One of the (many) things that strike you about this foreign garden, aka Bangladesh, that we are currently living in now is just how hardworking the people of Bangladesh are. Here is one example.
It’s rare in America to be able to witness construction site work because the site’s are usually closed off and mostly covered for the public’s protection. Not so in Bangladesh. Construction work is done left and right, usually without any barricades. Which is not to say that you have bricks falling everywhere, but the openness might take a while to get used to in the beginning.
Once you get over that, you witness some pretty amazing things. The first thing you notice is that there are no machines. In America, when we think of construction sites, we also think of the big machines: bulldozers, fork lifts, cranes, rollers, etc. It’s rare to see any ONE of these big machines in BD, much less a work ground with one of each. So how do things get built here? Mostly by sheer human strength.
What’s even more remarkable is that the buildings in BD are usually made of all brick – no plywood or wood frames. Exterior and interior walls are all brick, so you have solid brick walls (drilling holes is not fun) in and around the home. How different that is from having walls so thin that you can hear people in the next room! And it’s all done by hand.
Here are some typical sights at construction sites:
- You will see workers on the street carrying bricks on their head. A lot of these workers are women (construction pays better wages than other jobs), so don’t be surprised to see sari-clad brick bearers! They carry the bricks to where they are needed.
- Workers breaking up large chunks of stone with a simple sledge-hammer. These broken up pieces will later be ground to make cement.
- Straightening steel rods by banging on them. Construction companies often buy deformed rods for wholesale prices and use manpower to fix them up.
- Buildings are built one floor at a time. When you want to start on the next floor, why not use bamboo sticks to hold everything in place? That’s what they do here!
- Welding iron pieces to make frames for pillars. Cement is poured into these frames and left to set. These become the pillars which the building stands on.
- Men climbing up ladders made of bamboo sticks. It is just held together with ropes tied at the ends. These ladders are used for any exterior work on the building like painting.
And this is how Bangladesh builds buildings. Left and right. Buildings that are four stories, eight stories, twelve stories high. That withstand the earthquakes, floods, monsoons that come throughout the year. Simply amazing.
Had I not witnessed this firsthand, I might have very well thought it impossible. Just looking out the window I can see buildings going up all around. And I am amazed time and time again at the sheer manpower that humans posses.
If you want to talk about the extent of human willpower or the ability to make the most of what you have, then you have to visit Bangladesh and watch them build. Neither very tall people, nor of broad and bulky frames, Bengali people are surprisingly strong. Now some of you may think that I’m saying this cuz I’m Bengali. I am not saying this out of Bengali pride but I am saying that for some short, skinny people, you got to hand it to them, they can build.
The next time you’re stumped and think you can’t do something, let the people of Bangladesh and their hard work encourage you to strive harder.
Scattered Roses 
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