When I met my husband Endy (then-boyfriend), he would tell me all about Haiti. He would tell me stories about growing up with his siblings, his best friends. He would tell me about the journeys they had to get to school, the funny stories of dressing up in their parents clothes and the soccer games they played on the roof of their house. He would tell me how beautiful "The Real Haiti" was. I mostly just listened, and quietly doubted that a place I always heard was a "third world country," could be beautiful. 

What? You're going to Haiti on vacation!? 
​It took years of convincing to plan a trip to Haiti...7 years actually! Endy planned everything for our 10 day adventure. Although I was excited, my worried mind kept playing questions over in my head like, "what if we can't find water to drink?" and "what if we get TB or yellow fever?" As I type these ridiculous things (that I never actually said out loud), I can't even believe I thought such judgmental things about a place I'd end up falling in love with! 

As an innocent Italian-American, red-headed, 28-year-old, I really had no clue what Haiti was really like. I had no clue that visiting Haiti would change my life. As our vacation plans neared, I secretly wanted to back out or hoped for some reason we weren't going to end up going (sad, but true). 

The time came and we flew from Florida to Port-Au-Prince, Haiti. My life was forever changed and my eyes and heart were opened like they had never been before. For more of an in depth look about what I saw and experienced, read my blog about things I noticed while in Haiti. Before my first trip, my husband encouraged me to start a blog about Haiti to share what we saw. I wasn't fully on board with the idea, but I did. When I was there and then returned home is when I started blogging about all-things-Haitian and really fell in love with the idea of blogging. I embraced the culture and through my experiences, I had to share all of the amazing things that were so new to me.

What's new with The Real Haiti
After developing a variety of digital resources about Haiti that focus on cultural education and celebration, we evolved into a membership style resource center called The Real Haiti Academy. You can now enjoy the option of a "pay what you can" model starting at $0. You have the option to pay $0, $15, $25, $50 or $99. No matter how much you pay, you will be getting the same access to the membership with all of the digital resources.

As a member of TRHA, you’ll connect with a community of Haiti lovers who are passionate about keeping the Haitian culture alive. Be proud of your (or your family's) heritage. Encourage multicultural diversity as you're raising your children at home and in your community.

Find out exactly what's included in The Real Haiti Academy.

In this time of uncertainty, one thing I am certain about is that I am not in control of anything. God is in control. I have been given a God-given talent and passion to develop this website and these resources. This is how I am sharing with my digital community who has supported The Real Haiti in one way or another.

The stigma of "mental health issues" continues to be a fight in the United States. So many are doing a great job in raising awareness by speaking out about their challenges when it comes to a variety of mental health topics like postpartum depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, depression, etc. 

What about people in Haiti or of Haitian decent who suffer from mental health issues?
When it comes to speaking up about mental health concerns in the Haitian culture, it's often shut down, laughed at or simply made an excuse for certain "behaviors." Thankfully with education and understanding, now more than ever, people of Haitian decent are recognizing the importance of mental health.

Marie Valsaint is a doctoral student in clinical psychology at Alliant University (San Diego). She's conducting a study and is looking for a participant for research regarding early childhood separation. Please see the flyer below and contact her for more info or to participate! Thanks so much, Marie, for your work on mental health in the Haitian community. 

Marie also runs an Instagram page @haitiansthrive. 

Haitian Flag Day is celebrated every May 18th during the month of Haitian Heritage Month. Haitian Flag Day is huge in the Haitian community and it is observed in Haiti and all over the United States. The meaning behind Haitian Flag Day is to commemorate the Haitian slave revolt, which led to Haiti being the first independent black nation! 

May is here and it is Haitian Heritage Month! Here is a list of Haitian Heritage Month events in South Florida: 

Palm Beach County Haitian Heritage Month events - 

• http://events.pbclibrary.org/events-and-classes/haitian-heritage-month
• https://allevents.in/mobile/amp-event.php?event_id=200017112812109

If you don't live in South Florida or your area doesn't have any organized events, we have tons of resources on this website about Haiti and the Haitian culture like tourism, culture, food and so much more. We also have an eWorkbook, free printable worksheets and memberships full of great Haitian culture info! 

