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This is a follow on from my previous blog.

The Haitian people we have found to be very polite and friendly. Although they are VERY poor by western standards, they seem well fed and pretty happy. It is a tough life though especially for children as they seem to have a tradition of the parents paying for the girls education, but the boys have to go out to find work to pay for theirs. It costs US$25 per month to attend school, and the kid must have shoes or they can’t go to class. This means that we do tend to get pestered a bit by “Boat Boys” who come out to the boat every morning to ask if they can do any jobs on the boat for a few dollars. We have been giving them quite a bit of cleaning/polishing type work and the boat is now gleaming all over. It is always a relief when a new yacht arrives as then we get a bit of relief when all the boat boys head for them. There is no other employment for the boys here right now and I guess that at least they are looking to work for some money. They are always polite and never ask for handouts.

Boat Boys at new arrival

The Island of Ile a Vache is really a lovely spot. The main bay is called Port Morgan and has a small village plus a posh hotel.

Port Morgan

During a few days rest at Ile a Vache, we met up with a very nice American couple (Bill and Donna). We had decided to have dinner together at the nearby posh hotel. However, our “guide” Makindey (not McKinley as I had previously mispronounced) asked if we wanted to come to his mother’s house in the village for dinner. This seemed like a more interesting event so we agreed. We had lobster, rice with beans and plantains. All very simply cooked but very nice and we got to experience a little of a Haitian household. Bill and Donna were great company and we had a lovely evening.

Dinner with Bill and Donna – Haitian style

Shown below are some images of Les Cays town where we checked in and out for Immigration/Customs:-

Les Cays waterfront                                         Main Street                                                      Getting out to the water taxi

Mondays and Thursdays are Market Days on the Island. The market is about 4 miles from Port Morgan, so we got together with 2 other couples and hired a guide to take us on a very interesting hike there.

Hiking to the Market with PeeBee and Darvey our guides

Along the way, we passed through some of the villages where life goes on as it has for hundreds of years:

Ox Drawn Ploughing                                                                                                                        Village Children

Finally we arrived at the market to find a pig being slaughtered. (Pork for sale that day). The market is very busy but the main items for sale seem to be ladies underwear. Everyone/thing arrives either on foot, by boat or via horseback. There are no motor vehicles on the island.

Market                                                                                                                                          Parking Lot

We bought a few vegetables and then hired a fisherman to take us back in one of the local fishing boats. This was a display of sailing skills that I couldn’t rival as the fisherman balances on the stern of the boat and controlled the rudder with his leg and the sails via a bit of nylon line round a bamboo mast/boom. Very impressed.

Boat used for return

We also visited the orphanage by the market. This is run by a French nun called “Sister Flora” who manages to support 71 “normal” orphans and 30 handicapped children. We were given a brief tour of the classroom of handicapped children. This experience was beyond words, but in my opinion, if anyone deserves the title “saintly” it is Sister Flora.

This brings to a close our visit to Haiti as we are planning to depart towards Cuba in a day or two. Will update the blog when we arrive.

Best Wishes,

John and Georgina