These last two days without teams have allowed for some
sight seeing around Haiti! On Wednesday we traveled about an hour and a half to
Saut d’Eau (translation: Jumping Water) to see an incredible waterfall. At
first I wasn’t quite sure if a waterfall was worth the travel, but now I can
say it definitely was. As we drove up and to the other side of the mountain, I
felt like I was traveling to another country. This area was not really affected
by the earthquake in 2010. Everything was so green and there were people all of
the rural area planting various crops, ranging from potatoes to corn and
bananas. When we finally arrived at Saut d’Eau, I was amazed. We walked a while
and then hiked up to the top of the waterfall. From there, we each had a
Haitian guide to help us down the rocks essentially through the waterfalls. I
wasn’t dressed quite right so I was grateful to have him to help me down
through the slippery rocks and steep drops! I have included some pictures of
our trip there. On the way back, we were able to stop and eat at a restaurant
and even had some ice cream!
Each year after school gets out, Pastor Leon and his family
takes the schoolteachers and the staff (the cooks, cleaners and office staff)
to the beach as a way to say thank you for their work! He graciously invited
three of us along on the trip, and I was so glad I was able to come. We met
downstairs at 6:15 to make the hour trek to the beach. While there, they had a
staff meeting and talked about the past school year. Then we were able to
swim/lounge in the ocean (most of the Haitians can’t swim), eat lunch and then
take short boat ride down the coast a little ways. It was so neat to see the
teachers from three of the schools celebrate summer and all of their hard work
from the previous year! There was a lot of singing, a lot of dancing and more
laughing than I have heard in quite some time. I got a chance to talk with some
really neat teachers and some of the principals and learn a little bit about
their lives and what lead them to teaching. I also got to learn a little
creole. I have a lot to learn but they thought it was fun to teach me, and I’m
sure they enjoyed hearing me butcher the pronunciation of some of the words. I
have also included some pictures from that trip!
An update on the two girls from the orphanage who were in the hospital: they are both home, healthy and gaining a little more strength back each day! The group from Highland Park Presbyterian comes this
afternoon, and I am really excited for them to arrive. It is an added bonus
that they are bringing some of the things that I forgot to pack when I first
came!! I hope I’ll get to work with them on their construction projects at Cite
Soleil.
For all you Instagrammers out there, start following HOM on Instragram
@HaitiOutreach Ministries. I’m going to start posting some pictures up there of
things going on around HOM and sharing what the mission groups are working on
this summer!
View driving to Saut d'Eau:
Isabelle, Jessi, Fritz and I pre-waterfall adventure:
Teacher and Staff Appreciation Day at the beach:
Boat Rides with Pastor Leon:
So thankful for this opportunity to come work with these amazingly gracious and joyful Haitian people! The Lord is at work here in mighty ways!
Maddie
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