We’ve had a nice weekend. Today, we went to church service. The service is very international. In our group alone, we had people from the US, Canada, Kenya, Zambia, and Ghana. The church is probably about 50% locals, and the rest made up from people around the world serving in Haiti for the UN, missionaries, churches, pilots, and other groups. There is also a large population of orphans that attend this church. As we understand the story, a couple came to the Haiti several years ago, and ended up running an orphanage for street kids. I don’t have the full story, but the end result is the street kids were scooped up, placed in this orphanage, given schooling and medical care. Many have been adopted by Haitians and other countries. Currently, they have about 120 kids in the orphanage. They load them up in the back of a box truck, with windows and the back changed to bars. The drive isn’t far, and while the situation isn’t ideal, it seems to work for the kids and for the workers.

After church, we went to a “fast food” place for lunch. They did have food, but I’m uncertain where the “fast” part comes from. Anyway, one of the things they serve is crepes. I decided to have that, but was thinking fruit. Here, they make it with ham, cheese, and onions. Not exactly what I was expecting, but it was OK.

The last two days, we’ve spent time with our host’s family. They have two daughters living with them here, one is 12 and the other is 6. The older one has lived in Haiti before, and also in Africa. I’m amazed at how well both of them adapt to everything around them. If I had been brought to Haiti or DRC to live when I was that age, I don’t think I would have handled it very well. They seem to take everything in stride, and seem to really be enjoying themselves.

A few other general observations about our time here. We’ve noticed there are many soldiers and law enforcement officers here. There is obviously the local police, plus the United Nations soldiers. There are a few other groups too with different patches. At first, I thought they were part of the UN force, but I’m not sure. This morning leaving the hotel, I counted 12 soldiers with 4 different types of uniforms, all with machine guns sitting on the wall across from the hotel. Can’t decide if I’m in the safest, or most dangerous place in town! Guess it depends on how long all those folks with the guns get along.

Transit here is also interesting. There are some busses, generally school buses or 15 passenger vans. However, the primary public transit is pickup trucks. The drivers put awnings (brightly decorated) over the back of them and benches, and then cram as many people as possible into the truck. When they run out of room, people hang from the back or ride on the top with the luggage, chickens, bananas, and other items. I tried to count the number of people in one of them today, and came up with 20. Can you picture that in the back of a small Nissan pickup truck (think early 1990’s mini-pickup, not full-size). They also have the same thing in larger deliver trucks. Picture a U-haul truck with no sides, seats, and an awning over the top. I counted at least 40 in one of those today. Needless to say, if you combine this with the way folks drive here and the condition of the roads, injuries from auto accidents is a big issue. The vehicles are also multi-purpose. Today we passed a pickup truck with the word “Ambulance” painted on the tailgate. When we pulled up along side it, the doors were painted with an advertisement for a furniture delivery service.

Overall, a great weekend, and looking forward to the boat ride to La Gonave tomorrow.