So be careful what you wish for is what I've heard. It rained yesterday. A lot. The picture below is my attempt to capture the massive black wall of rain making it's way towards us in the afternoon. What followed was probably an hour or more of solid tropical downpour. The rivers blew up of course. The Ozama River which you see in the second picture is probably more than twice as wide in the photo as it normally is, and 4 times the depth. This meant that we were trapped between two parts of the river on a road with no bridges and ended up having to spend that night waiting for the river to subside. We (the agronomist and myself) stumbled upon an 86 year old farmer living next to (but well above) the river and he and his wife generously offered to host us for the night. He went on at length about respecting the river, and how someone had fallen in during a flash flood and had been found many kilometres downstream. I spent much of the evening thinking about how I had been just before praising farmers for their acceptance of the ways of nature, and how frustrated I was sitting there. Very poetic--the bitter irony that is.

The next morning we got up around 6 to check the crossing. The water had definitely gone down, but I decided it would be a good idea to wade across to make sure there were no unexpected deep spots where the truck might submerge below the air intake and completely strand us. This I did extremely carefully (don't worry), although the current was a bit sketchy in a couple of spots and each step took a while, but I got across no problem, and confirmed a safe path for the pickup. At this point, my co-worker had to go back up the hill to fetch the vehicle, leaving me on one side of the river, and my pants and shoes on the other. I spent that time thinking about how hilarious it would be if someone showed up and ran off with my pants (and wallet).

The rain coming straight at me and my camera

The Ozama river at the confluence with the Rio Verde--twice as wide and 4 times as deep as when we had crossed that morning

Just to follow up on yesterday's post to try to explain why I enjoy days like that. Among several reasons, probably the main one is talking to farmers. They, I think are a unique breed apart from the rest of us. Probably because they literally live and die by the sunlight, rain, soil, plants and animals. This makes them by default, intimately aware of nature, and its cycles and whims. On average, I've found that, especially subsistence farmers, have an understanding of our dependence on the natural world from which the rest of us have disconnected. This does not make farmers innocent or exempt, but it does mean that meeting and working with them is always a privilege, and gives me a chance better understand the natural world.

To take this a step further--in my opinion--historically in the Christian faith, many have seen the priest as humanity's conduit to God. And in a lot of places farmer's have sought the assistance of the clergy to connect with God. Ironically, I think we may have had this all backwards.

Today was one of my favourite kinds of days.

After the initial shock yesterday to everyone about how much work is going to be required in the next two weeks to complete this baseline study, we got down to the actual first steps today. I say first steps, although the chief agronomist here, and myself have been have been preparing the ground work for months. But today, the agronomist, and 4 other staff who will be going house to house in the target area conducting a survey, visited the community leaders to advise them of our intentions, and to plan community meetings to get local input. The other objective was to familiarize the other staff with the new region, and to introduce some of the concepts of watershed management on the fly.

My big regret is not being able to make small talk in Spanish. I mean I can barely do small talk in English. I can say technical stuff when I have to, mainly because a lot of the technical jargon transfers easily from one language to the other, but this leads people to mistakenly assume that I can also talk about the weather, sports, or the latest local news. Mostly I smile and nod and hope that no one thinks I'm being rude.

Last night I dreamed I was (very gingerly) crossing a river barefoot on the backs of crocodiles lined up side by side. (Please don't let that be a metaphor for dangerous pathogens hidden in the water!)

I woke up this morning to the sound of horseshoes clattering by on the street. About a minute later a scooter puttered by--probably at about the same speed. That is a funny thing about, well, this entire island; you can be warped from the 18th century to the 21st century in an instant. One of my American co-workers once observed that in the border area between Haiti and the DR where we are working, it is so isolated --no electricity, no running water, no telephones--that it seems almost like you are stepping back into a previous century. The only give away are the world cup tee-shirts.

