Monday, January 17, 2011
Remaining Stories to Tell
Thursday, January 13, 2011
Last Full Day in Haiti - Quick Update
Wednesday, January 12, 2011
One Year Anniversary of The Earthquake
We started the morning heading into downtown Port-au-Prince for the first time. This gave us a chance to see the collapsed Palace, former home of the President of Haiti.
We took this trip in the back of a flatbed truck again. The magnitude of the wreckage didn't strike me at the time but when I looked through the pictures, I was shocked at how destructive the quake was.
The main ceremony today was in front of the Notre-Dame Cathedral that mostly collapsed last January. About 80,000 or so people showed up for the mass, which was presided over by Cardinal Robert Sarah, many who sat on the wreckage of the collapsed Cathedral.
Wyclef Jean, once-hopeful Haitian president candidate and musician, walks amongst his people.
Tuesday, January 11, 2011
A Candlelight Burial
On the back of the flatbed, about 2o of us holding on for dear life. This was the least comfortable I'd been since arrival. Uncomfortable in the sense that we were a bunch of whites riding down crowded 'city' centers and everyone was pointing and staring. Plus, the new American volunteers were doing everything in their power to not fit in.
International Murder a Mosquito Day
- Sit outside tonight and murder any mosquito that decides to cross paths with you. I realize this may be difficult for some western Washington readers as it is cold and snowy (see options 2 and 3).
- Buy a can of bug repellent and spray randomly. It's not the healthiest for the environment but it's more of a ceremonial sign of your dislike for the flying pests.
- Visit Nothing But Nets and buy a $10 net that will put the little monsters in their place - off of the skin of humans (it'll also save a child from malaria. A bonus).
- Build a frog habitat in your back yard. Frog's will eat the mosquitoes. Problem solved.
I'm working on this as a yearly holiday. Let me know if you decided to support the memory of my elbows by doing any of the above.
Monday, January 10, 2011
My Extreme, Attention Grabbing Intro
Produce section.
The main problem lately is that there are limited times that we are outside of an NPH facility and not in a truck. This has made picture taking difficult at times. Plus, half the time I'm in the truck with 7 other people and trying not to get carsick. However, in the next few days will provide some more interesting events happening that should provide for some more pictures. Tuesday night is a candlelight vigil with Father Rick at the mass graves of earthquake victims and then basically all of Wednesday will be different ceremonies and masses for the one year anniversary of the earthquake. Both days are in different parts of town that we have yet to see.
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I also hope by the end of the week, to write about NPH a bit more indepth, giving some information for those of you who are interested. Plus, that post will come with some more cute baby pictures. And who doesn't like cute babies?
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So the trip I was supposed to take last Friday Cite Soleil got cancelled/postponed due to the fact that I was to meet my friend Demanch (the water truck driver) and after waiting some 30 minutes, he never showed up to drive me. I'm sure he forgot or just was late. Haiti has many quirks about it and one of the biggest is time. When a Haitian says that he's going to be somewhere at a certain time, they're nearly always late. When they say they're leaving in 30 minutes, they are leaving in 5. 9:30pm is what has been referred to as "Haitian Midnight." Time is a very loose measurement down here, which has been both annoying for me as I'm a very scheduled/organized human being and good because it forces me to be a little more flexible.
Friday, January 7, 2011
Back Up the Mountain
I plan on writing more this afternoon but on the off chance that I don't get around to it, I thought I'd mention that we (Rachel, Fiona, Gina, and I) are heading back up to the NPH orphanage in the mountains this week. The plus of this: more pictures! The down side: no internet for a few days, so no blogging for a little bit.
Today is looking like a trip back out to Cite Soleil with the watering truck and the hope is that I get back by 1pm for a little blogging before we leave. I wouldn't get your hopes up.
Wednesday, January 5, 2011
Playing Catch in Haiti
In the morning, I helped another volunteer, Fiona, work with some special needs kids who have learning disabilities. She's an occupational therapist from Ireland and is exceptional with kids. Despite the fact that I have zero training with OT, I was able to help her with one kid named Jefferson. Jefferson has been coming here and receiving help since last year, when Molly worked at the clinic. He is incredibly smart but he has a few leg issues (along the lines of polio or something) which hinders his ability to move around a whole lot. However, one thing Jefferson LOVES doing is playing catch with velcro tennis balls and the velcro pads. I entertained him and worked on his core strength for over an hour today. He is a really cute kid who I hope if I come down here again in a few years, is walking and able to move better than he does right now.
After lunch, I walked over and met with a potential University of Portland student, who may be receiving a scholarship that honors Molly Hightower (I'm sure Rachel's blog has/will explain more). The Haitian prospective student seems smart and should fit right in at UP.
The afternoon was spent with some of my favorite people here in Haiti: the abandoned babies at the hospital. As I've mentioned earlier, these kids were left for dead outside St. Damien's, many because they have birth defects, mental issues, or the parents just can't afford to take care of the kids anymore. Yet many of these kids are adorable. Rachel has fallen for one 10ish month old girl in particular, Sabienka. Despite the fact that she used some questionable handling tactics (Sabienka's balancing skills are not quite as strong as Rachel might have thought they were...), Rachel and Sabienka have gained a strong liking for each other the last few days and I think both will be sad when we leave (early Christmas present for Rachel, Mrs. and Mr. Prusynski? I'm sure a new Haitian baby is just what she needs).
