Laura and I are on our way to the airport having said bye to Jasmine, Winston, and Fr. Bob. What was a handshake greeting turned into a strong hug goodbye.

I can’t wait to share the experience with my friends and family via my photos, videos, and stories. I have boring kodak slide shows for family gatherings covered for the rest of my life, and I won’t have to show the same photo twice.

We just got to the airport. More from the States soon.

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Didn’t get to hit save in time. I’ve now been through 3 security screenings (Three? Really?) and am finally waiting at the gate. A woman right in frot of me attempted to put a Big Gulp of water on the conveyer belt, which of course failed miserably as the cup spilled over everything. They shut down that lane to clean up, but Laura convinced security that our bags had been through worse and they finally let us go through.

PaP airport has fantastic wifi connectivity by the way. The first time I’ve had an Internet connection all trip.

Our plane just got here. Can’t wait for that cold, dry cabin air. And some coffee. No more of these 5:45am alarms thank you.

A few random shots below.

Haiti put on a light show tonight. After a couple more meetings in the early evening, we made it back to the hospice just in time for an amazing lightning storm. Nearly 180 degrees of lightning over the water.

I’d like to write tonight but I’m too tired. Getting up at 6 tomorrow to catch my flight home. I can’t wait to get home but I hate to say bye to this place. So much work to be done.

But the writing will have to wait. I’m exhausted and need a shower.

‘Night from PaP…

After a sleepless night and a 6:30am breakfast, Miriam from Fonkoze took us to visit more clients this morning. The first group of women meet with a peer facilitator to share lessons they’ve learned about farming and business. They would tell stories in song, and sang for us as we left.

Musc is a big, big deal for the women here. From the group of mothers we met at the start of the trip, learning nutrition and sewing, to the women this morning, they love to sing. Miriam said many of them look forward the weekly meetings as a way to escape…laughing and singing with fellow clients.

And their voices are powerful. Untethered. It’s not just the volume, which is in itself amazing. It’s the strength behind it. It feels limitless…enveloping you. Kinda like a massive church organ. It’s loud, sure, but the volume is just one facet of the power underlying it.

The 2nd client was in the business development step, providing individual loans to small business owners. The woman we met was very entrepreneurial. Selling flour both at retail and wholesale. Renting out her oven when she doesn’t use it. She’s looking for a new loan to buy an electric press for her loaves of bread. She had her act together to say the least.

We’re checking out of the Hotel Mirage. I have an hour to myself, which has been rare. I’ve gotten along great with my fellow travelers, but it’s nice to sit and reflect.

Time has not flown by. This was a long week for me, and I usually had to really think what day it was. Unlike Fr. Bob, Laura, and Winston, I am not a world traveler. I’m just a step behind everyone. They’ve been great though, giving me tips and sharing travel stories. Together I think they’ve seen all but a handful of countries. All in the aid of others. It’s been a privilage to travel with them.

We have one more suicidal drive back to PaP this afternoon, then we say goodbye to our driver. As unbelievably insanely absurdly uncomfortable his driving has been, we’re alive, and he took us around Haiti in one piece.

Finally, this being a site about gluten-free living, a note on eating in Haiti. It’s easy, a non-issue. Often, gluten isn’t even on the menu in any form. Food consists of rice, plantains, bananas, potatoes, avacado, chicken or goat, and various veggie concoctions. It was a relief to not add “find safe food” to the list of challenges this week.

Is almost used up my 20MB data plan for this trip. Not sure how many posts I have left. I’ll be sure to share the full set of photos once I get home and can sort through them.

Au revoir,

Guillaume

Today is why I came to Haiti.

Sure, I was sent by DePaul to gather information and document the various projects going on here with which we will be affiliated, and I have both in spades. But today was for me.

I can’t seem to avoid the cliche remarks we’ve all heard when you watch lives like these on tv. Life changing, humbling, life affirming, heartbreaking, etc. They apply for sure, but fall short.

I sit here in my air conditioned (!) hotel room and all I can think about are the people I met today. The ones who might not be able to sleep tonight because the rain we had earlier turns their floor to mud. Wondering what will happen to the woman who was so weak, detached, and despondent today that she couldn’t stand. She needs help immediately or her kids will be without their mother.

Then there’s the women we met that have been helped by Fonkoze for a little while now, and can see the change in their livelyhood, attentiveness, and laughter. Real change.

Then the two schools. One a church that they’ve had to use after their school was destroyed. The people walked an hour to meet FATEM and our team for a short while. The parents have been asked to help build the new school. By the way, it’s only $20-50 to send a kid to school for the year.

I managed to drop and break the lens of the camera I’ve been using, but not before I was able to take pictures of the rural kids. I would take their picture and then let them see themselves on the LCD. They would point and call out each person’s name, all the while laughing and clapping and jumping up and down. Some were more shy than others, but they all smiled quickly and without hesitation. Suffice to say me and my camera were the center of attention when it came to the kids. I will post those as soon as I get back.

Our hotel is the nicest yet. Window mounted AC, that’s all I have to say. Too bad the festival across the street is still going strong with 10,000 watt speakers. And yet there I go. Complaining about a roof over my head.