So cases of cholera are jumping up now in the Dominican Republic. Which is making me think twice about things I might normally do, like drink water. I was invited to go swimming in a local river on Sunday. I am not sure how I can politely turn that down. Who wouldn't want to go swimming in this kind of weather. Well, I've got 6 days to figure out a strategy.

This morning the staff here in the Dominican Republic and myself met to go over the plans for evaluation that we are doing this year. Every three years we try to answer the question, "Are we making a difference?" A tough one for sure, and a lot of work is required, but an important question to be asking ourselves as an organization. It is kind of easy to go on planting trees, and training farmers, and assume that what we are doing is all good. However, once in a while, it is good to take a step back and try to get a view from a slightly different perspective. So much like a company might hire a marketing firm to help them understand how customers perceive or use their products, we go out and do household surveys and hold focus groups to discuss our work. We ask questions like, what are your sources of income? and how much of your farm is protected by trees? and what material is the floor of your house made of? This last question may seem a bit strange, but the fact of the matter is that if you ask people directly about their income, or their financial situation, you rarely get a reliable answer. Either because people don't really track their finances themselves, or they are reluctant (understandably) to tell others. So the thinking is to ask some indirect questions, which can give you an idea of how someone is doing, like whether they have a dirt floor or not.

I have arrived. After the standard airline gambit of gradual delays (I am sure there is an industry term for this) where they dispense a big delay in 15 to 30 minute increments so no one ever gets too bent out of shape. Turns out the total delay was 4 hours, but in the end I guess we are just happy to have arrived.

I do promise to explain more about what I am doing on this trip, but I'm tired, so I think I'll turn in, using my standard mosquito gambit of pointing the fan indirectly at my bed, creating just enough current to keep flying insects veering off course but not so much as to be uncomfortable.

I used to think that early morning flights were the way to go. At some point my thinking on that changed.

This trip is to the Dominican Republic. The program there is growing, and adding new communities in a new region. So this trip is about collecting baseline information so we can make informed decisions about what to do, and also so we will have something by which we can measure our progress in the future. We also will be consulting with communities and developing plans that make sense to them as well as us. More on all that later in the week, assuming I have internet access.

This particular project expansion is the first time that we will be looking at things from a watershed level. Working in reforestation and soil conservation, our work has always been influenced by watersheds, but to actually tackle an entire watershed in an organized way requires a bit more strategy. I will elaborate more on this too if the opportunity presents itself.

I expect boarding any second now. Planning on breakfast at JFK.

So I'm on my way home. I wonder what is was like for the early explorers, missionaries, traders, when the return journey meant 3 months on a creaky boat. I mean most of the time I spend less time in these countries than early travellers would have spent getting to the port where they would get their boat. Or wait for their boat.

My final shot from this trip is this beautiful drum I saw in a fancy resort (where I did not stay!). That and a shot of drummers in Bujumbura using somewhat more generic drums.

One thing I'm always excited about when I come to Burundi is the fish. I think there is something about the water of Lake Tanganika which makes the fish delicious. Mind you it is not the season right now, and so the fish are smaller and not quite as good tasting as normal, but still quite good. Below is mukeke, don't know the scientific name, which is an endemic species, I believe, and is one of the most popular in the region.

This I witnessed at a beach on Lake Tanganika. A restaurant where both locals and tourists go to relax and have a drink or a meal. Beautiful spot really, and therefore a good site apparently for a music video. This was a Catholic church choir, and although they are actually singing, they also had speakers hooked up to a generator for back up sound

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This farmers' association in the eastern part of Burundi has planted 5000 avocado seedlings which they are having grafted, and hope to sell for 1000 Francs each. If they sell all, this will give them a total gross income of about 400 US dollars. The group calls themselves Vyizigiro which means Hope. We spent the afternoon talking to them about their community and their work. It's really inspiring to me what they are doing, producing trees which can feed people, and protect the environment.

