Third World Journey: A thought on a Saturday Morning

For some reason, this quote came to mind... 

“People come, people go – they’ll drift in and out of your life, almost like characters in a favorite book. When you finally close the cover, the characters have told their story and you start up again with another book, complete with new characters and adventures. Then you find yourself focusing on the new ones, not the ones from the past.”

― Nicholas Sparks, The Rescue

Shot in Haiti, 2015

What are you doing?

If only I could understand what this man was trying to communicate. I shot this in Haiti. I ran into this Haitian on a small dirt road in the middle of a little village about an hour away from the ocean. 

The Atlantic Ocean

Looking out onto the Atlantic from the western, smaller portion of the island of Hispaniola... The special thing about this fishing ground is that this is where Christopher Columbus first landed during his first voyage in 1492. Today, this sacred ground is home to many fish like Red Snapper, Squid, Tuna, and much more.

Fishermen had hot tar warmed over fire that they were using to repair leaks on the bottom of their boats. They would allow the tar to cool and then venture into the sea to test their worthiness.

To take this shot I walked between two massive hogs digging in the sand forging for food. As I knelt down between them, they quickly scattered.

It took quite some time to get to this spot. However, we left with fresh caught Red Snapper and Lobster. It made for a great meal later in the day.

The children of Haiti

When shooting photos in Haiti recently, I tried hard to photograph the images of the children who are victims in the fight for hunger. I wanted to capture as many as I could without them looking directly at me in an attempt to capture their blank stares in their natural settings. In other words, I tried hard to grab their emotions for others to see directly through my lens. 

Children who are hungry

I walked past hundreds of children during my time in Haiti. It was absolutely amazing to me how the children reacted to a stranger. In many cases, the children would rub their stomachs as a sign of hunger. The older children would verbally ask for money, suggesting it was to buy food with.

How did a country get to a point where children have to face real life problems such as going hungry.  It is a tragedy to me that children have to be forced to worry about their nutrition when they don't even understand the importance of nutrition. 

Children are a workforce

When you visit a third world country like Haiti, children are familiar with hard work. I came across multiple children who gathered the daily water for their family, gathered food from street vendors on their own at age 10, did laundry by hand at age 8...  I could go on and on. Children sometimes act as the glue of a family in countries like Haiti. Making sure that the necessary chores are completed in a timely manner. 

Children are the light

This is a small Haitian child who can smile today due to the rice she had for lunch. Did you know that half of children under 5 are malnourished in Haiti? It is also a fact that approximately 30% of children attending primary school will not make it to third grade; 60% will abandon school before sixth grade. Read more here. 

I am a street vendor

This is a photo of a street vendor in a small city located in Haiti. Her grim frown was similar to a huge percentage of people I met on the streets of Haiti. I saw very few smiles from adult Haitians, but lots of smiles from children. Adults in Haiti look warn and aged.

The average lifespan for an adult male in Haiti was 51 several years ago. It is now closer to 61 (2015) today. The average age that women die in Haiti is 64. 

Man of Voodoo in Haiti

Voodoo is something that most hear about and think is interesting, fascinating and even fictitious. However, it is actually a Satanic ritual that is very much real. This is a photo of a practicing Haitian Voodoo Witch Doctor. He is about 53-years old age and lives one hour away from Cap-Haitien, Haiti. He has many followers who turn to him on a regular basis.  

I visited several Voodoo Ceremonial Grounds in Haiti and found multiple human skulls, a casket and other skeletal remains used during ritualistic activities.  Human sacrifices, murders and more are all a part of Satanic Voodoo Ceremonies in Haiti. 

In 2013, Haiti Tourism Minister Stephanie Villedrouin told NPR News that real Voodoo Ceremonies should be a part of the schedule for visiting tourist (read here). 

Life in Haiti

This woman quietly sits by the roadside in a small and out of the way city in the country of Haiti. She sells scoops of laundry detergent that she places in zip-lock baggies. In Haiti, you won't find grocery stores that sell the necessities of life. 

After her customers buy detergent, they will often walk to a nearby creek or river and wash their clothing in a bucket filled with river water. They then pour the water/ soap mix back into the waterway when finished. 

Empty Places: The Citadelle Laferrière and The Palace in Haiti

These are photos of the Citadelle Laferrière and The Palace in Haiti. These shots by Scott Walker also include the views from the Citadelle. All shots taken with a Fuji X100s. 

The fort and the palace sit atop the Bonnet a L’Eveque mountain in Haiti, one of the highest points in the country. The views are breathtaking as is the ride by mule to the top. 

The fort took about 20,000 people to complete, many of whom died while hiking stones to the top of the mountain to build the structure. 

Henri Christophe initially commissioned the fortress to be built in 1805. He and his wife lived in the palace. Christophe was a general in the Haitian army and chief administrator of the country's northern regions. However, after having a stroke int he 1820's, he committed suicide with one gunshot to the head. His body was later placed somewhere in the fort, but no one knows for sure where in the structure.

The grave

It has been years since this man has visited the grave of his daughter. With that in mind, he said he needed closure. It was midnight, but that didn't matter to this father who was in pain emotionally. So we took the one hour road trip to visit the grave, not knowing where it was located in the massive Nashville area cemetery. We searched with flash lights, but left two hours later without finding it. 

You may be curious as to why this father did not remember where the grave was located considering he was at the funeral in 2008? The reason is because he is completely blind. He has never seen it, only touched it. 

We returned several days later when the cemetery office was open and in the daylight. With the help of staff, the grave-site was located and this father was able to say his final goodbyes, something that he had wanted to do for over six years. He kneeled next to the grave on the damp grass and slowly rubbed his fingers over her name tracing it back and fourth. It was an awesome sight. 

He left with a smile and a slight tear.