Today we started our travel up the mountains to go to the
Rainbow House. On our way we stopped at the look out over Port-au-Prince, the
Caribbean Ocean, and other mountains in the background. It was a breathtaking
view and truly showed Haiti's beauty. Our next stop was Fort Jacque where we
had a guided tour. They used this fort to see troops and ships that were
approaching the shores of Haiti. There were French and British cannons and
stone-built walls protecting the Haitian soldiers. We stopped at the Mountain
Maid restaurant for lunch and all indulged in American cuisine. Then, we were
off to see the kids at LA MAISON L'ARC-EN-CIEL (The Rainbow House).
The Rainbow House is an orphanage for children
affected/effected by HIV/AIDS. One of the founders Danielle Penette spoke to us
and explained that she and her husband started this orphanage with only six
patients, some affected/effected and some unaffected children to show that they
could be living together in a community without contracting the virus. Much of
the funding has come from the donations, but recently they have had trouble
getting enough funding so some of their community education programs were not
able to be continued.
When we arrived we were greeted by traditional Haitian kisses
on the cheek from the children. They quickly warmed up us and each one of them
found a hand of ours to hold. We got to see their coop where they raise chickens
as their income generating activities. Also, they have been gardening and other
activities to teach the children skills to later integrate into the community.
The kids took us up the hill and we ran to the playground to swing, slide,
and just run around. Many of us played games together and even though there is
a language barrier we found similarities of games we played as children. Some of
us played hand-clapping games and others played games as a group in a circle.
Today was an uplifting experience to see that these children
were so happy and welcoming. When it was time for us to leave the demeanor
changed, voices lowered, and there were lots of long hugs.
Love & Hugs from Haiti,
Tasha, Leanna, Kaylee, and Nicole
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