A Few Final Thoughts on Haiti's History

Well, I've finished my book about Haiti's history! It was a surprisingly quick ending to the book, considering how in-depth and detailed the author got as the book entered modern times. It ends on a slightly more hopeful note, as René Préval (president from 1996 to 2001 and again from 2006 to 2011) finally realized that he should try making peace with his enemies rather than using political violence to obliterate all who opposed him. Seems like this paid off, and seemingly for the first time in hundreds of years, maybe Haiti finally has a chance of turning things around, from a more or less continual decline into an uphill battle. The author blames corruption, instability, and xenophobia as the three main causes of Haiti's poverty and decline from when it used to be called the Pearl of the Caribbean (back in colonial/slavery days), so if they can manage to keep their government in shape, maybe things can fall into place (and remain in place). We'll see! Here's hoping!

Jacmel's bay

The conclusion started with a nice description of Haiti's geographical beauty, with Jacmel as the prime example - sounds like I picked the right place to be! Haiti is even described as the most beautiful of the Caribbean islands, with Jacmel as a particular gem of the whole island. :) Apparently there are some shining blue pools (bassin bleu) you can climb up to nearby, and the town is supposed to have some flowering, colorful areas, and "for the particularly adventurous", there's a two-day hike up a mountain to a little chalet village that overlooks the capital! I won't be making that hike, but it sounds like I'm headed to a great place, and I am SO looking forward to this experience and new locale!

Bassin Bleu

Next up: Paul Farmer's Pathologies of Power! woop woop!

(I'm also going to start trying to hunt down a particular book/CD set that is supposed to be a really good/helpful way to learn Creole - there are just a few bookstores that *might* have it... Should've done this while in the states, because Amazon shipping to France is costly and takes a lot of time at this point, but I unfortunately didn't hear about the series until now! Wish me luck!!)