Today's post probably best told in pictures so:

A disease resistant banana variety, and the sprouts it produces at the base which are the traditional way of replanting

A new low cost propagation method which allows multiple shoots to be produced from one regular sprout

Seedlings transplanted by farmers in the Gihanga association (see the map)

The disease resistant variety bearing fruit

Finally made it. So now I've had about 16 hours sleep in 4 days, a lot of it in fits and starts on the plane. You people that get by regularly on 3-4 hours sleep a night, I don't know how you do it.

So I guess this is the disadvantage of an early morning flight in the winter. The plane sat out at the gate all night in the rain, then snow, and this froze some stuff apparently, which caused the plane to not work. They had technicians on board doing a reset. (with all our technological power, the reset is still one of the best ways to fix stuff?) So long story short, my flight has changed, and I now arrive in Bujumbura at 2 am. Or at least I have a flight itinerary which tells me so.

Funny thing about Zurich though, that bank of clouds you see flying in that looks like a mountain range? It's actually a mountain range that looks like a bank of clouds.

Got to take advantage of the free wifi while I can. Who knows when I'll have access again. Things are looking good for this flight: I've had about 6 hours sleep in the last 48 which is less than normal for me, and should render me unconscious for a good part of the Atlantic. That double espresso at the airport coffee shop probably wasn't such a good idea though...

today's agenda, some combination of planning and more watershed visits. I have to admit that it doesn't feel much like work, tooling around the country side, looking at trees and stuff.


View DR trip in a larger map

Today's journey was a meandering through a watershed to gather info, confirm some of the remote sensing analysis done in advance of the trip, and to generally familiarize ourselves with this potential new project area. It was satisfying to see that the satellite analysis matched up pretty closely with what we saw on the ground.

Posting all these maps is probably slowing down my blog, so I'll remove some of the older ones since all the previous points are still in this current map.

Car stuff

Every year I do some basic arithmetic on my car. Which for whatever reason interests me, but more than likely doesn't so much interest you. That isn't stopping me from sharing my findings:

-average fuel consumption for 2010 was 6.9 L/100km (which is exactly the advertised rating for my make and model)

-average cost per km is 25 cents but if you figure in depreciation it's closer to 37 cents

The chart below shows my average fuel consumption plotted throughout the year--again for the three of you out there that are interested:

Haiti election status

It is so difficult here to get any kind of reliable info about the elections in Haiti. Some say that everything is going great (this is mostly the electoral committee saying this), and others say that the country is on the verge of civil war.

I don't really know what's going on, but I do know that I spoke with a friend of mine this morning, an American living in Haiti who has been working in sustainable agriculture for many years. He told me that he saw people burning tires in the town where he lives and found himself kind of upset because they were burning the kinds of tires which turn inside out more easily and can be used to make small tire gardens. He said he found himself thinking that it would be ok if they were burning the tires that don't turn inside, out, but they could have used the others to grow vegetables. In fact my friend regularly goes to Port au Prince to pick up a truck load of used tires for vegetable containers, and this past week they were stopped by police since it was suspicious that anyone would be leaving the city with a load of tires. These days, tires are mostly being brought into Port au Prince for the burning and protest purposes.