These are all things you’ve seen and heard before. I’m just sharing my little slice. I know the tenacity to help that I feel tonight will fade. I will slide back into Chicago life. Gluten-free pizza. Starbucks. School. Complaining about the trains. Yada yada yada. But not before the DePaul program is seen through to the end, and certainly not before I set up my own plan to donate regularly. So while today was for me, I’ll do what I can to make tomorrow for them.

These kids smiled and laughed the entire time while they followed us to visit the families in the village. These are the ultra poor that Fonkoze work with, teaching them to farm and sell woven rugs. These kids just lost a 3 month old baby brother/cousin.

Fonkoze checks on them weekly and once they start to gain trust they will be given $7 a week.

We left the hospice at 6:30 this morning, on our way to a village near Mirebelai to see Fonkoze in action steps 1 and 2 if you check out their website.

The hour drive is going to be a piece of cake. I’ve gotten used to the chaotic driving…to the point of wondering why he didn’t cut the tap tap off earlier or why did he slow down for that 8 year old.

We’re going 70mph now. On a road barely two cars wide, with hundreds of people on each side. Motorcycles with 4-5 people weaving in and out.

There is zero corellation between speed and density of people.

There was a priest on a loud speaker a few blocks away last night, SCREAMING at the top of his lungs for a couple hours. Common practice they say.

Met a couple last night that started a hospital near a few villages complete with 5 doctors. They see nearly 50,000 people a year now. Started by a couple that came here in 1983 for vacation. Amazing.

Have to sign off, we’re almost to Mirebelai.

What’s the best online photo site for the number of photos I’ll be uploading? Flickr? Snapfish? Other ideas?

The generator providing our electricity shut down around 11:30 last night. Which means the ceiling fan stopped working. I managed to sleep better than I thought I would in the heat. I’m guessing the ride here yesterday wore me out.

I woke up at five to what I though was the sound of a distant soccer game. In PaP they play as soon as they can see to avoid the sun. But as I listened more I realized the sound was roosters waking up across the town. It sounds like the nondescript cheering of a little league game in the park down the road. The roosters (or chickens as Laura calls them…inside joke) have a different call than what I’ve learned to associate with them.

I stood on a blacony for a while. People waking up and grabbing a couple was basins and walking up the road. Haven’t seen them come back through yet, so I’m not sure if they’re bathing or getting water for the house.

I’m going to go take some photographs. More to come…

After unpacking at the Hotel Mandela in Gros Morne, the manager invited us to his restaurant for dinner. We walked 10 minutes down the dusk-lit alleys, Laura giving gum to children walking by. Dinner consisted of goat, plantains, cabbage, rice, and some kind of beet and corn thing. It was all delicious actually. There were two young couples in the dining room with us (about 12×15). Looked like date night.

We attract huge amounts of attention. Within 5 minutes of parking and unloading the car we had a dozen or more kids and teenagers checking us out. They bounce their gaze from person to person, and when I catch their eye they smile and suddenly turn shy and look away. They whisper to each other, as if I knew Creole in the first place.

The 5 hour drive was…insane. In. Sane. We were all laughing at the absurdity of it. The speed, the tap taps with 20 too many people flying past us…with separation between our truck and theirs measured in inches. 125cc motorcyles with 2-3 people buzzing all around like a swarm of bees. How these vehicles don’t collide in Michael Bay-esque explosions every single turn is beyond me.

Driving from PaP to here, we passed small villages and huge markets. People selling everything imaginable. Some dressed in torn clothes covered in filth, some in dresses. Every once and a while a suit. Then we came upon Gonaives, which was leveled by the hurricanes last year. Just utter devastation. Everything looked desaturated, caked in dust and mud. Huge chunks of earth washed away. Cars picked clean for parts and the rest of them burned. Open landfills. Filth. But they are rebuilding. A lot of construction.

Oh, and the UN presence. The soldiers are armed to the hilt. I managed to take a photo of a group of them smiling. I’ll try and post this week. The don’t look like ‘peace’keepers.

Speaking of photos, I took 800 today. Many of them undistinguishable from the next, but that’s just it. It keeps coming and coming. People everywhere. Everywhere. Always in motion it seems. Every once and a while I just have to close my eyes for a couple minutes to keep from succombing to the sadness of it all.

Finally, no update from Haiti should fail to mention the heat. Sweating doesn’t describe it. It’s shedding water. The only reprieve is the weak AC in the car and the Fonkoze offices. Anne keeps her office nice and cool.

I’m heading to bed. The mosquito net goes up tonight. Good night from Gros Morne.

bB

In Gros Morne after THE scariest 5 hour drive of my life. Picture a european rally race, but cars going in both directions. Hotel has no water or electricity, but the people are so nice and there’s finally a breeze.

Rough afternoon, looking forward to some rice and a melted Think Thin bar. No meetings tonight. We’re heading into a village in the morning to see fonkoze in action.

More soon!

Father Bob and friends present our project to members of the Vincentian Family. Famvin.com I think.