Curly in our Neighborhood- Vwazin nou ak Cheve Natirel – Carolina Contreras- Miss Rizos

If you are in Haiti or a fan of our Facebook page Afro Alice, you surely know we will host a natural hair event tomorrow and our special guest is Carolina Contreras or Miss Rizos.  We’ve taken the time to interview her so that you can get to know more about her. Read on.

Si w ann Ayiti osinon si w se yon abone paj Facebook nou an, ou okouran ke n ap gen yon ti rankont demen swa nan Petyonvil epi moun ki envite spesyal nou an rele Carolina Contreras oswa Miss Rizos. Nou sispek ou anvi konn plis sou li e nou te pran tan entevyouwe l pouwou.  Li pou w wè.

Carolina Contreras
Miss Rizos

 

1- Tell us about yourself. Palem de wou I was born in the Dominican Republic, but spent most of my life in Boston, Massachusetts. I studied French and Peace and Justice studies in college, which allowed me travel to many parts of the world. I love learning new languages, exploring the world and eating great food! Mwen fèt Repiblik Dominikèn men mwen leve Boston ki nan eta Massachusetts.  Mwen etidye Fransè epi m fè lot etid ki gen rapo ak jistis ak lapè, sa ki pemet mwen vizite anpil kote nan lemonnantye.  Mwen renmen aprann nouvo lang, eksplore toupatou epi manje bon manje. 2- Tell us about Miss Rizos.  Pale nou de Miss Rizos  About 5 years ago I decided to move back to the Dominican Republic and about 6 months into my trip I decided to return to my natural hair. So many women were asking a million questions like how I did it and what products I was using etc. so I decided to create an online space in Spanish to tackle these questions and to inspire women to love themselves just the way they are, naturally. It started with just 25 readers, mostly my family members and then all of sudden it just grew to thousands of people from all around the world! It’s amazing and how much inspiration I get from the readers of the blog! Sa fe senkan depi mwen deside retounen al viv nan peyi m te fet la epi si mwa apre mwen te retounen Sendomeng, mwen te deside retounen natirèl.  Anpil fanm tap pozem kesyon sou koman mwen te fe retounen natirel epi ki pwodui mwen itilize, se konsa mwen te kreye yon blog nan lang panyol pou ede medam sa yo epi pou enspire yo aprann renmen tet yo jan yo ye a. M te komanse ak 25 lektè- moun nan fanmi m sitou epi yon sel kou mwen fin gen yon paket milye moun nan lemonnantye ki vin lektè blog mwen an.  Mwen renmen sa epi moun sa yo enspire m anpil. 3- we are very happy that you will be visiting our country in three days. How excited are you about it?  Nou kontan ke w ap vin vizite peyi nou nan kek jou.  Koman w santi w parapo ak eksperyans sa w pral fe a? I’m beyond excited! In 2010 and 2011 I got to work in the border towns, but this will actually be my first time in the capital. Growing up in Somerville (right outside of Boston), my best friends and boyfriends were mostly Haitians and I ate lots of Griot and Poison with rice and piclis! So, I’ll go ahead and be honest and say that I’m excited to eat some Haitian food! What I’m most excited about though, is meeting other women who have opted to rock their fros! I want to learn some tips and tricks from the women there and share some of the knowledge I’ve accumulated in the past years. Mwen two kontan!  Mwen te pase Ayiti deja nan lane 2010 ak 2011 men se te nan vil ki toupre fwontyè a, kidonk se ap premye fwa map vini nan kapital la.  Lem te Somerville (yon kote ki andeyo Boston), pi bon zanmi m yo ak menaj mwen yo se te konn Ayisyen e m te konn manje anpil griyo ak pwason ak pikliz.  M pa kache diw!  M pa ka tann pou m al manje bon ti manje ayisyen. Sa ki banm ke kontan tou se rankontre m pral rankontre lot fanm ki chwazi retounen natirel yo.  M vle aprann nan men yo epi m vle pataje sam konnen ave yo tou. 4- How did you return natural?  Koman w te fe retounen natirel? About 4 years ago I decided that I was ready to love all of me. I transitioned for like 3 weeks and then big chopped. Gen anviwon 4tran de sa, m te deside pou m renmen tet mwen ak sa m ye net ale.  M fe tranzisyon pandan 3 semen epi mwen koupe cheve a. 5- What’s your current hair routine? Ki woutin swen ou genyen kounya pou cheve w? I keep it really simple most of the time. I apply coconut oil every week, wash once a week with non sulfate shampoo and conditioner. I usually apply a bit of conditioner or leave in and oils to seal. I’ve been pretty low Maintance lately because of my traveling schedule. Woutin mwen byen senp.  Mwen mete luil kokoye nan cheve a chak semen, mwen lave l yon fwa chak semen ak yon shanpou ki pa gen silfat epi ak rens.  Apre sa mwen mete yon ti rens oswa yon krem pou penyen ak luil pou ki kenbe cheve a idrate.  Mpa gen twop tan pou m fe twop bagay nan tet mwen paske m vwayaje anpil. 6- How did the idea to visit Haiti came to you?  Rakonte nou koman w te vin deside vizite Ayiti? I did an event in Santiago, Dominican Republic and met a few of the women from Afro Alice and after a few email exchanges, the trip was conceived. I’ve always wanted to visit Haiti and this seemed like the perfect time! M te oganize yon evenman Santiago, nan Repiblik Dominikèn epi m te rankontre kek nan medam Afro Alice yo epi apre kek ti pale, m te deside vin Ayiti.  M te toujou vle vizite Ayiti, kidonk m te we se te bon le pou m vini! 7-  What makes you think the event on Thursday will be a success? Sa k fe w panse rankont Jedi a ap yon siksè? The Afro Alice community seems to be a strong one and from the looks of it, they like to throw fun events! I measure a successful event if I was able to learn something and teach something, and I’m sure that will happen! Kominote Afro Alice la sanble se yon ekip solid e yo sanble renmen rankontre epi amize yo!  Yon evenman byen fet nan jem se le mwen aprann yon bagay nan men lot moun epi mwen aprann yo yon bagay tou e m panse nap kapab fe sa nan rankont lan demen. 8- A message to the Haitian community? Ki mesaj wap voye pou kominote moun Ayiti yo? There is so much happening between the our two neighboring countries and I feel like there is a great need to come to together. This subject of hair allows us to share common ground and to understand how many of us experience similar struggles. In many ways I feel like I serve as an ambassador of my country and my message is one of love and justice. Gen anpil bagay ki fe de peyi nou yo pa byen youn ak lot men mwen panse li enpotan pou youn met ansanm ak lot la.  Cheve nou ap pèmèt nou ini nan yon bagay epi ede youn konprann ke nou ap mennen menm lit la.  Mwen santim tankou anbasade pou peyi m e map pote yon mesaj lanmou ak jistis pou Ayiti.

ACE

Afro Alice