Teams - Part 6

 

Some of the metal work are painted. Here is a scene picturing the Garden of Eden.

I like thse parrots that were hanging above the door.

This is a representation of Noah's ark.

This one was my favorite. A guy riding a bicycle with a dog on the back :)

A welcome sign at one of the metal sculpture shops.

First step in the process. Unrolling the drums into sheets.

December through the end of February is dry season. This dry river bed is the Riviere Grise. Rainy season started in March.

On the streets of Port-au-Prince everywhere you go are tap-taps. These camionettes provide public transportation here in Haiti. The government sets the rates for the circuits.

The side of this tap-tap reads "Heaven's Grace"

Signboards appear on all the major roads. This is a cigarette advertisement for Comme Il Faut, a haitian brand of cigarette. The factory that makes these cigarettes is here in Port-au-Prince.

This was a colorful tap-tap. A street vendor selling soccer balls dangles them over the sides of this tap-tap.

Natcom is a public/private company. A vietnamese telecommunications firm owns 60% of natcom. The Haitian government owns 40%. This sign is advertising the minimum cell phone recharge of 5 gds.

The government is trying to take back the sidewalks from street vendors. With all the people trying to sell stuff on the sidewalks it makes it an obstacle course for people to find room to walk on the sidewalks.

A typical day on the streets of Haiti. Lots of people and vehicles!

This building is the Childrens Prison or "Reeducation Centre for Minors in trouble with the law". The Canadian government financed the reconstruction of the Delmas 33 police station plus upgrades at the children's prison. UNICEF is working with the government of Haiti in trying to help juvenile delinquents.

Jantje and Deslie brought lots of treats with them. Deslie is handing some candies to children in the kindergarten class.

Calens is walking away with a mouthful of candy!

Lunch time is a busy time. Many plates of food are dished out each day from the large cooking pots.

The CAW union donated funding to Angels to Haiti to purchase a stove for us. Thanks CAW :)

Road construction is everywhere and this is what happened on our street corner one day. Workers were building a sidewalk and curb. They haven't continued down our street but it makes it easier to walk on Delmas 31.

This is a government billboard advertising that "Haiti is open for Business". The only way out of poverty is to have a job, which 80% of the population doesn't have. Pray that businesses will invest in Haiti and that the government provides the infrastructure and the people provide the security to attract business to Haiti.

The number 1 sport in Haiti is soccer. Whenever Real Madrid or Barcelona plays this is the situation on our street corner. Everyone is trying to follow the game on a small television screen :)

Whenever there are hydrocephalus surgeries we usually bring food to the hospital for one week. By that time the patients are all discharged to their homes.

Here is our friend the day after his surgery. He had a ventriculoscopy.

This baby girl had a venriculoscpy too. During surgery the pressure on the brain is relieved and some of the fluid drains away. Over time the skull bone plates grow together. You can see in this photo how the bone plates have expanded as fluid accumulated in the brain.

This baby is staring intently at the camera.

This mother is being careful in moving her daughters head. She was concerned for her because she had vomiting and a fever after surgery.

She was later transferred to the pediatrics ward for more intensive follow-up. Despite the medical personnel's effort her condition progressively deteriorated and she died from an infection. With surgery there is no guarantee. Pray for the mother of this child that she is comforted knowing that her baby is in heaven.

It is good to see father's spending time with their families. So many times the father leaves the family when there is a hydrocephalus baby. As a result the mother is faced with a difficult burden.

His baby is active one day after surgery and even smiling :)

Teams - Part 5

 

On our walk in Paulna's village we saw 2 young children watching us in the gateway to their yard.

Another voudou cross with an offering of rum tied to it, plus a covering for shade?

We saw this young mother doing her washing with her baby standing behind her.

At the part of the village that I call downtown Bonnette, is a large church and school, the best built buildings in the village.

A reminder from the earthquake.

As we walked towards our truck we watched this woman walking with a couple of baby goats. I felt sorry for the goats behind dragged by the legs :(

We passed the meadow area and saw this rundown piece of equipment.

This used to be a still, which was used to make haitian moonshine!

This was a homemade vat.

On the ground was some sort of equipment.

We saw a man carrying a bundle of sticks. These sticks are used to make the walls of a mud hut and also used for cooking.

This area is lush and green. A spring is nearby.

In Croix-des-Bouquets in the Village Des Artistes. Metal workers have shops set up throughout the neighbor. Each shop designs their own metal sculptures originating from used oil drums.

Johnny checked out his face in a mirror.

I took a photo of myself :)

This interesting looking piece of artwork was created with forks and spoons.

There were a lot of unique pieces in of art in the shops.

Here is a spoonman!

All of this was created out of a hammer and chisel punch.

Some pieces were really decorative.

One of the workshops.

This man is at work punching holes in sheets of tin.

They put some sort of aluminum paint on the sheets. They are laid out in the sun to dry on grass mats.

The rough product looks not very artistic!

This area of the workshop is where they are sanding the pieces of art in preparation for a coating to be put on.

These artists export some of these items to markets in the United States like Macy's.

Each shop had their own unique items

The guys got bored after awhile and waited in the shade :)

All the art is created with a hammer and chisel.

These sheets eventually form into these lanterns./birdcages.