CLICK HERE To see my Photo Journal from my trip to Haiti in May 2010.

This visit was somewhat different than my other visits.  I was with the group, Hope to Haiti, Directed by Scott Bonnell.  This was my 1st trip after the horrific earthquake in January. Seeing all the destruction in Port-Au-Prince was surreal.   However, with outside help and financial support, hopefully Haiti can once again become the “Pearl of the Caribbean” as it once used to be.

Photo taken June 2009 – My 3rd Visit to Haiti, pre earthquake

Photo taken May 2010 – My 4th Visit to Haiti, after earthquake

BRIEF FACTS ABOUT HAITI:

• Haiti is the oldest black republic in the world.
• Population: approximately 8.3 million, almost entirely of African origin
• Employment rate: 30%
• Illiteracy rate: 48%
• Religion: Catholic 85%, Voodoo 90%
• Languages: French (official), Creole or Kreyol (most widely spoken)
• Current government: Elected president
• Haiti is the poorest and most densely populated country in the Western Hemisphere.
• Average life expectancy is only 52 years

On December 6, 1492 Christopher Columbus first laid eyes on the pristine shores of the island of Hispanola. Lush with fruits and towering mahogany trees, Haiti became known as “La Perle des Antilles” or “the Pearl of the Caribbean”. What was once France’s richest colony today has become one of the world’s poorest nations, hindered by dictatorships, depleted natural resources, major natural disasters and overwhelming spiritual darkness.

To see my Photo Journal from my trip to Haiti in May 2010,

CLICK HERE.

Yes, there is Hope for Haiti

Did you know that in Haiti:
• 80% Unemployment
• 85% Illiterate
• 20% Infant mortality rate before age 5
• Adult mortality – in the 50’s
• Population around 8.5 million
• Cite Soleil population 400,000+
• Haiti is considered the 3rd hungriest country in the world (after Somalia and Afghanistan)
• 80% of the people live on less than $2 per day of these 40% live on less than $1 per day
• The island is 90% Roman Catholic

Haiti (pronounced ; French pronounced ; Haitian Creole: Ayiti), officially the Republic of Haiti (République d’Haïti ; Repiblik Ayiti), is a Creole- and French-speaking Caribbean country. Along with the Dominican Republic, it occupies the island of Hispaniola, in the Greater Antillean archipelago. Ayiti (Land on high) was the indigenous Taíno or Amerindian name for the island. The country’s highest point is Pic la Selle, at 2,680 metres (8,793 ft). The total area of Haiti is 27,750 square kilometres (10,714 sq mi) and its capital is Port-au-Prince.

Haiti’s regional, historical, and ethnolinguistic position is unique for several reasons. It was the first independent nation in the Caribbean, the first post-colonial independent black-led nation in the world, and the only nation whose independence was gained as part of a successful slave rebellion. Haiti is the only predominantly Francophone independent nation in the Caribbean, and one of only two in North America (along with Canada) which designate French as an official language; the other French-speaking North American countries are all overseas départements or collectivités of France.

This information and more can be found on Wikipedia, the Free Internet Encyclopedia. ]]> http://www.adayinhaiti.com/2010/01/14/some-facts-about-haiti/feed/ 3