So many Indians work really hard. Not just work, but hard, manual work in the very hot heat.
Yesterday, as I was getting ready, I heard something right out my window and took a look. These laborers were right over our wall, working so hard! They were carrying off some of the rubble from our home renovations that I just mentioned. Check out the pictures!
That bowl is like his wheelbarrow. You feel it full, take it off and dump it.
Except you don't push it off, you cary it...ON your HEAD!!!
And, often, when you see workers, you see children. These children came along with the workers. They are playing on this pile of trash and with a beer bottle. The smallest one of the left is maybe 3 years old, and probably goes to work with his/her mama everyday!
See, there is the mama hard at work!
These are some old pictures--from when we lived up near the mountains,
but I took them and saved them a while ago.
These ladies have their faces all wrapped up, and they are sweeping.
But, I love that they take some time out to chat.
I met one of these ladies, and we had dinner in her home. She was the wife to an autowala we used. I didn't even realize she was a sweeper until one day I walked by her sweeping and smiled. She unwrapped herself and smiled back and asked me how the baby was. I was confused at first, but thankfully remembered who she was when her daughters-in-law came beside her. They all were these sweepers I had taken a picture of!
These pictures are from an intersection in Delhi. I took these when we were living there for Parks' delivery. They were likely working on the sidewalk for the Commonwealth Games.
After watching them briefly, I'm pretty sure this is a wife and a husband working together.
And, I also believe those are their children.
And that is a younger son taking his afternoon nap at work with mama.
All over India children go to work with their parents everyday.
And, many of them actually start working at a very young age.
Here's another little guy helping his dad and mom
Here is a lady carrying a load on her back!
The women here do an incredible job carrying so many things on their heads and backs.
I have yet to get a good photo of ladies carrying things on their heads, but they do it ALL the time!
And, this picture I took back in Feb 2010--less than a month after we arrived!!!
It's truly manual labor. No back hoe. No digger. No bulldozer. Sure, in the bigger cities you'll find these, but not in smaller ones. It's true manual labor. This house is right behind where we lived our first year. We walked this road many times a week, so I decided I would document this house being built.
This picture was taking in March...it's really coming up, isn't it!!!
They used bamboo as support and scaffolding.
It really is manual labor...let me explain: See the guy carrying the bricks on his head. Each brick on that house was carried on someone's head. The dirt for the concrete is sifted in a screen that is propped up. The guys throw it onto the screen and use the finest rock/sand for the concrete. Then, they pour the water on it and mix it by hand. The mix it in those same little bowls that you saw in my first pictures (the wheelbarrows if you will).
This picture was taken in May...coming right along, isn't it!
We left in June to go have a baby, and the monsoon also came. So, I don't have pictures for a while, but the monsoon can slow down a lot of work all over the country as well.
After returning in September, we found out this house was one a close friend was going to be living in. She knew the guy building it and he would be her future landlord!!! I had no idea all this time, I was documenting her house!!!! She was supposed to move into this place in August. This picture right above was taken in October! Still coming along.
Our friend finally moved into her home in December.
It's a fun house too!
We got to see this house be totally built in a year.
