A Quest for Haiti: Reflections on a Year in Haiti: Blan! Blan!

One of our more frequent "hang outs" is Lekol Jezi Mari in Fon Ibo. This is the school that the sisters have the closest connection with. They work with many people on a variety of different things, but most recently they have worked to get a computer lab for the school. We got to see it in action the other day when we went and a bunch of kids were playing math games. Because school only started last week and most kids will be starting this Monday, we have been going after school, (around 1:00 is when they finish), to hang out with kids to practice our Creole. I have found talking to children to be most helpful because they don't mind repeating the same thing a hundred times until it finally clicks or talking very slowly and enunciating well to ensure optimal comprehension. It's OK too if your grammar is not spot on for them to know what you mean. Thanks to all of the kids that I have met thus far, I have built up speed, accuracy and confidence in my speaking and improved my listening comprehension. We mostly stay at the school, but one day we walked to the river that is nearby. The river was incredibly warm and there were kids bathing and playing and lots of women washing clothes. It was beautiful to see and it felt nice to put by feet in and my roommate Beth appreciated the quick rinse my stinky sandals got.

Thus far, we have met kids from two different areas. There are the kids that live in Fon Ibo, by the school and then others from Claudine Village (the Village). The Village is located a little ways out of town and is a neighborhood that Food for the Poor built. Most of the people living in the Village are families that literally had/have nothing and could not afford food or shelter. They live in these houses at no cost and many receive free or discounted food. The first time we went to the Village it was to see the literacy program that Laura, last year's year-long volunteer, was working with. There were two Haitian teachers that were teaching basic reading and writing to men and women who lived in the Village. There is the potential that some of the people in this program will be the first few members of a microfinance program, but that is still in the works. Although the kids are much dirtier than the kids in Fon Ibo, and though I definitely come home with a distinct "Village odor," I love going to the Village. The kids love playing with us and the parents always want to talk to us. We talk nothing but Creole, so it's great practice. For example, today we had to talk to a mother whose son's foot had been badly injured by a motorcycle wheel and we had to try and figure out what they had already done about it, what they needed and what they should do. It was pretty hard, but by the end, everyone understood!

Before I post the pictures, I figured I would explain the title. "Blan" means "white" and this is all we hear when we walk down the street. Kids shout after us until we wave, or at least turn around. A lot of the kids don't know/remember our names so even when they are talking to us, we're called Blan. It's a little strange to be called something according to the color of my skin, but the same thing happened in Malawi when I was called Mzungu.

The kids love getting their photos taken and to take selfies. We hear "fè foto" or "make/take a photo" all the time. So, here are some of our masterpieces!