Giving thanks

Colombians have so many days off every year, but only Canada and the US celebrate my favourite holiday: Thanksgiving!

I try to celebrate it every year regardless of the country I'm in, and of course I celebrate in October which is when Canadians have theirs. Wikipedia says that "the first Canadian Thanksgiving celebration was not for harvest, but in thanks for surviving the long journey from England through the perils of storms and icebergs. On his third and final voyage to these regions, in 1578, Frobisher held a formal ceremony in Baffin Island in present day Nunavut to give thanks."

And on that same spirit, my housemates and I had a wonderful dinner the second week of October. A few of us said our Thank Yous out loud. I let them know I was thankful for their support through the very difficult last few weeks, their kindness and understanding. I am also thankful for having Graham in my life, my family, wonderful friends, and all the opportunities and experiences I have had over the years. I am very lucky, and have a very happy life and for that I like taking at least one day a year to say Thanks.

So Thank YOU! My friends and family and friends of friends that check these posts months after months, even when we go weeks without writing. Your comments, love and support mean a lot to me (and to Graham, who is currently very busy with school, internship, conferences and a few more things he manages to fit into his very long days in DC).

For some reason I didn't manage to take any photos during our candle-lit, patio dinner, but here are the links to the recipes we used for our Haitian feast:

• Shepherd's pie (No turkey available, plus a handful of British/Irish housemates made this a wonderful substitute!)

http://www.taste.com.au/recipes/2335/classic+shepherds+pie

• Sausage, apple and cranberry stuffing (apples brought from my hotel in Miami the weekend before, and dried cranberries purchased during my last visit to Vancouver!)

http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/awesome-sausage-apple-and-cranberry-stuffing/detail.aspx

• Roasted butternut squash with Maple Syrup Glaze (the crowd's favourite!)
  

http://kitchen-parade-veggieventure.blogspot.com/2007/10/roasted-butternut-squash-with-maple.html

• Orange glazed carrots (recipe picked up last year when our friends hosted us in New York)
  

http://www.cooks.com/rec/view/0,1850,149167-237196,00.html

• Green beans with sesame oil

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/rachael-ray/sesame-green-beans-recipe/index.html

We also served some peas, bread and a simple salad. Our guests brought beer, wine and delicious Swiss chocolate that we had as dessert. Overall, a meal and an evening to remember!

In memory of Julia and Reneilwe

Two years ago a member of the SAIS community died after being hit by a drunk driver in the streets of Washington DC. Julia had been with us in Bologna during they year before. and she was just starting the second year of her program.

Last month the Red Cross Nordic UWC lost a beloved member of our community also in a drunk driving accident. On the other side of the world, Reneilwe was training for a marathon in Johannesburg. She died with four other members of her running team.

Just like many SAISers then, and many UWCers now, I am at a loss for words. Instead, I have copied below the kind words that one of our friends posted on his facebook wall:


"Like everyone else I still cannot quite believed that Reneilwe Lesenyeho has left us. I did not know you that well when we were at the RCNUWC. Nevertheless, seeing you at the reunion in August and talking about your long-distance running project made me think that I would start practicing more. This way maybe I could stand a chance that you wouldn't outrun me completely on the Flekke trot of our 20th year reunion. Sadly I will never know... But I can bet that now I will be thinking of you every time I'll go running in the coming years.

Trying to remind myself of the fragility of life, I often tell myself that the world we live in is not as safe as we wish it were and that we could die every time we take our car or we cross the road. How I wish I were wrong !

Once again I feel like picking up the phone and calling all these people I haven't seen in so long and lost touch with.

Reneilwe, you, your joyfulness and your smile, a smile that could warm your friends' spirits even in the cold of the harshest Norwegian winter, all of these will be sorely missed " Remi Gau

Home again

Last time I came back to Haiti without Graham I felt absolutely awful, empty, lost. This time I expected to feel the same way but it was actually very nice to come back. My Slovakian colleague had brought a lot of delicious food from her R&R and she had kindly waited to cook it all until I got back. We had a fantastic dinner on my patio that Sunday evening.

Back at the office the next day, as expected, there was lots of work accumulated, and the days just flew by. Unfortunately, 4 days later I got a call from home to tell me that my grandmother had passed away that morning. My supervisor was kind enough to offer some days off so I could leave again. 6 hours later I was at the Port-au-Prince airport on my way to Miami, and then to Bogota again.

