Typical Depavatan Home

Almost all buildings in Depavata are made out of wood. It is cheap and readily available, as well as being easy to replace when needed. Most rooms and houses are rectangular or square.

One easy way to see how old a house is, is to see where the main veranda is placed. It used to be custom that the veranda was in front of the house with the entrance here.   The last ten years or so it has become more common to just have a small porch where the entrance is and then a back door that leads out to the main veranda.   This is also the main difference between private homes and public houses as the latter often have a veranda that goes around the whole house.

Houses are generally built on poles with ladders or stairs down to the ground or the floor below. Depending on where the house is located it can be quite high up to be above the water even in case of floods. A great amount of time and effort is put into making these foundations sturdy and secure.   The buildings are usually built with straight angles but people who want something more unique are known to play around with different shapes in their houses. It is seen as quite eccentric though.   The layout itself is very open, with large verandas that are just living rooms without walls. Windows seldom have glass or anything else in them, but instead just have shutters that can be closed in case of bad weather. The rooms inside the house are mostly used for sleeping and for privacy.