Day 1 & 2: Bonjou Ayiti!

Bonjou Friends & Family!

We arrived in Port-au-Prince (PAP), Haiti yesterday afternoon and spent the day excitedly saying hi to everyone staying at Rea’s house and napping in the hammock for a few hours. While the heat was a shock, nothing beats the warm nights at Rea’s house relaxing and talking with everyone.

Our friend and Kreyol teacher Soulouque brought us to a small get together of expats and Haitians working at various NGOs in PAP. It was interesting hearing what had brought them to Haiti - from education to public health - and learning what it is like to live in a foreign country for an extended period of time.

We spent the night at the orphanage that Rea established this past year in Petionville, close by to CESAH, the newly renovated school. We woke up to the eager hugs and excited reactions of all 10 girls living in the orphanage. We had a big surprise for them - we were headed to a beach north of PAP! None of them had ever visited the ocean before, despite the proximity to where they live, and we were so happy to experience this with them. We drove in a packed van for about an hour and a half up the coast and arrived at a beautiful, bright blue ocean and rocky shore. Although some were more shy of the water, many of the girls eagerly jumped in, and we chased after them as they shrieked at the saltiness of the water and the force of the waves.

Katie, Mariana, and I are looking forward to our next 5 days in Haiti. Our first day spent at the beautiful Haitian coast with the most adorable 10 girls started off our week perfectly. We also spent lots of time in the van catching up on our sleep due to jet lag! ;) Tomorrow, we are off to assist Kim with her tri-weekly English lessons at CESAH and are planning for more projects, visits, and wonderful memories later this week.