Crossroads Safe Arrival

Just a short update to say that the Crossroads team has safely arrived, with I believe all their bags, though one did go missing for a while at the airport.  They are full of enthusiasm and energy, even after the long trip here and things have definitely picked up with their arrival.  We're off for a walk-about to stretch their legs and show them around, then an evening to settle in and recuperate.

I had another new adventure this morning, expanding my Haiti driving experience by driving in, around and through PAP for shopping and the trip to the airport.  It was fun, actually pretty tame as some developing countries go that I've driven in before, though I must say the lack of a horn does make it more interesting.  Packing up at the airport required both the van and the truck bed, to the disappointment of team leader Pat and two friends, who desperately wanted to ride in the back from the airport.  Though I don't mind that method of travel, in fact I did the same a month ago, I f thought that piling three men onto a heaped load of suitcases tenuously strapped in wasn't the best way to introduce Haiti to these guys, so it was a no go.  I promise there will be other chances, Pat!


The only incident was the other vehicle, the van which got a slight nudge from a truck at a police check point, but nothing even to report, except a delay on the road.  With Price, Haiti Arise's Coast Guard police escort riding in the truck, we flew through all obstructions.  I did prove one thing though, it IS POSSIBLE to get a ticket in Haiti.  Two traffic cops were fast-approaching on a section of road where we'd moved into empty oncoming traffic lanes to avoid a jam, ready to stop me in my tracks and write a ticket, only to have them wave us through, with a smile, once Price was seen in the vehicle.  


After arriving was a quick lunch, unpacking of bags and then an hour walk-about to stretch legs and get a feel for the area.  That's it for now, lots to do now that another team has arrived!

Journey to Jacmel (part 2)

We made our way to the beachfront, a long stretch of dirty sand arching around the bay from the UN-occupied harbor facility to low mountains across the bay.  The beach is lined with rows of coconut trees and it is obvious that this was once a very beautiful spot bustling with activity, tourists, fishing boats and shops from a bygone era.  

Unfortunately, its mostly a dumpsite now, with garbage strewn in heaps everywhere, while prime oceanfront property lies in ruins.  We got a local’s tour and explanation of a luxury oceanfront hotel abandoned and slowly crumbling after relatively minor earthquake damage (our engineer, Roy, thought the structural aspects of it looked in pretty good shape), more the victim of awaiting a resolution of ownership between the widow (Haitian) and ex-wife (Canadian) of the deceased owner, its stained-glass windows and stagnant pool poignant reminders of a much-better time.  

Next door a beautifully-muraled wall surrounds a night club left vacant for the last 20 years, nobody wanting to claim ownership or buy it because it was supposedly owned and operated by a member of the vicious and feared “tonton makout” secret police under former dictator Duvalier.  

Down the road near the end of the beach a new hotel was under construction, and several small shops crafted paper mache figure figures and masks for the upcoming Carnivale celebrations which are big in Jacmel, and a makeshift camp in the hotel grounds was restoring what looked like furniture pieces from this or a similar hotel.  A rusty-framed picture kind of summed up the bygone era:  

paper mache animals for the upcoming festivities 

Carnivale mask shop in full production mode

“Part French, Part African, Part Caribbean.  100% Unforgettable.”

left hanging after the earthquake

After regathering at the vehicle I asked Marc if there was anything around in good shape, and sure enough there is. We navigated to a bluff overlooking the bay and walked into the Cap Lamandou Hotel, a beautiful, modern tropical oasis where the next few hours were spent relaxing, dining, checking out the historic artwork and swimming in the ocean and at the beach below.  

can you say "Aaaaahhh!"

and now for something different.. NOT Alberta beef, but good nonetheless

Lisa's traveling pharmacy of natural herbs & cleanses.. She's still not well

Painting depicting France's colonial gem, Haiti's sugar plantations

French capitulating to Haitian general, national independence over 200 years ago...

R&R time above Jacmel bay

a gorgeous residential portico beyond

a long walk back up the stairs

This was very nice, an excellent retreat and place to refresh and rewind for a few hours together.  There is much more to see and do in Jacmel and surrounding area, including the beautiful Bassin Bleu (see pic below, from the internet) and the nearby Parc National la Visite, isolated above 6000ft near Seguin with its magnificent cloud forests and mountain trekking (see photos, again from the Internet), as well as more coves and bays to explore, snorkel, dive and fishing...  As Marc says, that's "the NEXT time you come to Haiti"... he's a sly one! (:    Before long afternoon was turning to evening and we had to start making the trek across the city and back up and over the mountains to Haiti Arise at Grand Goave, awaiting a return "the next time....". 

Bassin Bleu

trail to Sequin near Parc National la Visite

waterfalls in Parc Nationale la Visite

Journey to Jacmel

The day dawned bright and clear, and after piling into the rear of our Ford pickup, we headed off to the mountains, full of anticipation for a day of R&R and exploration during our journey to Jacmel.

