On one occasion in February, we ventured out for a walk around Tabarre with an American who spent over nine years in Haiti. Fluent in Kreyol and everything Haitian, Joe gave us our first opportunity to shop in an open-air market and eat our first street food: lambi (raw conch). The vendor carried a large white paint bucket from which he scooped the raw sea snail into a plastic cup for us. He drenched the lambi in hot sauce, handed us some toothpicks and we tentatively tasted it. Not bad!
Sonya and Joe sharing a cup of lambi
Be prepared to share your space with lizards and many other 4, 6 and 8-legged creatures no matter where you are in Haiti. We have yet to identify some of the creatures that shared our beds at the guesthouse during the night and, frankly, we would not like to visit them again. It has become a running joke to see who among us is the “tastiest”!
Hana enjoying the advances of a very young man!
Does blonde hair attract attention? Absolutely. The tiny fingers of the babies and toddlers at the orphanage wrap around the light strands and run their fingers through it. People walking past on the street and stare. Young men blow kisses while some even work up the nerve to greet a “blanc” teenage girl and ask if she has a boyfriend (while simultaneously refusing to make eye contact with her mother standing by her side...!). A dark bandana or hat helps thwart such attention.
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