A visit with cousin Dana and wife Huei-Lan

On Saturday, I was so excited to meet Huei Lan, the new Taiwanese wife of Dana, my 2nd-cousin-once-removed. For those who don't understand 1st, 2nd and 3rd cousins once and twice removed, here's how Dana and I are related: His mother Janet and my grandma Leslie were first cousins. So Dana and my mom were 2nd cousins. I'm one generation below, so he's my second cousin once-removed. Janet and I are first-cousins-twice-removed. But in reality, I'm actually quite close -- not so removed -- to her. Maya also appreciated her exuberant personality and the packages that arrived by mail for birthdays and hanukah.

Janet lives in New Jersey, just across the bridge from Manhattan and used to visit frequently until recent health problems. She especially liked to prepare a huge Passover feast in Dana's condo in Newark, CA, about an hour away from here. I've been to Dana's place many times, but he hadn't been to Santa Cruz for 10 years, not since Maya was a toddler.

He's been promising to bring Huei-Lan for a visit, ever since they met on an internet dating site 6 years ago. You might think internet relationships are bound to fail, but this one is a winner. Huei Lan has a PhD and is teaching journalism at the university in Tapei. Her English is excellent due in part to two years of graduate studies in England. She's traveled to about 10 countries already and is eager to see more. We really hit it off, as she admired my antique furnishings, even the old Wedgewood gas stove, and wondered about shipping one to her country. She asked Andre to take a picture of us in front of our house, which she fell in love with at first sight. She told Dana that if they live in the U.S. together, she would love a house like mine. Even though his mother in NJ doesn't like the idea, most likely Dana will accept a teaching job in Taiwan, at the university where Huei teaches.

I shared a video of old Bronstein home movies, with a small snippet of Dana's mother at a family reunion around 1959. My mom was a teenager then, his mother a bit older. We called Janet in NJ as a surprise, since she's always nagging Dana to come visit. We asked her about the family reunion and she guessed -- correctly -- that she was wearing a green dress. She knew because she didn't have many dresses in those days. That one must have been very special. Janet also loves antiques and family history. I was happy to tell her that Huei shares these interests.

It was a gorgeous day, so we walked down the wharf to watch the seals lounging around the piers and on a small dock. We enjoyed some ice cold drinks and clam chowder at a lively outdoor cafe, watching the sail boats drift by. Afterwards we made our way through a very crowded Boardwalk. The hot, sunny weekend brings half of San Jose "over the hill." Also, as Dana guessed, it could be the economy. People are staying closer to home and the Boardwalk is admission-free.



We walked back along the San Lorenzo River levee and then window-shopped and people-watched on Pacific Avenue, our main street. The street musicians and colorful Santa Cruz characters were out in full force. Huei kept commenting on what a perfect location I live in. She said that in Taiwan you have to be rich to live so close to the seaside.

Andre got to meet them briefly before he left for work at Safeway. By the time he got back last night, they had already left, but I was able to share their romantic wedding video with him. Even though Dana and Huei just registered their wedding in Taipei at city hall, they signed up for a package deal with a company that supplies wedding outfits, does the make-up, hair and a 1-hour photo session, then presents you with a beautiful slide-show on DVD, accompanied by the music of your choice. What a great idea!

I hope it won't be 10 more years before they come back to visit. Or maybe I'll be going to Taiwan to visit them.

June 22-25: Our last few days in Haiti

Our last days in Haiti were lazy ones. We invited Andre's cousin Sherley and sister Beatrice to swim at the Villa Imperial Hotel with us. Sherley had fun using my laptop and wi-fi to upload the pictures I took of them to her website in Hi5. We called on the computer with Skype to a cousin in Montreal -- home to over 100,000 Haitian immigrants.



I read a couple of books while I was in Haiti, often by kerosene lamp at night. One was the autobiographical story, recommended by Oprah, of a survivor of the Rwandan holocaust called "Left to Die." The other was a great book called "Haiti in Focus: A Guide to the People, Politics and Culture."



We also ate a lot of mangoes because they were in season, very cheap, and very sweet.

We spent most of our time with Andre's family. Big brother Joel liked showing off his little sister.



One day I realized that all of Andre's immediate family was at home. I got out my camera, so we could take some group shots.


Left to right: Andre's mother Maude, grandmother Jesula, stepfather Mathieu, brother Johnny, sister Beatrice, nephew Joel on sister Marjorie's lap and me. Brother Reginald in front. Below, Andre with his brothers and stepfather.





Mathieu with his daughters Marjorie and Beatrice:


Me with Andre's cousin Joanne. I started tying my hair back because most of the Haitian women wear their hair that way.



I took a few more photos on the way to the airport.



