Apatman mwen an Petionville!

I've had a busy last two weeks, so I'll try and give you a synopsis of what I've been up to since I last posted. Please excuse the grammatical errors (i'm sure there are many) and choppy writing as I kind of just threw this together.  

Week 2:
I spent the week finishing up the last of my logistical/settling-in tasks and trying to better define my role. Then, on Friday we went to Press Cafe for drinks.  We listened to the live Kompa music, attempted to dance, and drank too much Barbancourt rhum, which is made here in Haiti. It was the first time where I felt like I was actually in Haiti rather than trapped in an Expat bubble. Before this we had only been to places that catered to expats---places where the only Haitians in the bar were the ones working there.  It was refreshing to be somewhere that actually felt like Haiti. By the way, Kompa is a popular type of Haitian music--- click here for an example of Kompa. The singer, whose stage name is "Sweet Mickey," is actually the current Haitian president! 

The next day we went to the Artisanat en Fete which was an art festival that brought together artists from all over Haiti.  There were paper maiche animals and voodoo-inspired paintings from Jacmel, metal work sculptures from Croix des Bouquets, and folk art paintings from the Plateau Central (just to name a few of the things we saw). I could have probably spent an entire paycheck there, but I didn't realize that it was all going to be high-end art (aka expensive), so I hadn't brought enough money-- which was probably a good thing.  I will have the chance to visit most of the places where this art came from throughout my time in Haiti, so I figured that I would have plenty of opportunities to buy some of the things that I really liked. Below are some pictures that I took at the Fete.  (Left- voodoo-inspired paintings, Center- clever fountain art piece, Right- Huge bottle of Barbancourt rhum)

The next day was move-in day, and, in true Haitian style, I was supposed to move in at 1pm and didn't end up getting to the apartment until 6pm.  The apartment is beautiful and in a perfect location in Petionville (a suburb of Port-au-Prince). I am close to the two big grocery stores in PAP where they have ATMs and just about any American or import product that you could possibly want if you're willing to pay the price (e.g. Fage greek yogurt and Ezekial Bread.  Crazy!)  I am also within walking distance of several restaurants (although they are likely out of my price range for a normal meal since most of the Petionville restaurants cost at least $15-20/entrée--- these restaurants cater to the wealthy expats that live in this suburb).  My apartment feels very safe (there is always a guard watching the apartment) and I am able to walk around during the day.  There are two small outdoor markets that are just a short walk away.  It is very strange to be living in such a nice apartment, and I feel very spoiled with the apartment that I have.  In other places in Latin America where I've lived, my accommodations have been MUCH more basic.  Also, I have an extra bedroom, so if you know anyone who would like a place to stay while they are in Port-au-Prince, please send them my way.  I would love to have a guest! I think it will feel a little strange living by myself since I've always had at least 1 roommate. It will be nice to have my own space, though. Below are some pictures of my apartment (the last two pictures are the view from my porch and the view from the roof).

Week 3: 

This past week was VERY busy as most of the key people at the office were participating in a "positioning" workshop that lasted the whole week.  My boss suggested that I sit in on the workshop to get some context on how the organization pursues funding opportunities, and it ended up being a really interesting and informative week.  It was great because we spent a lot of time working in our small Health sector group to put together a health strategy.  I was able to contribute some of my thoughts/opinions to the group during these small group discussions, and it gave me an opportunity to really feel like I was a part of the team.  It also helped that the workshop was conducted entirely in English. (It's just another reminder that I need to find a French tutor so that I can participate more fully in future workshops/meetings that will undoubtedly be held in French! This was surely an exception to the rule). Here is a picture of one of our office's neighbors who joined me after lunch on the last day of the workshop after everyone else had left for the day (the office was technically closed for a national holiday):  
 

As I mentioned earlier, I set up a meeting with my bosses in order to go over what their expectations are for my position and to lay out concrete tasks.  We had a really great meeting and we identified several things that I could begin working on right away.  So, for those of you who had asked me what I will do every day, I can finally tell you!  I will be working on doing a review of the current literature and best practices for Hospital Networks (especially in other developing countries and in Haiti) as well as doing a lit review on some other related topics (supply chain management, electronic medical records, etc.).  I will also be visiting our some of the hospitals that are a part of the hospital network with which we work.  I'll have the opportunity to visit 6 of our hospitals just in this first month.  Tomorrow and Tuesday, I will traveling to Southern Haiti to visit two of our hospitals there, and then the following week I will be traveling to 4 of our partner hospitals in the North. I'm very excited to see the hospitals and to have the chance to see quite a bit of Haiti in my first month here! 

This weekend was a whirlwind.  I had people over for drinks at my new place on Friday night and then on Saturday I spent most of the day shopping for things that I needed for my apartment (dishware, bleach, ant traps, a mop... you name it).  Then my neighbors and I went to a cute little bar/restaurant in Croix des Bouquets on Saturday night.  I finally got to have some banan peze (called tostones, patacones, or platanos fritos in other latin american countries, it's basically double-fried disks of smashed plantains made from green/unripe plantains, which taste similar to a potato when cooked). It was also salsa night at the restaurant, so we watched people dance salsa over some really tasty Passion Fruit drinks (made with Barbancourt rhum, of course). You've gotta love the Heineken glass they're served in :)

That's all for the past two weeks... I probably won't post again until the end of the month because I've got a busy couple of weeks ahead with some works trips.  Thanks for reading :)  

DISCLAIMER: This is a personal blog. Any views or opinions (or grammatical errors!) represented in this blog are personal and belong solely to the blog owner and do not represent those of people, institutions or organizations that the owner may or may not be associated with in professional or personal capacity, unless explicitly stated.