Fort Jacques is tucked up and away in the beautiful mountains of Kenscoff near Pétionville and Port-au-Prince. The drive to the historical area is super easy compared to some other rugged locations we've visited. From the top, you can see the bay of Port-au-Prince...what a beautiful view!

There are two forts named after Alexandre in honor of General Alexandre Pétion and Jacques in honor of Jean-Jacques Dessalines. We only visited Fort Jacques, which is restored and kept maintained, however Fort Alexandre (east of Fort Jacques) is not. Every May 18 (Haitian flag day), there's a celebration with music and fun. It's definitely worth the view! Oh, and DO NOT MISS the outdoor griot spot in Kenscoff...it's the best! 

The Importance of an Education in Haiti
I have yet to meet a Haitian that doesn't think school is important. School is a top priority among Haitian parents and families. No matter how poor or wealthy, everyone values education in Haiti. Despite what you may read or hear in the news, the majority of Haitian children go to school. Parents will do everything that they can to make sure their child gets an education no matter what. Their determination is one of those things that fascinates me most about the Haitian culture. 

​Just like we do in the United States, parents and students in Haiti prepare to go back to school in the same ways as us. Because I've never attended school in Haiti, I can't express my experiences on that. So, I asked a friend of mine, Fedno Lubin, who is a student in Jacmel, Haiti. Fedno is also a photographer who I hire occasionally to capture The Real Haiti. *All photos on this post are by Fedno Lubin*

About Schools in Haiti
Haitian students primarily go to private schools, which means there's tuition fees or there are tuition waiver programs available to some. Here's a breakdown of how the education system in Haiti works: (research info below provided by classbase.com)

• Primary - Ecole Premiere (Traditional System), ages 6 to 12-years-old. Certificate/Diploma awarded: Certificate of Beginning Studies. Haiti Educational system is based on the French system. French remains the language of instruction in the private schools, however Creole and French are used in the public schools.
• Middle - Ecole Fondamentale (Reform System), ages 6 to 15-years-old. Certificate/Diploma awarded: Brevet d’Enseignment Fondamental.
• Middle - Secondary School (Traditional System), ages 12 to 15-years-old. Certificate/Diploma awarded: Brevet Elementaire du Premier Cycle.
• Secondary - Secondary (Reform System), ages 15 to 18-years-old. Certificate/Diploma awarded: Baccalaureat; Diplome d’Enseignement Secondaire. 
• Secondary - Technical Secondary School, ages 15 to 18-years-old. Certificate/Diploma awarded: Technical Certificate.
• Secondary - Secondary School (Traditional System), ages 15 to 19-years-old. Certificate/Diploma awarded: Baccalaureat II. 
• Tertiary - Higher education. Higher education is provided by the universities and other public and private institutions governed by the Ministry of Education. The university system is composed currently of four or five private institutions in addition to the State University of Haiti. All higher education institutions are located in the capital city. They offer a degree in law, medicine, pharmacy, dentistry, engineering, agriculture and veterinary sciences, education, social sciences (mainly ethnology and psychology), economics, business administration, linguistics, international studies, and African studies.

Common grading scales:
80.00 - 100.00 or 8.00 - 10.00 Très Bien (Very Good) US - A
70.00 - 79.99 or 7.00 - 7.99 Bien (Good) US - B
60.00 - 69.99 or 6.00 - 6.99 Assez bien (Satisfactory) US - C
50.00 - 59.99 or 5.00 - 5.99 Passable (Sufficient) US - D
0.00 - 49.99 or 1.00 - 4.99 Mal (Fail) US - F

According to the Ministry of Education in Haiti, the official school calendar has September 4 as the start day for back to school. ​

What are your favorite memories of 'back to school' in Haiti or somewhere else! Share it with us below in the comments.

Back to School Gear to Represent Haiti and Haitian Culture
Check out these must have items for the kids (or yourself!) to go back to school!

These absolutely stunning photos were shot in northern Haiti by Photographer Hunter Kittrell. Thank you so much for sharing with us for our blog. 

He is doing a phenomenal job on showing the other side of Haiti. Beautiful work!

Please follow Hunter on Instagram at hunter.kittrell.
His website is http://www.hunterkittrellphoto.com. 

Rewind to 2004 when I started dating Endy (who is now my husband). He brought 2 friends with him the first time to meet my parents because he was nervous. While my mom cooked an Italian feast, my dad played cards with the guys. It all went very well and my parents were very supportive of our relationship, thank god. This wasn't a bad first-encounter, but shortly after that we experienced something that would forever make us stronger.

The rest of my extended family weren't so welcoming of Endy. They told me to "be careful" and that "you will have social problems in an interracial relationship." It was a big deal that scarred me for years. Endy just reminded me of their ignorance and to only worry about what we felt and what my parents thought. (Thank you Endy for not running away as fast as you could, lol).

