Seguin

Seguin is unlike any other place in Haiti I have been too. It is beautiful, stunning, different. An 8hr drive from PAP, through a river, and so high up into the mountains you feel like you are almost at the top. At one point the truck got stuck in the mud and we had to get off the back and push. The trail Was rocky and slick, sometimes slightly scary that we could plummet into the valley below if we didn't hold on tight. I definitely acquired some new bruises from sitting in the box with the luggage. 

I am sitting on the roof of the clinic, with a cat in my lap. You can see the coast from here, the ocean fading into the sky. If it weren't for the clouds it would be hard to tell where the ocean ends and sky begins. Swirls of blue and white.  The mountains are green and red clay. Grey slabs of rock jut out from the mountain side, reminding me of something you'd see in Ireland. Brick houses with tin roofs sprinkle the mountain side. As I am writing this I can here kids playing, babies crying and can see the fog rolling in, cooling off the air so the I am glad I am wearing pants. There is a thick line of trees and forest, showing were deforestation stopped. I can see why someone would want to live up here. I also can see why it would make you go crazy. You could feel quite isolated amiss the village people, and english is hard to come by. The people are beautiful.

We hiked the mountain side today, starting on our two-week project. It was beautiful, but not easy. Luckily the rain held off for the first time in days. We will be documenting clean water usage and whether families have latrines. We are looking for rain catchers and bucket purification systems. Then we will document hopefully finding out who uses the clean water and toilets, and find out who doesn't. Then we will be able to do more about it. The more people drinking clean water and using clean toilettes = a healthier community and a longer life expectancy. Hopefully we will also be able to deliver some water purification systems to people and offer more education to those who need it. 

 We came back for a late lunch, our one meal of the day(the rest we have to fend for ourselves- hello market on Thursday) and spent the majority of the afternoon playing with the village kids. Playing soccer and sliding down the hill, or should I say rocks, on pieces of plastic and tin. It was so much fun. 

Like a said- unlike anywhere I have ever been.