Early in 2009, we welcomed a Mexican adobe builder, Stevan de la Rosa Tames, who spent several weeks with us learning the VN technique; here is his account of his stay in Boromo.

" After a year and a half and several e-mails of planning I finally found myself in Boromo, Burkina Faso; the headquarters of the Nubian Vault Association. I wanted to come when I first heard about it some years ago, to learn how to sculpt a roof out of small adobe bricks without the use of a single piece of wood. Practices like this are crucial in a place like the Sahel where the much-needed supply of wood is running out fast. It was not just the ecological and architectural aspect of the buildings that drew me here but also the consideration and integration of the economic and social realities of both the area and the masons. Part of my interest in this roofing technique arose because there are similar conditions of poverty and need in the country where I come from, Mexico, and where I have worked with projects that incorporate natural building techniques similar to this.

My patience finally paid off and I had the chance to come in early Febuary 2009 to work on a vault for the most elderly man in town, Piawale. My participation was met by much suprise by the town and a rumor started that Piawale was so powerful that a foreign man from across the ocean came to help build his new home. The building site was fourtunately next to the headquarters and infront of where I was being housed and fed by the association. I got to work with a varitey of experienced masons. One of the principal ones was a deaf man who lead most of the construction, resulting in a lot of hand-signaling on the worksite. This was quite fortunate for me as I had come with less-than-adequate French skills and not a word of Djula, the local dialect spoken by the masons.

Without planning it this way, I arrived at the beginning stages of Piawale’s building which consists of two vaulted rooms 7 meters in length adjoined by a smaller one that functions as an entry to the family courtyard. It took about a month to construct the buildings. It was hard work 6 full days a week in 95°F heat, yet it was all worth it to learn and discover it for myself, as now i will be able to pass on what I have learned to others through my work in Mexico."

Stevan de la Rosa Tames, April 2009