Delta 3: The joys and challenges of life in Alto Pacuar

Andy Martin gives us a day-by-day account of life on Delta 3's school project in Alto Pacuar:

As I sit here in the dark of our community centre home in Alto Paquar looking back on the past two weeks, so much has happened in such a short period of time, with highs and lows and lots of broken Spanish and Cabecar (leaving  many puzzled expressions). Many details won’t make it into this brief travelogue, but I’m sure that you will learn all the ins and outs when we return!

Tuesday, 20 July: Today we soldiered on and made significant progress on laying the foundation struts and floorboard, which significantly boosted morale within the group. We held English classes in the afternoon. The food highlight was Costa Rican pancakes, which taste of nothing on their own but are amazing with sugar. Some people have become obsessed.

Wednesday, 21 July: After an early start with chickens pecking the floorboards, we had a good hearty breakfast of rice, beans, pancakes and salty egg stuff. Our maestro de obras Don Marvin started construction of the external walls, which requires great skill, accuracy and measurement. Today was the hottest day ever! We never realised that heat can be so disabling. Our most exciting food item was Costa Rican porridge, which is actually a drink and a solid.

Thursday, 22 July: Today was even hotter than yesterday! It was well over 30 degrees and really took it out of us. The walls were gradually getting built up and we hit a milestone when Don Marvin decided where the windows and doors were going. We sawed and nailed and put up some beams. A dedicated team led by Luke also started the 2 metre longdrop. The schoolkids came to the site mid-afternoon and sang us some music with their guitars, a pleasant surprise on a hot sunny afternoon.

Friday, 23 July: Today we got most of the panelling completed on the walls despite the scorching heat. This was great progress! We were all feeling good and washed in the river before the stormy rain arrived. The food highlight was guava juice made from thew fruit that grows around Alto Pacuar.

Saturday, 24 July: Today was a productive work day, as we flexed our muscles carrying wood through rough rainforest terrain from the Pacuare River during the morning. This was a two hour round trip and was one of the more challenging moments of the trip. In the afternoon we made progress finishing the interior walls. This evening was special as it was Ronald's 18th birthday, so we had chocolate, rice pudding and a campfire outside. I organised guitars and our Tica PM, Adri, serenaded Ronald in the traditional Costa Rican way while he opened his birthday cards. It was a good night.

Sunday, 25 July: Today was a good but tiring day off from the building site. We are starting to know the people of Alto Pacuar quite well. We got up nice and earlyto play football against the locals. The walk to the football pitch turned out to be far longer than expected - it took 90 minutes over tought terrain. We followed the Pacuare River upstream through the most amazing scenery. The riveris very large and fast flowing and the area on either side floods during rain storms. We passed plantain plantations and indigenous settlements. We were told this was a kickaround but we sensed the locals were taking it a little more seriously when they got on their football boots. The long grass and soggy walking boots left us 5-1 down by half time and by the second half we were all so tired no one cared about the score. We were more excited about the shop where we got pop and ice lollies. Some of us then climbed an insanely steep hill for the great views.

Monday, 26 July: Today was a surreal day for many reasons. First we had coco pops, not rice and beans, for breakfast. Then Don Marvin announced he was leaving for another job which was quite a blow as we needed to get the roof finished. The afternoon was better as the local kids put on a concert for us and sung five songs in Cabecar. Then we performed some English songs for them! I sang "Take It Easy" by The Eagles, followed by a group effort of "Wonderwall". This was amazing and really lifted our spirits.

Tuesday, 27 July: Today we got a new maestro, Don Victor, who is amazingly quick and dedicated. However there wasn't much for us to do because building the roof is complex and dangerous work. We set to building tables and benches instead. After washing in the river, we had a campfire and lots of marshmallows to finish off our fun day.

Wednesday, 28 July: Which leads us on to today, our next to last day in Alto Pacuar. Everyone is really happy as most of the roof has gone up and most of the school is painted. We'll hopefully finish tomorrow and then celebrate with the locals.

Much of the above is extracted from my journal, soon to be available at all major bookshops as a novel of epic proportions. We all hope to see you soon and hope you are proud of what we achieved.

Ed: Delta 3 did indeed get their school completed on schedule. Here's the proof: