Be the change you want to see in the world -Gandhi: April 2008

I started working on this post in March, but didn't get past uploading these pictures. So, this will have to do for now as I would like to try to catch up on my postings.

We had two weeks of spring break in March and knowing I wanted to go somewhere warm, I bypassed the ideas of typical beach destinations like Cancun and the Bahamas and opted for somewhere far more unstable. A good friend of mine has spent the last 8 months or so working on her PhD in Haiti. She is studying Haitian politics and the governments reaction/interaction with outside aid. Since she was there, I decided to spend a week of my spring break visiting her in the poorest country in the western hemisphere.

I have seen poverty all over the world. This place has some of the most tangible that I have ever experienced. Never have I known that people around me were actually eating dirt in attempt to survive. Never have I had to scoot past guards with semi-automatics in *every* store I entered. Never have I seen UN peacekeeping trucks around every corner with troops from countries around the world.

And yet, as usual, I felt welcomed and embraced by the people I met and got out of the city long enough to experience some of Haiti's natural beauty (namely some gorgeous beaches).
Before leaving I packed a huge duffel bag full of children's clothes (after a friend from church suggested it and organized the collecting of them) which I took to an orphanage. It was difficult for me to leave without one of those beautiful children

It was a great experience and I am glad to have had the opportunity to go. Fortunately, I returned before the unrest began again in April. Here are some pictures of my trip to give you a small glimpse of this island country.