Progress in Haiti

Yesterday morning, I heard yet another news report about how so much money has been spent in Haiti, and how there is nothing to show for it. I think we all share the same frustration, but I also wish that journalists would come and visit our project and see the hundreds of kilometres of soil conservation barriers that have been built on hundreds of hectares of land, the thousands of trees that have been planted and are thriving, hear the stories of the thousands of families who have received crops seed, tools, and jobs. It's not nothing. Lives have (it may be going too far to say 'saved') been stabilized, vulnerable land protected, farms have been made productive. Yes of course I'm defensive, because I have been a part of the earthquake response effort, but I just feel that the press is looking at this thing the wrong way. I challenge any journalist who was there in the early days after the quake--and I know there were swarms of them, I saw them myself--to recall just how grim and overwhelming those days were. Personally, I think the relief response was pretty incredible. In those early days, the country was at a tipping point, and things could have easily been much worse. In fact there was no major starvation, no collapse of the transportation or communication system, no widespread violence, and no major disease outbreak (cholera came later and is non-earthquake related). All of these were predicted, and none happened. So in fact journalists claiming that nothing has happened in Haiti is in a sense, a good thing. Of course, it is hard to prove a negative, but I think the relief efforts contributed significantly to ensuring that nothing happened. Yes, we've still got a long long way to go, and I too am frustrated, but I invite any journalist or other skeptic to please come and visit our project and still go home and say that nothing has been done. We are small, granted, but there are hundreds of efforts just like ours all across the country, that are doing something, and at least set the stage for families to build a better future. (assuming there is not another Biblical-scale plague)

A work crew in Fonds Verrettes, Haiti, posing next to a soil erosion barrier they had just built.

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So here's the full story on the baboon in Tarangire:

There is a specified lunch spot where all the park visitors eat, and each tour typically provides box lunches. At this particular site there are picnic tables set up along the edge of an a beautiful outlook from where you can see a river below and a large section of the park. The guides were just beginning to set out the white cardboard lunch boxes when I noticed that there was a rather large baboon (like the one in the picture, but not that one), sort of slowly making his way up the incline at the edge of the outlook toward our table. At this point he was still on the other side of the chest-high fence at the edge of the outlook. So I then said to the guide, "There's a baboon coming." and by the time I had finished that sentence, the baboon had suddenly sprung from gradual mode, and was on the picnic table, a distance of about 4 metres, with a lunch box in his hands. The guide, out of reflex probably more than anything, made a grab for the lunch box, and the baboon bared his very scary and large teeth with much hissing. All of us, inculding the baboon took a leap back, but the baboon maintained hold of the lunch, and quickly retreated back over the fence and back down the incline beyond the edge of the lookout. The whole incident was over in probably less than 5 seconds. I was amazed at how quickly the baboon could move. Not only that, but also the cleverness of his approach. He moved as slowly as possible as he edged up the incline so as not to be noticed, but as soon as I started to speak, it was like he recognized he had been discovered and knew he had to strike quickly. It's a good think he wasn't intent on attacking people, because I don't think anyone would have much chance against something so fast and intelligent, armed with those sharp teeth. Everyone had a good laugh after about our 'Tarangire Experience', a story which I am certain will improve with age.

A different, but similarly large baboon eating pods of the sausage tree, a natural alternative to tourist lunch boxes.

I regret not having been able to post more often on this trip. Been lots to share, but just no access. Probably my favourite story so far is the baboon that stole a lunch box from us in Tarangire National park. The details of this are worth expanding on, and I will share with you as per your interest, but suffice it to say that the staff here are now referring to it as the "Tarangire Experience"

Wheels off

I thought we had dropped into the ditch, except that the landcruiser was still on the road. The driver managed to bring it to a stop without losing control as we watched the left rear wheel go rolling by into an open field. This is a first time for me. Not just a blow out, but all the bolts on the axle shearing off and the the entire rim and tire leaving the vehicle. None of us could really come

up with a totally satisfying explanation.

Wheels down (?)

So is the opposite of wheels up, wheels down. It was an uneventful, (and therefore good) flight, where the highlight was trying to figure out how you pronounce the name of the airport in Amsterdam...

Wheels up

I'm really liking the phrase 'wheels up', which seems to have migrated from the military to civilian life. Or at least you hear it in movies and on TV: "Wheels up at 0300 hours" etc. I like it so much I resolve to start using it in regular speech, beginning with this post, since I go wheels up this afternoon. Destination Africa. Or would that be the LZ?...

