Just a handshake? Give my name?? One kiss or two???

What are the lessons in everyday Haitian customs that will quickly assure you and your Haitian hosts of a beginning understanding of culturally acceptable behavior as you visit, work, and learn during your stay in Haiti?

A solid grounding will help prevent unintentional cultural mistakes during your journey in this land they call Ayiti. DOA/BN will be honored to accompany you on that journey by providing immersion experiences that combine both Haitian Creole and Haitian Culture, allowing you to thoroughly familiarize yourself with the country and its people through participation in its language, traditions, and customs.

We have developed a unique Creole language method especially designed for either English or French speakers that makes sentence structure simple, providing a quick way for grasping the language for speaking at a conversational level.

Our "courses" are designed to accommodate whatever length of time you can arrange. (We highly recommend at least one week, though we understand possible time constraints.)

Lodging options include family home stays or the 'Kan Kilombo' guest house.


Sample Schedule

 

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"Krik!" the storyteller says in a commanding voice.

"Krak!" the audience replies in unison, signaling that they are paying attention and ready for the story.

 

 

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"Hide the tinfoil!" said a foreign volunteer hosting a party for her Haitian workers, as guests came to the serving table. She misunderstood requests by her Haitian friends to wrap up food to take home from the party as selfish hoarding, rather than understanding the collective imperative of sharing with those at home a taste of the party.