Building a Home in Davao

[Tommy T.]

Here's my latest installment regarding the everlasting and ongoing home build:

We ventured out yesterday... We passed through two "checkpoints" where they simply glanced at us to see that we were wearing our masks and that there were not too many people in the car? Anyway...just a simple glance and wave through in both directions. It was not, technically, my FM pass day, but I haven't pulled out that pass for weeks now.

Anyway, the construction continues. I squawked to the contractor last week about why is this taking so long? They have a few other projects also underway. I think they heard me because, instead of about 4 guys sort of  rambling along, there were more than 10 and they were busy - but not hasty or doing slipshod work, so far as we could see...

This guy was installing ceiling/wall trimming pieces.

I was impressed that he constructed his own "mitre box" to make fairly accurate cuts to make the pieces fit. Gotta love the ingenuity here!

Another guy was coating the same pieces - and more - with Solignum, to try to help slow any future termite ingress...

The light fixtures are already wired in and ready to install after the ceiling over the laundry/dirty kitchen is done being painted.

The same guy coating the other wood was coating the new soffit/vent pieces. We just delivered them yesterday and he was coating them within 20 minutes! We could not find any decent plastic pieces we liked, so opted for the wooden version - coat with Solignum, stain to match the doors, varnish to finish them. I decided that, rather than paint them to look like the rest of the overhead, to try the varnish since it is wood already, to make some interest and contrast. They can always be painted in the future should we desire...

Here's the newly constructed railing for the 2nd floor terrace. L, especially, thought it looked too tall and imposing. So after a bit of a heated discussion, we decided to have it lowered from the current 115 cm height to 100 cm (1 meter). I will just have to be a bit more careful when sipping my Tanduay to not lean over the railing too far!

And the standard home view including the new terrace railing.

The windows should be starting to install next week and then the kitchen after that.

Oh... and all the floor and wall tiles have finally been delivered. We made our grout colour choices so they are good to go! I also reviewed the instructions regarding installation with the foreman just to make sure, as much as possible, that the tile laying would go properly... 

Edited July 2, 2020 by Tommy T.

[stevewool]

When are you hoping the move in date will be Tommy, by the way it looks great too.

[Tommy T.]

1 minute ago, stevewool said:

When are you hoping the move in date will be Tommy, by the way it looks great too.

Thanks for your nice comment, Steve....

Ah... back in April or May??? This year...

[intrepid]

1 hour ago, Tommy T. said:

Thanks for your nice comment, Steve....

Ah... back in April or May??? This year...

Once you move in all that waited time will be a short memory as you quickly start enjoying the fruits of past frustrations. 

[intrepid]

On 6/26/2020 at 10:08 AM, Tommy T. said:

I was amazed at how long L needed to talk with the foreman about a few things - maybe an hour or more? Then she would ask me... so, what do you want... this? or that? I answered in a few words and then things were decided... that's just the way things go here...

 

On 6/26/2020 at 10:08 AM, Tommy T. said:

My God! He and L must have talked over 1/2 hour just about the stairs...

I do not speak Tagalog or any other foreign language.  Actually I have a hard time with my English occasionally.  But I understand your frustrations when they talk.  Sometimes it seems like more confusion when they are done.  Like you Tommy, I cannot figure why it takes so many words for them to explain something so basic and simple.  I once was talking to a local fire chief and he joked how his department has such an outstanding record.  He said, “In the past twenty plus years of serving with the fire department they have not lost a single foundation,….yet”.   We laughed but in the back of my mind I wonder if there is confusion in the orders being relayed because of the observations I have had about the communication here.  However, everything seems to usually/finally get completed and most of the time correctly.  Makes me wonder what would happen in the states if there were many different languages in different regions and then those people wold start transplanting all over.  Sorry for getting off topic and long winded.  I suppose the best thing to do is get another tall glass and sip away as the others talk.     Oh I said sip not gulp.

[Mike J]

14 hours ago, Tommy T. said:

Ah... back in April or May??? This year...