After refueling at the junction with the mountain road, and enjoying the hustle-bustle of that place, we headed south and gradually rose up as the road-otherwise in great shape-twisted back and forth, up and down through rising foothills to increasingly higher and higher ridges.  As we gained elevation we also gained perspective, giving us a view of this place not seen below.  The air was cool, the people still-friendly, and the mountain vistas like a pastel painting of various shades 3-4 ridges deep.  The geology changed ridge to ridge, with barren rocky yellow marls leading to bright red lateritic soils, to deep loams and then rocky gravels around the corner, and quite high mountains off to the east.  Quite the visual, and geological variety! Being both a retired geologist and avid photographer I loved it.  

As we rose the vegetation also changed, and we soon encountered bamboo groves, arbutus trees, various types of pines, something like boabab trees, a wide variety of palms, arching-branched umbrella trees similar to the high plains of the Serengetti and even a huge skyward-reaching Norfolk Island pine.  Now where did that come from?  Although certain areas of the mountains are quite sparsely vegetated, I think that is more from rapidly-changing soil types that deforestation... but then again who can really tell?  In any case, there is lots of green throughout the area, though certainly not totally-treed like a tropical rainforest you might see in West Africa or Brazil.

Once we reached the crestal mountain-top town of Decouze about halfway to Jacmel we were slowed, then stopped by a bustling market.  The tropical fruits were abundant and vegetables at this elevation included more of what we in Canada might find - cabbages, corn, carrots and the like.  There were also the common goats, chickens and a couple of rabbits, which were new, and the requisite donkeys and scrawny horses used to haul the huge baskets and bags to market.  Marc it turns out wanted a couple of rabbits to raise in Grand Goave, though that didn’t come up till later when we were relaxing and discussing the drive over.  We’ll have to keep our eyes open.  

Shortly after the market we started our descent and eventually the azure blue and aquamarine of the Caribbean Sea came into view in Jacmel’s cove.  Quite a large braided gravel river enters the ocean at Jacmel, and for several miles inland it was being used for swimming, washing, doing laundry and washing vehicles, hopefully more of the former upstream and the later downstream, though to be truthful I think it was pretty much a hodge-podge.  Once across a major bridge crossing a tributary loaded with advertising signs, we entered Jacmel.

Jacmel is one of Haiti’s largest, 3rd or 4th in population I think and sprawls over low hills along the bay where the river enters the sea.  You can tell right away that it is different than PAP, and certainly Grand Goave as there are many two story, historic buildings with iron-wrought balconies and colorful painting reminiscent of the city of New Orleans in the US.  It’s a bit like walking through the French Quarter there, though most of the buildings are run down and earthquake damage, mostly cracking, is still visible here and there.  After New Orleans’ struggle with Katrina destruction it might be a toss-up as to which city is faring the worst.  

end of part 1...

Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star

Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star

How I wonder what you are

High above Haiti so bright

Like a Diamond in the Night 

Dispelling darkness with Your Light

Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star

Its funny how things go in a day.  Just when you’re ready to describe a wonderful day-trip through panoramic mountains to a beautiful historic city (Jacmel), a cool night ride through the dark in the back of a pickup loaded with mandarins, pomelos, sweet-tasting bananas, jack fruit, cochiman and the ever-smiling Papa Noel the narrative takes a detour.  

As we rode through the mountains returning back from Jacmel (I’ll get back to that later...) a sliver of moon and two bright lights above, which we figured had to be Jupiter and Venus lit the darkening sky.  The air was cool, and after several hours of cool I was actually getting a bit of a chill, a first for Haiti!  

Riding the first ~25km we gradually rose through the foothills to the crestal town of Decouze, now quiet after the bustling of the mountaintop mid-day market earlier, accompanied by blaring horns as each vehicle approached us or a corner and the occasional bleating of goats, like the 6 goats in bags/4 men coasting otherwise silently down to Jacmel.  Stopping at several roadside fruit stands with their mounds of neatly-arranged fruits, hoping to get a few more items with better prices now that the day was winding down, and moms would be anxious to get back to kids languishing roadside waiting on some dinner before falling into perhaps a bed.  Our last stop's final negotiations interrupted by an oncoming transport truck blaring its horn that wasn't waiting and needed the room, so Lisa grabbed the bag of pomelos, and sealed the deal by caving and throwing an extra handful of Haitian Goude out the window onto the tarmac as Marc spun out and tore off up the hill. 

After cresting the summit and starting down the other side we caught a last few glimmers of light in hillside silhouettes and a spectacular orange-red sunset far to the west.  Descending was slow and steady, a bit easier for us in the back because we couldn’t see the approaching vehicles with parking or no lights on till the last moment,  the abundant pedestrians-did I say dark skin, dark clothing-though we did catch a glimpse of two men standing on the roof of a descending 18-wheeler cab in the shadows as we passed the huge truck slowly disappearing into the darkness to our rear.  We finally made it down to a noisy and bright crusade meeting being set up at the intersection with the main highway.  

From there to home we were accompanied by just the quiet of the night and an abundance of bright stars shining down from above, the constellation Orion directly overhead.  The stars shine down equally on good and bad, good government systems and bad, and peoples of all sizes, shapes, colors and countries.  Just like the love of God...  This country-the small bit that I’ve seen-is very beautiful and the people resilient, working slowly to restore its hidden gems.  Perhaps tonight’s ride through the dark evened out some of today’s disparities, garbage, squandered potential and surrounding needs and cast a finer glow on this place, Haiti and its true potential.