Final build day Saturday Sept. 27

After our rainy day Friday, we started at our usual time of 7:45 to go to the build site.  Once we got there, we saw just how much rain had fallen and how there is so much clay in the soil that the water does not drain away.

The rain created a moat around the building in the trench we had dug on Thursday

Large puddles and mud everywhere

Because there is no roof, there is water everywhere inside

There was so much water that our first task was to use brooms to push water out of the building

We continued removing the concrete forms.  Different rooms had been put together by different workers for the company that was the general contractor. In rooms where it was done correctly, the forms could be removed without a lot of problems.  But in the hall ways and smaller rooms, they had been done with so many nails and so tightly that it would take hours of great effort just to remove a couple of pieces.  The last piece we worked on was a single piece about 8 feet by 3 feet and it was concreted in from all four sides.  We worked on that single piece for well over an hour and still were unable to remove.  Other tasks included removing nails from the forms, putting together rebar for the steps, restacking the lumber with spacers so that it would dry from all four sides, and building a second dog house for the dogs that stay and guard the construction site.

We finally called it a day a little before 3:00, then went back to the hotel for rest, showers and clean clothes so we could go to the closing dinner of traditional Bulgarian food back in Kostinbrod.  The meal was a veritable feast.

A version of egg salad with roasted red peppers (one of the commonly grown vegetables in the area)

Shopska salad

Meatballs, two kinds of fresh bread, pork with onions and mushrooms, potatoes, chicken and more

During and after dinner, there was traditional Bulgarian dancing by a young couple dressed in traditional garb.

Apparently, part of the Bulgarian tradition is for the guests to join in the dancing.

Yogurt is a traditional Bulgarian specialty, so for dessert they served frozen yogurt with blueberries and graham cracker crust on top.