National traditions of Haiti. Habits, mentality and the way of living

Haiti is an island country in the Caribbean region that is situated close to the Dominican Republic on the same Hispaniola Island. The country is located to the south of Cuba. The tropical climate has created ideal conditions for beach recreation. The Dominican Republic has become a successful and developing tourist destination but Haiti somehow lags behind. That being said, there are cities suitable for tourists in Haiti. These are Les Cayes, Pétionville, Cap-Haitien, and Gonaives. There are many thrilling stories about poverty in Haiti and about the savage traditions of local people. It is true that the country is very poor but the stories about barbaric traditions are greatly exaggerated. Yes, Haiti is not the safest country in the world but there are many significantly more dangerous places where tourists shouldn’t even show up. Haitians are generally friendly with foreign tourists.

Haitians will be pleased if you can speak the same language as them. However, it is not easy to do this. There are three official languages in the country – French, Haitian, and Creole (a combination of several languages). Even though Haiti is an independent country, the United States has a dominating position here, and this explains the fact why English is a common language on the island. Almost one half of Haitians do not have an education. The majority of the population is the descendants of the slaves brought to work on sugarcane plantations. Naturally, there are people in Haiti who still have a dislike for white people because slave owners, who were white, suppressed generations of their ancestors. However, locals are still friendly to tourists despite living in poverty and having no education.

It is not common to hold items in their hands in the culture of Haitians. If they have some ware, they immediately put it on their heads, leaving hands free. Both men and women do this. Christianity is the main religion in Haiti, but there are different churches in the country – Catholic, Protestant, Adventist, and Jehovah’s Witness. A large part of the population follows the Vodou cult. There is no exact data about the number of people practicing Vodou, the estimation is between 20% and 40% of the total population. It is common for locals to follow Christianity and Vodou at the same time. Haitians often mention Jesus in their daily talk. “God save us” – this is a popular phrase that even locals with rifles in their houses say. Copyright www.orangesmile.com

It is hard to find a job in Haiti. When there is a vacant job, people usually refer their friends or relatives. Some Haitians go to the more successful Dominican Republic to work, and some immigrate further – to Brazil, Chile, and the rest of the world. That is why lotteries are very popular in Haiti. There are two main types of lotteries in the country – the domestic and the New York one. The price is different. It is enough to pay 10-15 U.S. cents (5-10 gourdes), and you can win 1, 10, or even 150 dollars (100-1000 gourdes). This is significant money for local people. There are no tickets – people make bets on certain numbers and hope for good luck. The lottery is often the only hope for local people to get at least some income.

People with some money on account are more likely to open a church than starting their own small business. For Haitians, it is better to donate some money to a church and have their sins forgiven than to buy some clothes or shoes. There are many unemployed people who don’t have a regular job, and so they survive as they can. There are different parties in Haiti, the government, opposition – in short, the country has a democratic system. That being said, there are no basic necessities like water pipelines in many parts of the country. Electricity is also a problem in Haiti. It is common to have electricity only two hours a day here. Some parts of the country are even worse – they have electricity only two days a week. Of course, such drastic conditions do not apply to the tourist areas, but foreign guests should be aware of them.

Big cities like Port-au-Prince often have architectural satellites – slums. Here, hundreds of thousands of people live in self-made “houses” built from all materials that they could find – sheets of iron, plastic, polyethylene, etc. Containers, dry closets, fragments of buildings destroyed during the 2010 earthquake – everything is handy in such districts. These slums often have names of U.S. cities, such as Boston, Brooklyn, and so on. Conflicts between different slums are not rare. There can be a gun shooting between different gangs from time to time. Some gang members think that others must either join them or die.

Dajabon, a city in the Dominican Republic close to the border with Haiti, has a large market that works on Fridays. Many Haitians visit this market. Some come to buy something, and some people come to empty pockets of uncaring visitors. The market is open in the territory of the Dominican Republic. River Dajabon separates the two countries, and the bridge over the river is the crossing point. Haitians do not need either passport or visa to cross the border. They can go freely whenever they want even though the territory of the market has a high fence to prevent the illegal border crossing.

To prevent the spread of cholera, there are washbasins with soup everywhere. Even transport coming from Haiti is subject to disinfection. However, the procedure is relatively symbolic. Haitians that have no water at home use these wash basins to wash their hands or faces. No one is surprised to see people washing their feet here – locals are used to this and foreign tourists are rare in Dajabon. Everyone minds their own business here and doesn’t pay much attention to other people. However, white foreigners will certainly draw attention simply because everyone else is black. White guests are a popular target for swindlers in places like this.

Even though the danger of cholera epidemic appeared many years ago, after the earthquake that happened in 2010, the disease is under control these days. That is why it is so important to pay attention to the water that you drink. People, who can afford drinking bottled water, buy it. Everyone else hopes for the best. It is also not safe to swim in water basins because there is a risk of catching a disease. The immune systems of foreign guests are not used to such conditions, so a simple mosquito bite might be dangerous for unprepared tourists. That being said, there is an opinion that the problem of cholera is exaggerated in Haiti because it is profitable for some people. However, tourists are recommended to drink bottled water only.