Day 1 - Feb 13

It only took less than 2 hours to get from Miami to Haiti, and I could see Cuba out the window.  The flight was pretty uneventful other than being completely packed, probably 300 or so people on board.  On our taxi to the one gate at the airport, which apparently has been completely rebuilt since the earthquake, there was a crashed plane on the side of the runway.  I’m not sure how long it’s been there, but it was a little unnerving to say the least.  Once we were out of the plane, it was complete chaos getting thru customs and immigration, and I was lucky to find my bag in the absolute mess that 300 people arriving into Haiti at the same time seemed to have created.  Good thing I got rainbow colored straps at the Miami airport to hold my luggage together because I’m not sure I would have been able to find it otherwise.  The UN driver met us outside the airport – thank goodness – because it was an even bigger madhouse outside the airport.  We were mobbed by people trying to taxi us from the airport and boys catcalling asking for money.  I was completely overwhelmed.  As we left the airport, it was hard to even process what I was seeing.  All around the airport are tent cities, kind of what you would imagine a refugee camp in Africa looking like, except that it’s less than 2 hours from Miami.  There was a latrine area that looked like it had been constructed with cholera in mind.  Driving thru the streets of Haiti was one of the most intimidating experiences I have ever had.  People were everywhere, and traffic was crazy.  Tent cities were everywhere, and there doesn’t appear to be any kind of trash pickup because it is all in the streets.  Vendors were out along the full length of the sidewalks, so people were mostly walking in the streets.  The woman I’m traveling with that has been here since the earthquake said that things were much improved, but that was hard for me to imagine. 

Our hotel is just outside of Port Au Prince up the mountain.  Apparently, the farther up the mountain from PAP the better.  Our hotel was completely obliterated during the earthquake, which has its positive and negatives.  Positives – all new everything; negatives – on the earthquake fault line.  The old hotel is actually lying on the ground beside the new one.  I have a small kitchen and bathroom, along with a little patio area.  Based on what I saw on my way up the hill, this is quite luxurious.  I would prefer to have a lock on my door, but otherwise feel somewhat safe.  I’ll try to take pictures and attach them on my next blog. 

After I settled into the hotel, I met the other two women I’m traveling with for dinner.  It was dark when I went outside to meet them.  You could see the lights dotting the mountainside, and there was the sound of singing in the background.  You couldn’t see where it was coming from, but music seems to be everywhere.  Very happy Caribbean-gospel style music…kind of a strange contrast to unbelievable poverty.  The hotel is so close but at the same time it feels so removed from it.

The hotel dining facilities are all outdoors.  I would have worn bug spray if I’d known, but good thing I’m on my second week of malaria pills.  I tried Haitian beer, which tasted just like Bud Lite.  A friend of mine told me that it’s impossible to make beer using bad water, because the process requires a lot of heat.  So here’s hoping that the beer, and the hotel buffet that I ate, were good choices.   

Work starts tomorrow at 8am…