Sunday afternoon I heard two loud "booms" outside my apartment which actually woke me from a pleasant nap. The power went off immediately, the smoke alarm started beeping, and then the general alarm started blaring. Shortly after that, the superintendent came on the PA system and said that there was a 'problem' with the transformer, and that there was no need to be alarmed. Now, in the 6 or 7 years I have lived here, no superintendent has ever come on to announce that there is no need to be alarmed, which actually tells me that there probably is. It turns out that we went without power for almost a full day and for a change I had to use candle power. It all seems so ironic somehow, having just come back from Haiti.

Where is Bob picture.

Find me in the Chicago Conservatory. (visiting friends over the weekend on my way back to YYZ).

My last night in Haiti and I am not sure what to end with. The month has gone quicker than I thought. Among other things I feel healthy which is a good thing, since people have been falling around me like tin soldiers. I still don't have a very good answer to the overwhelming nature of the earthquake and all that it has caused, and will continue to cause for a long time to come, but please at least accept this photo below of trees planted in our most recent project in the north of the country. These are less that 3 years old, and have been well cared for which is why they look so great.

On the way to the above site, as occasionally happens during field visits in hard to get to areas, one has times where one stumbles across women bathing in tropical mountain streams. Today was one such day, but my finely tuned cross cultural skills told me that it was not a good time to take a photo. Sorry.

Below find a photo of one of my favourite spots in Haiti, and where I am staying tonight, the Hotel Roi Christophe. Very historical, and where Henri Christophe one of the founding leaders of the country first worked as a baker. It was also a place where Napoleon's officers are supposed to have stayed. Very nice and oozing with history. If you ever visit, order the french toast for breakfast.

Finally, staying with this eclectic theme, I leave you with the lyrics of a song which have been running through my head the past few days, and seem at least marginally appropriate.

"Doctor, my eyes have seen the years

and the slow parade of fears without crying,

now I want to understand.

I have done all that I could

To see the evil and the good without hiding,

You must help me if you can.

Doctor: my eyes.

Tell me what is wrong,

Was I unwise to leave them open for so long?

As I have wandered through this world

And as each moment has unfurled

I've been waiting to awaken from this dream.

People go just where they will;

I never noticed them until I got this feeling

That it's later than it seems.

Doctor: my eyes.

Tell me what you see.

I hear their cries,

Just say if it's too late for me.

Doctor: my eyes.

I cannot see the sky.

Is this the price for having learned how not to cry?"

I think I may have become somehow an accidental rep for Coke. When I travel I tend to drink said beverage more often when home, and the past week or two here I've been going to a local vendor on the street just near our office. As I was returning the office with a freshly purchased bottle, I heard kid behind me saying, "blan, coca, blan coca". I interpreted this to either mean that I was continously buying the drink, or those two things were closely associated. I hope the company appreciates the free advertising.

Data entry is the activity of the moment. We have a team of 14 in the field interviewing households, and a team of 4 entering data. This is a somewhat repetitive task, but I'm excited to be getting the info we need to make some measurements on impact of our activities over the past 3 years in this particular area.

The Citadelle

I think I've been to the Citadelle at least 5 times, and each time I go I learn something new. It really is a marvel, and if you are ever in Haiti you should make a point of seeing it. In fact I would say you might want to come here just to see it. After Haiti gained independence, the ruler of the northern part of the country, Henri Christophe built this fortress perched on top of this mountain in case the French ever came back. They didn't and 200 years later, the structure still stands as a monument to independence. The photo shows the Citadelle from a distance, close to the town of Cap Haitian, and even from afar it is an intimidating sight.

Be careful what you wish for

A couple of weeks ago I was joking around with some visitors/program supporters about whether you would rather be the person that cut down the last tree in Haiti or ate the last sea turtle. Well, this poor fellow passed by me while I was having coffee on the patio of one of the nicer restaurants in Cap Haitian (the Roi Christophe--I think everyone should visit) and the fisherman in question was planning to sell to the kitchen. So, I guess you might be able to do both, possibly eating turtle soup off a table made of wood...

