Haiti

Haiti is more than the sum of its problems. In reality, much of the country - art, scenery, people - is beautiful.  Below is an interesting Beta Fusion Article by Tim Rogers about young Haitians using Instagram to show others the beauty of their country.  Instagram gives people a chance to post the aspects of Haiti that they know, appreciate, and would like to share with others.  Please feel free to share links to other sites with Haiti-related photography.  

It’d be hard these days to find patrimonial or natural riches in countries with vibrant histories that haven’t been exploited to the brink of destruction by over tourism, reviewed on Trip Advisor, or listed in Lonely Planet.  At most tourism sights,  capturing the past to a point so vivid you feel like you’re actually there in history uninterrupted by expensive entrance fees, trinket vendors, t-shirt shops, fat foreigners, and a cacophony of cameras shuttering, is difficult.  So if ever there was a positive side to the chronic economic, insecurity and political turmoil of Haiti, then this may be it. 

When preparing to return to the US from my Peace Corps experience in Haiti, I was told don’t be surprised when someone asks you to describe this life changing experience, after 5 minutes don’t be surprised when they’re no longer listening.  This was some great advice and so now when people ask me, “What’s Haiti like?” I find myself inevitably doing two things; first launching into curt clichés, ‘poorest country in the western hemisphere’, ‘greatest nightmare on earth’, ‘surrealism has a country’, or whatever rant I’m on that day or week but regardless I find myself always adding "...but it’s still a Caribbean island."  To me that means there are still paradisiacal destinations to be found and indulge in here, but mostly for the adventurous.

‘Apre dans tanbou a lou’---Amid some of Haiti’s chronic concerns, upcoming senatorial elections, unstable gas prices, and food insecurity, tens of thousands of Haitians still managed to put all their troubles aside and revel in 3 days of carnival festivities which culminated yesterday during Mardi Gras under an unusual downpour of rain.

There is a Haitian proverb that says what the eyes can't see, the heart cannot feel. The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) has selected their photo of the year, taken in Haiti. Below is an article Barbara Hans wrote about the photo in Der Spiegel Online.  If you would like to see more photos of Haiti, take a look at the Haiti Innovation Flickr Site or a list of Haiti Photo Blogs (part 1 and part 2).