I cannot believe it's already August! That means a couple things: 1. I haven't blogged since May so I need to get on it (surprise, surprise) 2. I've lived in Haiti for 7 months! 3. I have so much to blog about - you're mind is about to get blown.
Juuuuuuuuly came and went! In the beginning of the month, I flew home for vacation (every 90 days I'm required to leave the country because I don't have a visa). The timing worked out perfectly as I was able to join the rest of my family in Hayward, WI for the 4th. This year the Pierces gathered from Boston, New York, Indiana, Minnesota and Haiti. It is one of my favorite holidays and a tradition for the past 26 years. It was so nice being able to see everyone and talk about my experiences in Haiti; it was also nice to sleep in and eat the most amazing food. We enjoyed relaxing at the lake, eating at the original Famous Dave's, water skiing, making s'mores on the fire, and just hanging out. We even had time to get in a competitive game of Monopoly - a favorite between all of the cousins.
After a week at the cabin, I came home and had some more fun: celebrating my dad's birthday, going to several concerts with friends, watching my 4-year-old nephew techno dancing, visiting with my grandma (who was in town from AZ), and eating all the American food I've been missing - including my Dairy Queen chicken strip basket with gravy. You could say it was a success.
 |
| Cabin view |
 |
| Bragging rights...even though I still lost |
 |
| Chasey and his great aunt, Susan, enjoying the lake |
 |
| The boat and the RELAXATION STATION - I'm not sure which my dad likes more |
 |
| Papa turned 60, Mama made pie. |
 |
| Sunny and Papa celebrating his d.o.b. |
 |
| Don't let those pigtails confuse you, that girl has a straight up mullet. Oh, and she's obviously excited to see me. |
 |
| Watching Raphael Saadiq from the side of the stage...no big deal! |
 |
| Got my funnel cake on at the Basilica Block Party! |
I returned to my Haitian home mid-July and as can be expected on an island in the Caribbean in the middle of summer, it's a hot one. I won't get into the details about how much I sweat, there's another blog about that, but you can assume it's a lot. Here's some other July news:
Farming
Once I got back to the farm, things were looking pretty sad - I'd like to believe it's because the plants missed me while I was away, but I think what they're actually missing are some key nutrients like potassium and iron. I should say my team did an excellent job tending to everything while I was in MN, but we've noticed the plants start to struggle as soon as they reach maturity and start to bare fruit. After this had happened in May, we had a huge replanting and also hired a local farmer to help us tend to the plants. His name is Franck and he's amazing. He's not only helped us take better care of the plants, but he's also teaching us the seasons in which to grow all of our crops.
So even with Salomon and Franck's expertise, these plants continue to do poorly. Most of the plant's food comes from the fish waste, however, nutrients like iron, potassium and calcium need to get added to the water in order for the plant to survive. Although we're dosing these chemicals weekly, we're finding they disappear too quickly. The pH has also been an issue, it's too high, and again we're having a hard time keeping the chemicals in the water which should be lowering it. On top of all this, we still have to deal with environmental problems such as too much sun/heat and pests like caterpillars and aphids.
Needless to say, we've been busy...and we've also started to make some changes. Earlier this week, Salomon, Franck and I went to Port-au-Prince to buy some "local" seeds, hoping they'd be more heat resistant. During the car ride back to Titanyen, I pulled out the seeds we had purchased to further examine their package only to notice the seeds weren't from Haiti but instead from Italy and then packaged in Japan...so much for local :-/ At this point, if they can handle the heat and higher pH levels, I don't care where they came from! In the Haitian markets, there are so many delicious vegetables, so we know these things can grow in here, we just have to get the right variety of seeds. We spent half the day planting 600 seeds yesterday, trying okra, lima beans, cabbage and sweet peppers, so within a couple weeks, we'll find out if they work!
 |
| Not all the plants missed me...these peppers sure like to party...and check out that ginormous cucumber! |
 |
| Hello? Oh, the cucumber is for you! |
My First Haitian Wedding
One of the driver's for Healing Haiti, Maxim, got married on July 31st...you know, just your typical Wednesday afternoon wedding :) The ceremony was at Grace Church and the reception was in the medical center. Although construction continues on the medical center, the floor was just tiled a couple days prior and plus it's got the best views of Titanyen in the open-air soon-to-be waiting area. People were working all day to decorate and get Grace Village ready for the wedding - it really did look beautiful.
Like most things in Haiti, the wedding did not start on time. Surprisingly we weren't waiting for the bride or groom, it was actually for the busload of guests to arrive! There were 40 people invited, but over 100 in attendance. Two hours later, the music started playing and the wedding party started dancing. They did a series of dances before the groom then bride walked down the aisle to the song Colors of the Wind. After the ceremony, we enjoyed an awesome taco dinner out on the medical center balcony. It was a fun night, and Maxim and his wife, Diane, seemed to have a great time.
 |
| The groom, Maxim! |
 |
| Jess, Rachel, Hannah and me eating tacos on the ledge of the medical center...you can see that big bus in the background |
 |
| Jean clearly dressed up for the wedding |
 |
| Elisa, the godmother to the new couple, found out she was required to give a speech right at the exact moment she was supposed to give a speech...she pulled it off! And yes, Haitian weddings have godparents. |
New Roomies
Another big thing that has happened is a change in roommates at the missionary house. My former roommate, Kristina, moved out in May and Kathy completed her year mid-June. Jess, who started in July 2012, has decided to stay another year, and together we welcomed 4 awesome missionaries this summer. It is one full house but it kind of feels like camp with all of us together. It's definitely been fun getting to know everyone...as always, Haiti is quite the adventure.
 |
| The Healing Haiti long-term missionaries: Rachel, Hannah, Kayleen, me, Elisa, Jess, & Bianca |