The past week I have been staying in our office in Acul du Nord, near Cap Haitien in the north. There are 5 of us, 2 sleeping in the existing beds, and 3 sleeping on the floor. If you know me at all, you know I pride myself on being able to do without, but there is a certain level of chaos associated with the lifestyle here that I just can't quite manage. Chaos, and a different sense of personal space and privacy. I like to be able to feel like I can have some control over my little corner of the world, and here I just can't quite get that. Still, I have nothing to complain about. I was thinking that last night with the rain beating down on the tin roof, and just imagining what it would be like to be crouched under a plastic tarp held up by wooden poles with mud running under foot.
Anyhow, it's not sleeping on the floor, or taking bucket showers that is the problem. In fact sometimes I sleep on the floor just because it's comfortable. Its more about the disorder of everyday living. This is a bit hard to explain and is better experienced. Maybe I'll elaborate in later posts. Sorry, still no way to upload pictures. Maybe this weekend.

Today was the first day of focus groups gathered to discuss the three year project which is now ending and for which we have been assigned to do a final evaluation. A group of 26 was assembled in one community to discuss agriculture, household economy, credit, and health. There are a number of tools which have been designed to allow a group like this to discuss a given topic, and hopefully allow everyone to have a voice. I will post some photos when I get a chance. Tomorrow will be a second focus group on the same topics but in a different community and a different, but neighbouring watershed.

Farmers voting with seeds to demonstrate importance of various farming techniques

Yesterday was the drive from Port au Prince to Acul du Nord, which is close to Cap Haitian, and about a 7 hour drive. We begin today the training for the surveyors for the project evaluation we are doing. Collecting reliable information in rural areas of Haiti (or in most countries for that matter) is tricky and requires thoughtful and creative people to ask the questions and listen for the true response. It also requires asking the right questions in the first place, which also requires careful consideration in advance. There is furthermore a tendency among those being interviewed to, perhaps out of politeness, try to give the response they think you want to hear. For example, if people think that successful results are what the interviewer wants, some folks will tend to describe how great things are. On the other hand, if people think that the interviewer wants to hear about needs, then folks will often talk about how miserable their lives are. There are ways around this. For example one can usually reliably determine from what material a roof of a house has been constructed, and this is a relatively good indicator of a family's economic status. Many other similar questions may be asked, and eventually one can piece together a more or less accurate picture of the situation and conditions in which a community finds itself.

This is what looks very much to me like a funnel cloud, the kind one might see in Ontario. Who knew that they had those here. This one hung around for a good 20 minutes but never got anywhere near the ground. It got me to wondering whether that freak wind storm on Friday in Port au Prince might have been a tornado.

There is so much to learn. That may be one of the best parts of my job, the learning. Discovering that what you thought you knew was wrong, or incomplete. Today I had a chance to go to the beach in the resort area north of Port au Prince. Yes, those are jet skiis, and in the second picture you can see both jet skiis and a traditional canoe in the background.

Driving in Haiti

Driving in Haiti is a game of inches. Being aware of your vehicle space 360 degrees around is always recommended, but here it is an absolute necessity. More than 360 really because one has to keep an eye downwards for potholes, trenches, sewage drains without covers, shoulders of roads that drop off into deep ravines, etc. Driving through markets is of particular interest since there maybe a small pile of oranges on the ground on one side of you and a market stall, or a parked vehicle on the other. This morning in fact, I got trapped between a pile of breadfruit on my right with my left rear bumper hooked into the right front bumper of the tap-tap (public pickup truck carrying 10-15 passengers) on the other side. The tap-tap driver had to nudge his vehicle gently away from mine while I backed up almost imperceptibly so we could unhook vehicles without scratching each other. I wish I had photos of this, but hope you understand why I don't.

