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 :) 

To me, I feel as though Haiti is a person who I am madly in love with, who I am proud of and who I can't wait to see. I think about Haiti morning, noon and night. My love for Haiti grows more and more each day. I know...it sounds crazy...it is crazy! I am a blan who grew up hearing nothing but negative things about the country. How could I possibly be so in love with this country? 

As I do every morning, I go through Haitian news and see what is going on for the day. Today, I got to see part two of the special on the update from the earthquake on Local 10 News in Miami. Part one will just about tear your heart out and make you absolutely nuts over the negativity they are focusing on when it is just a small part. But, just like in Haiti, everything is a drastic extreme - one side of the street there are people working to survive and on the other, there are the richest of the rich. It's reality...it's Haiti. 

Here's a wonderful story on the progress and hope everyone (especially Haitians) has!
MOBILE READERS, CLICK HERE TO SEE VIDEO: http://www.local10.com/news/haitianbased-company-finds-success-after-quake-4-years-ago/-/1717324/23973420/-/hbrnlt/-/index.html 

To me, "made in Haiti" means life, hope and progress. To see people live life every day, go to work, take care of their family, be in love, is what I love most about Haiti. That is why I have this blog. Finally, the news media is giving Haiti a chance. Thank you WPLG for showing this side of Haiti that so many of us are proud of!

What does "made in Haiti" mean to you?