Day with ICC

Wednesday, January 8th, 2014

Today we worked with a different group, International Child Care. I think everyone on the group really came into their element when we started discussing the research topics we all had prepared. Yesterday, none of us really knew what to expect, but today we came into the town a bit more prepared. We knew what we wanted to accomplish, but we also knew that we would have to be fluid in adapting to whatever situation we were placed in. That was really encouraging, I think. Each of us were well-versed in our topics, and the work we put in before the trip shined through on this occasion. A clear difference between yesterday and today was the rapport we established with our translator. It was clear and quick and flowed well between us and the ladies we were talking to.

We also tried something a little different in helping to rebuild a retaining wall that was supporting a school in the town. It was a really really nice day that day, so working outside was a treat I hadn’t anticipated. It wasn’t physically strenuous, we were basically taking rocks from the nearby riverbed and tossing them onto the pile so the guys who actually knew how to build the wall could arrange them into a structurally safe and sound wall. I thought it was fun, we got to leave a sort of tangible legacy there that day.

After that we ate our lunch, got back in the car, and settled in for another bumpy ride back home to Gabie’s house. Today was, in my opinion, both more educational and more rewarding than the days before because we were able to have productive conversation and learn lots about the culture at the same time. We were able to speak to a group of midwives about their history and how the profession is changing with the introduction of cellphones and the use of ambulances to get the mothers from the most rural areas of the town in to the hospital.

That same day Piti, our driver, took us back into Cap-Hatien and showed us these really beautiful ruins of a fort. The fort had been there for quite a while, and to get to the ruins we had (and when I say had what I mean is we readily agreed) to walk along the beach and through the warm bay waters to reach them. We spent at least an hour wandering the grounds of the abandoned pen, and Piti took some great shots of the whole group. 

 All in all, it was a wonderful day exposing the group to the different styles of beauty that can be found in Haiti.

-(Sudeep Kalkunte)