Improved Goat

This is a photo of Elibel one of our farmer-innovators, his daughter, and an improved goat race which was distributed after the hurricanes in 2008. This goat has now produced a kid, and has also been crossed with many local goats. The kid is now 5 months old, and is already twice the size of local goats of a similar age. In time, all the members of this community (Pila) will have local x improved goat crosses.

It's about time for another 'where is bob' photo. This is at a community meeting. Topics discussed included savings fund investment, savings group rules, and animal vaccinations. At this particular meeting the members were depositing 60 gourdes each for an emergency fund to help fellow members in need (60 gourdes is about 1.5 dollars US).

Tremours

Last night I dreamed that there was a tremour. It woke me up, and I lay there in the dark wondering if it was real or imagined. The night before there actually was a real tremour, about 4 point something although I didn't feel that one. Every building I go into, I seem to spend a lot of time looking at the walls for cracks or other signs of weakness, and wondering about which is the best way out of there, or which corner to duck under. Hopefully I'm just being ridiculous and paranoid.

Which spot looks safest to you:

I just happened to be standing on the porch of our office in Gran Colline when this bundle of herbs was delivered for our cook who apparently has a stomach problem. The woman who delivered them did not know what they were called, but did know how to prepare it as a tea, and what it was good for.

I will be at this office, 3 hours outside Port au Prince for the rest of the week. Because of cloud cover we are running the generator which at the moment is allowing me to blog.

What month is it?

Today seemed a whole lot like back in January. Running around to meetings with various contacts. Thinking and talking about future funding and projects. Speculating about where money might or might not come from. Making best guesses with limited info. Staying up late to get everything lined up that needs to be lined up. But this is not January. So I'm logging off and going to have a shower now that it has cooled down to 29 very humid degrees C.

This is a photo of the largest resettlement I have seen yet. Just north of Port au Prince in a place which may be somewhat facetiously referred to as Canaan. Just looking at it from the road, I guess there must be tens of thousands living here. There is not doubt that this permanent. An entirely new city. As one of my fellow travellers, a Haitian commented, "this will become the largest slum in Haiti within a few years."

A couple shots of the guest house as promised. It certainly feels more spacious and open than before. I actually like the layout of the property better even though it is sad that one of the buildings was destroyed.

Location of the former dormatory, floor tiles still mostly intact.

Former car maintenance area, now converted into the dining area. A very pleasant place to eat and use the wifi.

I discovered almost by accident that the guestshouse in Port au Prince where I used to stay is open again. One of the two buildings had collapsed and several staff and one guest were tragically killed back in January. So I had assumed that I wouldn't be staying there any more, but when we drove by yesterday I noticed that there were people standing on the balcony of the one remaining building. So here I am, in the new dining area which I would say is more or less out of doors and shaded by banana leaf mats. Tomorrow when it is light out again, I will take some shots. It is I guess somewhat representative of how everyone has picked up the pieces of what remains and moved on. Still, when I was napping in my room this afternoon, I found myself looking around for the best spot to take shelter if the roof was coming down.

Changes in Haiti

Last week I mentioned the discouragement that comes with seeing such little progress many months after the earthquake. This past week, I have been accompanying a group from the US who support our project and we visited some of our work in the border area between Haiti and the DR. It is very satisfying and encouraging for me to return months later and see soil conservation work and especially trees that are surviving and thriving, particularly knowing that that heavy cloud of discouragement is hanging overhead in the larger relief/development community. These growing trees push back that cloud just a little bit and in truth it was great fun to show off our work to our visitors. So I want to do the same for you with a few pictures below.

A timber tree, planted in March by one of our earthquake relief planting teams, now about 75 cm tall. Notice the rock barrier above which is reinforced by the tree as it grows.

A farmer, Darius, and one of our technicians, Ketty standing next to a timber tree planted in a cropping field in 2008, ie. pre-earthquake work, and done voluntarily by the farmer (unlike the earthquake relief teams who were paid).

