Mexican Trip
The format of this E-zine will depart from previous ones, since Rosana and I have just returned from a two-month trip into Mexico, and I really want to tell you about my impressions, especially relative to housing there. We departed our home in Colorado in mid-January, travelling in a little old Toyota/Dolphin motorhome, and expecting to enjoy warmer southern climes for awhile. We had no specific itinerary for this trip, just that we were going south. It took us a week to wind our way to the tip of Texas, where we crossed into Mexico near Brownsville. Our entry into the country was delayed by an RV caravan that had arrived just before us, so that all those huge rigs with their tow vehicles (or vice versa) had to be processed before us. We encountered other such caravans throughout the trip, and I always wondered why they didn't just charter a bus for their tour, saving thousands of dollars in fuel costs and all the wear and tear of Mexican roads on their rigs, while having more time to relax and enjoy each others' company. Actually we were surprised how few U.S. tourists we saw throughout our trip in Mexico; we were often the only such folks in many of the campgrounds.

Almost 25 years ago, Rosana and I made a similar, but longer, trip through Mexico and into Guatemala. It is partly because of our fond memories of this trip that we decided to go again. Our general impression of the Mexican economy is that people now are much better off than they were a quarter century ago. More Mexicans have personal cars, and these cars are in better repair. There seemed to be fewer beggars in the urban areas, and those that we saw tended to be very elderly or indigenous natives. The biggest difference is in housing: those pallet and cardboard shacks that used to line the outskirts of most cities were hard to find. There is no denying that poverty is still a major issue in Mexico, but folks seem to be finding ways to provide better shelter for themselves. The middle class in Mexico has greatly expanded, so that many of the larger cities sport U.S.-style supermarkets along with the traditional Mercados.

It used to be that the basic Mexican hut was made of adobe blocks, with a roof of corrugated steel or tar-impregnated cardboard, or possibly something resembling wattle-and-daub construction. You can still see these types of buildings dotted here and there, but by far the most common construction material now is steel-reinforced concrete, sometimes in combination with low-fired bricks or rocks. These materials are obviously much more durable than the others, and the Mexicans are capable of doing some truly amazing and beautiful architecture using just these elements. I'm sorry to see that the more traditional earthen materials are losing favor since they have much less of a negative environmental impact. On the positive side, though, the Mexicans generally continue to live in very modest, compact houses, with much higher population density than is common in the United States. Also, localized crop and animal propagation can be found almost anywhere, including along the sides of the roads and in the middle of larger cities.

The traditional Mexican house is a basic rectangle, with small windows, and little attention paid to concepts of passive solar heating or cooling, and this tendency has not changed much. Parts of Mexico can get by reasonably well with this type of housing, because the climate is temperate; other regions would do well to pay more attention to utilizing insulation outside their masonry homes, or digging into the ground to take advantage of the earth's stable temperature. The image at the right is unusual with the large south-facing picture window, but notice that the roof eave is not sufficient to shade it much during the summer. The rood itself is a slab of reinforced concrete, about two or three inches thick, which is very common these days.

Another type of masonry roof, that I have only seen in Mexico, is a solid brick vault. These lovely, delicate structures are usually made without forms, by master craftsmen who know just how to lay the bricks to be self-supporting as they proceed. Both the concrete slab and the vaulted brick roofs have the advantage of eliminating the need to frame a roof with wooden or steel beams, which is especially good for Mexico since there are not many trees in this mostly desert country.

Arches in general are quite popular in Mexico, and lend a pleasantly graceful element to their architecture. The image at the right illustrates the use of such arches (you can see the temporary arch forms in a couple of the windows), along with the reinforced cement columns that bind the structure together. The foundation is built up with local stones cemented together.

As a way of housing the expanding population in Mexico, there is a pattern of creating developments on the outskirts of established cities. In the U.S. these would be called suburbs; in Mexico they are colonias, and are often designed with their own little parks and municipal buildings. The image at the left is of such a colonia near Chihuahua in Northern Mexico. I don't think this one is quite inhabited yet; you can see heavy equipment preparing for a new tract in the foreground. This gives new meaning to Malvina Reynold's old folk song about "Little Boxes" that all look just the same.

While in the San Migel de Allende area, we connected with a couple of gringos who recently purchased a tract of some 15 acres of land about 25 minutes away from town. Andy Watson and Dorothy Gerhart are enthusiastically promoting workshops on this property to teach people (both locals and foreigners) how to build and live sustainably. They are especially interested in earthbag, cob, and strawbale construction, along with compost toilet systems. To find out more about their philosophy and the workshops they offer, you might check out their website www.karacadir.com ..

Rosana and I especially enjoyed spending this time of immersion in the Mexican culture. We found the Mexican people very open and friendly, eager to help us in any way they could. We were never threatened nor molested in any way, and we negotiated the highways without coming even close to an accident. It was quite refreshing to be amongst people who are so lively, gregarious, loving with their families, and seemingly close to the earth. One thing we were repeated asked was, "Why does the United States want to go to war?" We did not have a good answer for this.

I just discovered that Malcolm Wells, the grandfather of underground architecture in the United States, has a new website related to his work: www.malcolmwells.com . I have been a long-time admirer of Malcolm's witty, gritty style of writing and the lovely sketches that adorn most of his books. I tried to get Malcolm to be a panelist with greenhomebuilding.com, but he declined because he doesn't do email and then he sent me a selection of his more recent books. These books generally advocate putting virtually all of the human infrastructure underground, so that the earth can be reclaimed by nature to do what she does best: proliferate with a diversity of flora and fauna. It's a grand, if impractical, vision and I applaud Malcolm for putting it out there.

Feedback
Regarding the comment from J.H. Philadelphia and your reply:

We should remember not to confuse "need" and "want." Perhaps you have seen this TV commercial by a storage company: A house is filled with clutter, stuff everywhere. The occupants pack up all their stuff and put it in storage. They come home look around the newly spacious house and say "WE NEED MORE STUFF." The last scene is the family racing off to the mall to purchase more stuff. Our society is constantly inundated with commercials, advertisements and even our government is encouraging us to consume and spend MORE! I hardly think more "understanding" is necessary in our Country which consumes more per capita than any other nation.

PS: My husband grew up in Mexico; 2 parents, 10 children + 1 Uncle lived in an adobe house that was approximately 1300sq ft. Not one person in his family was damaged by their living conditions and they are clean happy healthy people. The love and family loyalty that grew out of that little house is astonishing. I could not think of a better example of "less is more." I am fortunate to be married to such a fine person.

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