Yesterday (Saturday), Ashley, David, and I set off to play some Ultimate in a friendly, mostly expat, league in PaP. When we got there we made the rounds, introducing ourselves by name and nationality. Turns out there are quite a few Canadians that play regularly! For the most part, everyone works for an NGO or an embassy. It was interesting to speak to people who had been here for spans of time ranging from 2 months to several years. It certainly seemed like I am fortunate to have such a good set-up and support network through the school. There was a fair amount of cynicism and exasperation going around about Haiti and peoples' experiences in the country. The adventure is still very fresh for me, but somehow, I have a hard time believing i'll ever be as jaded as some of the people I spoke to yesterday. I guess I should be thankful that I have youthful resilience and idealism on my side...
Ultimate was exactly what I'd been missing since arriving in Haiti. It was the first real physical activity I have had the opportunity to engage in, and getting my heart rate up helped clear my head. I could feel the endorphins pumping throughout the ride back to the apartment complex! Nothing like running your ass off in 30+ degree heat. I don't think I've ever been so sweaty. The caliber of ultimate is slightly lower than what I became accustomed to in Kingston, but I can't wait to go out again next week. Our teams were microcosms of the population of Haiti and at any one time you were guaranteed to overhear at least three different languages being spoken. There are quite a few players that are new to the game so teaching the fundamentals will be fun. There are very few girls who play, so marking for us is easy but getting our hands on the frisbee is a little tougher.
What I'm most excited about (besides actually playing) is the additional dimension the league adds to my social life. Everyone at the apartment complex is great but it'll be nice to get away and interact with different people on a regular basis.
The down side to playing Ultimate in Haiti is the wind. She was ablowin' something fierce! Made more some frustrating plays, and apparently it keeps up like this until October...which makes sense given that hurricane season lasts until November. Just one more example of why the expression "This is Haiti!" was coined. Not even something as simple as a game of Ultimate can be uncomplicated for long in this country.
Hey Claud,
ReplyDeleteWow, i've just read all of your blogs that you have posted since you arrived in Haiti! Sounds like a crazy, scary, insane, awesome place so far. It sounds so much different than what it is like to be in Canada and I applaud your excitement and determination to face everything head with a huge level of enthusiasm.
I've realized after reading these posts, how much I miss the letter we used to send each other back in the day. Makes me long for some old fashioned written communication! Do you have an address? I'm sure getting mail will add a whole other dimension to what life is like in Haiti.
Miss you! Stay strong and keep posting!
Love you! Jenn xoxoxox
Hey! I didn't notice this comment until right now. Thank you! I love getting feedback and hearing what people take away from my posts. You described my experience in Haiti pretty accurately. The wasn't true until last night when my driver failed to pick me up from Ultimate and I sat, waiting, for an hour in the dark. Thankfully, I had made a new friend and she volunteered to wait with me. So sketchy!
DeleteI do have an address and can give it to you, however, i'm not sure how consistent or reliable the mail delivery system is in Haiti. I would stick with post cards or letters but don't put anything else in the mail, otherwise it's not likely to get to me. I'm going to give you the school's address, as an extra security caution, it's more likely that it'll get to me that way! There's no street number or postal code...
Claudia Lutes
Union School Haiti
Route du Canape-Vert
Petion-Ville
Haiti
I'll let you know as soon as it arrives. It'll be a good experiment :) Thank you so much for the post and I can't wait to Skype!
love
Claud