trip to port-au-prince

hello! so, today we left E.G.O. @ 6 a.m. to make the long journey into port-au-prince to drop elizabeth off. she was flying back home today. we left early so we could get groceries, etc. before dropping her off at the airport. it didn't exactly happen as we'd planned, so we were so thankful that we'd left as early as we did! shortly into the trip we ended up with a flat tire and since the spare was also flat we stopped a couple times to refill it with the air compressor, then we eventually stopped at a station and had the tires fixed. then we finally got into p.-au-p. and got rear-ended! on a sidenote...the traffic is unbelievably chaotic here! people seeming to drive wherever they please, swerving to miss potholes, people lining the streets selling their 'wares' and everyone else walking in the road...anyway, it's crazy! so, we got rear-ended without any damage to the vehicle (thanks God!). finally got to the city, got everything done and are spending the night at a beautiful place in the middle of the city! it's called FOHO (friends of haiti organization)... it has a beautiful 'island-villa' feel! stucco walls, open air galleria (where i'm currently sitting as i type!), gekkos (sp?) on the walls, warm tropical air and all the sounds of a city at night...people talking, horns honking, music playing, the hum of traffic nearby... sometimes i still can't believe i'm back in haiti!

oh yeah, and the orphanage got a new baby boy today... i don't know his name, only that his father (and some other people) brought him to e.g.o. yesterday and said that the mother died. we told them we needed a birth certificate for him and a death certificate for mom, as well as testing done on the babe (for AIDS, etc). they live further up in the mountains so they thought it would be a few days before they could get it all done, but apparently not b/c they brought the little guy back today already. on a sidenote for any medically interested people, he has polydactaly (an extra digit on each hand & foot, hanging by just a small piece of skin), so i will get the opportunity to tie off the extra digits! (sorry if that grosses anyone out!) i've seen it done by the docs in the NICU, but obviously have never done it myself. doris has done it many times though and will help me!

alrighty, it's been a long day & tomorrow's trip home to e.g.o. promises to be as well, so i'm heading to bed! 'good night' in haitian creole is 'bon nuit' (pronounced like 'bone-wheat'!) so i'll leave with that!

BON NUIT!