I know how that goes.  When we bought our last  house in the USA, I told the wife it would take me five years to do the remodel working evenings and weekends.   It actually took seven plus and I hired out the new electrical and total re-plumbing work.  Fortunately I liked doing that kind of work.

[Tommy T.]

13 hours ago, intrepid said:

But I understand your frustrations when they talk.  Sometimes it seems like more confusion when they are done.  Like you Tommy, I cannot figure why it takes so many words for them to explain something so basic and simple.

I am beginning to understand why all the confusion... maybe, sort of...

As I have said in another thread somewhere, Tagalog and Visayan - the two main languages used here in Davao, or at least for the home build - are very imprecise. This is common in many island nations I have visited. Back many years ago, there were no needs to describe technical things, tools, materials, etc... You needed to just talk about relationships (not going there!!!), food, every day occurrences.

Then, suddenly, we westerners and others "invaded" whether by fact or influence? In Samoa, we were and are still referred to as Palangi... technically, "sky bursters!" Because we arrived from the air. In Fiji, an airplane is called, in their language, "flying boat."

I think you get the idea.

L also was telling me yesterday about the difference in languages here. There are words that are spelled and pronounced the same from one language to another, yet carry different meanings. The English word, "safe," is pronounced sahf-eh in other languages here with different meanings from ours. She said it is very confusing because sometimes the people conversing forget or are not clear about the word meanings... My God... total anarchy linguistically!!!

L understands and fluently speaks about 7 languages, including English, Tagalog and Visayan as her main ones. I am so proud of her for that (among other things) and could never imagine being able to do that...

I am conversant with English (but also get lost with it at times), Australian (hahaha... had to say that... sorry, boys!) German, a bit of French and Spanish. Ah... but I can swear in Fijian and Samoan...

Anyway, L and I draw lots of pictures, we sketch things on the walls about what we mean or desire. And, thank God! for the tape measure in inches and cms... For some reason, USA measurement is still commonly used here... Something should be xxx cms tall, but it should be made from a 2 x 4 stock! (which most of us already know is really a 1 1/2 x 3 1/2 inch piece). And I have used most of a ream of paper printing out photos and diagrams to illustrate our thoughts and ideas...

[Tommy T.]

I will add to this that now, if we are not sure about something to be done to or for the home build, we asked the foreman to just do a small amount - maybe just tack some welding together, or construct just one piece - so we can then inspect and decide if that is what we want throughout... This system is working okay for us and them - not so much energy or expense involved, and we can all evaluate and decide what will really be okay for us...

 

Edited July 3, 2020 by Tommy T.

[GeoffH]

3 hours ago, Tommy T. said:

Because we arrived from the air. In Fiji, an airplane is called, in their language, "flying boat."

The Catalinas (and others) that serviced the islands of the pacific were actually called 'flying boats' in English as well.

Australia's major cities got the more luxurious Empire class flying boats but after the war mostly ex WWII Catalinas were the mainstay of island flying for a decade or more.  And of course they were based there during the war as well.

(I'm just wondering if the Fiji word resulted because of those particular planes,  sorry for the off topic Tommy).

 

Edited July 3, 2020 by GeoffH

[Tommy T.]

37 minutes ago, GeoffH said:

(I'm just wondering if the Fiji word resulted because of those particular planes).

I understand your comment and question, Geoff... My understanding - always open to question - is that the Fijians simply referred to them in the basic as "flying boats." From my limited knowledge, they had little or no experience with the Catalinas or other amphibious aircraft. I did not see any ports or areas with ramps for these when cruising around Fiji - at least the more remote areas where we visited...

Edit:  But after reviewing your latest comment... perhaps that is, indeed, where that nomenclature began???

This contrasts with my observations in the Gilbert Islands (now called Kiribati). In one atoll where we sojourned for about 5 months (Kanton Island, a very small atoll). This atoll island was, apparently, a stopping off point for the "flying boats," including refueling and a small hotel sort-of accommodation...

Edited July 3, 2020 by Tommy T.