Architecture and Accents - Adobe and Bamboo

"Ancient Babylonians, ancient Egyptians and Native American cultures of North and South America have all used adobe..."

---Michel Janicot---

If you are planning on building your dream home here in Zihuatanejo or are just curious about local architectural materials, adobe bricks top the list.

Adobe is Spanish for a sun-dried brick or the clay soil from which the brick is made. Adobe has been used for thousands of years to build houses. Ancient Babylonians, ancient Egyptians and Native American cultures of North and South America have used adobe, but it is now found mostly in North Africa, Mexico and the southwestern United States. Composed of a very fine mixture of clay, quartz, and other minerals, combined with straw, adobe soils are molded into bricks that are baked in the sun for one to two weeks. Easily molded when moist, once dry they have incredible strength.

Adobe structures are often associated with the Pueblo of North America, who built cliff dwellings made of adobe. Remains of their mud-brick communal villages still stand after centuries. For more information about adobe bricks we went to Ado Mar, a local adobe "factory" located on Playa la Madera, Nuestra Señora de los Remedios No. 117B. Raul Mandujano Montoya, the superintendent showed us dozen of varieties of adobe bricks, diverse in textures and colors, attractive and ecology friendly. They protect against cold and heat, humidity and erosion resulting from too much moisture or rain; reduce heat loss; and they are structurally sound and economical. They are the ideal natural material for building walls, floors, roofs, cellars, cupolas, chimneys, pillars, gateposts, stairs, benches and much more. Widely used here in Zihuatanejo, many beautiful examples of adobe architecture, whether with individual blocks or smooth, dot the hillsides along La Ropa Beach.

Another excellent locally available material is Bamboo. Bamboo plants occur mostly in tropical and subtropical areas, from sea level to snow-capped mountain peaks, with a few species reaching into temperate areas. Bamboo is actually a member of the grass family, even though different species can range from reeds of 3 feet tall to giants reaching 164 feet in height and 12 inches in diameter. The smaller versions here in Mexico are widely used for furniture and home furnishings of all kinds, bamboo is a versatile and truly tropical material. Some 50ft away from Ado Mar, at the corner of Nuestra Señora de los Remedios and Adelita streets is another hidden from view "factory" where bamboo stalks and rattan are transformed into a multitude of functional household objects. Tables, chairs, beds, couches, stools, bookcases, storage and travel trunks, room dividers, kitchen and bathroom cabinets, entertainment centers, hat racks, umbrella stands and lampshades-all made to your custom specifications at reasonable prices. The owner of the establishment, Hannibal Galeana Solis, has several photo albums showing all the diverse handmade pieces of furniture that he has created in the past eight years. He and his four skilled artisans have made furniture for local clients as well as for customers who have sought his superb workmanship from Petatlan, Lazaro Cardenas, Acapulco and as far away as San Miguel de Allende. Hannibal also repairs or replaces worn out rattan and will fashion bamboo and rattan into anything you seek. Whether you live in the Tropics or just want to feel like you do, natural materials are always a good choice.

March 2000

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