1) The singing. Everyone sings, all the time. Especially the men. It can be anything from Shaggy or Billy Joel, to Creole rap or traditional Haitian songs. When we were on the beach in Petit Goave we bumped into a group of teenage boys who wanted to know what we did. We got to talking, and so I asked them what they did, to which they responded "nous sommes des chanteurs". So I said, "if you sing, sing for us", and right there on the beach they broke into song. I have a video, but unfortunately it won't upload.
2) The honking. Here you honk to say "hello". You honk to say "goodbye". You honk to say "go ahead". You honk to say "don't go, I'm going". You honk to say "thanks for letting me go". You honk to say "why did you go, I was supposed to go". You honk to say "move out of my way". And sometimes you honk just as a warning that you're coming round' the corner. I honestly can't figure out how it makes any sense, but they all seem to understand each other just fine.
3) The shoe shining. It's going on 24-7 on every street corner. Old men. Young children. It can be leather loathers, or Nike running shoes, there's really no discrimination. But the best part is how much importance is placed on the shoe shining, given the fact that everyone is walking through unpaved, mud covered streets, weaving in and out of piles of garbage, and dodging goats and pigs along the way. I find myself wondering how often one needs to get their shoes shined.
4) The shower cap. It is totally acceptable to pull a shower cap out of your bag and put it on when it starts raining and walk through the streets with your new do. I have to admit that after blow drying my hair at home just to discover it's raining outside, I've often wished for a solution...this might just be it!
3) The shoe shining. It's going on 24-7 on every street corner. Old men. Young children. It can be leather loathers, or Nike running shoes, there's really no discrimination. But the best part is how much importance is placed on the shoe shining, given the fact that everyone is walking through unpaved, mud covered streets, weaving in and out of piles of garbage, and dodging goats and pigs along the way. I find myself wondering how often one needs to get their shoes shined.
4) The shower cap. It is totally acceptable to pull a shower cap out of your bag and put it on when it starts raining and walk through the streets with your new do. I have to admit that after blow drying my hair at home just to discover it's raining outside, I've often wished for a solution...this might just be it!
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