Rainy day in August

Just realized I hadn't posted on these things now completed. The palapa is dry, no longer green and only leaks a little.  The awning (marquesina) and flower beds worked out perfectly.   No rain against the house and some greenery.  The car fits in the garage and it also works as a dry work or party space and laundry area.  Grass is still struggling to recover from construction traffic but I've fertilized it.

Palapa and marquesina

Garage and bodega

Kitchen cabinets

Gabinetes or alacenas in Spanish. A place to finally get everything off the counter tops. Workers were gone last week after all the outside stuff so I had time to finish these unfinished cabinets from Home Depot. What a relief!

I had 4 open cabinets made that would fit on either side of these but they don't have oak around here so they would have to be painted the same color as the walls. I decided it would be too 'busy' and I really don't need that much storage space. There's still all that room under the counters that will eventually get shelves.   My custom cabnets will probably end up in the bodega as more storage. 

New larger bodega

The old narrow one that covered the well and wash area was not good protection and was badly made. Decided it was time to build a real one that can also work as a garage, cover for the trailer, keep the washing machine dry and be protection for the animals (sun and rain). Also stuccoed over the bricks on the back wall. Bodega will be 5x5 meters.

Beams are 4x4 palm and cross support pieces are 1x2 pine. They put up the cement pillar and beams a few weeks ago when doing more cement work. Thinking about putting a cement floor in but this is the last week so we'll see. I'm afraid I'll have to take out the bamboo as it is under one corner and will grow a lot with the rains. Sadly I have no place else to put it.

New palapa ramada

I've been threatening to put a palapa or lamina ramada over the ugly cement box in my yard that covers my cistern and finally decided to do it last week. They finished Saturday. These were friends of one of my cement workers and the total charge was 8000 pesos ($700us) including the wood frame and the palapa install. My guys put up the cement posts a few weeks ago using Sonotubes.

The project pretty much took over the whole yard so my cement guys took a break and helped the 'palaperos' from time to time. All the palms are nailed on rather than tied.  The crown has a piece of black plastic (1x5 meters) and then covered by palm fronds and tied down with wire.

After they left we gathered under the palapa, had a few 'cubas' (coke and tequila) followed by tacos de carne asada. Very satisfying day.

Palapas arrive

Starting on the first course

Getting near the peak

Starting on the other side with dad below

The boss putting on the crown

All finished

House projects

I posted this on my main blog but also added two more fotos here. They delivered most of the wood for the palapa today and will bring more and start the wood finishing tomorrow. Also all the marquesina forms are down and the finish work underneath has started.


I consider these finishing touches to a house that began very simple and not all that well planned. The largest is the awning (marquesina) along the house that will help keep rain away from doors and windows. Oscar is up there now filling the joints between the awning and the house that they had to cut out to attach it.

The second is a palapa over the ugly block of cement that covers the cistern in the middle of the yard. The four posts (castillos) are up and the palapa builder will be here next week to build the wood structure that sits on top. Gonna use the long palapas rather than the royal palm that is very much more expensive. He says with the right pitch and placed close together it should be good for 5 years. We'll see.

The third project is to replace a jury-rigged lamina roof that was over the outside wash and pump area. It will extend out 5 meters rather than the 1.5 meters of the old one. Will be much better protection for the area, equipment and can act as a partial garage. One column of the same type used above and two cement cross supports (vegas) that they just poured this morning.

Posts for palapa, house awning and lamina supports

New lamina supports for utility area

Soon to be covered with a palapa

Another view of the house awning

Palapa wood (madera)

Cement finishing