The internet has not been very reliable, so I have not been able to post this week. Class is going very well. We finished Range of Motion today, and the students will have their written and practical tests tomorrow. They have really come together as a cohesive class! They love hands-on labs, and the men have been willing to take off their shirts for scapula motions. They are all very professional. There is quite a bit of excitement regarding the return of “Baby Doc” to Port a Prince. A few of the students feel he should be arrested, since he took so much of the Haitian treasury with him when he left. One student expressed concern, warning that when he was in power, talking against him would result in getting beat up or killed. Another student explained that it did not matter who was elected, nothing would ever change. This statement caused several of the students to get very excited, exclaiming it is every Haitians responsibility to vote, a those that do not vote should be put in jail!! The students felt that Aristead was a nice man and he should be able to return to Haiti, but not be in politics again. All the students thought Barak Obama was a great American President, but expressed concern for him. We did find out later today that Baby Doc was arrested after university students demanded his arrest. Another rumor is that he has announced that he is dying and has returned to Haiti for that reason and will not be involved in politics. We shall see.

Several people have asked questions about are daily schedule and food etc. So I will outline a day in Deschapelles.

3:30 am The public bus stops in Deschapelles on the way to Port au Prince. It is a large bus, and usually sounds a horn. If you have a room in the front of the house, it sometimes sounds like the bus is backing up into your room.

5:00 am People begin to start walking to work, or market or wherever. The roosters begin to reach their crescendo

6:00 am The water comes on from 6-7, so it is time to get up and get a shower if you want a morning shower. Yes, we only have cold water. You can heat up some warm water if you prefer to shower out of a bucket. Edith arrives to make breakfast and to start the laundry while she has water.

Breakfast is usually juice, coffee, toast, and fruit. Peanut butter is available. Today we had a wonderful pepper omelet (very spicy). Occasionally there are fantastic pancakes! Oh I almost forgot, the buile (boolay) a hot cereal, kind of nutty, kind of corny, kind of wheaty, etc (not my favorite, you may guess) Edith does not usually make it while I am here because she knows I don’t like it.

6:50 to 7:00 am On the way to the Hospital, you are often greeted by several people who are trying to sell you something or simply hoping for a handout. This will occur again all day long as you travel from the house to the hospital. I sometimes wonder if I have a GPS chip since everyone finds me so quickly, however I do stand out!!

7:00 am Morning Medical Meeting. All medical staff and visitors meet in the library to report on 24 hour admissions, and for a short educational inservice. This is followed by both medical and surgical patient rounds.

8:30 RTTP class begins if you are a teacher. As mentioned earlier we are starting each day with Tai Chi. The students have learned to love it. We are hoping they will teach the next teachers and hoping others will add new movements.

12:00 – 1:00 is for lunch. Usually the largest meal of the day. Today we had fried chicken legs, rice/beans and Creole sauce (onions, with some tomatoes and spice). Yesterday we had a very interesting pasta dish. Pickli (spicy cabbage, carrots with vinegar) is available at every lunch and dinner). Also fresh squeezed fruit juice (unsweetened) so it is very refreshing. Water is on from 12:00 to 1:00 so a good time to shower if you missed the morning water.

1:00-3:30 back to class, it already is warm in the afternoon so it gets difficult for students to concentrate, and they prefer labs in the afternoon.

3:30- 6:00 Free time to nap, check email, exercise, go to market, work on curriculum, visit, read etc

6:00 Water is back on from 6-7, so if you want an evening shower this is your chance. Prestige time (Haitian beer) followed by dinner. Edith leaves a cooked dinner. Tonight is a wonderful pizza with some type of ground meat. Another favorite is goat meat. No seafood this year due to the cholera epidemic.

7:30-8:00 we do the dinner dishes, have another beer or on a rare occasion a glass of wine.

8:00-10:00 Reading or games. Preparation for teaching. Going to visit at another house or going to library to check email

10:00 Everyone in this house is usually in bed. 

11:00 The music from the soda/beer stand in the station is usually at a peak

3:30 The bus to Port a Prince has arrived again……..

RTTP Class 2011

Front row: Willien, John, Souz  Second row: Frantzo, Nahoum (translator), Edner, Gerthie, Mr. Chuck

Madam Toni instructing students in ROM

Gertie doing ROM with Willien

There is a small mountain right outside Deschapelles, which can be climbed in 30-40  minutes depending on your speed. Toni and I went of a hike this morning starting at 5:00 am. We thougtht we would have a guide, but as it turned out we went on our own. I remember most of the climb from my trip in 2009. We only ended up in a backyard 2 times. Many goats were surprised to see us climbing in the dark!!

   Proof it was dark

 Toni the hiker!!!

 a new dawn

Here I am happy to be on the top for the sunrise

 The beautiful sunrise

Although we were tired, Toni and I went for a walk after class on Friday. There was rumor of a new hotel being built, and although not complete, there was a disco!!  Also the new storn sewer was progressing (exciting for Deschapelles after the flood last year). So here are some pictures.

Edith and her nephew out on our porch.

The station on a lazy Friday afternoon

 More pictures of the new mural.

 the hotel to be

 The disco!!

 The storm water project!!!

Students are doing well in class. We have completed the skeleton and muscle units and the students are taking their written and practical tests today.

January 12, 2011 First year anniversary of the earthquake. Another beautiful morning here in Deschapelles. The roosters are especially vocal this morning, perhaps a “celebration” of a new day. As I sit here and reflect on the time after the earthquake last year and how Deschapelles and HAS have evolved in the past year. I do remember that on the morning of the earthquake I was very concerned about a very small hole in the mosquito netting on my bed. How quickly that concern paled as we experienced the earthquake and aftershocks. Before coming here this year I was somewhat concerned about the cholera epidemic. I am happy to report that the number of cases here and across the Artibonite River valley, have significantly decreased and the HAS pediatric cholera unit was closed yesterday due to the low census. Only 1% of the cholera cases require intravenous fluids, and the rest of patients are treated with rehydration fluids. A fast moving, but weak bacteria, it can be killed by the human immune system, if the person is kept alive. The key to treatment is separating sewage from drinking water. Clearly difficult in Haiti, but not impossible. In reality for so many Haitians each day is a struggle and a type of “disaster response”. This morning at HAS there was a remembrance ceremony for the hospital community which was closed to media. In class I had each of our students talk about their experience during the earthquake. Several of our students were in school in Port a Prince and witnessed their friends being crushed as buildings collapsed. One student had the barbed wire from the top of a collapsing wall collapse on her legs as she ran out of the school yard. Almost everyone knows of people who were simply “lost” that day, assumed dead and their bodies never recovered. This afternoon there was a celebration of progress at the Hanger Clinic. There was music, a Haitian skit, and many patients recalled their experiences and demonstrated their new legs. One gentleman, who lost both of his legs, actually demonstrated that he could now run with his new legs. An amazing feat! As the heat of the day increases, Deschapelles and HAS are very quiet.

 Anniversary Celebration at Hanger Clinic

 Haitian Music

  A Hatian skit, very famous impersonation of Haitian comedian

This gentelman demonstrated that he could now run withour assistance with his two new prostheses

On Sunday we hosted Edith and her daughters, Belinka and Frances for dominoes. I am not sure how to keep “count” in dominoes but they sure knew how to play and were the champions of the day. Belinka did such a great job mixing up the dominoes, we put a visor on her since she looked like a card dealer.