Our drives through Port au Prince have given us some evidence of progress, slow as it may be, from our last visit. While many government buildings lay in mountains of rubble, just as they fell in January 2010, there are signs of hope. We saw schools with new temporary buildings and some new construction for homes. However, the beacon of hope we witnessed was our visit to the newly reconstructed Iron Market (see photo). This beautiful structure was funded by others and since the market is the center of commerce, it is quite symbolic. To one side of the towers pictured are tiny stalls side by side of vendors selling fruit, rice, hand made graters and handcarved wooden spoons and bowls. On the other side of the tower are numerous artists selling their arts and crafts. The seemingly impassable streets are still cluttered with street vendors selling every imaginable item, but the system functions, and there is some improvement to be noted.
Our team (minus the two members from Emporia State) is also pictured, and this will be updated with a new one soon.
We've experienced a myriad of emotions -- even those of us who have visited before. It is an adjustment, to be sure, but once we reached the guesthouse, everything normalized and we began to process through discussion and art all that we are experiencing.
Tomorrow we will begin our work at the Hospital, sharing with professionals the benefits of both Music Therapy and Art Therapy. We are all really looking forward to this experience.
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