Arrival in Port-au-Prince

After a long and anxiety filled journey to Haiti, the five of us have arrived safely to EDV’s base in Port-au-Prince (PAP).  Let me try to give you an idea about what it’s like here:

Once we went through customs and immigration in the airport, we met Rebecca, EDV’s Volunteer Resource and Support Coordinator, to take us to our new home by tap tap.  Tap tap’s are Haiti’s form of public transportation and they are basically colorfully painted pick-up trucks.  How many people does a tap tap hold?  The answer is always “one more.”  The ride from the airport to EDV’s base is short, but we were able to get an idea of what  PAP is like. 

In some respect, PAP is like any other city in a developing country: lots of pollution, trash, and poverty.  PAP is different, though, because it has the added rubble and dilapidation caused by the earthquake.  What I have seen is not as bad as I had imagined, although our neighborhood did not crumble in the earthquake as much as other parts of the city.  Now of course this is not to say PAP is not as destroyed as we think.  It is shocking to see the sight of this city, even though a full year has now passed since the earthquake hit.  I think I had just pieced together a horrible image in my mind from what others had described to me about PAP. 

Now that I’ve been in PAP for four days, the condition of this city has begun to settle in.  At most times it is hard to even process what you see- my mind sometimes gets paralyzed by my surroundings.  It almost feels like a different planet or a dream…how can it be that so many people live in such heart-breaking conditions when there has been so much “aid” poured into this country?  The poverty is mind-blowing compared to our luxurious lives in the U.S.  There are plies of debris and rubble every few feet.  Trash is literally everywhere, in all shapes and sizes, and massive potholes filled with festering, dirty water.  It's not uncommon to see smashed cars that were left in haste when the earthquake hit.  Not to mention the half built/half destroyed buildings where the crumbling walls and ceilings are barely standing up by a single piece of rebar. It is hard to describe this city much further because it seems past expression (photos to come soon). 

But PAP is not all one sad picture.  There is loud, catchy music roaring from the speakers into the street.  There are beautiful tropical plants that are growing interspersed in the decay.   Most of all, there are the Haitians themselves.  Upon arrival here, I immediately fell in love with the Haitians.  They are an amazing people that I deeply respect.  Although have they been dealt bad cards for their whole history, they are still some of the most kind, friendly, fun, and resilient people I have ever met.  They take what little they have and they make it work. I hope you get the chance to meet one yourself, someday.  I can't wait to get to know them more over the next month.  More to come soon...

Chelsea