Thursday 14 April 2016

ReBuild Mexico 2016 II

"We love you Furnace we do... Kings Furnace we love you!"
If you haven't read our first post about Mexico, you can find that here.

"ReBuild Mexico was, hands down, one of the most amazing experiences of my life. It was amazing to be a part of a group of young people (and some not-so-young people) who all wanted to make a difference in people's lives..."
- Samuel Houghton

Upon returning to the campsite on our first build day we ran straight to the shower block. Standing around us were four large concrete walls wearing large old, rusted hooks. We lifted our showers onto the loop of metal and hoped not only would the shower hold up but that it would be warm too.
As cold water trickled down our backs, we felt all hopes of a warm and powerful shower wash away.

Our solar showers.
Filling up our solar showers was a whole different experience altogether. We approached some large cylinders of water with apprehension, finding them to be filled with dead bugs and dirt. As we walked back to our tents, with our now-full solar showers, we discussed where best placed they would be to catch the most of the sun, hoping for a warmer shower tomorrow than the one we had just experienced.

Solar shower fill up station
Thoughts of the build site facilities flashed through our heads. Witnessing the Mexican family's bathroom at our build site each day, how could we complain at our solar showers? We each had our own shower full of water that, though filled with bugs and dirt, had been treated with chemicals. While we were only 5 solar showers away from the more-than-comfortable hotel shower, we knew that many people live like this all of the time.

Almost simultaneously the yellow circus tent felt like home: our very own lounge, the food tasted good: you'll eat almost anything when you're hungry, the tent pod felt comfortable: our very own bedrooms, and the baños were no longer scary: the smell was dulling too.

Campsite baños.
"The baños at the campsite were not quite what I expected. It was an experience I will never forget, I'll tell you that. They were Portaloos without any plumbing. Instead of flushing, you just let gravity take over. Every bit of human waste fell 12ft below you. It made me realise how priveleged we are just to have a flushing loo. Some people who are in poverty don't even have the luxury of having privacy. It just makes you realise how lucky we are to have things like plumbing and running water."
- Becca Walters

On went the worship music, down went the sun, out came the campfire under the stars, and off we went to bed. An early morning was fast approaching...

Check back here for more soon. We've still got the building experience to cover and we haven't even told you about the camp Ronalds yet!
If you missed our last post about Mexico you can find it here.

To read our next Mexico post, click here.
Guest post written by Amy | Girl With A Dream

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