We got a ride to the airport with a friend of Johnny's, whose car broke down right in front of the terminal. We tried to push-start it with him, with no luck, until he insisted we get on our way.

Our 300 pounds of baggage had mostly been given away. We'd hoped to return with some Haitian art, possibly to try our luck on eBay. But we hadn't found anything we liked. So we boarded the flight home with just two day packs and the clothes we were wearing.

Haiti: June 21, 2009 -- the big party

On May 4, Andre's sister Marjorie and her husband Lesly sent us an email birth announcement with two photos and the simple message: "Receive Lyse-Mia's picture. Our new baby."

We found out a few weeks later than they'd chosen Andre to be the godfather. Since we were already planning a trip to Haiti for June 11-25, we decided to have a big party to celebrate her baptism on June 21, our last Sunday, coincidentally Father's Day in the U.S.

As it turned out, Haiti was having elections on June 21, so the priest decided to postpone the ceremony. We had no choice, but to go ahead with our party plans since we were leaving a few days later for the U.S.

Andre and I offered to pay for the food and drinks and eating utensils. His mother and aunties got busy preparing the menu. To stay within our budget, we decided only to invite the closest relatives -- which added up to about 75 adults and children. The party was held in the patio outside Andre's mom's house, which isn't that big. But we all squeezed in and had a good time. We even had music, despite the limited electricity in Port-au-Prince. The power comes on only a few hours a day, mostly at night, but it didn't matter because Andre had brought his brother Johnny an iPod and rechargeable dock.
By hosting a party we got to visit with most of Andre's relatives without having to travel all over the city. It had been over a year since they'd seen Andre, and the first time as a married man, so they all gathered together, despite the chaos in the streets due to elections. I got busy taking portraits of everyone, which I printed up once I got back to the U.S. The mail service to Haiti is unreliable, so I sent them through a friend who works for the U.S. embassy, and Lesly will pick them up from her and distribute them. Here's a selection of my favorites:

ANDRE'S GODDAUGHTER LYSE-MIA



Lyse-Mia seemed very smart and alert for just a month and a half old. She also has a nice head of hair. It was nice to meet Lesly's mother for the first time.

THE FOOD



Lesly ordered some cakes and bought the drinks, but the rest was homemade -- lots of salads, rice with pigeon peas, fried plantains, lasagna, macaroni and cheese, fried chicken, fish. They served popcorn as an appetizer.



No Haitian kitchen is complete without a deep wooden pestle and mortar to mash and grind all the great spices they put into their cooking. With so little electricity, there are few blenders and no food processors or electric grinders. Coffee is made by roasting the beans over a charcoal fire and then grinding it with a pestle and mortar.



The women decided that it would be more orderly and fair if they took the food out to the guests. Andre's younger sister Beatrice (left) and Aunt Miche (right), along with some other aunts, took charge of dishing up the plates and serving it. I did my part too.

THE GUESTS:



Like every party I've ever hosted, it always looks like nobody's coming at first. You rush around getting everything ready, then wait for people to show up. But before we knew it, we had a full house.


As usual, the teens like to hang out with each other, so they took their food and went next door to one of the aunt's houses.


And the kids like to hang out with each other too. The men with the men and the women with the women.

PORTRAITS:






Here's Beatrice with Aunt Miche when Miche came back from church and Beatrice was cleaning up for the party. On the right, Beatrice is dressed to impress.


Andre's grandma is always the guest of honor at any gathering.




Here's Andre with his mother and grandma.

Haiti, June 20, 2009: Back in Port-au-Prince

We used the rental truck to pick up the beer and soft drinks for tomorrow's big baptism party for Andre's new god-daughter Lyse-Mia. Then I turned it in to the rental company.

The rest of the day we didn't do much, mostly recuperated from the strenuous drive. Andre's friend Billy Squitt came over to visit. I'd spoken to him by phone before, but this was the first time we'd ever met in person. I know his brother Ronald who lives in Buenos Aires. Their brother Marcus Squitt plays professional soccer in Montreal, Canada.


Left to right: Andre's cousin Mardoche, Billy Squitt, brother Johnny, nephew Joel, Andre, and brother Reginald.


Billy works for an American company and speaks really good English.

In the afternoon I invited Andre's Aunt Micheline to go to the Villa Imperial Hotel with me for a swim. Like so many people in Andre's family, Miche can't exactly swim, but at least she's not afraid of the water and enjoyed herself very much. A Haitian-American woman at the pool, who hadn't seen Andre yet, asked me if Miche was my sister-in-law. We're just about the same age, so it was a logical question. Miche is a school teacher and single, if you know anyone for her. She speaks Creole and French, some Spanish and English.