Our friend, Jack, came up to see us right after Easter. He has worked in and out of Haiti for about eight years now, and in fact he started the LWI program in Haiti! He worked in the Leogane area, just southeast of Port au Prince. He has always wanted to come and see the north of Haiti, and finally took us up on the offer to stay. We had a great time showing him around, and visiting with him.
The only thing missing "New York" and "Tokyo".
Oh, and some gas and other truck fluids right at this little 'store'. !!
Did you know that charcoal is the number one way Haitians cook food? Do you know how charcoal is made, or why it is used? They use it because it’s so inexpensive, but sadly that is why almost the entire rainforest that used to be Haiti is gone. To make charcoal you chop a tree down, (with no regulations and no “plant another one” motto in place, a lot of trees are hacked down all the time) cut it into smaller pieces and bury it under dirt. Then you light it on fire and it burns slowly for almost a week. They keep checking it and relighting it when needed. It has a very distinct, strange sort of smell. And the end product is charcoal, used by pretty much almost every single Haitian I know to cook thier food.
Jessica Stone 