Bamboo

The bamboo plant grows rapidly, much more so than other plant species; it is renewable and is a multi purpose resource. The bamboo can be split, bent and shaped to suit its usage. It is light in weight, but strong, supple and load bearing.

In much of Asia and South America, bamboo is used for ornamental purposes and also practical function; for making pictures frames, ladders, furniture, swings, in the construction of dwellings, for flooring, as scaffolding when building concrete structures and in suspension bridges.

The painters are working hard in our apartment building. This is their ladder. My father tore up an old towel and one of his turbans and soaked the fabrics in cold water. He gave one each to the painters so that they could place it on their heads when they were working on the rooftop under the 42C midday sun. Many people in India die from dehydration and heat stroke in the summer months.