Anna's Volleyball Part 1

Volleyball in Haiti is very different than in America, at least from what I hear, since I have never been on an American team. Never-the-less, it is a fun experience, and I enjoyed being able to see the culture closer. These are some of the things that might interest those from a different  country.

As many foreigners have noted, Haitians dress formally for travel. Most wear jeans and the girls wore Sunday shoes, while the guys wore their better T-shirts. Looking at the group you couldn't tell they were heading for a sports event. We left around 7 A.M. The actual traveling was in the back of a cattle truck... fun fun.  Standing, holding on to a side and or the bar down the middle has given me truck balance. Although there are benches along the two sides, there were more than 40 people (a reasonable number, not too crowded by local standards), and standing is almost easier on our bumpy, jostling road.

We stopped a bit out of Cap Haitian at a white, two-storied house. We changed into our uniforms and left all our bags piled in a room. Continuing into Cap Haitian, we parked in front of the walled-in area with multiple cement courts and a gymnasium containing one basket ball court. Most of them were made for basketball or soccer, but had volleyball nets strung across them for the day.

Perhaps in America it takes many games to reach regionals, but these were our first matches of the season. Other years we had had to beat Port Margot, but I think they quit...they couldn't beat Fauche.

For those of you unfamiliar with how Haitian volleyball is set up, there are several different age groups. Pousins: up to age 10. Minims: 10-15 Cadets: 16-17 Juniors: 18 up to about 20 (I am not sure on when you age out, or where Pousins start, since I have seen some kids trying whose arms were about as long as the ball. We start very young in Fauche) There are also multiple seasons, between schools, and club. Since I took french lessons from one of the teachers, I can play interschoolar.

Pousins don't participate in the interschoolar volleyball season. This year most of our older guys had aged out, and we didn't have enough older girls, so we only had four teams, both guys and girls for Minim and Cadet age groups.

On the first day, all four teams won. My team had to go against two other teams for regionals, and we beat them both 2-0. It was cloudy, with a slight mist/sprinkle most of the time. I foolishly forgot that one can be sunburned while it is raining, and am enjoying the consequences exacted on my shoulders, face, and neck.

We each had two bananas and half a pastry thing for lunch. Since there was not anything for us to do at the white house, we sat and watched some of the older teams from other schools, until they called us back to the truck. At the house everyone hung out, playing volleyball, talking, or running around, making lots of noise in the echoing rooms. Mid afternoon we were each given several hot pateys. (delicious fried wheat dough with a cabbage mix inside)

to be continued......