Happy Haitian Heritage Month! 

Export business man in Port-au-Prince who went back to his homeland in Saint-Michel, Haiti to take over his family's business at a clairin distillery - The Spirit of Haiti. If you've ever wondered how this rum is made, check out their production process (with photos!) 

This is The Real Haiti. This is why I had a fire lit under me the first time I went to Haiti. And this is why I continue to blog passionately about Haiti and the amazing things happening there. Every day, hardworking people, living life in Haiti...The Real Haiti. 

Original podcast story posted here.

Happy February, friends! I love February because of Valentine's Day and it's my birthday month! 

I will never forget this cute little window in this picture. We were hiking up the mountain in Cap Haitien to see the Citadelle Laferrière when I spotted the pink window with a heart on it. 

Have you wondered about Valentine's Day in Haiti? Do Haitians celebrate Valentine's Day?  Is Valentine's Day a big deal in Haiti? I was curious about Valentine's Day in Haiti so I asked my family and friends for more information and here's what they said.

January 25th is Multicultural Children's Book Day! Our friends at Educa Vision have some amazing books (for all ages!) and they are offering 10% off anything on their website with code real-haiti. You will find...

• Bilingual books in English and Haitian Creole
• Curriculum, training manuals
• Topics on education, fiction, health, religion, culture, language parenting and more!

Educa Vision's Mission: To make a valuable contribution to the body of multicultural and multilingual educational materials, by publishing materials that connect culturally and linguistically to the students, teachers, administrators, service providers and community leaders. Educa Vision started first by focusing on the needs of Haitian students. Since 2002 Educa Vision is transformed into a multicultural and multilingual publisher. This expansion started first with the development of Caribbean Studies Press that publishes scholarly texts and references about the Caribbean and its diasporas. Later with Educa Brazil, an imprint dedicated to the publication of Portuguese titles. Today, Educa Vision publishes and distributes bilingual books in Arabic, Bengali, Chinese, English, French, Haitian Creole, Portuguese, Spanish and Urdu.

#ReadYourWorld #TheRealHaiti

Christmas is such a magical time for everyone, including for Haitian people! We've spent a few Christmas holidays in Haiti, but since I didn't grow up there, I had to do my own research through my family and the Internet about what Christmas is like (mostly as a child) in Haiti. We are raising our two little boys to appreciate their Haitian heritage and to learn the Haitian Creole language. 

Christmas in Haiti brings the same universal magical feeling to everyone, especially kids. Here are some Haitian Christmas songs, traditions and printables to teach about Christmas in Haiti! You may also find yourself reminiscing about Christmas holidays in Haiti!

History is not my specialty nor my passion, but since this blog is about educating others about The Real Haiti, I did some research about the Haitian holiday Dessalines Day, celebrated on October 17th (the day of his assassination).

Jean-Jacques Dessalines is referred to as one the founding fathers (or Emperor) of Haiti, but many don't speak of him because of the controversial violent massacre of thousands of "white Haitians," also known as native French people. Read more about the 1804 Haiti Massacre here.

A Haitian educator, Louis Mercier, once said, "Whatever the means he employed to accomplish his ends, Dessalines remains the most powerful spirit in our history....One cannot be a real Haitian unless one is a Dessalinian." With gaps in the historical information, Haiti still celebrates Dessalines Day on October 17. Read more about the Haitian Revolution, Haiti's Independence here.

Haitian food is a huge part of the Haitian culture. Eating is always an amazing experience in Haiti, not only because everything is delicious, but because they are so many non-traditional ways of getting food. When I sat down and thought about my food experiences in Haiti, I realized how much fun eating Haitian food is!

Here are some of my favorites...

Just like traveling to any new place, learning about the food and trying new things is so much fun!

September is Haitian Gastronomy month! Haiti is known for it's hospitality and delicious food. I have been lucky enough to experience preparing, cooking and serving Haitian food at special events in Haiti. Here are some of the shots.