2 days of updates in one post!
Thursday
We had a delightful afternoon giving out food to some sponsored children and their families. They truly are grateful and tell you so. I am amazed always as they get the load on their heads and walk away. Dickie helped one student get it in her backpack and it was a load! She smiled sweetly and proceeded out almost tipping backwards as she walked. It cooled down at night for which we are truly thankful.
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| A group leaving with much needed food |
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| High school student leaves with her family’s food |
Friday
Well, we have had a great morning! I was thrilled with all I saw and experienced this morning. I never go to Saint Marc when the truck goes, usually I am left behind to “mind the compound”! I have never really wanted to go…this morning I was told “we are all going to Saint Marc” AND I never argue with the boss, Karen, so off I went. I loved it all. Dickie drove (with his drivers license home upstairs in the drawer) with Karen being his right hand guide; Jim recording it all with his Go Pro, me being the rose between 2 thorns, Jim and Ronald, our security! We had not gone far when we were stopped by police and he asked for Dickie’s license. Karen did some fancy talking and dancing around and asked if we could continue, he reluctantly agreed and said in English “you forget??? when you return you get it and put in pocket”!
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| At the market in St.Marc |
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| New fridge loaded awaiting new wheelbarrow |
Traffic was unusually light, even in Pont Sonde! Saint Marc was not very busy…everything is relative…VERY, VERY busy to us but not as busy as usual for Saint Marc! Population is between 180,000-200,000 and the streets are full of people, motos, vehicles, wheelbarrows and people selling wares on side of street and walking around with their wares on their heads. There was a big street closed as a market and people had set up shop for miles. I doubt there is anything ever made that you can’t get at market! I was thrilled to walk up and down looking at all the wares and admiring all the people who work so hard in the sun and heat to eke out a living. It is hard, hard work to pack that all up and get to market and hope to make a little money to feed the family and at the end of day to do it all again! I admire their work ethic.
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| Pont Sonde |
I did business at market, Shop Ma, Pharmacy, Nat Com, grocery store S & D, Digicel and went to Sogebank, a real experience and story in itself! I was delighted to find S & D and Sogebank were air conditioned, I could have stayed there longer.
While Karen and I were in the Digicel office Dickie and Jim saw a huge pig ‘going to market’ but in a wheelbarrow. He was a huge pig..well over two hundred pounds…trussed up in the wheelbarrow. As he walked past the truck the pig got partially loose of the ropes and the wheelbarrow was wobbling all over the place and the man couldn’t hold it. He stopped in the street and had to tie him up again, fighting the pig all the time. Dickie and Jim said they have never seen anything as funny before.
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| to market, to market to buy a fat hog… |
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| home again, home again joggity jog |
We came home loaded, food between our feet and on laps so it wouldn’t melt in the sun, some more in the back of the truck with a new wheelbarrow and a fridge tied on. We were loaded by our standards BUT by Haitian standards we could have accommodated many people and more wares! We all arrived home without incident and everything is put away.
Today was payday so as soon as we got back and had lunch (Germaine had my favorite food again) I was on tap to pay the employees.
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| They learn the computer young here too |
Jim and Dickie supervised getting the fridge upstairs and in its new home and I put the groceries away as Karen was dealing with everyone waiting for her since she had been gone all morning.
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| Visiting Luckners store |
This is all “old hat” to Dickie and Jim as they have done this many, many times and sometimes even without Karen!
The afternoon was spent doing chores and then a trip to Luckner’s store for more supplies and a cold pop! I made a treat for Karen..her favorite chocolate treat “round and round chocolate balls” last night and we had very cold mango juice before bed. I could live off the mango juice!
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| Jonothan always brings flowers to Sandra |
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| Dickie and Jim blessed with flowers too (although Dickie suggested I could forget posting this pic.) |
It did not cool off last night and we were all as hot when we awoke this morning as we were when we went to bed. Hopefully tonight we will get a breeze if not cool air!
~Sandra