While it was incredibly sad, I was so glad I could be there. For the first time in years, I was able to help my parents through a very difficult time.

Grandma was a very lovely and happy 90 year-old. I will miss her smile and very kind words. Here is a photo from a couple of years ago.


Graham and I took part in a tomato-war at a local festival

We went for a walk - in pictures

Home

(Apologies for the font/format issues...one slow internet connection + one impatient Colombian do not a pretty blog make!)

After a long 8 weeks I got to see Graham again in September. School year on full swing, he was busy running from class to class while I helped pick up cutlery, and new pillows. It was bittersweet helping him set up his new student/ bachelor place in DC knowing that I won’t be to enjoy with him. He chose to live in a very-multicultural neighbourhood where every second person speaks Spanish ( or accented English!). He has a lovely farmers market every Saturday, and a full range of “ethnic” restaurants to choose from when he doesn’t have time to cook (or has forgotten to eat all day or buy groceries all week!).

We met up with friends, went for a walk, argued about the best colour for a set of plates, had coffee close to “The Mall” and then talked about life in front of the White House, as you do…

Soon after that it was time to go to another home. This time, my parents’ place in Bogota. It was my stepdad’s 70^th birthday and the celebration went on and on. It was great to be home. I met with a few friends, had coffee at my favourite shop, ate, ate, and ate, went to the movies with my cousins, and hung out with all my aunts and uncles, and danced all night at my stepdad’s party, and even found some time to look at wedding dresses!

A few days later I had to leave again to see Mr. Day again, this time in New York. Having that to look forward to made it so much easier to pack and leave. It was a ver very short visit but it felt so normal to walk down the street, look for a cafe, have a 2 hour brunch, just like being home again, . I guess it is cliché but true, home is where your heart is!

We went for a walk...

Twice this year, I have miraculously been allowed to go on the best (and only?) known hiking path for foreigners in Haiti. The first time Graham was still here and he made sure our packs were well-packed, waterproof and had all the right things. The second time I was on my own... and my bag was heavier and only had half the things I took the first time... (Amore, I miss you!)

Google tells me the route is about 96.9 km long but of course we drive at least half of it (from petionville to Kenscoff, the "trail head" and then from Marigot to our lunch spot in Jacmel. In the map below, we walked the "101 route" and drove back through the road in purple.

View Larger Map

You have to drive for about an hour to get to the head start, and then you walk, and walk, anywhere between 5 and 9 hours to get to a beautiful lodge right in the heart of one of the few national parks in Haiti.

This is one of the few times during our time here that we were fully immersed in the Haitian environment, and it was absolutely fantastic to try our Creole, buy food from the markets, and walk freely without security escorts, or rush of any type.

Seeing the pine trees after going up a dry, and sandy road was the happiest of moment of the day for me. The smell of the forest and having to wear a sweater feel like heaven.

You’re welcomed with a hearty meal, and then you promptly fall asleep. This time around we spent an extra day up at the park which was spent mushroom picking! Chanterelle mushroom picking! In Haiti! One of my best memories from Canada is walking in the West Coast forests with the McKerracher family on Thanksgiving weekend looking for mushrooms. I couldn’t believe that we were doing the same thing here. Both dinner that day and breakfast the next day were sprinkled with fresh mushrooms…hhhmmm…

The walk down is not as beautiful but it is physically exhausting. The only thing that keeps you going is the wonderful lobster lunch that we had reserved at a beautiful hotel in Jacmel. Here are some photos taken by one of my friends. As soon as I find the cable to download the pictures I took, I will add a few more.

Enjoy!

I

Autumn

For someone who didn't grow up with seasons, I am strangely attached to the Autumn. The cooler weather and colourful leaves remind me of the first time I left Colombia, new faces, the beginning of a school year, Thanksgiving, falling in love in Montreal, Valentine’s Day in Colombia, pumpkin ravioli, and finding a job in 4 different countries !
There aren’t noticeable changes in the weather here in Haiti, but after a long vacation abroad, it definitely feels like the autumn is here. My resolution for this new “school year’ is to write more often here.
Thanks to all of you that are still reading…