We awoke up in Fondwa to a beautiful morning in the Haitian mountains, which seemed to go on forever, reflected in the Hatian proverb "Dye mon, gen mon," literally meaning mountains beyond mountains. The morning started a bit too early with the roosters starting to crow around four in the morning, but I slept well and was ready to face the day, especially after a delicious breakfast of eggs, fruit, and Haitian coffee.
Today we had a meeting with the University of Fondwa students to learn about what their university was like, what their lifestyles were like, and to just learn from one another. We were all amazed by their dedication to study, and how they all planned to take the knowledge they learned back to improve their own communities, echoing the belief by the University Founder that development must come from rural Haiti. They were all incredibly smart, and very open and friendly to use, speaking to us in English, Creole, Spanish, and French!
For lunch we had a delicious meal of chicken, potato salad, fried plantains, and a cinnamon banana dessert, then went on a hike throughout the town of Fondwa with some of the UNIF students. We saw beautiful mountains and landscapes, passed by large farms planting corn and beans and populated by friendly Haitians. It began to rain when we reached the top of the mountain we had been climbing and we waited out most of the weather in a church that had been rebuilt by an international mission organization, although the school next door was still comprised only of tents.
The mountains and walk were beautiful, and the countryside was calm and incredibly pleasant, the rain was very pleasant and soft, and the people of Fondwa were so nice and welcoming, it was an incredible day. We finished it off with a delicious garlic pasta, but not before some of us took a few minutes to look at the beutiful night sky, so full of bright stars, away from the light and noise of crowded, bustling, Port-au-Prince.
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