In 2009 (pre-Haiti earthquake), Endy and I were eating a feast at my parents house (a common thing!) and my dad started telling us about a friend who had a blog about rating/reviewing different golf courses around the world. We got to talking and Endy mentioned Haiti and how he wanted to tell people about the other side that he (heard) about and experienced some of as a kid growing up there. He said, "I just want people to know about The Real Haiti." This is how the blog was born.

We took our first major trip to Haiti as tourists in 2010. We visited 4 hotels on that trip and reviewed them and our experiences on the blog. 

Kibo blan an ye?
Fast forward to today, my dad took his first trip to Haiti with Endy for vacation and had a blast. All of the pictures below were taken by my dad. Here are some of his experiences…and I quote him…

While he experienced Haiti outside of a hotel at a family members house, he got to take Haitian showers, eat home cooked meals everyday and also see parts of Port-au-Prince as they ran daily errands. He and Endy walked up and down mountains where he saw a rock mine and people washing their clothes in the river. 

He expected a lot of the scenes of PAP to look the way they did (thanks to cable news), but couldn't believe the other side of Haiti that is not shown in the media. Most shocking thing he experienced: Caribbean Supermarket in Petionville. He mentioned the workers uniforms nicely pressed and buttoned up with smiles on their faces. He was also shocked at the school kids walking to school looking fresh with pressed uniforms. These are just some of the things he shared with me over a few hours of chatting. He even said, "next time I go to Haiti…"…

Lakay se lakay!

I don't tell hotels that I am there to review their property when I reserve the room and check in. I was so excited to be in my favorite city in Haiti: Jacmel.

The prices on their website are confusing and that led to a big misunderstanding when we arrived. We ended up paying more than we thought based on Internet prices so before you book, just clarify that with them. Because of the hiccup, we moved rooms twice in 3 nights, which was fine because they were trying to be accommodating. The rooms are basic and decorated with Haitian decor...nothing special. {the manager ended up showing us nicer bungalow style rooms when we were checking out, so that's a better option if you want something more modern.} Overall, our stay was good and I was happy they tried to accommodate us after we had the issues in the beginning.

Tip: to save on power, the hotel shuts off the electricity for a few hours in the morning and then in the afternoon. It's pretty inconvenient. I under

stand doing that at home, but it was tacky for the hotel to do it.

The food is okay, but way cheaper outside of the hotel.

Here's a link to their website:

http://hotelcyvadier.com/home/

Last year during Gout et Saveurs Lakay, I had the chance to photograph Chef Lemaire at La Reserve Hotel in Petionville. What a great hotel and hangout! Here's a view of the lounge area that the restaurant looks over and a chicken dish I enjoyed!

This last trip we took to Haiti, I naturally pulled out my camera right away and started shooting pics of our adorable little cousins. After that, I decided I didn't want to use my camera on this trip. Being a photographer, this is one of the hardest things to do. I often find myself missing moments or avoiding things because of my camera. So, I packed it up and just used my phone camera and my photographic memory, ultimately living in the moment. 
{I apologize in advanced for the quality since they are from my phone!}

Carnaval
I am not a Carnaval person, at all! I had never been and never really planned on going to it. I didn't realize that there would still be action going on in Jacmel during the time of the national Carnaval in Gonaives. Overall, I am happy I got to experience it…it was crazy! What an amazing experience to see and appreciate the art.

Camionette
I know, I know…how do you know The Real Haiti without riding on a camionette? Well, this is my confession: After traveling to Haiti for so many years, I had my first camionette ride! We were walking down the street in Jacmel with a friend without any destination in mind. Endy said to me, do you want to jump on and just ride downtown? So, we did. We got on and rode downtown for about 20 minutes with people jumping on and off. For those of you who don't know what a camionette is, it's a pickup truck with benches on the back and a roof. You jump on and then tap the glass by the driver when you're ready to get off. Then you get off and pay the guy in the passenger seat. It's super cheap and fun to be with the locals. I always wonder where everyone is always going. Everyone is always so busy in Haiti! 

It always takes me a week or two to get a blog post up after I've returned from Haiti. I go into a US culture shock and I have to adjust back to my life as a blan trapped in a Haitian's body…lol. Here goes the first one after our trip this March.

After arriving from the airport, we went straight to Endy's mom's house. I got out of the car and the first thing I hear is, "DIANA, DIANA, DIANA, DIANA!!!" I turn around and here comes running our cousin's little boy Skye (pictured third on right). He was walking with his other cousins and uncle from church and saw me down the road all dressed in his little black suit with his orange shirt, tie and handkerchief. 

I've had a special bond with this kid since he was a baby, born right before the 2010 earthquake. Not sure what's funnier, the fact that he is almost more mature than I am at 31 or that every time he sees a blan on TV he says it's me. These 3 are just too cute! 

Here's the video...enjoy :)