Market Day (Clara)

Today was market day in Cerca. The market is much like our grocery stores in the US. It is a weekly market where people can sell what ever they have. Today as we walked through the village to market',all of the people on their porches outside stared at us; just as on all of our previous walks. We are such a minority here, and unlike any minority group in the US. The people only see, "Blancs," as they call us, a few times a year; so when they do they make sure it is known. The usage of the word Blanc is not derogatory towards us but solely announcing to others that they see us. We are in a way like Blimps in the US, they do not often fly in the sky, so

when they do we make everyone aware of the fact. The market was very interesting to see,and in a way it was like a farmers market at home. Different vendors were set up in rows, with all of the goods laid out on the ground. People were everywhere and many odd smells arose from the sights. The most interesting thing for me at the market was the vast variety of fruits and vegetables being sold. Being sold were many things that we have in the US such as okra, garlic, avocados, cashews, and spinach. There was not very much supply however. For example only a couple of vendors sold each vegetable I described above. As I asked the reason for this to the translator he spoke of how Haitian farming is just not very good and so the supply is very limited. We had a wonderful day today, Haiti is a beautiful place filled with many wonderful people.