Inauguration Day and More

Today is a very important day in Haiti. President Rene Preval has been inaugurated (finally) and people are very interested in the political process. We rented a TV for the day so our guards and Sunday staff would be able to see the official proceedings at the palace and cathedral. There are high hopes for Preval and he had been meeting many world leaders in the past two months to prepare for a positive beginning to his second term as president. Some of his priorities appear to be electrical power, health care and road repair. In terms of the safety situation here it continues to be calm and peaceful. In a conversation with a guest today he mentioned that he had heard that warnings continue to be given in the world community advising against travel to Haiti. The reason given was that there was a lack of police in some areas of the country. As we discussed the situation we shook our heads as from our perspective the lack of police means that the situation does not warrent a police presence - rather than a reason for concern. Fortunately more North Americans are returning to Haiti for mission, service and tourist reasons and those I have met who stay at our guest house are often surprised and pleased at the positive situation they find in Haiti.

These are a few of our guests from this past week negotiating with the vendors outside our front gate. For those who saw a previous blog about a car fire in that same location, notice the small pile of garbage on the street. That was what was left of the car that I had swept into a pile that morning. We finally got tired of the eyesore after a week and towed it (scrapping along the road) a few blocks down the street with our truck. It was already missing all the wheels and front suspension and transmission as it was being scavenged daily. After two days in its new location all that is left is the floor of the car. Recycling here does not require a crusher!

More bartering for beautiful Haitian creations. Dan decided to take them all which made the choice simple.

This litte girl was the daughter of the street vendor and kept smiling and waving at me until I took her picture. Her obvious joy as well as innocent shyness translates the same in any culture.

Another location uptown is famous for artwork as a whole city block is one large gallery. Prices are cheaper when you buy in multiples so come with your cash in hand. Jennifer is trying to walk away from this sales pitch. The vendors often gather around the truck as I pull up with potential buyers.

These are two outstanding ladies, Maryann and Dorothy, who came to Port au Prince for a week along with family to work at an orphanage down the street from the guest house. They painted, built shelves, bought all new mattresses and pillows and much more. Hats off to them on behalf of the 31 children and support workers at the orphanage!