it looks like today!!

I would like to wish a sunny Happy Holidays to all of our readers!!!