today was the hottest day we've had yet...my fan must have died some time in the middle of the night bc i woke up in drenched sheets and mosquito bites all over. i guess i was really tired to have slept through all of that.
the other two female interns are my roommates. they each have a bottom bunk and i have the top bc i got here last...we keep most of our stuff on the other top bunk so that the rats don't ruin our clothes...we had a big one in our room last night. our room smells really bad like sweat and dirt and we have a bunch of critters, but i think we are all used to it by now! one of my roommates is a hippie from canada (mal) and the other is a preacher's daughter from kasnsas city (sarah); it is a great mix and we all get along great. they're both so nice and free-spirited.
today was church day and the service was quite an experience...it lasted over two hours but was really fun. the service was a mix of french, english, and kreyol. the church was full of people f/ the surrounding communities. a lot of the people wore dresses and hats and the little girls all had first communion-like dresses on...it was so cute. there was a little preaching, but mainly singing the whole time...a lot of swaying and shouting and clapping and singing...everyone was sweating but we all were having a good time. the little old ladies kept on coming up to us and kissing our cheeks...it was very sweet. the whole scene reminded me of old southern baptist services that you see in the movies. part way through the service the kids left for children's church, so i went with them and it was really fun bc they sang fun songs and did the kreyol hokey pokey again. most of them spoke french so it made things easier. its so confusing bc it so quickly goes from kreyol to french to english, sometimes they're even mixed in together. the service had a big band and everyone was so friendly and sang so loudly....it was really beautiful to see everyone come together like this.
after church, the other interns and i went into town for lunch with our two guards/interpretors Cadrak and Wiki. they are two haitian guys around my age and they are super nice. they know their way around really well and are super protective of us. cadrak is just finishing at the university and wiki graduates high school on friday...but somehow wiki is older than cadrak. they speak french and english and kreyol and they are a lot of fun. we are planning a surprise party for wiki next sunday after church.
we rode a tap tap into town which is the main way haitians get around. it is basically a truck-type thing that has two wooden benches in the bed and is mostly covered all the way around but open on the back. it's hard to describe but i have pictures. you'd be amazed at how many people you can fit in that thing! people are hanging out the back and sitting on the roof....basically if it's going your way and you can find yourself a spot, then you jump on. if you reach the place you want to get off you tap the ceiling really loudly, which is why it's called a tap tap. it's also really cheap. the roads are really bumpy...i hit my head twice on the way into town, but we were so packed on the way back that i couldn't move if i wanted to!
we drove to the village cabaret around where we went yesterday but today it was less crowded bc the market wasn't going on. for lunch we went to a place called yoltay's which is basically a shack (nowhere has floors) where there were skinny wild dogs running around, chickens, naked dirty children, and junk all around. i had a bug in my water and we shared forks. they only serve one plate which is less than $2 but you can choose your meat. they boil the plantains instead of fry them...they taste like potatoes, not like the sweet mexican ones. i ate goat meat for the first time and it was really good...i was pretty full after that meal...
afterwards we walked through the town a bit. they sell plastic packages of water on the street which are basically ziplock bags that you bite a hole in with your teeth to get some safe water. the icecream here is really good, so we found a place called "snack bar" which was behind a broken down gas station. it was more like an actual bar...one woman was at the counter and the place was filled with loud men watching the spain/new zealand game. of course everyone stares at us like we're aliens, but they all were nice enough. we were even able to speak french with some. they cleared a little space for us; it was really wild inside.....mal and wiki and i decided to get a beer and it was less than 60 cents apiece! they are called Prestige and come in bottles that look like medicine bottles. it was pretty hoppy and really really good.
the ride back was really crowded and the hottest its been yet. we took the dreaded walk back up the hills to the compound drenched in sweat. cadrak taught us about the citadelle which was built by henry christophe who was another leader during the slave-rebellion...he told us there are 365 doors on the palace and is an 8th wonder of the world. it is pictured on the 1 goude coin.
cadrak and wiki are great...really nice and funny. i feel safe with them bc they always know what they are doing and really protective. they also teach us a lot and help with the language. i'm excited to surprise wiki in a week.
this evening was pretty hot and sweaty and sarah got sick again. we had mac and cheese and hotdogs for dinner. another group got in today so things are loud again and i have to make sure i get in the shower before the water runs out. i scyped with ricky and tiff this evening which was fun to hear someone's voice from home.
tomorrow i am back in the clinic all day, i'm excited to be back on schedule...
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