Darius standing next to another timber tree planted in 2008.

Several timber trees also from 2008, making their way above the weeds.

what would you do?

Last night was one of those times when I had to make a decision between sleeping under a sheet to protect myself from mosquitoes (numerous), or sleeping without the sheet to feel slightly more comfortable in the sweltering 30 plus temperature with humidity. On the one hand putting up with many bites and possible malaria, versus, some very moderate relief from the heat. Well, I choose the short term gratification of cooler temperatures, and weighed that the risk of malaria was small. I guess we'll all find out in 7-14 days or so. Although malaria can supposedly incubate for a long time, so let' say 7 days to 6 months. Don't worry, I have my emergency dose of chloraquine on me just in case. And I drank a can of tonic water on the plane, which has quinines in it, and supposedly helps boost one's resistance.

Today we go to the airport to meet a group of visitors/suppporters from the US who are here for a week visit. I will be acting as part time interpreter, which should be fun, except for the times when it's not.

8 months later

Back in Haiti yet again, fourth time this year. Met a fellow relief and development worker in the Miami airport and we commiserated about the fact that not much has changed in the long term. The relief effort after the earthquake has for sure relieved suffering, but if you think about the fact that we are all just trying to get the country back to the same level as before, one can really start to get down about it. Which is where I found myself at in the conversation in Miami. It was good though to have such a candid conversation with someone who knows the deal, and shares the same concerns.

In any case, I'll be blogging as much as possible for the next month. I'll try not to make it too depressing.

Barron Canyon, Algonquin Park

Just a sample of shots from my canoe trip in Algonquin Park, in the Barron Canyon, Aug 16-20.

Silent Lake

A few shots from Silent Lake Provincial Park the weekend of Aug 14-15

A final election update from Burundi:

Dear All,

After weeks of political tension around elections, situation is settling down!

All elections (Local, Presidential, Legislative and Senatorial) are complete. The new governement is likely to be formed in near future.

We thank God for His grace that took people through this difficult situation

We continue to pray that the nomination of the new governement be in peace.

Speaking about Haiti

For those of you who are interested, I will be speaking about Haiti beginning at 10 am on Sunday Aug. 22, at Wentworth Baptist Church. See link below for directions:

http://maps.google.ca/maps?ie=UTF8&q=wentworth+baptist+church+hamilton+on&fb=1&gl=ca&hq=wentworth+baptist+church&hnear=Hamilton,+ON&cid=0,0,2122105973732970253&ei=qqdZTNz_BYTfnAeG__ygCQ&ved=0CBoQnwIwAQ&t=h&z=16

On Saturday I discovered there was water on the floor of my car. Major amounts of it pooling under the floormats. It seems this may have been happening for the past 2 weeks or so. So today, I pulled the entire interior of my car out, seats, consoles, carpets, trim, to try and figure out where all this water was coming from. There was no sign of leakage from the roof, windows, or doors, so I was mystified as to the source. The water seemed clean, so it was also unlikely it was coming from underneath. Finally, I decided to pull some styrofoam insulation at the front, more just to dry it out than anything else, and that's when I noticed on the front passenger side that there was a hose coming out of the front console that appeared to have become disconnnected. A quick check of an on-line manual confirmed that it was, in fact, an airconditioning drain hose, and the tell-tale watermarks immediately under the hose confirmed the water source. This of course comes as a huge relief. I was imagining cracks in the frame, or defective gaskets, or other horrors, so being able to refit a disconnected hose is great. Now I'm just trying to get all the carpets and underpads dried out, and crossing my fingers that there is not some other leak somewhere. For those of you who may run into a similar problem, please see the photos below.

The passenger side showing the disconnected hose which would normally be hidden under the carpeting. Watermarks below the disconnection are visible.

Close up of the same hose, passenger side

The gutted interior, not really that difficult to take apart, 1 hour tops.

The insides of the car, drying outside