China is constantly under construction, and sometimes, the projects are right outside your window. During the first half of this year, someone decided to dig up the street next to our apartment and build a sewer (what a fun blog!). The noise level has been quite intense at times, especially when the train on the adjacent tracks blows his horn while crossing the nearby intersection. So, for those who are interested, this is how to build a sewer:
Bring in a huge machine that picks up and long metal beams:
vibrate them (and the adjacent buildings) while driving them deep into the ground (click Install Coffer to watch):
After building two walls, excavate between them (often during the night):
brace the walls to keep them sturdy and straight while workers build concrete forms:
pour concrete into the forms and build the structure:
pull out the metal beams, refill with dirt, and have construction workers (usually women) hand-mix concrete on the ground to build the sewer entrances:
build curbs and spread gravel for the road surface: 
smooth and finish the asphalt surface:
And that’s how you build a sewer! Of course, it takes about six months (not the 60 seconds it took you to read this blog).
Wow, that’s pretty cool!
Tim – spoken like a true structural engineer!