Internet connection is very poor tonight, so I won't be trying to upload any photos... sorry. But, I can give you an update on our day. Guess what? It was another adventure....
We loaded our big bus around 8:00 and drove to the orphanage. Mission Ryan and 45 children were waiting to load the buses to travel to the beach. Apparently word got out that some "blanches" were taking the kids to the beach because there were WAY more than 45 kids there ready to get on the bus (adults, too)! Needless to say, we turned no children away but had to tell many adults no. Each of us took 3 children with us on our bus. So, our 25 passenger bus had our team of 7, 21 children, 1 orphanage staff worker, and 3 translators. Off we went!
We drove 2 hours to the beach. More than half of our children went to sleep. You would too if you got up every morning at 4:00 am!! They were so excited when we woke them up at the beach. All of us Americans were anticipating sandy beaches. And, they DO have those type of beaches in Haiti. However, our beach was still beautiful but all rocks. That didn't stop anybody. Everybody went running into the water with huge smiles on their faces, until.............
Sea Urchins! Many of the children stepped on them, leaving their spikes in their feet. Can we say "ouch?" We felt terrible for the kids who were the urchins' victims. Dr. Cho from Mission Ryan said there was nothing to do for the stings. However, they kids did implore their friends to urinate on them to remove the stinging. It worked! We changed locations to a relatively "urchin-free" part of the ocean. I think we only had one more person get stuck after that. Also, the kids kept their shoes on!
In the meantime, the truck bringing all of their cooking supplies for the meal broke down. It did not arrive until almost 1:00. That meant the meal of bbq chicken, pasta salad, plantains, and french fries would not be ready until 3:30. YIKES! We were planning on leaving the beach around 3:00. But, hey! We're in Haiti! We must expect the unexpected and be fluid, right?
The meal was served around 3:45. They served us first. (That means that the kids we were responsible for got 2 plates of food today!) Our bus left around 5:00. Not sure what time the Mission Ryan bus left the beach!!
It was a great day, inspite of all the chaos. It would feel weird to have a day without event. Our bus of kids slept the whole way home, bellies full and plumb tuckered out. (I am from Tennessee. Those of you reading this not from the South may not get that expression. It means really tired.)
I will refrain from any deep thoughts tonight. I will also refrain from sharing with you my adventures with a true Haitian toilet. I think the story above is enough for today....
By the way, my belly is full and I am plumb tuckered out, too!
Melanie
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