Cultural Pride of an Independent Nation

Titled "Fertilization" 

 Evidence of roof damage after the sudden but thankfully short storm that hit us July 16. A palm tree from the neighbors yard crashed down upon the dining room. I was actually glad that it did not hit our little chevy van.


I might get the hang of this different layout...maybe. I'll write more at the bottom following the photos (randomly added).

Tomb of Presidents

This is the ceiling over the tomb. From the outside it sits center of water feather.  See photo of the guys. 

Hadrien, Jake and Andy

"Life"

One of my favorites of course...

Jenna and Tasha

Water feature and "domes" on roof of  National Museum

Statue art

Entrance of National Museum d'Haiti

The visit to the National Museum of Haiti was a wonderful surprise. From the outside, and up several sets of stairs was a water feature with 5 tiled domes and a larger one in the center. Upon entering, the 'guide' told us, with obvious pride, the museum was divided into 3 parts.  The first part being the 'crypt' of the first 3 presidents of Haiti. Beautifully designed with the crest of Haiti in gold and surrounded by pillars, the ceiling tiled in brick, we realized it was the center dome from above providing the light. 

From there to the left, the guide told us was the early history of Haiti- the arrival of Christopher Columbus and from there he let us ooh, ahh and gaze at the artifacts of the past 200 years.  The anchor of the Santa Maria sat at center of one of displays. Is it really?  

The 3rd section of the gallery consisted of paintings in different mediums.  I took photos of some of my favorites but there were some strange ones that drew our attention. We could not really wrap our minds around them. The gallery itself was beautifully designed and could have been anywhere in the world.  This is just another example of Haiti at its best. I was fortunate enough to visit the National Palace in  2009 (see old blogs for photos).  The thing is every country has its poor, its slums, its problems.  So why would Haiti be any different.  Its a small country with a big population of extremely poor people that do deserve to be lifted up.  Unfortunately, their national pride isn't enough.  

That night we watched an old movie- 1492 - about Christopher Columbus' voyage to the Caribbean Islands, including Haiti. It was long and actually quite boring.  I would like to see the newly released movie "Toussaint Louvature" which I've heard is a very good historical film of the early history of Haiti's Independence. 

Storms, Fires and Haitian Firemen

We survived our first storm of the year with a few bruises. On Monday as we watched the storm clouds darken the skies, we weren't exactly prepared for the force that hit us about 1:15 pm. The wind came just ahead of the rain drops that turned into a raging mass of energy in minutes.  Flying palm fronds and the slamming of doors in the house as we ran around taking pictures off the walls, suddenly a loud crash! I was relieved momentarily that a tree had not crashed onto our van but dismayed to see the neighbors' palm tree stretched across the patio and sitting on the new roof of the dining room. A few ceiling tiles popped out. Luckily, we weren't sitting at the table when this occured- that would have freaked us out. It looked like our outdoor dining space was turned into a 'jungle cafe'.  The gutter quickly overflowed with torrential downpour, leaves clogging near my office. Minutes away from another flood, we cleared the mess averting the flow. As suddenly as it started, it seemed to stop. At 2 pm we were assessing damage, taking photos, and making phone calls to make sure everyone was all right.

Tuesday morning I was greeted with Madam Gail, we have a pwoblem. The mango tree near the gate and generator was smoking, smoldering and with pockets of small blazes. The tree was humming, alive with electricity. We called the electric company to come turn off the power- no one wanted to get near the electrical sources!  Of course, they would be right over....after they dealt with the problem at the Prime Ministers residence.  The transformer was 'exploding' through out the day making everyone jumpy as the tree continued to send up small smoke signals.
EDH never did come but when the power went off on its own, John and Pierre cut the branchs, which covered the generator and gas barrels...and still touched the electrical wires. I had a big problem with this so I called the fire department. The big red pomper came with 8 guys. They had 2 helmets donated from the French and looked like silver Star Wars helmets. They shared jackets donated from Spain and shared boots as needed.  When they arrived, they said 'There is no fire". BUT there is a problem and we will help so they removed the tree, had some water and a photo session with us.  Funny thing was that I had had a dream several days before in which there was a Haitian fireman- I don't remember the dream now except that part only because Jenna and Tasha reminded me of it.
Sometimes I have 'epic' dreams, some pretty crazy ones too- last night RAM was in my dream. I find them pretty entertaining when I can remember them.  However, I have no idea where they come from or what they mean. Anyway, after this excitement we all went out to dinner to celebrate Hadrien's birthday.

Wednesday was relatively benign as days go. The neighbor sent a guy to 'clean' up the fallen palm tree,  I searched through the container for treasures and then went to the airport to pick up a team. The plane ended up sitting on the tarmac for 2 hours so by the time we returned to the guesthouse it was 9 pm.

Today we interviewed for a new driver, met the new owners of the property and enjoyed a nice dinner in  a houseful of people.

Somedays test our stamina and strength, some days our patience or empathy. I hope (or strive) for having whatever the situation calls for and celebrate appropriately.

Independence Day: Living in Haiti

What does it mean to you?   Waking up this morning, knowing friends and family in US will have the day off to celebrate in so many ways- a day at the lake; family picnics and parades, baseball and apple pie, fireworks- even watching Tour de France Race and across the land there will be political rallies, it seemed like a good day to ‘blog’.

For me, today is a regular working day.  It is the same for Andy, Jake and Craig who are here. Another volunteer coming for about 6 weeks is flying in today.  We are fortunate Americans that have the freedom to live and work without repression, without fear, without hunger.   Not everyone has that same fortune. Not in US, not in Haiti and not in many other places for sure but it is a day to celebrate and reflect on what this day stands for: Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness.  Written over 200 years ago, do people still find it relevant?  Is it appreciated for what it means?

Life in Haiti, though certainly not easy, is not horrible, scary or unbearable. Obviously, or I would not be here.  It has given me the opportunity to meet people from all over the world working not to make money but for something that enriches my life in a different way, to expand my experience on a daily basis. 

The support of family and friends gives me the liberty to follow my heart and be happy. 

As a nation, we have come a long way but in this political year, it seems we still have a long way to go to live up to the aspirations of Life (equality), Liberty (humanitarian), and Pursuit of Happiness (hope).  

I wish all that for you and for a safe and happy day on this 4^th of July wherever you are in this world.