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Architecture
in Bandundu reflects the fact that much of the province is characterized by sandy
soils. House walls are built first with a framework of sticks and palm frond
stems. The rope used to tie the sticks to the stems is made from a vine found in
marshy areas. |
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After the
frame has been built, and the roof has been placed, sand is mixed with water and the
resulting paste is used to fill the framework. Another layer of mud, sometimes mixed
with cement, is used to cover the walls. The walls are then
sometimes painted
with a chalk based white-wash. |
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Grass roofs
like this one need to be replaced on a 1-2 year basis as termites tend to make their nests
in the roof. The owner of this home was drying the fibers from forest vines on
his roof before taking them to market to sell. These are the same vines used
in home construction. |
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For those who
can afford them, corrugated tin sheets are used to roof their homes. Villagers place
basins under tin roofs like this one in order to collect water during heavy rain
storms. That is one less basin of water that needs to be fetched from the local
water source. This house was a U.S. Peace
Corps Volunteer's home for 2 years. |
