| February 20, 2012 |
Cob in Morelos, Mexico Feb 20 – Mar 20 2012
Well it’s official: Cobworks is hosting a cob workshop in Morelos, three hours south of Mexico City. We will be building in Miacatlin for Hector and Igor Trejo. These brothers along with 2 friends took our Baja 2007 cob workshop and have since acquired land and are ready to start building. The project is an 800 sq.ft. house for Hector, which will feature earthen floors, full kitchen, bathroom and 2 bedrooms. With this workshop you will gain many of the skills and confidence to begin planning and build your own cob home. Wood is very expensive and prone to termites, so we will focus on using much recycled and local materials. We have local residents who will also be working alongside us, as we relearn these ancient earthbuilding skills. Also a great chance to practice your Spanish.
During the month long course, participants will learn how to:
locate and identify materials
build a stone and urbanite foundation
design and layout a cob home
install doors and windows
mix and build with cob [the owners are excited about bobcat cob]
build a Rumford fireplace and earthen oven.
design a roof for the structure
There will also be daily theory classes where we will cover:
composting toilets and greywater systems
codes and permits
plumbing and electrical
heating, cooling and earthen floors
roof designs
earthen plasters and natural finishes
a general Q&A session
Miacatlàn is a city in the Mexican state of Morelos. www.tourbymexico.com/morelos/miacatla/miacatla.htm is a great site.
The city serves as the municipal seat for the surrounding municipality of the same name. The population of the town is 27,000. The toponym Miacatlàn comes from a Nahuatl name and means “place of abundant reeds for arrows”. This is probably in reference to the two lakes in the municipality, Lake Coatetelco and Lake El Rodeo.
The camping on site will be secure, have showers, washrooms and an outdoor kitchen. Local, organic [when available] and wholesome meals will be provided on all workshop days. Depending on the group, side meat dishes may be provided. Please let us know of any dietary restrictions so we can accommodate you. Stores, internet access, shopping, ATM and laundry facilities are all close by. Days off will be free to explore many of the local archaeological sites and abundant natural beauty of the area. Aside from learning about cob, this will be a wonderful opportunity to live in another culture, study a second language and meet like minded people who can help you on your own cob project. Oh yeah, it also takes a goodly slice out the cold winter blues.
If you have any questions please contact me at pat@cobworks.com or phone 250 539 5253. The price of the month long workshop is $1500 US or $2500 for couples. This includes camping, workshop meals and instruction. From the airport at Mexico City, you will have a 2 hour bus ride to Cuernavaca, where we will meet you. You can register by sending a certified cheque or money order for $750 US per participant, payable to:
Kathi Maloney [my wife]
S-10 C-103
Mayne Island,B.C.
V0N 2J0 Canada
The remainder of the fee can be paid on arrival. Looking forward to meeting a new crew and cobbling with all of you. I am planning on arriving early and enrolling for 2 weeks at one of the many Spanish Language Schools in Cuernavaca. Hasta luego.
Patrick
P.S. Recommended reading- THE HAND SCULPTED HOUSE by Ianto Evans, LITTLE HOMES ON A SMALL PLANET by Shay Soloman and A PATTERN LANGUAGE by Christopher Alexander.
This post was submitted by Patrick Hennebery.
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