Fiona, Rachel, and I decided that we'd go check out the cholera camps tonight to see if they needed any assistance. Upon arrival, we couldn't find hardly anyone in any of the 15+ tents. We finally stumbled across all the workers and a few patients - surrounding a TV, watching Barcelona and Athletic Bilbao play soccer. Quite an amazing site. Yes, this is a bunch of employees not working, but the fact that they have this much time on their hands is a very good sign that cholera is slowing down and nearly under control in this area. Let's hope it stays this way.
Pictures...
Tuesday, January 4, 2011
Watering Cite Soleil
Kicking It In Cite Soleil
The morning started with us heading over to mass at 7am. This is my 3rd mass so far on my trip and only the 6th mass of my life. I'm becoming more and more Catholic by the day (not really, no worries). The church is on the NPH campus, which is evident by the daily funerals for the cholera victims that take place during mass. Today is no exception.
After mass, Rachel hunts down a friend of a friend and we get set up for a day working on the water truck. NPH delivers water to the most needy areas around Port-au-Prince and, unlike other trucks, doesn't charge for the water. Our guide for the day is Dimanch, who is honestly one of the largest human beings I've ever seen in person. Muscles for days.
Dimanch and two of his friends stick us in the cab of the Mack semi and we head off to Cite Soleil. Cite Soleil was once considered the most dangerous slum in the entire world until 2007 when the United Nations moved in, forced the gangs out, and got the dangerous situation under control. After a crowded four person cab ride to the slums, we set up the truck in the middle of a shack area. Kids and women come running as if they knew we were coming, screaming and holding plastic buckets. A chorus of "hey you!" is shouted at Rachel and I, since we are the only white people in miles.
We take pictures and make many little friends as their mothers fill literally thousands of plastic buckets with water. We do this twice during the day which takes us over six hours and by 4pm Rachel has gotten tired and I'm sun burnt to a crisp.
The day has gone by quickly and all I want to do now is rest. However, we need to make a quick food run to the market (Quick trivia: What kind of store has armed guards with shotguns standing along the entrance gate? Haitian grocery stores). I am dying for some pizza and while that's not going to happen, Rachel and I grab some canned pasta sauce and noodles for dinner. The only reason I share this story is because we are joined for dinner by the most diverse group of people I've ever hung out with: an Argentinian, two Irish women, a Haitian, a Canadian nun, a French surgeon, a Dutch project manager, and us two Americans. If nothing else, this trip has shown me that the world comes together to do good things in times of need. We are drinking and talking and I'm about ready to sleep. During the last week, every night I feel like I never know what is store for the next day when I go to sleep. But I'm sure tomorrow will provide another plethora of entertaining events.
Monday, January 3, 2011
And Down the Mountain We Went...
Upon arrival to Port-au-Prince, we strolled over to the abandoned babies room at the hospital to have some tea with the little girls. My favorite, Jonackson, was sleepy so it gave me time to hangout with the other kids that were left there. I definately improved my baby skills by rocking an upset infant to sleep (yes ladies. I cook too. And I'm single).
On the walk back to our main residence, we happened across Johnnie, Molly Hightower's Haitian man-friend. He is super nice and took us around part of the rest of NPH that we hadn't gotten to visit yet. He introduced us to some of his friends who are going to take us out to city in the morning. Should be an adventure.
Overall, I know I'm happy to be back to the city. A bit too much relaxation up on the mountain had started to lead to some boredom and too much gin.
Sunday, January 2, 2011
Bonus Remindatory Link
Doug's First Orphanage and Other Stories...
Greetings from the NPH orphanage in Kenscoff Haiti and Happy New Year! The interent (and electricity for that matter) has been sparce and hard to keep working. But the last 3 days have been amazingly relaxing and entertaining. After leaving Port-au-Prince, we traveled for nearly two hours up the mountain to the orphanage. The goat (see previous post) made the bumpy trip with us as well, in a less than living state. This did not please Rachel. I told her it was nothing more than sharing a truck ride with a meat market. We stopped halfway up the mountain at a market so we could stock up on New Years Eve snacks and drinks. While we forgot to take pictures of our purchase, a box of wine, 5 500ml bottles of rum, 2 beers, and some snacks cost us all of 15 american dollars. Woot cheapness! Above is the view from where we are staying. It overlooks the valley and is quite breathtaking. Its kind of like a mini resort on the campus of the orphange.
On the first day here, Rachel found her godson Kervenson (or as I like to call him 'Kermit' or 'Svenson'). He is really shy but every once in awhile he flashes a smile.
Rachel also hunted down Jeff, her parents godson. Kermit and Jeff (above left to right) really seemed to enjoy the gifts and warmed up to Rachel and I quickly. I wandered off and took in a soccer game. Soccer games are a regular happening and these kids are fantastic (you hear that Sounders FC? Come scout in Haiti...).
Above is the sloped dirt field that they use with the tarp goals that work really well. There are two other concrete fields that the kids use, for a total of three fields on the campus.
Joseph (above) is tiny but schooled me in a little keep away (video to come later). I called him 'Messi' but I think he thinks I'm calling him 'Thank You' everytime I see him.
We have spent the majority of our time hiking, playing with the kids, and talking to the volunteers. I have grown attached to one kid who I hope to maybe sponser as a godparent if he doesn't already have one. We shall see. I know that the most difficult work is still ahead of us but so far I personally have found the last five days rewarding and eye-opening. I will leave you with a picture of the average Haitian - hardworking, resourceful, and friendly. Hope everyone is having an amazing New Year!